"life of semi-auto pistol brass..."

[exile]

Being a fairly new reloader, (about five or six years) I am wondering how many times you guys load your semi-auto pistol brass? I am thinking mostly of 9mm or .45 auto? I realize that this varies with each person and depends on firearm used, loads developed, etc., but I am just curious? I also realize that hotter cartridges like 10mm or .357 Sig would have shorter brass life (I have a heck of a time just finding my .357 Sig brass) so again, mostly thinking of 9mm or .45 auto? Thanks.

exile

[Calamity Jake]

I know for a fact that I have 45 ACP brass that has been loaded over 40 times, all fired in 1911's
9MM, I don't shoot much but the brass that I have been able to find after firing has been loaded at least 20 times.

[kenjuudo]

I seem to loose my 9mm brass before I wear it out with cast loads. .45 acp, I have some from the seventies.

jim

[crabo]

Until it splits. As you pick it up, shake a handful, and you can tell by the sound if you have any split.

This is for plinking and steel brass. If I was shooting competition, I would separate that brass.

[mike in co]

two different catagories of brass.
9mm is around 35kpsi and 45 is only 21kpsi(19 cip).
its hard to beat up 45 acp, easy to beat up 9mm.
all said and done i have never split a 9mm case( use lyman m dies)
and i have 45acp from 1917/1918 still in use......

i am sure there is a point where it dies...i have just not seen it yet.
a friend about 60yrs old is shooting his DAD's 45acp brass and he has logged over 40 reloads on some of it.

in 9x21(42kpsi) i split 2 necks in 8 yrs of shooting one lot of brass. lost a lot more than that. and yes i still shoot the brass, tho i do have a new lot of win that is my main lot.

mike in co

[missionary5155]

Greetings +1 on the 45 brass. I loose more than I have ever seen go bad. I got my first 45 after getting out of the Pickle suit and some of that military brass is still being reloaded.

[pdawg_shooter]

Most of my 45 brass is from the 60s. Got them through the DCM. Anyone remember the DCM? Headstamps are all in the early 40s.

[MtGun44]

1911 .45 ACP brass is essentially forever. I have lots that have the headstamp literally
beaten off and unreadable due to hitting the ejector so many times. Eventually you
get cracks and have to recycle the old boy.

9mm - much less experience, but should be similar, altho it is a higher pressure round.

[9.3X62AL]

I can't recall EVER seeing a case wall or case mouth split on a 9mm or 45 ACP casing of mine. Same story in 40 S&W and 10mm. They get lost before they wear out for me.

I've considered putting up one of those net critters to my right for catching the brass at the range or in the desert. The net result of that (bad pun, sorry) would be to wind up chasing the net and framework in the gentle zephyrs that wend their way through my desert environment. Free-standing target backers tend to fly around some, too.

[exile]

Thanks guys. You all really have me wanting a 1911. I feel that I am missing much history and experience by not having one. As usual, funds are the issue. Last time I went looking for a 1911, I bought a Ruger Blackhawk in .41 magnum instead. I love that gun.

Anyway, thanks for the replies.

exile

[375supermag]

Hi...

I can't recall ever splitting a .45ACP case. Some of mine have been reloaded at least twenty times. I do lose some from time to time and have had case mouths get dinged to the point that they get thrown away. That doesn't happen very often,though.

I use my .45ACP reloads in two different 1911s and sometimes, in a S&W 1917 revolver with moon clips.

[9.3X62AL]

Exile--

Dittoes to your text re the historical notes on the 1911A1-series, and my next (scheduled) acquisition will be some form of John Browning's favorite offspring. My old agency approved the 1911A1-series for duty and off-duty carry earlier this year, so my last excuse for not having one on board evaporated like morning mist. I lean heavily toward a steel-framed Commander variant.

[Shooter6br]

Life of the brass depends mainly if I dont loose them LOL

[MtGun44]

Al,

Good for you on the Commander.:hijack: :bigsmyl2:

For me the light wt is more comfortable for all day wear, but I don't shoot that particular
pistol a huge amount. If you plan on carrying and shooting a LOT. and don't have another
one to do the heavy lifting, the steel frame is good.

