Which brass?
- Thread starter Les Welch
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Re: Which brass?
Well I use Lapua in most of my calibres however in the two you've mentioned I use Rem brass. With the .223 I bought 500 cases for a good price, i've sorted them and I've had consistent results out to 800 yards. I keep considering buying a couple of hundred Lapua for LR but I keep coming back to the RP as I really can't justify the cost vs gain at this point in time.
Lapua do not sell .300WM cases any more, although I am hoarding a box of 100 for a new barrel
) Again I got RP brass and shoot it to 1000 with great results (non sorted). I'd be tempted to go with Winchester probably though as a good compromise on the .300WM.
In answer to your last question the quality of brass definitely does have a factor in consistency, however reloading technique and the shooters skills probably play a bigger part. Still it doesn't hurt to buy the best you can afford and at least take one factor out of the equation.
Well I use Lapua in most of my calibres however in the two you've mentioned I use Rem brass. With the .223 I bought 500 cases for a good price, i've sorted them and I've had consistent results out to 800 yards. I keep considering buying a couple of hundred Lapua for LR but I keep coming back to the RP as I really can't justify the cost vs gain at this point in time.
Lapua do not sell .300WM cases any more, although I am hoarding a box of 100 for a new barrel
) Again I got RP brass and shoot it to 1000 with great results (non sorted). I'd be tempted to go with Winchester probably though as a good compromise on the .300WM.In answer to your last question the quality of brass definitely does have a factor in consistency, however reloading technique and the shooters skills probably play a bigger part. Still it doesn't hurt to buy the best you can afford and at least take one factor out of the equation.
Re: Which brass?
Thanks for the reply Jagged77,
Would you list the brass in order from best to least in your opinion? I can then look up pricing and see what fits my budget best.
Also say I settle on Winchester brass. Is Winchester brass, Winchester brass? Meaning if I go buy a couple boxes of Winchester ammo to break the gun in, is the same brass I would get if buying in bulk? I'm just concerned about mixing different qualities of brass.
Thanks again for your time, and sorry for all the "dumb" questions!
Thanks for the reply Jagged77,
Would you list the brass in order from best to least in your opinion? I can then look up pricing and see what fits my budget best.
Also say I settle on Winchester brass. Is Winchester brass, Winchester brass? Meaning if I go buy a couple boxes of Winchester ammo to break the gun in, is the same brass I would get if buying in bulk? I'm just concerned about mixing different qualities of brass.
Thanks again for your time, and sorry for all the "dumb" questions!
Re: Which brass?
As I said there are definitely some makes of brass that are more consistent than others. Lapua tends to be the gold standard but I'm sure others will chip in with their own opinions and experience. Lapua, Nosler and Norma are all good choices but you shouldn't discount Rem, Winchester, Hornady or Federal either.
Like bullets and powder brass is made in batches - its ideal to try and get a qty of brass with the same batch number. Failing that get your mixed batch of once fired brass (of the same manufacturer of course..) size and trim to a uniform length then weigh the cases. Theory has it that if the cases are within 2% of each other then you won't notice any difference between them, truthfully unless you're shooting BR or ELR that margin could probably be much larger and little variation would be seen. So yes in theory you could add the factory once fired brass to brass only once its had the same amount of firings.
As I said there are definitely some makes of brass that are more consistent than others. Lapua tends to be the gold standard but I'm sure others will chip in with their own opinions and experience. Lapua, Nosler and Norma are all good choices but you shouldn't discount Rem, Winchester, Hornady or Federal either.
Like bullets and powder brass is made in batches - its ideal to try and get a qty of brass with the same batch number. Failing that get your mixed batch of once fired brass (of the same manufacturer of course..) size and trim to a uniform length then weigh the cases. Theory has it that if the cases are within 2% of each other then you won't notice any difference between them, truthfully unless you're shooting BR or ELR that margin could probably be much larger and little variation would be seen. So yes in theory you could add the factory once fired brass to brass only once its had the same amount of firings.
Re: Which brass?
As a general rule, Win brass is pretty hard to beat unless you start paying for the premium stuff like Lapua, Nosler, or Norma (and I'm not sure I can shoot well enough to take advantage of the 'good stuff'). The only real advantage of the better brass is uniformity from one case to the next. I use Lapua in my very best rifles but I don't waste the money on lesser guns.
