Inline FabricationTitan ReloadingLoad DataWideners
RotoMetals2RepackboxMidSouth Shooters SupplyLee Precision
Reloading Everything
Results 1 to 17 of 17

Thread: Who makes the best 357 mag brass?

  1. #1
    Boolit Master
    barrabruce's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Far Nth Qld Australia
    Posts
    1,985

    Who makes the best 357 mag brass?

    So I want to neck down some 357 mag brass into a 30 cal.
    One of the Paxton/badger/rimmed blkout/aet/add many variants.
    A single shot rifle so I won’t need mountains of brass or throwing them all over the country side after a shot.

    So I have figured out that brass with cannalures on them aren’t the best as they end up in the neck shoulder area.
    Nickel brass looks good but has issues.
    Probably never even crimp.

    There are makers I have never even heard of.
    Like noslier.

    I can more than likely get starline, Remington,Winchester,ppu maybe and maybe some others.

    So which isthe thickest at the neck? If any.(may need to get a close fit for throat)
    Best lasting.
    Best for forming.
    Consistency.
    All the good dirt.

    I know it may be a bit subjective but what’s the consensus for the 357 mag.

    I could in the end make a 30 badger out of 38 special brass that I can buy a shipping carton full of once fired cases cheap.
    People said "Ask and people will throw 38 special at you " ; but I thought they were pulling my leg.

    Apparently not.
    I can still get 357 mag brass pretty easy thou.

    Any crusty old conundrums wish to post a view on 357 mag brass?
    Wade through the good ,bad ,and ugly.


    I searched but got over 100 pages of hits.
    My Google fu is weak.

    Thanks
    Barra.
    Last edited by barrabruce; 11-02-2021 at 04:00 AM.

  2. #2
    Boolit Master 358429's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2021
    Location
    Northern Virginia, where the freeway does roam.
    Posts
    743
    Winchester 38 brass is thicker at the case mouth. R-p and federal 38 brass are thinnest at the case mouth (good for cast boolets) and reasonably durable.

    Perfecta 357 brass seems to grow in length unusually fast when fired and sized and expanded.

    Starline 357 brass is the best, thin and durable for many high pressure loads and loading cycles before it splits.
    Last edited by 358429; 11-02-2021 at 04:04 AM. Reason: Added additional information

  3. #3
    Boolit Master
    barrabruce's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Far Nth Qld Australia
    Posts
    1,985
    Thanks

  4. #4
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    North Central
    Posts
    2,514
    If you want a bunch of matching headlamps Starline is hard to beat.

  5. #5
    Boolit Grand Master GhostHawk's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2014
    Location
    Fargo ND
    Posts
    7,075
    Hard to beat Starline in my experience.
    I truly believe we need to get back to basics.

    Get right with the Lord.
    Get back to the land.
    Get back to thinking like our forefathers thought.


    May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you
    and give you His peace. Let all of the earth – all of His creation – worship and praise His name! Make His
    praise glorious!

  6. #6
    Boolit Master
    Daekar's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Location
    Virginia, USA
    Posts
    614
    I only have experience with Starline and Hornady cases, but both of them have lasted through countless loadings for me, at various pressures. I have literally been cycling through the same 100 Hornady cases in high-pressure loads since I started shooting 357. I haven't yet lost a case to any kind of fatigue or splitting, only one or two which I accidentally destroyed by raising the ram without having the case centered in the shellholder.
    I'm a big fan of data-driven decisions. You want to make me smile, show me a spreadsheet! Extra points for graphs and best-fit predictive equations.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master OBXPilgrim's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Posts
    610
    Can definitely tell the difference when a winny case is mixed in with a bunch of R-P brass when resizing.
    Avatar - 2006, my oldest son (6'2"), trying to lift the 95lb Cobia he caught at Cape Hatteras, NC from the beach.

  8. #8
    Boolit Master



    ddixie884's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Location
    Avery, Texas
    Posts
    1,309
    Star-Line is hard to beat for regular loading. I have never done any necking down so I don't have any useful input on that.........
    JMHO-YMMV
    dd884
    gary@2texastrucks.com
    Gary D. Peek

  9. #9
    Boolit Master 358429's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2021
    Location
    Northern Virginia, where the freeway does roam.
    Posts
    743
    So barrabruce... is there any chance that you might assemble these cool bottle neck casings with the ness safety bullet upside down and make the ultimate wadcutter

    ... or even cooler looking would be the 311 410 with deep hollow points

  10. #10
    Boolit Master
    barrabruce's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Far Nth Qld Australia
    Posts
    1,985
    Haven’t a 311410 plain or hollow pointed.
    I have tried the hg#38 safety bullet in 30-30 and it shot I thought really good backwards at 100 yards.
    My oath it will be in the line up of things to try once I’m up and running.
    Specially since it will have a normal spec barrel.
    Ohhhh I’m gunna be so flash and spoilt.

