S&B 9mm is it brass???

[Littlewolf]

Most likely not.
Of all the S&B 9mm brass i've picked up i think 2 of 50 might be real brass the other 48 of 50 are brass plated steel.
Just a heads up guys, pointing out what ive found.

[2wheelDuke]

I've taken to passing a magnet over 9mm range pickup for that reason. I've seen S&B brass, and the plated steel you describe. I only noticed the steel when I was making 9x18 from 9mm luger range pickup. I hit one case that cut really weird, magnet confirmed it was steel.

[Geezer in NH]

Depends some are brass some are steel. Pay attention to what you scrounge IMHO as with all brass..

[xrayfk05]

Have not encountered any steel cases over here yet, S&B or otherwise.
What is the headstamp on the S&B cases?

[Eldon]

9 mil is so cheap, reloading it is a labor of love rather than a money saver (if your time is worth much).

Have shot 1000s of rounds of S&B ammo .... never encountered a steel case, plated or not.

The only FMJ 9 mil listed on the S&B site is in brass cases.

Probably 3rd world milsurp S&B made for somebody.

[corbinace]

Have not encountered any steel cases over here yet, S&B or otherwise.
What is the headstamp on the S&B cases?

Welcome to the board Xray

[Littlewolf]

as far as headstamps goes the plated steel ones ive encountered they say S&B 9mm Luger

[DerekP Houston]

I checked the boxes I have in the closet, all my S&B ammo is brass. I suppose they are going the route of Wolf and making cheaper varieties now.

[JimB..]

I've got lots of S&B ammunition and brass, never seen steel. Easy to find since I use a magnet to separate brass from pins.

[xrayfk05]

S&B headstamped "9mm luger" gets thrown out anyway since it is/used to have a crimped primer pocket.

And reloading 9mm no money saver? I can reload with off the shelf components for $100.- per 1000 rounds where factory will cost me at least $200.- per 1000. Say reloading 1000 rounds takes me 2 hours I am earning $50.- an hour and that is a consersative estimate since it takes me a lot less time. (Press easily does over 1000 an hour)
Not to mention my own rounds will have 147 grain bullet which I prefer, 147 gr. factory will be at least $300.-

[lotech]

Once-fired 9mm brass from the same manufacturer is very inexpensive and doesn't put one at an immediate disadvantage as does range pickup stuff. There is a possibility the latter, mixed and with an unknown history will work out as well, but it will never be better than once-fired brass with the same headstamp.

As for savings with handloaded ammo, particularly using cast bullets the cost reduction can be quite significant. The handloaded ammo, if properly developed rather than thrown together with little or no experimentation, is as reliable as factory ammo and at least as accurate.

If accuracy is secondary, cheap commercial ammunition works fine.

[John Boy]

Metal composition of cartridge brass ...
The chemical composition of UNS C26000 cartridge brass alloys is outlined in the following table.
Element Content (%)
Cu 68.5-71.5
Fe 0.050
Pb 0.070
Other 0.15
Zn 28.5

[hermans]

I have lots of S&B 9mm brass and have not encountered any steel cases. I found that the older brass has some very tight primer pockets, but the newer ones work just fine. I have some that I have reloaded 10 + times, no problems.

[Handloader109]

I've found none, and unless you value your time very highly, reloading 9mm saves you a bunch if you have the lead, dies, powder and the primers. Less than 7 cents a round with at least 5 of my different powders. And that is paying a dollar a pound for lead ready to cast, full price on powder and primers. $70 a thousand is way cheaper than retail. Super cheap steel is still a hundred a thousand.

[fatelk]

I've found a fair amount of them over the years. I saved them for a while thinking I'd load them but then threw them out because I have gallons upon gallons of good brass that I'll probably never load. I found the steel cases when I started using my SS tumbler and a magnet. I was surprised to see "brass" that was magnetic.

As to whether 9mm is worth loading, I think that's an individual call. I have gallons of free brass picked up out of the gravel at the range, and hundreds of pounds of free lead picked up off the berms, so my cost is maybe 4 cents per, which is negligible.

The real cost to me is in time. I've gotten to where I don't particularly enjoy hour after hour casting, powder coating, and loading so much anymore. If I'm not busy with work I'm busy with the family. I never pass up overtime at work. An hour of OT would pay for several hours worth of reloading.

That said, all OT money goes into the household budget, so I'm still casting and loading 9mm when I have time. :)

[chucky64]

I have always had a magnet to separate out the brass washed steel cases. I save them in a bag and would reload them for competitions so I could fire them and leave them behind.

[JBinMN]

I have been following this topic to see how it worked out. I have not yet tested anyof my S&B brass with a magnet, but I will sometime soon. Just to see if I already have some in my brass.

Regardless of that, I just had a thought about something I may do to help find anything steel in my brass when I get some more next time...
Somewhere around here I have a magnet that looks like a washer. ( about as big around as a "fender" washer or one of the die spacers used for 38sp to357/ 41 & 44 to 41& 44 mag)

If I can remember where I stuck it, I may take it & place it around the vertical bolt(stem) that holds the lid on my vibratory tumbler. I just used corncob & walnut now & It would likely help if the magnet is in the tumbler when I tumble the brass to attract & hold any cases that have any steel in them. Well, I can try it anyway, LOL... Can't think of how it would hurt...

:)

[dragon813gt]

All S&B brass I come across goes right in the scrap bin anyway. Not worth the time and effort to get the brass processed properly. I can always tell if one slips by the visual inspection. Their brass always takes more force to resize.

[747 captain]

My sb brass always splits after firing