Once fired Brass Question

[gds]

I ran across several hundred pieces of once fired .308 federal match brass at a gunshop without a price I made an offer to the owner and then he counter offered stating that since it was mostly match brass it was worth more.

My question is this. Once it has been fired in a gun is it still considered Match grade?

My thinking is that in most aspects it has been changed(meaning the brass)from its original specs since it was fired in a gun.

What is the opinion of the experts?

By the way it was over 800 pieces plus a lot of 9mm, .some 45, and a ammo can full of at least 20 different types of brass and loaded ammo, some of it I have not figured out yet, most that I can use will be pulled down for components. I gave $80 for the whole thing.

[sundog]

pig in a poke, IMO.

[missionary5155]

Good Deal even if it was LC or any other brand.

[runfiverun]

you are gonna have to re-size it and then fire it in your rifle to make it fit then it ain't even once fired now it's twice fired before you get the fit.
but the price wasn't too bad, and you will be using it for some time.
i'd of bought it and tried to get what i could have outta it, especially the 308.

[gds]

Yeah I still thought it was a good deal. Honestly the gunshop is a good shop with pretty knowledgeable people and some of the best prices around. They have always done me well. I just thought that the line he gave me about it being Match, while a true statement, really did not make it worth more as simply brass.

[Pepe Ray]

Subject to correction by those more knowledgeable;
As I understand it ,what differentiates match brass from common is the care and uniformity with which it's constructed, the quality inspection procedures are much more detailed and consistency is achieved.
Therefore if you are assured that the cases are of the same batch then they will be materially the same even if they were fired in different FA. You will re dimension them on resizing/decapping.
Pepe Ray

[Larry Gibson]

Might be a good deal. Whether it needs to be FL sized is up for grabs. If the chamber that the match brass was fired in was smaller than yours then you won't have to FL just NS. You won't know until you try chambering one of the fired cases. I often find once fired cases that chamber in my rifles. However, if the Fed Match was fired in a gas gun the FL sizing will be in order. If it was fired in a gas gun and you have a gas gun then RCBS X-dies are definately in order to keep the web from sretching during sizing and the cases from elongating. The price was right so I'd have gone for it also.

Larry Gibson

[JSnover]

If they really are match cases, they're made to a higher standard. And if they really are once-fired, that's close enough to new, considering how many times you'll be able to reuse them.. Size 'em and shoot 'em.

[EchoSixMike]

Federal Match used to be real soft, didn't stand up nearly as well as LC Match or Win or R/P. This was back when 308 was viable in NRA Highpower, so they may have changed the brass since. Used to get 2-3 loads out of it, then the primer pockets were too large. Not heavy loads either, the standard 41.5gns AA2520 and a 168SMK.

I get the stuff free from my local cops, I wouldn't consider paying money for it. S/F......Ken M

[Jon K]

If the brass has head swell, you'll never get it sized back to it's original diameter, and if your gun has a tight chamber, you may never get it to fit. BUYER BEWARE................

If you have a loose production chamber gun........no problem.......go for it.

Jon

[S.R.Custom]

If it's military match brass, there won't be any discernable difference between it and normal military brass. (Military match brass will have an oddly placed cannelure around the case about 3/4" of an inch up from the rim; the cannelure is for identification purposes.)

On the other hand, if it's commercial match brass, it will indeed be more uniform, as others have mentioned.

[anachronism]

If it's not in the original boxes, with the original lot #s, then it's just brass. You have no way of knowing which cases are from which lot, or even if it's all from the same lot. You will want to full-length size the brass in a quality sizing die for uniformitys sake, then trim it to a consistent length before doing all your other case prep work, primer pockets, neck uniforming, etc anyway. I've only been getting about 3 full-power loadings from Federal brass before the primer pockets loosen, but your mileage may vary. The price was pretty good, especially considering all the extras you got with it. Often, "match" cases are simply from the same manufacturing lot, but from the first part of the manufacturing run. The factorys most experienced machine operators do this initial batch & the lots of brass that show the greatest consistency are set aside for "match" loadings. "Match" primers are made pretty much the same way.