25-20 wcf

[musgy]

Does anyone know where to get brass in 25-20 WCF? Is there another caliber I can convert?

Thanks guys.
Stacey

[GRUMPA]

I just got done doing about 3.5K from 32-20. And the 32-20 is about the only parent case I know of since it's a unique size. In order for me to do those I had to anneal them (light anneal) and make an intermediate form die. Even at that I had a 12% loss due to creases in the neck.

I came to the conclusion that I wont be converting those again. Well......I might but I'll be charging more than I did the last time....

[Bent Ramrod]

If you can get hold of some .218 Bee cases, they can be annealed, resized (in a .25-20 die without the neck expander) and fire formed with a blank load to .25-20 WCF. They seem to hold up to multiple reloadings better than the normal .25-20 cases.

[shortrange]

I use Starline 32-20 cases and a Redding 25-20 trim die for an intermediate step. You will lose some but as you learn this number will go down. They will still be short of the o.a.l. but I have never found a 25-20 case that wasn't.

[EDG]

There was a discussion of the merits and lack there of of this family of brass.
One group in the discussion swore that the .218 Bee brass was heavier than the .25-20 and .32-20 cases all made by Winchester. Having a background in manufacturing it did not make much sense to have multiple case blanks so I volunteered and weighed new WW cases in all 3 calibers 32-20, 25-20 and .218. Just like they said the .218 brass was about 8 grains heavier.
The Schuetzen shooters reuse one case over and over. They will tell you the Remington .25-20 brass lasts much longer in their breech seated applications. They gripe when a WW case gives up at 50 reloads (head separation) when a REmington might make 150 rounds.

If you can get hold of some .218 Bee cases, they can be annealed, resized (in a .25-20 die without the neck expander) and fire formed with a blank load to .25-20 WCF. They seem to hold up to multiple reloadings better than the normal .25-20 cases.

[Hogpost]

I have 36 original loaded 25-20 cartridges I've been wondering what to do with: 17 WRA, 6 Rem-UMC, and 13 Western.
They aren't worth much as collectibles, even though they're in nice shape; would be happy if they could be used to keep a good shooter rifle in action. PM me

[quack1]

I just formed a hundred 25-20 from unfired 32-20 brass a couple months ago without losing a case. First I ran all the cases over the 32-20 expander to make sure the mouths were perfectly round. Next step was annealing. After that I lightly lubed, then ran the brass through the 25-20 seating die (with the seating stem removed). This sized most of the neck to an intermediate size. After that I relubed the cases and ran them into the 25-20 sizing die with the decapping stem removed, in small increments, redistributing the lube with my fingers several times. I got a couple of small shoulder dents from excess lube on the first few, but after figuring out the amount of lube needed, didn't have any more dents.

Here's a picture, 32-20, after forming in seating die, finished 25-20 after forming in sizing die.

[upnorthwis]

I resized .32-20 using a .270 REN die as intermediate. Only lost 2 out of 60 pcs.

[musgy]

Thanks guys! Some good info here. I will keep an eye out for all three calibers.

HOGPOST, thanks for the offer, but as I am in Canada, I think shipping those here would be rather complicated.

Stacey

[Hooker53]

Hello Quack1. Good info. I going to try this and your method is how I will proceed. I would like to know how you annealed your brass in the first step. I have 250 32-20 cases so Mabey I will have a few that will come out well enough to fire form.

Roy
Hooker53

[rr2241tx]

Seems like the annual hunting season ammo shipment usually has at least some 25-20 WCF in it. Last year, loaded ammo was -cheaper- than the same number of empty brass. Maybe sway the odds in your favor by putting some on back order with your favorite retail giant.

[Chill Wills]

Quack1 That is how I have come to do it!
Good write up.
That seater die is almost like a form die - at least in the calibers I have needed to try it.

And, the annealing step goes a long way to saving raw brass and easing the force needed to alter the case.
To anneal I stick those small cases on a long 20P nail chucked up in a hand drill and turn them slow in a propane flame until I get the blue I'm looking for.

[Baron von Trollwhack]

Some might find Varmint Al interesting. http://www.varmintal.com/arelo.htm#Anneal

BvT

[Hooker53]

Success. I got my Imperial lube in the other day and tried my hand at sizing some down this afternoon. Two big rhi gs I learned right off the bat. First. Get the case annealed correctly. Lights off. Blus going to dark red and plunge. Next. Take your time. Rotate case often. Take your time. Start with the die up high. Bearly touching case and turn it down a 1/4 turn at a time. Did I say, take your time? Ha. I crunched the first three. After some more adjustments I had 4 straight good cases so far. Go easy on the lube. After the shoulder starts forming, wipe a little of the lube off so it wont wrinkle your shoulder. The first usable case had a small wrinkle in it so I loaded up 3.5 grains of Trailboss and tried fire forming it. Wrinkle came out and is a good case. All in all, after you get the hang of it, the operation will take about three minutes. Good luck guys.

Roy
Hooker53