using reformed brass

[shdwlkr]

Do any of you see this as being a real issue? examples are 30-06 brass to 270 winchester, 357 mag to 256 win mag and 45-70 to 45-60 or for that matter any obsolete caliber
thanks for your thoughts and ideas

[454PB]

It depends on what you mean by "issue".

I've reformed .308 and 30/06 all the way down to 22/250. It takes a few steps, trimming, and some neck reaming, but it works. Same for .243 and 6mm. In some instances, annealing of the forward portion is required.

I posted a while back about reforming .45 ACP brass down to function in .44 magnum/special.

It can be done, but may require a lot of work. In other words, there needs to be a good reason......... or maybe you just have too much time on your hands and like to experiment.

[DLCTEX]

The only issue is the chance of the head stamp being different from the application. On another thread this past week we discussed forming 22-250 from other brass. I have in the past just to prove I can if need be, but as a practice I do not due to there being so many shooters with so many different guns the chance for a mistake is too great. Any such ammo should be in a box clearly marked and precautions made to keep it separate. If it should fall into other hands after your gone it could be unpleasant. I'd say that if the correct brass is available, 270 for instance, use it. If unavailable or the cost is prohibitive, form it. I won a 257 Wby. in a raffle and since factory ammo was priced out of my league I formed some 7mm mag. brass to shoot while waiting for brass from Midway. I recently was loading some 7mm mag. and accidentally got the reformed brass and tried to run it through the size die. The ball would not enter the neck and I quickly realized the problem. I haven't investigated changing back to 7mm, but will probably just scrap it.
If the brass has been reformed by others, I would check the length and esp. the thickness of the neck brass. If the necks are too thick from shortening the original and getting into the thicker portion of the case wall, excessive pressure can result due to the bullet being held in the chambered case. I would also run a good number of the empty brass through the chamber of my gun to make sure there are no issues before loading many of them. Pulling down loaded rounds is no fun.

[gray wolf]

Hey some good advise you got there. Let me add that the 270 cases will get a little shorter, if you can live with that they work fine. Also check the neck thickness it may get thicker
It does with other more radical case forming. a case neck without the proper clearance can raise chamber pressure. for a none bench rest gun about two thousand clearance should be about minimum perhaps three .0015 per side. Yes you may have to ream the inside or turn the outside. Guy's correct me if I am wrong --but I believe a loaded round should be at least
.002 less than a fired case from you rifle when measured at the neck.

[scrapcan]

It should be clearly marked and boxed well. It is not an issue when those who know will follow you. It is when some sap buys the stuff at the yard sale after you are planted in the tulips and does not have experience with measuring or comparing before loading and pulling the trigger.

I try on all of my reformed brass to make sure it is in it's own boxes, general plastic mtm etc... type boxes with permanenet adhesive type labels. The permanent glue type labels will help, but not eliminate, the loss of labels. I also use a lot of military brass for conversion. No direct read headstamp for novices to get mixed up.

And saying that I have all manner of converted cartridges in use. Sometimes you have to do a conversion to get where you want to go.

[higgins]

This comes up fairly frequently, and I always comment that the "old" caliber on the headstamp should be obliterated with a file or Dremel tool. In my years of scavenging brass I've picked up a lot of properly headstamped cartridges fired in the wrong gun, so I assume it would be even easier to get an improperly headstamped cartridge in the wrong gun. If people don't notice differences in cartridge length, I assume they wouldn't notice a difference in bullet diameter.

[cbrick]

Very sound advice given on marking the box's & ammo clearly. It's done all the time, there is even a book (a rather large book) called "The Handloader's Guide to Cartridge Conversions". It details step by step instructions on how to form many hundreds of cartridges from what parent case to start with right to the finished round.

Rick

[Cactus Farmer]

I form my 41 Swiss from 8mm Lebel. It seems like everyone looks at the head stamp......I am quick to say,"that's not what it fits anymore." A.430 bullet down an 8mm hole would be a thing to watch,from far away!
that said,i sure would like a few 44 Mag cases with 45 Auto on the head! I'm sure there would be some funny looks.:bigsmyl2:

[Ed Barrett]

I make several conversions since the original brass is no longer available. I always paint the head of the case with paint. Most will wear off but it will stay inside the printing even after several trips through the vibrator. Something I've seen lately which could be a little dicey is cutting 9MM Luger back a MM to use in 9MM Makarov. Since they both head space off the end of the case, reloading one would leave about an extra .025 extra head space. A loaded round shouldn't fit in a 9MM luger since the diamiter of the Makarov is larger.
The practice of using a file to deface the head stamp gets a little iffy as far as changing the head space. A better method is to chuck the case a lathe and cut a single line through the head stamp. Just my 2 cents worth.