For CCW the Sparks Versamax 2 is really comfortable, unfortunately a 6 month waiting
list. Pretty easy on and off, too.

Bill

[exile]

This will not be a carry pistol for me, so I am hoping for a Dan Wesson if funds are plentiful, or a Springfield Armory mil-spec stainless if they are not.

I deprimed, cleaned, polished and resized some .45 Auto cases someone left behind at the farm a while back and the mouth of that case looks huge to someone like me used to shooting a 9mm. all the time.

The older I get the more attractive the historical firearms appear to me, I would love to have a Garand also, but I have about forty yards clear space and then the CRP acres start so I guess I will stick with the 1911 for now. Besides that, next year is the 100th anniversary of that fine design, and it does not seem right to enter 2011 without a representative example.

Anyway, those are my druthers.

exile

[crabo]

Thanks guys. You all really have me wanting a 1911. I feel that I am missing much history and experience by not having one. exile

I think the 45 acp, if you have a good gun, is about as cast friendly as there is. (except for picking up the cases.)

[MtGun44]

Exile,

PM CaptainT about the DW 1911s, he recently bought one.

These are really finely made 1911s, and while not cheap by any means they are far
cheaper than the equivalent made by the big name guys and custom smiths.

Bill

[Dframe]

The 45 is a relatively low pressure number that can be safely loaded many many times. I concur about shaking a handful to find splits. You will hear a very distinctive ringing sound if you have a bad one in there. I have far less experiance with 9mm. One number that has given me some concerns is the 38 super. For some reason the primer pockets seem to get loose pretty quickly. If I detect a loose pocket I pitch the brass. 380 autos seem to chew up the rims. When I get one that won't drop cleanly into my case gauge it gets tossed as well.

[exile]

Thanks Mtgn44, I will. (Hello to all in Johnson County).

I am glad to hear about the shaking method of detecting split necks. When a neck splits, is there danger of blowing up a gun, or is that only when you blow a case head?

I have not gotten to the point of loose primer pockets with the .357 Sig yet, but I am sure that I will.

exile

[2ndAmendmentNut]

As others have stated the quality 45 brass (I like Win and RP) will last forever, I usually get 8~12 reloads before I loose them in the grass. 9mm brass on the other hand I try and limit to no more the 4 reloads do to the fact that it is higher pressure, and there seems to be a lot of cheap brass that gets mixed in.

[mnzrxer]

I have had some .45 brass split at the case mouth, but all of it was nickle plated. Seems the nickle plated stuff lasts only about 5 reloads. I have never had an unplated case split and I know some of my cases have been loaded 15+ times. The relatively low pressure of the round is one reason I like it.

I felt the same way about the 1911. Had to have one by 2011. I found a used Rock Island 1911A1 for cheap as I was going to modify it anyway. I have been very impressed with how well it shoots. I didn't know much about the 1911 until owning one, but I "get" it now.

[John 242]

For CCW the Sparks Versamax 2 is really comfortable, unfortunately a 6 month waiting list. Pretty easy on and off, too. Bill

The Milt Sparks Summer Special II doesn't sit as low as the Versamax, but it's pretty comfortable.
Brownell's has them in stock for Commander models for $90

[Dale53]

Al;
I made a brass catcher for my 1911's. I went to Bass Pro and bought a large dip net (the kind with the SMALL holes), cut it off, made an adapter to mount on one of those inexpensive camera tripods and I am good to go. I can shoot with it on my formal pistol range or in the field as it is completely adjustable to height, position, and angle. I have MUCH less in it than a commercial one:

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj80/Dale53/QBrassCatcherSelects-1799.jpg

Like the others, my .45 ACP brass life is LONG!

FWIW
Dale53

[Combat Diver]

I agree I lose them before the cases go south. I used to seperate my 9 and 45 brass but 50 round boxes but that got old after 10 years. No just load up several 50 cal cans worth when I get on a reloading bing. I do have several boxes of .41 Mag that I have reloaded over 15 each. Those first 5 are full mags, then 5 more of mid range loads and last down to the Police loadings.

