I've always found Winchester to be about the most consistant domestic brass.They all seem to be having QC problems,with the buying scare that we just went thru,everyboby is behind. Pete
Its not on the same level as Lapua or Norma but it works okay for most of what I do. Some batches can require a lot of sorting if you are trying for consistency.
Great brass. I had 450 cases and I reloaded each 11 times. Load was 308 Win, 45 grains Varget behind either a 155 or 175 match king. I never full length re-sized opting just to resize the necks. After 11 time through my RPA Quadlock, primer pockets loosened up, I had a case head failure or two, and the bolt also became increasing difficult to close so I called it quits. After that I purchased another 500 cases. I like Win brass.
I buy Winchester brass a lot for my semi 308's. But, when I buy brass for the GAP I go with Lapua or Nosler. I have always found the Winchester brass to a good value.
I just bought 3 bags of Winchester 308 brass from Bass Pro Shop for just over $20 per bag (50 count). I was expecting to cull out a bunch and found none to give up on. I weighed all 150 cases and all but 2 of them weighed inside of 2 grains of each other. I noticed some of them were speckled, but figure that's cosmetic.
ID #s can be found on the bags. No problem with .308w, but the recent .243 brass has had 10% toss outs due to split/misformed necks(that is from factory sealed bags, never fired). 45 usuable cases for the price of 50.
I heard that Winchester brass in .308 has a lot of problems recently. I was going to pick up 500 from Midway but decided to hold off until things come back on par. I'll probably get a small amount of Lapua to hold off for now.
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Nessal</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I heard that Winchester brass in .308 has a lot of problems recently. I was going to pick up 500 from Midway but decided to hold off until things come back on par. I'll probably get a small amount of Lapua to hold off for now. </div></div>
what are these problems you speak of? I have about 600 pieces sitting in my reloading/gun room and havent had any problems from any of them.
I like it too.... Corbon substituted Win brass for Lapua while the Lapua was real hard to find just a short while back & it performed as well as some previous Corbon I bought loaded w/Lapua brass..... Pretty good stuff & reasonably priced....
I just bought another 2 bags of 50 each. I will report if these 100 cases are any less perfect than my 1st 100. I used the RCBS precision mic, and every one I measured was exactly -.003". That's pretty good in my book. Never measured case wall or neck wall thickness tho. When I'm a benchrester I'll learn about neck turning, concentricity, annealing, etc...
Shit brass on my last 7WSM order but GREAT customer service I sent the whole lot back because of cracked necked on a few and a giant brass chip in another from the final cutting process they said.They replaced all 300 and sent back another 50 and a t-shirt.
Since shooting them not a problem can't complain but there a far cry from Lapua and Norma.
Well I was looking for some new brass to replace the Federals that I'm currently using. I did some research on the Winchester brass because they fit the bill. I read a bunch of reviews and the older ones seem to be great. But the most recent reviews seems to be the ones with the most problems with their brass. Some users commenting on how the quality is slipping.
So instead of risking $150 on questionable brass, I'll hop onto some Lapua to hold me off for a while. 100 Lapua cases should last me quite some time and hopefully things turn over for Winchester.
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: targaflorio</div><div class="ubbcode-body">NF: you were dealing with winchester or a retailer? </div></div>
I was dealing through precision reloading they are great and close to me, they get things to me within two days. But I didn't call them about my problem I went straight to the source, why beat around the bush it isn't the retailer's fault and Winchester did great customer service although the first lady I talked to needed some PMS meds the one I was transferred to was very professional and new how to treat customers 1+ for customer service -5 for quality but you get what you pay for and in some cases the designer of the cartridge has you by the balls but all in all no complaints NOW !