life expectancy for reformado brass

[bubba.50]

have seen references to short brass life for .43 spanish. think most are referring 11.15x58 w/.439 boolit. i have 11.5x57 which uses .454boolit. is this as bad? does spanish really start splitting as soon as second loading? are they using bertram brass(which i don't have very high opinion of)? if it's that bad i will hafta re-barrel or sell. $50.00 a box too much for 1 or 2 loadings. thanks for any help/opinions, bubba. p.s. i'm not the bubba i see mentioned here a lot but, i have seen his work.

[NickSS]

I have had a rolling block in 43 Raformado (.454 bullet) and did not notice short brass life. I even made some usable cases (a little short and a little small in the rim diameter) from 45-70 brass when I could not find and correct brass for it. If the cases are splitting after only one or two loads you have brittle brass and should anneal it.

[sav300]

welcome bubba.50

[bubba.50]

thanks nick. haven't fires reformado yet w/new brass. waiting for sizer to get .458 down to .454. was told gun was 45-70 but when i fired it first shell swelled & second split. that's when i did what i should have done first as this is my third roller & none have been in claimed cal. guess i'm a slow learner. reason for question was while waitng for sizer i have been doodlin' around to see what i could find out. that's when i saw reference to brass. thanks again. also thanks for welcome sav300.

[405]

Two different critters entirely! Those contract rolling blocks come in quite a few different flavors. Refer to something like Barnes Cartridges of the World for the different specs. Then compare those specs to the specs from a fired case from your rifle. That should verify what you have. Yes, firing wrong ammo and or excessively re-sized ammo will lead to premature splitting:mrgreen:

Slug the bore to determine best bullet diameter.

Also, use correct sizing die and size just enough for easy chamber entry. And, annealing the case necks once the correct case is determined and using the correct sizer will help increase case life.

Those Rem. contract rolling blocks with good bores tend to be very good shooters.... if they are fed good rations.