Brass ????

[Biggred]

Hello all, I'm still new here and trying to keep my mouth shut and ears (eyes) open. I've been saving brass for a Loooong time and am ready to start. Is there a difference between nickel and brass cases? I know silver and gold. :) I mean when reloading. I've got alot of .357 and.38 nickel cases from my old badge days. And alot of brass ones too. Aside from the obvious sorting, does just nickel make a diff? I only want to build a good load for my long and short tubes. Not after +/- super load. Thanks to all, and keep the faith! Frank

[Lee]

Well, I'll throw my $0.02 out there, I'm sure others will have somehing to add.
Brass is good. Cleaned up, it does a nice job. Inspect every case for splits or other obvious deformities before you start reloading. Any doubts, ask here, some one will answer.

Nickel plated cases is good. Cleaned up it does a nice job. Inspect your cases for splits TWICE. Some folks say nickle plated cases are more prone to "hydrogen" embrittlement. Basically means the cases might be more susceptible to splits.
Since you're only talking .38 and .357....get a set(s) of carbide dies, and you don't have to worry about lubing your cases during the reloading process. (If all your cases came from the same gun, you probably don't have to do much more than clean and load). Cases from different weapons probably should be resized in the reloading process. Nickle plated cases have some "extra lubricity" and generally don't require lubing as do brass cases.

Nickel plated cases will tarnish less rapidly than brass. They will tarnish even less when secured in a leather bandoleer or "holder", as the acids that may be given off by the tanned leather will not attack the nickel plate nearly as rapidly as brass.

I've used regular primers (not Magnums) in my .357 cases, and since I do not try to load them "hot to the max" I have not had a problem doing so. I can still get a very stout report from the .357, just by following powder manufacturers load data, and loading to middle of the road or slightly light.

A mild load in a .38 is a joy to behold, and hold onto!..........................Lee:)

[BruceB]

Bigred, sir;

Given a choice, I will avoid nickel-plated cases. This is due to rather extensive experience with case splits in nickel-plate cases of all the major makes. I recall a full box of Norma nickeled .357 factory loads, out of which over half of the cases showed MAJOR splits on the first firing.

Having said that, I confess that free "brass" is free brass, and I will pick the stuff up at the range and re-use it....but I'd NEVER buy it. I keep it separated from the regular brass, and pay MUCH more attention to inspecting it, both before and after the loading process. Many splits will develop during bullet-seating or mouth-flaring, so just a simple before-loading inspection is not sufficient.

I avoid nickel-plated rifle brass like the plague.

Lee raises a good point about tarnishing. I find that using Turtle Wax "Scratch and Swirl Remover" along with the corncob grit in my tumbler has eliminated any tarnishing of my brass, even over many months in storage, and even in open bins exposed to the (dry Nevada) air. The stuff leaves a microscopic wax film which protects the brass, and MY, does it ever shine!!!

[Pepe Ray]

It has been said, here and other places, that sometimes nickle plating will sometimes chip away from the brass. When this happens it will sometimes lodge in the sizing die and make severe scratches on subsequent cases.
I have about a 50/50 mix of each and will continue to use both until this happens. For the price of a die it seems like a good gamble. Take your choice.
Pepe Ray

[boogerred]

i was always told that the nickle will peel off and scratch the dies and cases. ive got enough real brass socked away that i usually throw it away. ive never tried any nickle. i was also told that lightning will shock you and ive never stuck my tongue out to catch any yet. i would think the more a case is fired and resized the more likely the nickle would be to peel away. i dont think nickle has the "stretch" that brass has.

[mooman76]

I use both and they both work about the same for me. Free brass is free brass and that is good. I do tend to seperate them when loading though. Just to keep some organization. I do like the way the nickle looks though but it is a little harder to find on the ground. The nickle acts like camaflage.

[carpetman]

I like nickel brass. One thing I like is if I have two similar sized cases is to have one brass and the other nickel. Ive used it for years and sont know of any dies I have scratched. Doesn't require as much tumbling.

[robertbank]

Pros for nickle is that it will withstand high humidity and won't tarnish like brass will. I don't think brass lasts as long and seems to work harden after a few reloads. I use it in .38spl as I get lots fo it from the range but for 9MM I just toss it in the recycle bin. I get lots of Win and Remington cases in 9MM.

In our wet climate I think nickle brass has it's place and for rifle where rounds may be stored for long perods of time nickle shines.:mrgreen:

Take Care

Bob

[largecaliberman]

I like nickel brass. One thing I like is if I have two similar sized cases is to have one brass and the other nickel. Ive used it for years and sont know of any dies I have scratched. Doesn't require as much tumbling.

I agree. I have several hundred nickel ones and keep them seperate with the brass ones. I usually tumble the nickel ones for 1/2 hour or less. During the reloading session I first dilute one tube of lee case lube to about a quart of H2O and spray it on the nickel. The nickel batch was probably reloaded atleast 20 - 30 times over the past 10 or so years and I haven't had the nickel peel of the case.

[Ron]

About 6 years ago I was given a five gallon bucket of 38 spec nickle cases. They came from a security company and were once fired. I use two buckets to recycle these cases. First bucket gets loaded and put in safe. Second bucket contains those fired, tumbled clean and inspected. I have yet to find the nickle separating from the brass nor have I had any split mouths. In my opinion, nickled brass cases last longer than plain brass ones. Apart from this, my 586 rev hates brass cases.

[Ed K]

Some have mentioned nickel scratching you dies...

I had also heard it can come off little by little in your chamber and abrade/score your barrel.

[Bass Ackward]

Put me down as a hater of nickel plate. For cast that is. No matter how you anneal, you can't see the anneal process taking place. And even after I annealed for 2 seconds longer than regular brass, I still couldn't neck up 30-06 to 35 Whelen without losing cases.

And for those that I did, I lost bullet diameter when seating bullets. A definate no no in my book. So it got set aside for jacketed stuff.

Give me plain brass. Tarnished and all. I married an ugly woman, I can tollerate ugly brass.

[versifier]

I have found no real difference in handun brass. The only time in my experience that I have seen nickel "delaminating" was years ago in one box of cheap Euro .357 cases that I got at the range. Some of them began to "peel" at the second sizing, so I tossed them. Never had a problem since. Most of the handgun brass I use now is range brass and I use whatever comes my way. I think if you use quality brass the "problem" is non-existant now, but it might have been real at some point in the past. Some of us have memories going back more than a few years though, and "once burned, twice shy". You don't usually forget a big problem, even if it was 30, or 40, or 50 years ago.

I do use nickeled rifle brass for big game hunting ammo, but these cases are not used for practice - three rounds before the season starts to confirm zero, and the one or two I will fire at the critter in question. A twenty round box gets reloaded at most once every five or six or seven years. I have three rifles that I hunt with, one that I rely on 90% of the time, so sometimes it lasts even longer. All of my other rifle shooting (99%) is with non-plated brass, so I really can't comment on the case life with plated bottleneck cases.

[looseprojectile]

Many decades ago, I wore out a ruger flattop .357 . Took me several years.
At that time I loaded some wild and crazy hot loads. Don't do that anymore.
During those years I often had cases seperate. Some in two pieces some in three pieces. I never have had a nickle case come apart. I have had some that wore nearly all the nickle off.
My vote is for nickle, theyr'e tougher. To put it another way, I prefer nickle cases in .357 .
Happy shooting