How many reloads are you getting out of your brass

[Savage-10FP]

Hi Guys,
Typically, How many reloads are you getting out of your brass. I am totally new to reloading. I have only been doing it for months at this point. I am only reloading 308 for a remington 700.
I have only been using Federal Gold Metal match cases. I am on my 6th reload on the cases. I am not seeing and signs of weekness on the cases.What do you pro's look for.
Here is a little info on what I use in the cases:
155 SMK's
175 SMK's
For powders.
Varget
H414.
Primers:
Wolf
Winchester LR
I never come close to maxing out the powder loads.
I did just notice on a couple cases. About 1/4 inch from the bottom I have a slight line around the case. No bulging.
Thanks for any replies. I will also start searching the forum for some answers.

 

[A1para]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

Hello,
The number of times you can reload your brass depends on lots of variables. One being how you size your brass. The least amount of sizing which is still reliable in your rifle will give you the longest brass life. Another is the hotness of your loads, I will have to say you are on the right track by keeping your loads reasonable. Your rifle's chamber also plays a role.

I have a Remington PSS which no matter how I size my brass still leaves a shiney ring around the web. A Savage I have which has minimal headspace never leaves a mark on my brass. A straightened paper clip with a small right angle bend on one end and that end flattened can be used to check the inside of a case at the base where the shiney ring is. If you can feel a groove on the inside with the "tool" then I would toss the brass. If you keep using the brass then it will eventually come apart at the mark due to thinning with every load and shoot cycle.

Federal brass is known to be rather soft so you will probably get less loadings from it than say, Win., Lapua.

Sim

 

[mdavis78102]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

I'm getting about 2 loadings on my 6.5X284 Lapua cases before the primer pocket gets to large, but I'm loading 49.5 grains of RL17 behind a 140 Berger @ 3180 fps. That's probably about 100 fps faster than a "normal" pressured load.

It all depends on what your loading to, and what you want out of it. I know when I go into it that brass and barrels are expendable. It's the cost of doing business.

 

[MitchAlsup]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

I have a lot of 308 Win brass (100 pieces) with 25 reload cycles on it (with a usefully stiff load of 47.8 gr Varget pushing a 155 Scenar.) I have not lost a single case from this lot, although the number of cycles between body sizing has gone from 7 to 3 which indicates the brass is nearing the end of its life.

 

[mm509]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

this is interesting, I was thinking of asking this same question. Is it a good idea to just keep an eye on the case oal? I trim when they get around .010" over specified. but this is mainly just to keep them cycling through my rifle with ease.

 

[Victor N TN]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

A lot depends on the brand of brass. For Federal you're getting close to the limit. One thing that makes Federal so good for off the shelf ammo is it's soft enough to chamber even in "short" chambers. But that also makes it wear very fast. I have gotten as many as 10 load cycles on Federal brass. But I have had a case head seperation on the 4th cycle.

Use a colored marker and make a ring in the extractor groove to identify it. Then load it and put it up for a use when you're not going to be able to pick up the brass. I use older brass when I'm hunting and may loose the brass.

Good luck.

 

[Fuzzball]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

'How many reloads are you getting out of your brass."

Well, lessee. Those cases I simply FL size and shoot till the necks split usually go 8-10 cycles. Those few calibers I mostly neck size with a Lee collet die, anneal the necks and do a shoulder bump every 5-6 cycles are on maybe 20-22 cycles with no splits yet.

Your question is a common one with no really definitive answer. Treat them 'normal' and you will get from 5-8 cycles, treat them right and they will last a LOONG time.

 

[Victor N TN]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

I full length size everything.

 

[flyboy]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

I'm probably around 20 reloads with 308 Win brass, I've yet to have one fail and they dont even look to be wearing out all that much. Now I have had regulare old federal brass split after a few reloads but I have a loose remmy chamber and FL resize everything.

 

[BCP]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

I never get more than 2-3 out of federal before the primers start to fall out on me, however when I switched to CCI primers I got a couple more.

Winchester brass seems to be holding up a lot better.

I FL resize everything as I shoot an autoloader.

Also I see those light colored rings towards the base of every cartridge I fire, hopefully that doesn't mean I have headspace issues.

Pressure signs for me have been light colored extractor marks and case heads turning into ovals that don't fit into the shell holder.

I generally load to near max as my rifle seems to only be accurate with hotter loads.

 

[Hummer]

Re: How many reloads are you getting out of your b

Maximum case life in 308 will be obtained with LC MATCH cases.
With proper care and minimal resizing you can get 100+ loads with LC brass. I suspect IMI would give long case life as well.
Mic your fired cases .200" up from rim and I believe you will find the cases will measure .471/.472.
FL size dies should take case down to .468/.469 however if you look around and buy up used 308 dies you might could find a die that sizes .470.
Commercial cases that I know off won't give you anywhere near this case life.
Another thing you can do is to follow the 222 rule which is set up your rifle so nothing moves over .002 anywhere, base, neck or case length and there are two ways. One is to get a used die and chuck it up in a lathe and polish out the inside until your sized cases run .001" under your fired cases.

There is another way to extend case life which is getting a custom chamber reamer with a base dimension of .4685/.469 and a neck dimension of .340". Have it headspaced to snug on a GO gage and you should have a reamer for the next 25 barrels. If you get a rougher at same time it should last about 200 barrels. If you are shooting 100% handloads you could ask for a .035" throat which is much shorter than a factory throat. This would be a 111 die where the case does not expand over .001 anywhere when it is fired.
About 1500 rounds on your barrel have it set back one set of threads and rechambered with this reamer and you are good to go. I shot with a friend who set his barrel back every 2500 rounds and he got 10,000 rounds on his barrel and it was shooting exceptionally well the whole time. One summer he shot four matches in the 790s on its last setback.

Next is to decap with a universal decap die. I use a Lee.
Next is to FL size the case with no decap rod in die and expand the neck to .307-.3075. In this way you are never dragging a expander button through case neck stretching brass toward muzzle.

Stress relieve cases properly and you can shoot the case until the primer pocket gets loose. You should never experience a split neck on a case if you have done everything properly. The big problem is the primer pocket.

I had a Mod 70 target rifle in 30.06 and I shot the same cases over ten years. I had 300 cases dedicated to that rifle. 100 for long range and 200 for rapid fire. New LC Match 30.06 cases measure .465" and my fired cases measure .4652. I think my neck size is .339.