Once fired brass

[abunaitoo]

With the way stainless pins clean brass, how can you tell if it's once fired or not??????

[shaner]

Usally has a fired primer in it. And the cost is a good way . And how it's packaged

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[lightman]

If it was cleaned with stainless you probably can't tell. Trust, I guess. If its military there will be a crimp on the primer pocket.

[Dusty Bannister]

I get brass from a LEO range that is shared by several agencies. When I wet pin clean, I knock out the primers to allow better cleaning of the inside and outside of the cases. As I go through the depriming I can feel those that are loose, normal or tight. As a consumer, you will probably be wise to treat the primer pockets as you process the first time and set aside any that feel loose. While this source usually only uses new ammunition, there are individual cases that might have been purchased as reloads and shot in agency guns. Just because the primer is in place does not mean it has not been reloaded, unless it has a crimped primer. Even then, there is some variation in how hard the crimp is with various Head Stamps. Just my limited experience, certainly not anything hard and fast in reloadable brass.

Some only want pretty brass, I prefer clean, even with some stains, so I can get a better idea of what the past life of the case has been. To each their own, I just try to ID the source as best I can. Dusty

[waksupi]

Yes, definitely deprime before case cleaning,

[tygar]

I won't buy any fired brass without the original primer in it. New or once fired only.

I also "don't" deprime before tumbling. The media gets stuck in the primer hole. After tumbled I then size/deprime, then into the cleaning solution vibrator & that cleans primer pocket fine.

[standles]

I won't buy any fired brass without the original primer in it. New or once fired only.

I also "don't" deprime before tumbling. The media gets stuck in the primer hole. After tumbled I then size/deprime, then into the cleaning solution vibrator & that cleans primer pocket fine.

The stainless pins do not clog the primer hole. They flow through them.

[Dusty Bannister]

Little thread drift going on. Question was about how to tell if cases are once fired if cleaned with SS pins in wet system. That is explained by why it is recommended to remove the primers before cleaning. Somewhere it went off to dry media and even touched on ultra sonic cleaning.

No, when you buy SS pin cleaned brass, you are pretty much going to have to "feel" the primer pocket as you swage to remove the crimp and if loose, it may not be once fired. If still retains some of the crimp, then it is once fired. In between, is pretty much just guessing.

[bedbugbilly]

The only new brass I ever bought was a 500 count box of Starline 38 special brass and that was when I first started reloading. They are still in box and on the shelf "just in case" which means my wife will probably be stuck with them after I die.

After that mistake of buying new, all I've ever bought is range brass and most of it has bee 1X fired - but who really knows? I really like it when I get a batch that has been in tumbled and it looks so bright and shiny and new. But again, who knows? All I know is that I have never been stung in all the brass I've purchased, whether it be bottleneck or pistol. I don't shoot competition and for the shooting I do, it all works just fine. 9mm is so cheap and abundant that I've accumulated probably 10,000 casings and that will last me a lifetime I'm sure. I know some of it was "range brass" and some were obviously more than 1X fired - but so what? At the cheap price (I think I got my last batch at about .02/a casing or maybe a tad bit less - I load 'em, shoot 'em and if I can find 'em, start all over. The last batch was around 3,000 casings and it had been tumbled so that it was shiny like a freshly washed watermelon but they still had the spent primes in 'em. No big deal to me that I had to deprive them as I'm retired and it was some peaceful hours sitting in the garage, looking across the desert as I punched 'em out.

I don't think there is a "fool proof" way to determine and primer pocket is not always a clue as I have seen both tight and loose pockets depending on the head stamp.

And I take my first claim back. I did buy some Starline 45 Colt brass that was new as at the time thee was a shortage of it - BUT - shortly afterwards I was able to buy some 1X fired (so the seller claimed) and I'm still using it even after many, many loadings - and in a variety of head stamps.

So . . . if I've "wandered" . . . my apologies . . . . but I guess that's the price a person pays when they buy bright shiny brass and you don't know how many firings it has had. I prefer to believe that most folks are honest when they tell you it is 1X . . . . .

