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Reloading new unfired brass

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little cleo View Drop Down
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    Posted: December/30/2010 at 23:15
I just got a reloaDing kit as a gift.  I haven't mounted the press  and powder dispenser yet I'm working on a bench and redoing a room.  I want to know though can I just primer the  new brass and then use the deburring and chaffing tool and be good to go or do I have touse the case lub pad and run them thorough the resizer then the deburring chaffing and primming?  Thanks and hope you all have a Happy New year and all see big big bucks this coming fall with the rifle or bow in hand.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Steelbenz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/30/2010 at 23:19
Quick answer YES! I would also measure,trim the works.
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 8shots Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 00:01
I would first chamfer and deburr before priming. This way you can make sure that none of the shavings has fallen into the case and end up obstructing the primer flash hole.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Urimaginaryfrnd Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 07:58
Case prep is always the time consuming part.  With rifle cases you need to measure the length of the case and trim if it is longer than specs in the reloading book.  Could you take virgin brass put a primer in it pour the right amount of powder in it seat a bullet in it and fire it -  yes.  But every small effort goes a long way toward improving the quality and accuracy of the ammo.  length of the case is very important with rifle cartridges where in handgun cartridges I have never trimmed a case. Usin the deburring tool the primer pocket uniformer and the flash hole uniformer tools will help to make the cases the same and consistency means accuracy.

"Always do the right thing, just because it is the right thing to do".
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jonoMT View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jonoMT Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 09:59
If you get Lapua brass and load boat tail bullets, you can just load the unfired brass straight off. I never chamfer it, but do deburr after trimming. I use the L.E. Wilson trimmer. It's a very nice tool. The reason you want to keep case lengths down to spec is because most centerfire cartridges headspace off the shoulder, expanding and sealing the chamber during firing. An overly long neck will keep this from happening and will also allow dangerous pressure to build up as it crimps the bullet in the throat of the chamber.

I've yet to see a Lapua case that needed anything done to the flash hole but I do use a Sinclair primer pocket uniformer to clean up the pockets. And I recommend investing in really good dies once you have the hang of it and decide you want to stick with handloading.
Reaction time is a factor...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote cvedrick Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 10:17
get out your handy dandy dial caliper and measure the case, also load one into the chamber and make sure it will chamber.  If it passes both of these, then check and chamfer / debur your case mouth.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ckk1106 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 10:17
I run the mouth of the case through the expander ball first.  I often find many of the mouths of the cases are dented in from shipping.  Then I debur.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 13:34
Originally posted by ckk1106 ckk1106 wrote:

I run the mouth of the case through the expander ball first.  I often find many of the mouths of the cases are dented in from shipping.  Then I debur.

i actually fl size then, ive had some that looked just fine out of the box and i loaded them up and they wouldnt chamber up in my gun. after that incident i make sure to do it to all of my new brass.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote helo18 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 13:50
I have never had a problem with them chambering, but I have seen dented necks, so I neck size them, then trim and debur.  Then primer and load.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote lucytuma Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 16:07
I also full size new brass, just to be safe. I'd hate load a bunch of ammo and find out that it wasn't correctly sized.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote BeltFed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/31/2010 at 19:19
I'm about 800 rounds into new unfired Winchester 308 brass, doing nothing more than seating a primer and maybe running a neck expander through the neck before the powder charge and seating the bullit, and I've had good results. However, the next loading these cases will be full length sized, trimmed, deburred, primer pocket uniformed, and flash hole deburred.
If your shooting a semi-auto, size, trim, and deburr first.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote medic52 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/01/2011 at 10:18
I always do every piece of brass that way you always know...........
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Terry Lamb Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/01/2011 at 12:41
Everything does have its purpose. I never full length re-size my new brass, primarily because of how that shortens case life. Not a big deal, but every full-length resizing takes a case a large step closer to its life's end. As others have posted, I always check and trim to length.
 
I never, however, use previously unfired brass for my hunting loads, not being willing to risk that rare odd duck that won't chamber correctly.
 
Enjoy reloading! It adds a wonderful dimension, and an impetus to really tune your rifle's performance while adding practice at the range. Gotta do something to kill time until opening day, and reloading and tuning is a fun and productive way to do it!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jonoMT Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/01/2011 at 13:50
Unless it's a semi-auto, which must always be FL-resized, it's best to resize as little as possible. I don't work for Lapua, don't know anybody in Finland, don't even own a bottle of Finlandia or anything else from there. But I'll swear by the quality of that brass. I bought 400 cases each for my .308s and out of 800 maybe a handful showed up with dinged mouths. I've never had any indication while shooting that there has been any variation in it. As for the dinged, ones, I just ran the die high enough not to do any resizing but just to push and pull the decapper through. I marked the bullets in those rounds but really didn't notice much difference at the range. Now they're fireformed like the rest. After all the brass has been through five firings, I'll send it off to have the necks annealed.

I have a lot of other .308 brass. Almost all of it was once-fired by me. But I did pick up a couple hundred rounds of LC '90 brass a few years ago. Half of it was primed, which I didn't even notice at the time. It appeared to be unfired, but I measured each and every one of those cases to make sure it was in spec. I didn't load it hot and took into account the reduced volume military brass has. There were no problems, but then I retired that brass because I just didn't know how many times it had been fired. The rest of what I have I know but it also has the problem of being a real assortment. Rest assured, it will be measured and never loaded hot.

The thing is, you handload to tailor rounds for your particular rifle. Buying really good brass in the first place cuts down on problems and time spent prepping. Handloading takes a while, especially to do well. The last thing you want to do is add to that time with a bunch of unnecessary work.
Reaction time is a factor...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote budperm Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/18/2011 at 12:21
I have had excellent accuracy and luck with Lapua brass in 308W strait out of the box.  Just prime and load.  I have noticed seating the bullets is a tad harder indicating undersized necks and or stiff brass.  They all worked well in 3 different 308s.  I did the same using Hornady virgin brass in 223.
Nosler advertises that their premium brass is fully prepped chamfered and ready to load right out of the box.


Edited by budperm - January/18/2011 at 12:23
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Longhunter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/19/2011 at 02:16

Don't automatically assume that brass for a semi-auto must always be FL-resized.  See what works with your own rifle and ammunition.

My Remington semi-auto Model 742 shot hundreds of reloaded rounds without a hitch, and they were never full-length resized.  Of course, the brass had only been shot in that rifle.
 
 


Edited by Longhunter - January/19/2011 at 02:16
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jjyoung Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/20/2011 at 19:58
I also FL-resize, trim, chamfer etc. new brass.  I would just make sure to at least neck size the new brass so the case mouths have uniform pressure on the bullet when its seated.  The closer in dimensions all the cases are the more accurate the loads will be.  
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