[DLCTEX]

As far as using a fired case to judge case neck diameter, I recently was reloading some 22-250 and had a number of cases I got from a member here that were already sized and primed. I also had some fired brass that had been loaded with a full power load last time. I had the two groups set in loading blocks that were alike. I took a break for lunch then started to drop powder in the cases. I double checked myself that I was charging the primed and sized cases by picking up a jacketed bullet and trying it in the neck of each batch. Surprise, they were equal. the fired brass necks were the same as the resized ones. It had to be due to spring back, which means those cases will get annealed next time. I checked to make sure the necks weren't too thick, and that they hadn't been resized. Then checked other brass that had been fired in a different batch. Same deal. Said all that to say you can't always rely on a fired case to tell what the chamber and neck look like.

[shdwlkr]

thanks guys I thought it wasn't that big of a deal as others on another site seemed to feel it was and I am always looking at cutting my costs when reloading and staying safe at the same time.

[gray wolf]

Guy's correct me if I am wrong --but I believe a loaded round should be at least
.002 less than a fired case from your rifle when measured at the neck.
I think we are talking about a different situation.
Perhaps I wasn't clear. If I have a case that was fired from my rifle lets say my 270 and the neck of the fired case measures .308 and I load some other brass and when loaded it measures .310 at the neck. that case could be a problem in my rifle. I want that loaded case to measure less than
.308 at least by .002 in my situation it would be .306.

[shdwlkr]

Gray Wolf
I don't think we are talking about diameter size more of the overall case length. But I could be missing something also. Won't be the first time or the last, that is why this is such a great site to ask questions.

[azrednek]

Back in the 70's when the only way one could get reloadable brass for 7.65, 7.7, 7 and 8MM was saving the brass from new ammo. I bought hundreds of 30/06 Canadian blanks and converted them. Worked just fine but a real pain in the rear keeping everything with the same head stamp separated. The only mis-hap I recall was some loaded 7.7 Jap in a 8MM Mauser. Could have been a real mess in reverse.

[MtGun44]

If you have no other choice for an obsolete caliber, have at it. Far better than making
a fine rifle into a useless piece of art. OTOH, having the wrong headstamp would drive
ME nuts, I'd avoid it like the plague. I load for at least 10 pistol and 15 rifle calibers,
wrong headstamps would be a GIANT PITA for me.

Maybe not for you, depending on how many calibers you load for and how careful you
are on storing and sorting brass.

Bill

[nicholst55]

I routinely form .35 Whelen from .270 Win brass, and .257 Wby from 7mm Rem Mag with no problems. I prefer the slightly longer .270 brass over the more common .30-06 brass because it's a tad longer, and yields brass closer to the specified length. Using .30-06 brass yields a case that's some .030-.040" short; starting with .270 brass normally yields a case that needs a slight trim.

I have not been satisfied with either the quality or availability of factory .257 Weatherby brass, so I buy new Winchester 7mm Rem Mag brass, neck it down and fireform it. It works admirably.

Note that I don't own a 7mm Rem Mag rifle, and have no interest in doing so. It might be possible to chamber a 7mm RM round in my .257 WM rifle, and fire it; I don't know - never tried it to see if one would chamber. I sincerely doubt that a .35 Whelen round would chamber in a .270 and allow the bolt to close. Since I don't own a .270 and have no intention of doing so, I'm not too concerned about that either.

[Bullshop Junior]

I use 308 with the neck turned in my 7mm/08 all the time, but had no luck at all with reforming 357 to 256 WM.

[lwknight]

I had some .280 that I thought were 30-06. They looked so much like 30-06 that I checked the length and loaded them as 30-06. Now they are 30-06 after being fire formed.
I pity a thief that gets into my ammo. Some things are not what they say that they are.