[exile]

I wondered about .41 mag brass too. I am loading 18.5 grains of AA # 9, a CCI 300 primer and a 210 grain plain base boolit (cast out of a H & G's mold, I bought them) with very minimal leading. I hope to take a deer with that load in November.

That brass catcher would be nice. My .357 Sig brass just flies away. Even when my wife is standing there watching to see where it goes, we cannot find it. With full power loads my Glock 32 flings it in a different spot every time.

exile

[exile]

Don't know where to put this (I was just on the "Castpic" section and somebody got chewed out pretty good for comments being in the wrong place, so I will say it here)

Any chance of a "Castpic" topic of 1911's, a mold, loaded round and unloaded boolit?

Just a thought.

exile

[casterofboolits]

45 ACP brass is a long life brass. I"ve loaded WW brass over 40 times. The problem with the brass being fired so many times is that the rim is swaged to a diameter that does not feed into the extractor notch or bolt face and causes misfeeds. I dropped a lot of IPSC stages until I learned to check the rims of my match brass.

Split cases pop up once in awhile, mostly in older Milsurp cases.

I use a Lyman shell holder, beause it has the shank and is easy to hold on to, to check the rim diameter. Insert the case into the shell holder and if the case rotates freely in the holder it's good, if it drags and is hard to turn it is seperated for use in moon clips for revolvers. The press I used to load my 45 ACPs is the CH Auto Champ Mk 5A and is a straight line progressive and would handle the enlarged rims with no problem. A Dillon or any press with a shell holder probably wouldn't allow the enlarged rim to seat for loading.

In 9mm the problem is usually enlarged primer pockets, How many firings this takes is dependent on how hot your load is. Medium loads with cast boolits should allow the brass to last a long time.

[Dale53]

casterofbullets;

Back in the seventies and early eighties I shot IPSC. I learned the same thing you did regarding mushrooming of case head rims. I had a rather tight shell holder that I used for my "standard". If it wouldn't fit, I would not use it in a match. I made a short handle for my shell holder to make it easier to hold.

Every single round was run through that before a match.

By the way, I see that you live in Miamisburg, Ohio. Good people from that area shot in our IPSC matches at Butler County Sportsmen Club where Marshall Todd and I (along with excellent help) ran the matches.

Shoot center!!

Dale53

[captaint]

MtGun44 - I had the new DW out for a ride today. I swear that gun will shoot way under 2 inches if I do my job. Old eyes, ya know... It really liked the H&G 130 and 4.8grs of Titegroup. I'm thinking about backing that off a little just for kicks. I've yet to really give it a workout with the 452460. We'll do that next trip. enjoy Mike

[sargenv]

I have some 40's that I only shoot in my 610 with mild loads and a few of them have had the head stamp wear off from the # of firings. I segregate my 40 S&W cases according to if they will be shot in the 610 or if they will be used in my bottom feeders. I have split a number of 40's over the years.. I just toss them as they happen. The only time I lose them is when I shoot the bottom feeders at matches.. the 610 has them falling out in 6 round moon clips and I get all of my brass back, even at supposed "lost brass" matches since I get my clips back :)

[KCSO]

I recently bought a loading outfit from and old retired trooper who shot bullseys in the 1960's. Included in the purchase was a box (2000 rounds of his match brass. It had been reloaded with bullseye loads 4.2 of Bullseye and a 185 cast bullet from 1967 to 1980 or so and the brass is still pretty good.

My main criteria for auto brass is how beat up is the rim and is it cracked. If the rim is good and the brass is not cracked it's usually good to go. The exception here is GLOCK brass, if it is bulged at the web i throw it as self ejecting magazines are not my idea of fun.

[Char-Gar]

My experience is like everybody elses. You will lose 45 ACP brass before you wear it out. The only split 45 ACP cases were two nickle plated ones that were handloaded and left in a clip for25 years before they were fired. When fired, they split. Five other cases in the clip were not plated and did not split.