Matching Headstamp 9mm brass?

[6string]

Hi,

I have been cleaning and sorting through several thousand pieces of 9mm brass. In the process, I have been sorting a lot of it by headstamp.
While I have my own ideas for personal use and reloading, I am wondering what others thought?
I've got way more than I need and plan to sell a good bit of it.

Would it be worth it to you to use matching headstand 9mm brass, or would you be just as happy with mixed headstamp bulk brass?
If you're looking for brass would you prefer a smaller quantity of cleaned matching headstamp brass, or a larger quantity of mixed brass (including military)?

Thanks for your thoughts,
Jim

[tazman]

If I was using a 9mm pistol for match shooting, I would definitely want matching headstamps. For my use and skill level, mixed brass works fine.
It will all depend on the intended use.

[winelover]

Matching headstamps, preferred. Especially, for accuracy work, in a carbine. Pistol, not so much.

Winelover

[rfd]

Mixed brass for my pistol, but totally agree on using the same brass when consistent accuracy matters, particularly with a carbine at 100 yards or maybe a bit further out ...

https://i.imgur.com/TbGSjtv.jpg

[high standard 40]

I separate all my brass by head stamp and also keep my brass separated by lots: usually 20 round lots for rifle and 50-100 round lots for handguns. It makes it easier for me to keep track of how many times a particular case has been loaded.

[Half Dog]

I have the available time so I separate based on headstamp. I feel that step in the process will eliminate a potential issue.

[JimB..]

I filter out certain troublesome headstamps, including cases with internal steps, roll size the rest and load them up.

Lots of folks make money selling brass, but I figure they are mostly retired and have nothing better to do with their time. Those that sort by headstamp seem to get a premium, but then they probably can’t sell some headstamps at all, and I’m not sure how it works out.

[Dusty Bannister]

If I sell a box of 9mm brass, with 23 pounds of unsorted brass, you will have about 2,500+ cases to sort through. If you can not match up a couple of large batches, it would be very unusual. As for the odd ball stuff, we all know someone always trying to bum some rounds and are not careful about returning the cases. That is when you load up the odd ball stuff. I call it "in-law-brass".

[Bigslug]

If you spend enough time on this forum, you'll quickly notice that 9mm is a bit of a fussy round to load for with cast bullets - largely because internal case taper can size the bullets down below desired diameter when seating. The round often requires additional/modified sizing techniques to avoid this problem. Also, smaller cases with higher operating pressures like 9mm are more sensitive to changes in available internal volume than the big low pressure options like .45 ACP.

So going with a single headstamp, ideally from the same production lot, will tend to render your process more consistent and less prone to being victimized by "gremlins"

[CastingFool]

I like to sort brass by headstamp, no matter the intended use. Just my preference. If I'm going g to shoot where I can't or don't want to pick up brass, I use the oddball headstamps.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Yep...Matching HS...the only way to fly
:castmine:

[Burnt Fingers]

Not for me. I just dump it in a bucket and use it.

[rintinglen]

Only one of my 9 MM is sufficiently accurate that it can benefit from the hassle of sorting head stamps. But the rest aren't. Of the 11 9mm's I currently own, only the SIG 210 is worthy of the effort to sort cases by headstamp. I'm with Burnt Fingers on this one. For the rest, into the bucket. If I want to hit something small, I take a 6" 38 or 357 revolver, (or my Ruger Flattop .44 Spl.;))

[troyboy]

I load with a progressive and sort all brass by headstamp. Constiency is my goal.

[AlHunt]

Mixed brass, unprocessed. If I want to sort head stamps, I can do it myself.

I don't think the "premium" you'd get over unsorted brass would justify the time spent squinting at cases.

[M-Tecs]

My preferred type of brass to be purchase is sorted and nothing else. I don't want it cleaned, deprimed or tumbled. I want to be able to see if it truly appears to be once fired.

That being said I am normally not willing to pay extra for sorted handgun brass.

For my own use sorting is dependent on if accuracy will benefit from the extra effort. I do test the groups with different mixed headstamps to see if I can tell a difference and how much.

[M-Tecs]

Mixed brass for my pistol, but totally agree on using the same brass when consistent accuracy matters, particularly with a carbine at 100 yards or maybe a bit further out ...

https://i.imgur.com/TbGSjtv.jpg

What manufacture is your carbine?

[rfd]

What manufacture is your carbine?

TNW ASR 9mm

[Bmi48219]

I only load FC brass for myself in 9, 45, 357 & 38, the rest gets posted for sale or donated. Ditto PPU for 380 and GFL Fiochhi for 45 Colt, Win for 40. Some cartridges I’d buy mixed. If I was running a 9 or 45 full auto probably wouldn’t be so picky.
I like Federal brass cause it cleans up well and seems to last through lots of reloading. Fiochhi too and PPU cause it’s easy plentiful in 380 and also consistent.

[Hick]

I don't bother with 9mm. For all my other firearms I sort by headstamp and keep track of how many times each has been loaded. I don't own any 9mm firearms that are accurate enough for it to matter. Instead, I have an extended (3 foot tall) feeder like you use for cat food (where you pour food in the top and the cats pull it out the bottom). It holds about 3000 cases. I pull from the bottom, load, shoot, decap, clean then put in the top. That way I know all my 9 mm have been loaded about the same number of times.

[dverna]

It will take an excellent gun, and an exceptional marksman to justify sorting 9mm pistol brass.

All my 9’s are run of the mill and I never shot better than Expert...so it would be a waste of time for this pistolero.

[Texas by God]

I don't sort 9mm because I probably have 19 different headstamps in each bucket. I don't sort .45 ACP, .223, .30 Carbine or .300BO either. I think I'm seeing an auto pattern here....

Sent from my SM-A716U using Tapatalk

[fatelk]

I used to sort pistol brass, and still do occasionally. I talked to a guy at the range some years ago. I was impressed by his marksmanship, way better than mine (and I can shoot decent). He said he'd been competing for a long time and was good at it. I was surprised by the mixed brass he was using so I asked him about it. According to him, sorting brass is for benchrest guys, and anything else is by and large a waste of time.

His opinion was that sorting brass was much like polishing it nice and shiny in a tumbler. It makes it look nice and makes the reloader feel good about it, but it really does nothing for improved performance.

I still use a tumbler and sort my brass now and then, because I like it to look nice.

[Bmi48219]

I like Hick’s idea about the brass silo, don’t know how the wife would feel about seeing a row of them in the garage. I deprime, clean & lube my brass then store in 35 ounce plastic peanut jars marked with a date label. Loading a single headstamp brass makes it easier to identify mine at clean up time. I am probably deluding myself by assuming using a single brand will reduce variables like rim diameter, length, capacity and metallurgy. My 9 mm dies are set for a good crimp using one style / weight bullet & OAL. That doesn’t change. Cases of different lengths will always yield cartridges with the same OAL but short cases wouldn’t have the same crimp tension since they don’t go up into the crimp die as far—-I think.
Maybe I’m just kidding myself but all my 9 mm pistols shoot the same load well and three of them are crazy accurate. Sometimes you just get lucky.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

I have tried quite a few cast and powder coated 9mm loadings in my Smith M&P. Just recently settled on a Lee 356 125 over 3.5 grains of VV N310. I seat and crimp in seperate steps. I use the barrel to set the OAL and only crimp enough to chamber nicely. With the tapered case a light crimp will not size down the base of your boolit. This load does about 3" at 50' off hand on a good day.

As for sorting brass, I am with the guys who say you don't need to bother with it. I have to put reading glasses on and good light to do it.