[Bad Water Bill]

Now to add a slight drift here. I have made MANY 221 Fireball and 20 VTs from 223 brass. Is there any way to treat the brass to blue or black it permanently ( like bluing a bbl ) without harming the brass. If you would change the color of the brass as you changed its usage it would stand out from all the un altered brass. The bottom 1/2 black =221 the top 1/2 black black = 20 Var Targ.

Another idea. Some sort of holder to allow you to use JEWLERS stamps to label the heads with the correct cartridge ID

[Wayne Smith]

I couldn't use my 8mm-06 if I didn't. I don't have a 30-06 so there is no problem. If or when I get one I'll have to have my brass much better organized.

[bruce drake]

35 Rem and 220 Swift become 6.5 JAP
243 brass become 260 Remington
7-08 brass becomes 260 Remington or 308 Winchester
7mm Mauser becomes 257 Roberts
30-06 becomes 8mm, and 7.7 Jap
30-30 becomes 32 Win Spl

http://www.missionmodels.com/product.php?productid=16775
Here's a link to a solution to stain brass black.

I haven't used it but it says it will color brass.

Bruce

[Bad Water Bill]

Thanks Bruce. I will order some tomorrow and will let all here know how it works.

Now how about stamping the heads?

[alamogunr]

Now to add a slight drift here. I have made MANY 221 Fireball and 20 VTs from 223 brass. Is there any way to treat the brass to blue or black it permanently ( like bluing a bbl ) without harming the brass. If you would change the color of the brass as you changed its usage it would stand out from all the un altered brass. The bottom 1/2 black =221 the top 1/2 black black = 20 Var Targ.

Another idea. Some sort of holder to allow you to use JEWLERS stamps to label the heads with the correct cartridge ID

I seem to remember a thread, either here or on another forum, that addressed this subject. I also remember a link to a site that gave recipe's for many different colors. There were a few cautions since some chemicals do affect the brass. I don't reform brass so I didn't bookmark or save it.

John
W.TN

[jonk]

I use 30-06 to form:
8mm mauser
7.7 Jap
7.65 Mauser
7mm Mauser
8mm-06
308 (just a few for kicks)

and though not ideal, 6.5X55 for some low pressure loads.

I could tell you which case was which just at a glance, loaded or empty. Of course I keep them segregated.

Fired thousands of rounds, never mixed one up yet. Nor do I leave brass lying on the bench for others to find.

So no it isn't a problem.

[Wayne Smith]

35 Rem and 220 Swift become 6.5 JAP
243 brass become 260 Remington
7-08 brass becomes 260 Remington or 308 Winchester
7mm Mauser becomes 257 Roberts
30-06 becomes 8mm, and 7.7 Jap
30-30 becomes 32 Win Spl

http://www.missionmodels.com/product.php?productid=16775
Here's a link to a solution to stain brass black.

I haven't used it but it says it will color brass.

Bruce

Something in the back of my mind - High School shop class? - says that this is relatively easy to make. I have no idea how.

[dakotashooter2]

I have used mil surp 308 brass to form .243. The cases end up a bit short but I am actually getting better accuracy than with Win, Fed, or Rem factory brass. The thing I like about it is that there is no caliber designation on it at all so the average Joe would probably have to do some investigation to find out what it is rather than just firing it in a gun of the designated headstamp.

[mroliver77]

Willbird from this site made me some 22-250 brass from .308 match brass. We used gusge pins to find out the neck ID of my chamber and then turned necks .0015 or .002 memory dont work so well anymor. Anyhow the premiss was that the case can only expand to the chamber size and since it takes approx .002 or a tad more expansion to stretch the brass the brass springs back to its former unloaded size. I can decap, recap, charge and load the cases without resizing. Works like a charm and after many firings still perform as intended.
Jay

[Gelandangan]

The only way I could get brass for my .300 Whisper is to use a re formed brass.
Either neck down and cut a 223rem case or neck up a 221FB case.
So whats the problem?

[blackthorn]

There are several valid reasons for coloring brass cases; Identifying your case from those belonging to others, differentiating between cases for specific firearms or finding them amongst the grass, to name a few. Searching the internet using one of the many search engines will provide a plethora of information on methods for coloring brass. The recipes below have been assembled from some of the information gleaned from the “net”. I do not know who posted them or even where I collected them from.

Before attempting to color any of your brass using one of the methods that follow, read all of the information set out here. If you are “saving” the information to a computer word document or a disk and choose to just "cut and paste" part of this, make sure you save the safety instructions and warnings as well as the recipes. Any attempted use of the information here is your responsibility!