[gon2shoot]

Look for marks from a sizing die, once fired won't have any.

[tygar]

The stainless pins do not clog the primer hole. They flow through them.

I "don't" have a stainless pin setup. As I said, I "tumble" with "media".

I have got several K of SS cleaned military - all still has primer & crimp - that's how you know it's once fired.

That's what the OP asked & I stated how I knew it was 1x brass. "Don't" buy it without the primer!

[gwpercle]

My local indoor range sells once fired brass, most reloaders pick theirs up , I certianly do , persons who buy a box, shoot it and leave usually do not. Most , maybe not 100% , but most will be once fired.
I have bought 9mm from them and out of the 1500 I might have gotten 5 that looked reloaded more than once. Still a good deal, it was $10.00 for 1000 or 1500 for $12.00!
Gary

[Love Life]

You better be careful picking up brass after me. Once I feel it is close to it's useful life I toss it in the brass bucket at the range after firing.

[dragon813gt]

You better be careful picking up brass after me. Once I feel it is close to it's useful life I toss it in the brass bucket at the range after firing.

This is exactly why I don't buy or pick up most "fired" bottleneck brass. I've been burnt multiple times when buying them, all from this site if that matters. Nothing better than when most are on the verge of head separation. I will pick up LC brass when it's sprayed all over the range. In this case I know it was a mall ninja who only uses new military ammo. After all, a mall ninja wouldn't be caught dead w/ reloads :laugh:

[RogerDat]

If it has the primer and the primer is silver rather than brass it is almost sure to be a reload. So at the least 2x fired. But many buy reloaded ammo and that is probably reloaded at 1x, then fired and now you have it.

Most brass will last much longer than 2x or even 3x, many will go 10 or more times. You will have to prep it, and inspect it, measure it, same as you would if it was 1x and you fired it. I'll shoot range brass, I'm going to clean, inspect, load, repeat. My exceptions will be stuff such as 303 which can get stretched and work hardened at the shoulder in short number of reloads. Then it really needs to be annealed or I'll buy new and track usage.

I love the military factory reloads. Primer pocket all fixed up and as others have noted if the new primer is a snug fit, no signs of stress damage to the brass, good to go. But still crimped primer is only way to have good idea that it is 1x fired.

[ShooterAZ]

This is exactly why I don't buy or pick up most "fired" bottleneck brass. I've been burnt multiple times when buying them, all from this site if that matters. Nothing better than when most are on the verge of head separation. I will pick up LC brass when it's sprayed all over the range. In this case I know it was a mall ninja who only uses new military ammo. After all, a mall ninja wouldn't be caught dead w/ reloads :laugh:

This is exactly why I don't buy used bottleneck brass of any kind any more. I got burned on this very forum on some 300 Mag brass as well, loose primer pockets and all.

[higgins]

I don't polish brass, but I've picked up a ton of reloaded and once-fired rifle and pistol brass. Most Polished brass looks almost too clean; not a trace of annealing, no patina, very bright and just doesn't look right.

For pistol blasting ammo, 1X or reloaded doesn't really matter because if your autoloader doesn't throw it away for you, you will get many more reloads out of it. I have .38spl. and .45 Colt reloaded more than 20 times with moderate loads.

[fatelk]

I sold some rifle brass a couple years ago that the buyer ended up being unhappy about. It was some that I knew for a fact was once fired, because of who I got it from , and because I know how to tell the difference. I didn't decap or wet tumble it because my experience is that most people like it unprocessed so they know it's once fired.

He was unhappy because it wasn't super shiny like other brass he had bought, and his "expert" told him it was old worn-out junk. His expert was clearly clueless because I know what I had. Nevertheless I politely explained it to him, and offered to do whatever I could to make him happy. Never heard from him again. So now if I ever sell anything like that again I'll just decap it, run it through the wet tumbler, and take really good photos. I hate selling something and having someone feel like they didn't get a good value.