30-06 Gift Brass: How Short is Too Short

[Shiloh]

I was given a bag of .30-06 brass a while back from a neighbor. His father fired it in
an M-1 Most of this brass is really beat up, and the pieces that are usable have been trimmed to less than 2.65 inches.

My chamber in the '03 is 2.515 inches long. The suggested trim length from the Lyman and other reloading data books is 2.474. I keep mine around 2.49 inches, .025 shorter than chamber length.

Are there a safety concerns firing brass that is at least .050 short of chamber length and at least .009 shorter than suggested trim length??

The bulk of this brass is going in the recycle bucket.

Thanks in Advance, Shiloh :castmine:

[felix]

No, absolutely not. But, before doing anything, check the freebore length. If you think that is excessive for the boolits you are intending to shoot, then consider lengthening the neck portion of the chamber to take up some of that freebore. Yet, another but. Make sure the loaded round with the longer brass will feed from the magazine without hiccups. ... felix

[Maven]

"...the pieces that are usable have been trimmed to less than 2.65 inches."

Shiloh, Did you make a typographical error in listing the max. length of the .30-06 case? I just looked at 3 reloading manuals (Lyman #47, Hodgon #26 and NRA, 1981) and all list the maximum length as 2.494"/63.34mm and a trim to length of 2.484"? If your brass is between these dimensions, it isn't too short, but should be quite usable. However, you may want to trim it to a uniform length of 2.48" and consider annealing it if it's more than 40 yrs. old. The only reason I raised a question is that I just finished resizing a batch of LC '67 brass originally loaded for the M-1 (was in 8 rnd. mags. when I got it).

[garandsrus]

Shiloh,

What do you mean by "beat up"? The Garand sometimes dents/pushes in a portion of the case neck, but sizing the cases brings them back to round. I have never had to scrap once fired brass fired from a M1.

With an improper load you can get a piece of brass where the rim is partly torn off, which I would scrap. Ejector/extractor marks on the rim aren't a problem.

If this is military brass, keep in mind that you will have to remove the crimp in the primer pocket.

John

[Shiloh]

Yes Maven, it should be 2.484

I'll have to figure out a way to anneal the usable brass evenly.
Many of the rims are both bent out and some are torn. Violent extraction is the only thing that could do that. Won't there be a difference from shot to shot with radically different case lengths??

I like things to be relatively consistant. A few thousandths either way is okay but I'm not sure about a .025 swing. What do you think??

Shiloh :castmine:

[NVcurmudgeon]

For best results scrap the cases with torn or bent rims. Often such are a PITA to get into a shell holder. Also, un-square rims will make accurate trimming impossible. I stand cases in water up to the shoulders, heat with a propane torch, and tip them over for quenching when they start to turn red. Best done in dim light so the color is easy to see. If you have the torch in one hand and a screwdriver in the other for submerging annealing goes very quickly.

[Shiloh]

I stand cases in water up to the shoulders, heat with a propane torch, and tip them over for quenching when they start to turn red. Best done in dim light so the color is easy to see. If you have the torch in one hand and a screwdriver in the other for submerging annealing goes very quickly.

Do you rotate the cases and heat twice or can one get even heat distribution by just working from one side?

Shiloh :castmine:

[eka]

Sounds like they will work out fine for the '06, but if they are too short for your taste you could convert them to 8MM.

Keith

[jonk]

No problems whatsoever. I have shot brass that was several mm too short with no ill effects.

[smkummer]

Usually on a M1, you will have very badly bent up rims after about 4 or 5 reloads that you will not be able to get them into shell holders anymore. Prior to that they may work OK in a M1 but a springfield or a 1917 will close hard on beat up rims. And on the bolt rifle if you try to extract the round without shooting it, it will be hard on the extractor also.