    I cast several hundred Lee soup cans.
    And I hope it likes the pope plain base bullet.
    See if I can run it up and get some Schuetzen velocities and groups at 200yrds, thou it won’t be heavy or ornate or long or pretty.

    Should be a project to keep me busy for the wet season.

    I figure they do the 32 Miller short and 30-20.

    Bruce
    Last edited by barrabruce; 11-02-2021 at 10:04 PM.

  11. #11
    Boolit Grand Master
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    Northern Michigan
    Posts
    8,897
    I will be interested in the rifle when you complete it. I came close to building a .30 Badger a few years ago, but could not justify the cost.

    Whichever cases you decide on, it may be a good candidate for annealing to increase case life.
    Don Verna


  12. #12
    Boolit Master BABore's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    West Michigan
    Posts
    2,037
    If you have an actual 30 Badger chamber, it was designed around 38 special brass. One trip through a 30 Mauser die and done. No trimming required.

  13. #13
    Boolit Master
    barrabruce's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Far Nth Qld Australia
    Posts
    1,985
    Thanks everyone..
    Off to drop into the nearest gunshops tomorrow only a couple of hrs drive.
    Got a good idea what to look for.
    If not I’ll get some online.

    I looked at the badger but would need to buy 2 sets of dies as well as a reamer.

    Cheers.
    Bruce
    Last edited by barrabruce; 11-04-2021 at 06:35 AM.

  14. #14
    Boolit Master
    barrabruce's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Far Nth Qld Australia
    Posts
    1,985
    Well one of the purveyors of fine sporting equipment had some 357 mag brass.
    I ended up with the last 2 bags of 357 mag brass.
    Starline … so good to go.

  15. #15
    Boolit Master
    barrabruce's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Far Nth Qld Australia
    Posts
    1,985
    Well I managed to reform 50 starline cases.
    The best lube was vasalene in spite of using RCBS case lube and lanolin.
    I cracked a few cases doing it and had to use 3 or 4 goes to get it done.

    I gave up and tried annealing a case first as I wasn’t really getting anywhere.
    That solved that problem.

    The dies I used squashes the necks down really hard and the expander button only enlarges it to 0.305" so I might try and hone out the full length die and get a 31 caliber expander and work from that.

    Those starline are hard cases.

  16. #16
    Boolit Grand Master


    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    Aberdeen, South Dakota
    Posts
    7,136
    As you found, Starline is not very good brass at all. It is very sad, and perplexing considering the reputation. Unfortunately the truth is Starline brass has atrocious annealing. I consider it the worst brass I have worked with. I really hope this changes. As of now, I will not use it. The only reason I don't throw them in the trash, is because people will buy them.

    For thicker brass, I think Winchester is the best. I actually really like Remington and Federal the best. Some don't like thin Remington brass. Generally those who demand good brass consider Federal or Winchester the best. Nosler is going to be right up there, just not that common in handguns. Hornady is fantastic too, but they often trim short in certain calibers for no good reason.

  17. #17
    Boolit Master


    Walks's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Location
    SoCal
    Posts
    3,028
    I've used just about all headstamps. Best I've found is Remington or Norma. Expands to seal on light loads and Black Powder. Primer pockets stay tight after 6-7 reloadings of MAX loads.
    Winchester is fairly hard, their nickel will crack after 3 HOT loads. I've a friend that necked down 1,000 REM .45ACP for .38-45, worked great.
    I necked up 200 new Rem .223 cases for 7mmTCU, 5-6 loadings so far, lost only 3 cases to neck/shoulder splits. starline does not anneal their brass as a last step, sizes hard. Can't form it for beans. Lose 5-6 cases out of 100 after just 3 loadings.
    I HATE auto-correct

    Happiness is a Warm GUN & more ammo to shoot in it.

    My Experience and My Opinion, are just that, Mine.

    SASS #375 Life

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check