Chemical concentrations and conditions under which they are used do matter (concentration is more important than actual volume), so if you want to use less, make sure that you use proportionately less of each ingredient. If you want good results follow the recipes closely. It is absolutely critical that the brass surfaces to be colored be clean, this means an extra hour or so in the tumbler, using untreated media, for the cases and then use clean cotton gloves to handle them.

Obviously you will want to do this treatment with unprimed brass. Do not use metal utensils, other than perhaps stainless steel. Glass or plastic containers are preferable.

TIFFANY GREEN:
Copper Sulfate.................8 ounces
Ammonium Chloride..............4 ounces
Sodium Chloride................4 ounces
Zinc Chloride..................1 ounce
Acetic Acid....................2 ounces
Water..........................1 gallon

VERDE:
Copper Nitrate.................16 ounces
Ammonium Chloride..............4 ounces
Acetic Acid....................1 quart
Water..........................1 gallon

GREEN:
Iron ( ferric) Nitrate.........2 ounces ( Fe(III)(NO3)3)
Sodium Hyposulphite............8 ounces
Water..........................1 gallon
(use at boiling temperature, brass can be immersed or the solution may be "painted" on)

HARDWARE GREEN:
Iron (ferric) Nitrate..........1 ounce (Fe(III)(NO3)3)
Sodium Thiosulfate.............6 ounces
Water..........................1 gallon
(use at 160F)

RED:
Iron (ferric) Nitrate..........6 ounces (Fe(III)(NO3)3)
Sodium Hyposulphite............6 ounces
Water..........................1 gallon
(use at 170F will speed up this reaction)

BLUE:
Sodium Hyposulphite............8 ounces
Lead Acetate...................4 ounces
Water..........................1 gallon
(use at boiling temperature)
Or
Lead Acetate...................2 to 4 ounces
Sodium Thiosulfate.............8 ounces
Acetic Acid....................4 ounces
Water..........................1 gallon
(use at 180F. The color produced using this recipe will change if not lacquered [DO NOT LACQUER FIREARM CARTRIDGES] take your chances with the color change.)

BLUE BLACK:
Copper Carbonate...............1 pound
Ammonium Hydroxide.............1 quart
Water..........................3 quarts
(Add the water after the carbonate and hydroxide have been mixed. There must be excess Copper Carbonate. Use at 175F. This color can be fixed (made more permanent) by quickly dipping in a 2.5%# Sodium Hydroxide solution.)

BLACK:
Ammonium Hydrosulfide...........2.25 ounces
Potassium sulfide...............1 ounce
Water...........................1 gallon (use at room temperature or COOLER for best results)

BROWN:
Potassium Chlorate..............5.5 ounces
Nickel Sulfate..................2.75 ounces
Copper Sulfate..................24 ounces
Water...........................1 gallon (use at boiling temperature)

SAFETY:
1. NEVER taste any of these chemicals.
2. Keep very far out of the reach of children.
3. Most Nitrates are good oxidizing agents and should not be stored with anything flammable.
4. Acetic Acid has a VERY strong pungent odor. Use in well ventilated areas. This acid can be airborne in vapor form. Do not underestimate this chemical, if you feel that you have breathed enough of it to feel uncomfortable, leave the area and drink a carbonated soft drink.
5. Many of these chemicals may stain skin or clothing. Wear rubber gloves and protective clothing including glasses of some sort.
6. Steam can cause serious burns. The temperature of certain solutions of salts can actually exceed the temperature point of boiling water. The steam from these solutions can be very dangerous so use extra care when working with steam and/or boiling solutions!
7. Feel free to change concentrations for experimentation purposes but do not change the ingredients in any one recipe.
8. Always be fully awake and alert around chemicals.

The recipes above are purported to be benign with respect to damaging brass cases, in that they are supposed to color the surface of the cases only. If the reader has any concerns about using any of the referenced chemicals, he/she is encouraged to search for further information either in publications or on the “net”. At the end of the day the choice to use these chemicals (or not) remains totally with the reader. Have fun!! Be safe!!!

[Gelandangan]

There are several valid reasons for coloring brass cases; ....

:drinks:

Thanks blackthorn!!