Remington is a name that usually doesn't come up very often when talking about the best brass, but every once in a while they will make a batch of nickle-plated .223 that is excellent - it even has the flash holes deburred from the factory. I bought 1,000 rounds of that stuff a few years ago and it will hold its own against anything else I've tried (and I've tried all the best brands in that caliber, even the exorbitantly priced Norma). To be fair to Remington, I've seen several articles recently that said they are taking some serious steps toward making their brass a much higher quality.
Whatever brand you choose, I'd buy as much as I could at a time. Even brass from the same company will have variations from one lot to the next. Eliminating sources of inconsistency is the name of the game when it comes to accuracy.
As a general rule, Win brass is pretty hard to beat unless you start paying for the premium stuff like Lapua, Nosler, or Norma (and I'm not sure I can shoot well enough to take advantage of the 'good stuff'). The only real advantage of the better brass is uniformity from one case to the next. I use Lapua in my very best rifles but I don't waste the money on lesser guns.
Remington is a name that usually doesn't come up very often when talking about the best brass, but every once in a while they will make a batch of nickle-plated .223 that is excellent - it even has the flash holes deburred from the factory. I bought 1,000 rounds of that stuff a few years ago and it will hold its own against anything else I've tried (and I've tried all the best brands in that caliber, even the exorbitantly priced Norma). To be fair to Remington, I've seen several articles recently that said they are taking some serious steps toward making their brass a much higher quality.
Whatever brand you choose, I'd buy as much as I could at a time. Even brass from the same company will have variations from one lot to the next. Eliminating sources of inconsistency is the name of the game when it comes to accuracy.
Re: Which brass?
223 in this order. Lapua if you think you can shoot the difference, Nosler, Lake City, Winchester, Remington(not as good as it was 20 years ago), Federal
300Win Norma is the best if you can afford it, Nosler, Winchester
223 in this order. Lapua if you think you can shoot the difference, Nosler, Lake City, Winchester, Remington(not as good as it was 20 years ago), Federal
300Win Norma is the best if you can afford it, Nosler, Winchester
Re: Which brass?
FWIW I ran a test with a 308 bolt gun a few weeks ago where the only variable I had was the brass. Everything was the same (bullet, primer, powder, powder charge, OAL, etc) The brass I used was Lapua, Rem, Win and Hornady. All shots were at 100yds and I was surprised to see that they all performed equally.
If you take time to inspect the brass you will find the higher dollar stuff is better constructed and takes less prep work to make ready and will likely last longer.
Jet
FWIW I ran a test with a 308 bolt gun a few weeks ago where the only variable I had was the brass. Everything was the same (bullet, primer, powder, powder charge, OAL, etc) The brass I used was Lapua, Rem, Win and Hornady. All shots were at 100yds and I was surprised to see that they all performed equally.
If you take time to inspect the brass you will find the higher dollar stuff is better constructed and takes less prep work to make ready and will likely last longer.
Jet
Re: Which brass?
Brass is one of the most important part in accuracy IHMO. I'd go with Lapua for the 223 and Norma for the 300wm. It's well work the price IMO. Saves a lot of time and frustration.
Brass is one of the most important part in accuracy IHMO. I'd go with Lapua for the 223 and Norma for the 300wm. It's well work the price IMO. Saves a lot of time and frustration.
Re: Which brass?
I use alot of Win, used some lapua, loaded some remmington.
I think Win arrives the most refined.
My pet load for me 22-250 involves the nickel remmington. Usually I am lucky to get a batch of 100 that doesent have 3-4 with a rolled of folded neck.
For me it comes down to price and what I can get vs. what I feel is best.
I will agree with the above post. I had a buddy I loaded for that collected brass from 20 box's of factory loaded. by the time he had 100, it was 5 differant brands, hell one box was nickel. I preped them all, loaded them and to be honest I couldent see a differance. He destroyed some serious prairie dog even out to 600.
Last, Its also fair to consider what type of chamber you have too! For a factory gun, they have all been harder on brass then anything I reamed myself. food for thought
I use alot of Win, used some lapua, loaded some remmington.
