308 brass over sized

Semomike

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Mar 29, 2020

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#1

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• #1

I bought a bunch of fired Winchester 308 WIN brass at a gun show in town and it's shoulder has been set back nearly 2 tenths more than new brass that it have for comparison. I picked up 350 of these for really cheap! Now I know why.

What does a guy do with this? Trash it? I'm not set up to fire form, and the components, powder, and time is kinda cost prohibitive.

 

Edsel

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#2

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2/10 or 0.2 inch?

A fifth of an inch is a heck of a lot.

Just confirming.

 

spife7980

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#3

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Provide actual measurements and you’ll get actual answers.

 

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Dolomite

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#4

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2 tenths and 2 thousandths is a huge difference. Is it .2 or .02 or .002?

 

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Semomike

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#5

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apologies, 2 hundredths

.02

 

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Jrb572

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#6

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That’s a lot.

 

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Dolomite

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Damn was the guy trying to make another caliber out of 308 brass?

I wouldn’t use it but that is just me.

 

spife7980

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#8

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That’s what you get with gunshow range pick up processed trash, pretty standard crap really.
That’s why no one recommends it.
It’s damn sure gonna fit the smallest chambers and it’s not their concern if it lasts any more than that.

 

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Edsel

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#9

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You can probably get away with

1. Annealing…
2. …Powderpuff plinker loads in a bolt gun (in essence, fireforming), then check the insides with a paperclip

If they were really cheap, prolly better to throw them out.

Or turn them into Creedmoors for fun.

 

Last edited: Aug 10, 2025

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45-90

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#10

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If they were new and sized .020" too far down on the shoulder ya might have something to work with.
Fired? How many times?
Probably not worth messing with as a 308 if you don't want to fireform....crapy brass and cost of components.
But they can be used, by fireforming, jamming a bullet or creating a false shoulder.
Or annealing and run progressive mandrel up to make a straight wall 308 and start necking down no fireforming...too much work for cheap brass..

Ya might trade all 350 pcs to a guy running a shorter case on 308 based case head.
Like 6.5 cm, 8.6 Blackout or 375 Raptor, etc for 100 pcs of 308 win.

 

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