Nickel plated brass

[Tswafford]

Is there anything a new to reloading like myself should know about reloading using nickel plated brass? Thanks

[Bullshop Junior]

I have reloaded a ton of it in the past. I had some nickel 223 brass that I quit counting after 50 reloads.

I did buy a box of Winchester 454 ammo awhile back to shoot up for the brass, and they all split on the first shot. Don't know whats up with that, I havn't contacted winchester yet...

[Kevinakaq]

They are pretty and don't tarnish...other than that treat them like normal brass...

[country gent]

Be sure and chamfer/deburr thoughroly before sizing the first time. Watch for cracks checks peeling in the plating over time. Nickel plated isnt that much diffrent than plain brass cases. You didnt state if rifle or pistol or actual caliber. The plating while very thin is hard and a sharp egde can be a problem. I have loaded them mostly for pistols but also a few rifles. They will work fine and with care last a long time.

[Tswafford]

Ok thanks guys. I thought I had read somewhere that they would scratch the inside of my dies. Thanks again.

[Zymurgy50]

Keep the nickle very clean before you size and you wont scratch steel dies, nothing to worry about if using carbide dies.

[DeanoBeanCounter]

This might help.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?227535-Nickel-plating-fact-or-fictchen
Dean

[trapper9260]

This help me alot of things i did not know about wear my dies out.Thanks for given the link.

[DRNurse1]

What really pi$$es nickel cases off is trimming. Once you get a cut on that case, it'll flake. Anyway, I have some 357 mag nickel brass that's over 20 years old. I used to think it was neat. I still do, but I only use it to identify special loads, like my high pressure 147 gr 9mm pin loads. If you pick up a reloaded 9mm with a nickel case in this house, that's what the load will be. Nickel cases seem to split sooner too, and probably the only reason I still have some of the old cases is because my carbide dies seem to worn much of the nickel off, and they look so shabby that I'm embarrassed to take them to the range.

I live in interesting times...

I too have some shabby nickle plated brass, 1968 head stamp on a Winchester 45ACP case. Never trimmed them so this is just wear from load-shoot-reload. Mostly tumbled in corn or walnut, but more recently using Lemishine and Dawn.

I use them for plinking, setting up my press runs, non critical stuff. That 1968 case seems to have more worn off the base and lower case than the area near the mouth of the case, maybe the brass was thicker there or the nickle-plating thinner?

[bedbugbilly]

All I have in nickel is .38 spl. - some of it once fired by me and some of it range brass . . . I really like it and don't have any problems at all with it. It looks good and no tarnish . . . I have quite a bit of brass casings on hand but always find myself reaching for the nickel. That may change when I finally break down and get a tumbler to polish the brass . . .but for now . . . . . :-)

[Big Z]

Brass brass, is cheaper and lacks the risk of scratching steel dies. Not so much a concern in pistol cartridges esp with carbide dies. That said I've used plenty of nickel; just keep it clean and lube it all before sizing. I do like how it looks and feeds.

[Firebird]

Some cartridges are more problematic than others. A few, the 38-40 is the worst, seem to have very different dimensions between the case size and the chamber size, leading to a lot of brass movement when fired, and then more when re-sized back again. This quickly causes the plating to peel/flake off leading to scratched steel dies and/or scratched cases, or the brass will split a few reloading cycles earlier than it otherwise would. That's why you usually can't find 38-40 nickel cases, even though nickel 44-40 are common. And when re-forming a case to another caliber, the less brass movement required when using a nickel plated case the better. Going from 7mm-08 to 260 Remington usually won't cause any problems, going from 357 Magnum to 22 Jet will cause problems.

[Mike Kerr]

Most folks consider it pretty. Some folks remember the Lone Ranger. Some reloaders want more of it. Some reloaders think it splits around the case mouth a lot faster than brass brass because the nickle plating adds strength (maybe) but becomes brittle quicker. It's up to you.

[osteodoc08]

I love nickle brass cause its purty. Ill buy it if not much more than brass, but it isnt a requirement. Id say 10% of what I have is nickle plated. Mostly straight wall revolver cartridges.

[histed]

Most of my .357 bras is nickel. Might be my warped imagination, but I think they run through the dies easier. Using nickel for .357 and brass for .38 also save checking head stamps after tumbling. Never used nickel for rifle ammo - too expensive. My .357 have been loaded at least 5 times and still going strong.