I think Win arrives the most refined.
My pet load for me 22-250 involves the nickel remmington. Usually I am lucky to get a batch of 100 that doesent have 3-4 with a rolled of folded neck.
For me it comes down to price and what I can get vs. what I feel is best.
I will agree with the above post. I had a buddy I loaded for that collected brass from 20 box's of factory loaded. by the time he had 100, it was 5 differant brands, hell one box was nickel. I preped them all, loaded them and to be honest I couldent see a differance. He destroyed some serious prairie dog even out to 600.
Last, Its also fair to consider what type of chamber you have too! For a factory gun, they have all been harder on brass then anything I reamed myself. food for thought
Re: Which brass?
I use Rem or Win brass for the bulk of my handloading. It's available off-the-shelf locally.
I would do the same prep on any brass I had, regardless of brand. So there is less point to my buying higher quality brass. Usually, even if the brass gets fewer reloads; with the cheaper cost it about breaks even.
In the long run it's the easier availability that makes my difference. I walk into the shop once each month, pick out my wants, and walk out with my purchases; done deal, fifteen minutes tops. If I have to come back to pick up something a week later that needed to be ordered, it's not a hardship to be going back to that shop anyway.
There's a quality to doing business eyeball to eyeball that simply can't be duplicated any other way.
Greg
I use Rem or Win brass for the bulk of my handloading. It's available off-the-shelf locally.
I would do the same prep on any brass I had, regardless of brand. So there is less point to my buying higher quality brass. Usually, even if the brass gets fewer reloads; with the cheaper cost it about breaks even.
In the long run it's the easier availability that makes my difference. I walk into the shop once each month, pick out my wants, and walk out with my purchases; done deal, fifteen minutes tops. If I have to come back to pick up something a week later that needed to be ordered, it's not a hardship to be going back to that shop anyway.
There's a quality to doing business eyeball to eyeball that simply can't be duplicated any other way.
Greg
Re: Which brass?
I will mix brass for IHMSA competion. 200M and under it hasn't made a huge difference but I will not mix my shootoff loads or my half scale brass. When I need to hit 10 half scale chickens at 200M "good enough" will not get it done.
I will mix brass for IHMSA competion. 200M and under it hasn't made a huge difference but I will not mix my shootoff loads or my half scale brass. When I need to hit 10 half scale chickens at 200M "good enough" will not get it done.
Re: Which brass?
Lapua brass all the way especially if your prepping. The brass will stretch less and last longer unless your loading very hot at which point your primer pockets will loosen quickly. I would suppose the are many factors to consider.
1. Price
2. Will you recover your brass
3. Are you prepping all your brass
4. How hot your loads are which will effect longevity.
If your not prepping, your loads are hot and your not recovering go with cheap.
If your prepping, your loads are normal and your recovering spend the extra bucks.
I have some Lapua 308 brass with 20 firings on it with only 1 trim down in between. I FL resize every time as well. I also had Federal brass that stretched too much for the chamber after only 3 or 4 firings. I just would rather spend my time shooting than trimming and prepping new or existing brass.
Lapua brass all the way especially if your prepping. The brass will stretch less and last longer unless your loading very hot at which point your primer pockets will loosen quickly. I would suppose the are many factors to consider.
1. Price
2. Will you recover your brass
3. Are you prepping all your brass
4. How hot your loads are which will effect longevity.
If your not prepping, your loads are hot and your not recovering go with cheap.
If your prepping, your loads are normal and your recovering spend the extra bucks.
I have some Lapua 308 brass with 20 firings on it with only 1 trim down in between. I FL resize every time as well. I also had Federal brass that stretched too much for the chamber after only 3 or 4 firings. I just would rather spend my time shooting than trimming and prepping new or existing brass.
Re: Which brass?
For my XTC loads I reload Black Hills stamped which is WCC mil-spec. For my 1000 load I went with Winchester bagged. When I get enough experience at 1000 yards I may try some once fired BHA brass. The BHA shoots on call at 600 yards.
For my XTC loads I reload Black Hills stamped which is WCC mil-spec. For my 1000 load I went with Winchester bagged. When I get enough experience at 1000 yards I may try some once fired BHA brass. The BHA shoots on call at 600 yards.
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