Winchester vrs Federal Brass

[GMW]

I am buying my Monday night shooting ammo from Walmart and I have been buying Winchester or Federal depending on my mood. My 550B is not set up for 9mm yet so I am just saving my brass. Who makes the better brass between the two? I usually reload 45 cal brass until the head stamp wears off...

[Able 5]

I prefer, winchester over federal champion. Fed has a sort of concave base/primer area and sometimes the primer will not punch out completly. Other than that is six one way and half a dozen the other. Happy shooting.

[MT Gianni]

http://www.castpics.net/subsite2/ByFireArm/Cast%20in%20the%209mm%20Blackhawk.pdf

While you might not be shooting in a blackhawk I respect Beagle's opinion as much as anyones.

[beagle]

I found that Federal or Speer brass much thinner than R-P and Win. I could get away with loads in them that I couldn't in the RP and Winchester in the Blackhawk convertible. Now, I use the heck out of Win and RP brass but normally cut back a gain or so on my loads as opposed to the other.

Just sizing FC or Speer, you can tell some difference.

But, it's all brass and I use S & B and GI brass for shooting at varmints off the tractor as they're gone anyway.

I'd go with Federal./beagle

[ku4hx]

I prefer Starline. Maybe I just lucked out, but several years ago, before prices went through the roof, I bought a rather large quantity of all the handgun calibers I load. That turned out to a really good decision. What I have from them is really high quality, consistent cases. YMMV.

My experience over the years has been every manufacturer's products vary in quality from time to time and it's basically a c r a p -shoot no matter what you do.

[Hardcast416taylor]

I can always tell a Fed. or a Speer case when I`m resizing/depriming on my Projector press. Almost seems like they have a wider area in the web of the case. Rem. and Win. go thru with no difficulities. I`ve also noticed that the primer pockets seem of an odd dia. on Speer and Fed. brass. My 7mm Rem. Mag. loves Fed. brass but so-so with Win or Rem. cases.Robert

[HighHook]

With me i have different head stamps for different powders, loads and projectiles.

I prefer the Winchester for my cast boolits...:smile:

[Freischütz]

I prefer Federal. I've had trouble fully seating CCI primers in Winchester cases. The new CCI primers work better than the old ones.

I've never had trouble priming Federal or Remington cases.

[handyman25]

I don not care for Winchester brass in 45lc in my blackhawk. I use starline brass, and like it very well. I cannot comment on federal.

[GMW]

My main concern is gas blow back through the primer pocket and scorching the breech face around the firing pin. I am thinking that I am starting from once fired brass that I fired. I use CCI, Federal and Winchester primers if that would make a difference in the mix?

[1Shirt]

Seems to me that most fed brass is softer than other brands. Also seems to me that primer pockets are larger, and or expand more. Prefer Rem.
1Shirt!:coffee:

[MT Gianni]

I find that I have to generalize on brass by caliber. I have some Rem rifle brass I like and some I don't. Just because we like one brand in 9mm doesn't mean it is great in another caliber.

[TCLouis]

Don't know if it is caliber as much as gun, but my 7mm Mag (Husky 5000) prefers FC case for cast boolit loads, never shot a coated bullet out of it.

One aught 6 prefers Remington and has never shot a decent group with Winchester brass, FC is in between.
Took me a while in load development to realize what was going on and quit loading Winchester brass for that gun.

Makes no sense, but I go with what the target tells me, after all accuracy and precision is what I am going for.

[Shiloh]

Found some today marked

9mm
*I*

Israeli Military Industries perhaps??

Shiloh

[Bullet Caster]

9mm marked "I"- Interesting. BC

[Frosty Boolit]

*I*- Independence? To the original poster, Both brands have worked well for me. I tend to prefer the FC because I have not seen any with crimps. Sometimes even non-crimped winchester brass has a helluva tight primer pocket.

[beagle]

I kinda segregate mine according to the gun intended for. The Blackhawk convertible gets the Speer and FCs, the two High Powers get WW and RP and the oddball stuff like military, S & B and other oddball stuff goes into the "throwaway" pile. This stuff is loaded and goes with me on the tractor where there is no chance of recovery and is "shoot and forget".

If I had to choose one brand and buy it, it would be Federal....followed by Speer. The Starline is darn fine brass but who buys 9mm brass new when there's literally bushels on the ground at any range or shooting place./beagle