I shoot 300 whisper and I have sub-sonics and super-sonics loads

I have been battling with recoloring/marking my brass with permanent markers every time I clean them.
The formulas hopefully will end this dilemma.

I will try them as soon as I could gather the ingredients.

[dk17hmr]

I have a 243 Super Rock Chucker, which is a necked down and blown out 25-06. I have a 25-06 and to avoid a mistake I use only 270 brass to make the 243 SRC brass, it requires more work to get it done but I dont worry about grabbing the wrong box of ammo either. I dont have a 270 win and dont plan on it.

[Bad Water Bill]

I called Mission and as soon as they heard rifle cartridge they suggested I try something else. Oh well back to the net and find out where to get the chemicals for a do it yourself kit.:-)

[felix]

Folks, I have just now noticed this thread and there is no mention of the zinc that is included with copper to make cartridge brass. These coloring chemicals might have a weakening effect on the zinc therein, changing the characteristics of the alloy. Keep the loads on the safe side, and pay attention to the total growth of the cases upon firing more critically. A warning would be the difference in feel when sizing, especially a heavily expanded case. Be extra careful, especially after any annealing a colored case. If you have to anneal, do it before case reformation, and never after chemical treatment. ... felix

[Wayne Smith]

Felix, I got an unearned (my opinion) C in HS Chemistry 39 years ago. I really didn't understand inorganic, either. That's the last Chemistry I took. Yeah, that's why I'm a PsyD rather then an MD!

Anyway, is there anything other than the ammonia compounds in the recipies Blackthorn posted that will damage brass?

[shdwlkr]

Felix
Now you have gone and done it. thanks for the info and is there a way to color the brass and not affect the zinc in it.
I was wondering about the chemicals listed and how they affected the brass.
Waiting for your sage wisdom on this

[Mk42gunner]

When I form brass for my 6.5-06 I neck down .30-06, instead of expanding .25-06; under the theory that if someone just reads the headstamp and fires a 6.5-06 in a .30-06 nothing disastrous will happen. If by some chance a 6.5 could be chambered in a .25-06, I am sure pressures would be very high.

While I like the idea of coloring brass, I would not use blue. When dealing with military ordnance, blue is the color for inert ordnance.


Robert

[felix]

Sorry, Wayne and shdwlkr, that I cannot offer further advice without doing some serious looksee. Even then, it would be speculation on my part until some real-time practice provided some authentication. It has been my experience, though, to just look at the case and decipher the caliber without hesitation. Taking 30-30 cases for example, they can be deciphered to be 30, 32, 35, 38 just by looking at the opening and shoulder together. Even with a wrong selection, as in throwing all of them into one bucket externally sized to 30, and then opening them up for the proper boolit size is of no consequence when the cases are annealed after being used after 5 times or so. It's a no brainer for delineating 223, 222,221 because of their separate lengths. Common sense keeps BR cases in their own boxes, never being mixed ever with any other lot. ... felix

[Wayne Smith]

I agree about rifle brass. I'm thinking about differentiating between 9x19 and 9x19 cut down to 9x18. Not quite so easy.

[blackthorn]

The recipies I posted are some I copied from somewhere on the off chance I might need to try coloring brass. I have not tried any of them and I sent them along in case someone wanted to experiment. The only cases I am presently making from donor cases are for my 99 Savage in .22 HP. I am making these from 25-35 cases (one forming) or from the more readily available 30-30 cases (two formings), i.e. 30-30 down to 25-35 down to 22HP. Have a great day!

[MT Gianni]

The best way i have found to color brass is a discount bottle of fingernail polish. A dab at the base can code for you just what it is.

[DLCTEX]

Well, thanks for posting the formulas and thank you Felix for the cautionary note. I will experiment carefully, probably starting with 38 Spc. and then if I go to rifle I'll start with 22 Hornet with mild loads. I will not color any of my 480 Ruger or 257 Wby. brass. Saved and filed.

[Bad Water Bill]

Felix scared me. I just ordered a 1/16 size alpha numeric stamps to use on my altered shells.

Stay tuned

[leadman]

I cut down 9x19 to 9x18. It is a noticeable change when the case is expanded, but I do use a permanent marker on the base to make it easier to sort after firing. There is a definite difference in the feel when resizing.

I also make several other cartridges, 7.65x54 and 6.5-06. I use 280 Rem to make the 6.5-06 since I have a 25-06 and these are tooo close. 7.65 I use 270 or 30-06 military. Obvious difference in case size.

[Wayne Smith]

Blackthorn, a little research turned up the information that another name for Sodium Hyposulfite is Sodium Thiosulphate - doesn't make any sense to me, but that's what several sources said. This means your Green, Hardware Green, and Red formulas are all the same. I also discovered that Iron Nitrite is made by treating iron with Nitric Acid.

I've ordered the ingredients from Science Co. and will see what happens. I won't leave the brass in it very long! I've got to find my rubber gauntlets, too.

[d_man2]

Yes I know this is an old thread, I just did not want to start a new one. Whenever I am at the range I pick up anything I can and usually find a use for it somehow. I find some of my best .308 brass that I have is actually made from .243 range pick ups. I had read that it converts quite easily and it does indeed. I spray just a little WD40 on the inside and outside of the .243 and run it up into my .308 full length sizer. I have over a 90 percent success rate with this. The brass is always too long so I have my Lee case trimmer in my drill press and cut them to length. Super easy and a great way to recycle! For my plinking rounds I have a variety of head stamps, .308, .243, .270, .25-06, 30-06. I know there are many who would say this is an unsafe practice; I am not disagreeing that it COULD be. I never leave my brass at the range so no one else will be using them so that should never be an issue. I also know that I COULD trade my brass for others but to me when I am only getting a few at a time it seems pointless to save up until I have enough when I can just use them right now myself. All of my worn out brass, trimmings, cuttings, and anything I have no need of I save up and take to the scrap yard, they do pay good money for brass. There are those that cringe at this idea, but then again there are those that do not reload either, I don't mind....I will use their brass any day!

[runfiverun]

are you sure that that 243 brass is too long for your 308 rifle?

[samwithacolt]

I use blown out .30-30 in my .38-55, and blown out .30-06 in my 9.3x62. Anealling is the key.

[Artful]

I do several case conversions - some are easy - 358 WCF from 308 for instance - some are much harder 7.62x38R - it helps to have the correct die and to use a manual that informs of all the steps and when to anneal.

[d_man2]

are you sure that that 243 brass is too long for your 308 rifle?

Yep, 243 is def longer than 308 when you reform them. I use a Lee Case trimmer in my drill press. That is the beauty of the Lee case trimmer, no further measuring necessary, it takes all the guess work out of it.

[runfiverun]

you forgot to measure the rifle and find out.....
so your still guessing.

[Bad Water Bill]

My "jewelers stamps" work great.

A - wipes out the LC and year stamps.

On one side the brass now reads 20 and across it reads VT.

No way anyone can mistake my NEWLY MARKED brass for military stuff.:smile:

[Thin Man]

All of the obsolete or unavailable calibers I have created are easily recognized when seen and can't be confused with any other caliber. The list so far is:

(1) 35 Whelen made from 30'06, the fun lasted until Remington made the Whelen a factory offering. Dang it, thought I had a prestige wildcat, even dropped my first deer with it many years ago.

(2) 32-40 made from 30-30 or 32 Spl. cases. Original 32-40 brass and bullets were not to be found, but I already had both for the 32 Spl. I found that a formed case made from 30-30 or 32 Spl. was short when compared with the 32-40 but a factory 32 bullet with cannelure seated to that point gave a loaded 32-40 of correct COL. Happy days.

(3) 8mm Numbu (Japanese pistol caliber) from 357 Sig. This one has been a thrill in learning how to get to the final goal. I lubed and sized the Sig brass in the 8mm sizing die (decapping stem removed), then again with a 30/30 sizing die with the brass pushed fully into the die with a steel plate on top of the press ram (had to remove them from the die with a brass rod). This last was required to remove the swell at the base of the web. Trimmed to length, chamfered the mouth in and out, turned down the rim and they performed like a dream.

With each new project I increased in patience and confidence and satisfaction. More than anything else I learned that many of the answers to my questions were found here on the CastBoolits website. This included both immediate questions plus questions that were going to appear later, but I had not yet discovered them. Many thanks to all of the contributors for their knowledge and willingness to share their experiences.

Thin Man

[Reg]

It depends on what you mean by "issue".

I've reformed .308 and 30/06 all the way down to 22/250. It takes a few steps, trimming, and some neck reaming, but it works. Same for .243 and 6mm. In some instances, annealing of the forward portion is required.

I posted a while back about reforming .45 ACP brass down to function in .44 magnum/special.

It can be done, but may require a lot of work. In other words, there needs to be a good reason......... or maybe you just have too much time on your hands and like to experiment.

Did a quick search and nothing showed up but then again am not real familial with searching but did want to ask. What is involved with making 45 ACP work in a .44 Mag. Not that I need to do it, I don't but am just wondering how ???
Could you refer me to the post.
Thanks

[454PB]

Here you go Reg:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?29103-45-ACP-to-44-Special-Special&highlight=

[GRUMPA]

Heck.....it seems it's all I do is reform brass.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/forumdisplay.php?117-Grumpa

How else are the folks going to have fun when things aren't available or cost to much?

[facetious]

When sizing a case like 30-06 down to 308 and or 308 based cases do you anneal the case first and then size it, or do you size it first and then anneal it?

I was given about 300 mil. surp. 30-06 cases years a go that i cleaned up and put a way for a later time. a year or so a go just for fun I sized fifty cases and made them in to 308's. I annealed them after sizing and trimming them and then fire formed them. Thy turned out to be good cases and am going to use them for lighter cast loads.

I am thinking of doing the rest of them and am wondering if I should anneal them first or do it the way I did? The average weight of the fifty cases was about 4% more then a bunch of factory cases and some mil. surp. cases and so I cut the starting charges by 4%. All I have tried are lighter loads so far.

All so I lightly turned the necks before loading . After loading the necks were small enough that I my not have needed to turn them. May be I should fire form them first and then turn them? When turning them less then half of the neck was cut so I was not taking much off.

To mark them so I can tell them from regular cases i was thinking of filing a small nick in the face of the case so that I could tell them from other cases more easily.

[454PB]

Military 30/06 brass is usually annealed when it was manufactured, so if it is "once fired", it probably doesn't need to be annealed before forming. Annealing can be overdone, and the result is collapse or deformation of the case while forming.

When I'm forming, I do a few cases without annealing to determine if it's needed. Once the forming is done, depending on how many steps were done, I may then do annealing.

[1989toddm]

Not to hijack, but any of you know if there is a case I could make 45-70 from? I just hate paying retail..

[Reg]

Not to hijack, but any of you know if there is a case I could make 45-70 from? I just hate paying retail..


45-90

[cbrick]

Military 30/06 brass is usually annealed when it was manufactured,

Actually that's true BUT . . . There's always a BUT isn't there? ALL brass is annealed during manufacture. If it wasn't they couldn't make it. The difference in military brass is that it isn't tumble polished afterwards were most commercial brass is so that on the military brass you can see the anneal.

Rick

[Elkins45]

All of my 35 Whelen started as either a 30-06 or 270 case, and all my 375 Win says 30-30. It may be years before a new production run of actual 375 Win brass is made again.

[OeldeWolf]

In going through the things I have with/for my 1895 Chileno, I found that all but fifty cases of the brass, were made from 270 brass.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

In regards to your question about reforming brass, you have been given some great advice and non more important that making sure the neck of the case was not made too thick. I was talking to the range master one day when I saw a man coming toward us and holding a bloody towel to his face. I said Brian, you have a problem. It turned out that the man had reformed a larger case to one of the 7mm short mags and proceeded to destroy a beautiful custom rifle, stock and all. Examination showed that the case necks were much too thick. What also compounded the problem was the fact that the man started with a maximum load. The incident was reported and in short order the police showed up. Turned out the man was not seriously hurt except for his nerves. I don't remember if the man ever came to the range again.

[quilbilly]

Having a couple T/C's in 7mm TCU, reformed brass is the only way to get to shoot the fine cast boolit cartridge. Over the years I have reformed about every brand of 223 brass into that caliber but far and away my favorite has been S&B. The brass reforms easily, rarely splits when expanding, and seems to be the most accurate in my barrels. My least favorite is military brass which splits on expansion close to 20% of the time. Last week I went to a local shooting pit in the forest and found over 100 rounds of fresh, shiny S&B 223 brass laying on the ground. Made my day!

[cabezaverde]

You think .375 Winchester is tough...try .350 Remington Magnum.

Anyone have any experience with the various neck turning systems? No matter what brass I start with for .350 Rem Mag, the necks end up too thick.