30BR brass?

Lapua primer pockets seem to stay tighter shooting hot loads. Norma makes excellent brass but is softer than Lapua.
 
Some people shoot the Remington brass with good success but I personally have never been tempted to try it. I am somewhat surprised at Butch's answer as I like Norma brass very much and used it in the PPC for years, but a mere 3 firings on 30BR cases made out of Norma brass and the primer pockets were toast, in my opinion.

Dick
 
Dick,
I've heard that, but not my experience. My brass is about 7yrs old. I initially bought it for my Grandson's 30BR hunting rifle.
Butch
 
B
Butch Lambert said:
Dick,
I've heard that, but not my experience. My brass is about 7yrs old. I initially bought it for my Grandson's 30BR hunting rifle.
Butch
Click to expand...

Butch
Mine is probably older than that , who knows what current batch is like. I was disappointed as I like the Norma brass.

Dick
 
I can say that Lapua will hold up, but Norma is soft. Norma brass will be better than Remington , but only fractionally. Buy the Lapua and don't look back
 
Thanks for all the info guys. I already have Lapua 6BR brass, so will start there.

Thanks again,
Gary (aka dubya)
 
Gary, annealing the neck/shoulder area before firing 'em the first time really helps. The 'blue box' brass seems to benefit more from this than do cases made from the 'cardboard box' brass.

Good shootin'. -Al
 
Al, Since the Blue Box Lapua comes annealed is it your opoinion that it still needs another annealing before forming? I just formed a 100 cases and did not -reanneal- them, formed them right out of the box. This may have been an error, but I really don't know ( and need to know) if another annealing would have helped. These cases were formed in just one pass through an Expandiron die and man were the crooked in the neck. Like some wise man who loads 30 BR cases said somewhere that crooked is ok before fireforming as when you smack them with 50,000 psi of pressure it tends to straighten things out.

I just wonder if a second annealing would have helped with this?

Thanks Roland
 
Hombre0321 said:
These cases were formed in just one pass through an Expandiron die and man were the crooked in the neck. Like some wise man who loads 30 BR cases said somewhere that crooked is ok before fireforming as when you smack them with 50,000 psi of pressure it tends to straighten things out.

I just wonder if a second annealing would have helped with this?

Thanks Roland
Click to expand...

Roland,
Not sure if annealing would have helped (I doubt it, but I am no expert). I can tell you what I do to help eliminate the crooked necks. I use an RCBS shell holder that has a little "SLOP" in it. This allows the piece of brass to "float" a little thus centering the case onto the mandrel. I use a single pass expander also, although I use 4-5 partial passes and not a single pass (single stroke). Let me explain. I place the case in the shell holder, and start pulling the handle on the press (remember it has a little slop in it, so as I pull the handle, the bottom of the case slides into a straight position under the mandrel). As I get the case mouth starting to expand, I stop pulling the handle. I lift the handle thus removing the mandrel from the case mouth but leaving the brass in the shell holder. I then rotate the brass approx 120 degrees (1/3 rotation). I then proceed to expand the case mouth a little more. Once about 1/2 way, I once again stop, and rotate the brass another 120 degrees. I choose 120 degrees so that as I repeat this process about 4-5 times (expanding a little more of the neck each time) the brass gets a more than 100% rotation, and should get a better centering effect. Once I get the complete neck expanded to .308, I once again turn the brass 120 degrees and run the expander into the .308 mouth 2-3 more times (a full rotation). This process gives me better confidence in that my necks are as good as they can get using a non fireforming method.

PS... I use PLENTY of lubricant during this process. I have found that when plenty of lubricant is use, thngs tend to slide easier, thus moving into the straighter position easier too.
 
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I don't have crooked necks as I fireform in a fireform barrel without a bullet. I have very very little left to expand. The brass does not seem to shorten this way.
Butch
 
Hombre0321 said:
I just formed a 100 cases and did not -reanneal- them, formed them right out of the box. This may have been an error, but I really don't know
Click to expand...

Roland
While I hold my friend Al in very high esteem, I disagree with him somewhat in regard to annealing. There has been an awful lot of good shooting done with 30BR brass that was never again annealed since leaving the factory where it was made.

Dick
 
I formed a whole bunch back in the late 1990s, when they were cheap -- about $0.35 each. That's before a lot was written on how to do it, so I used 3 steps -- 6.5 mm, 7mm, then 30. I annealed IF they didn't feel right when I turned the necks. Some batches yes, some no.

Were the necks straight? I dunno, but since I only use .0018 total clearance and fireform with a bullet, they couldn't have been too far out. I do know after 2 firings, everything was good to go. Several batches done that way.

Short answer is, I wouldn't worry over much. Whether or not to now anneal is up to you. Couldn't hurt. We all sort of work these tings out for ourselves, and come up with a way that works.

I'll admit I'm just another fickle shooter -- Probably when I make up new cases, I'll try just fireforming the 6mm case in a .30 BR chamber. Sounds easier.
 
Butch Lambert said:
I don't have crooked necks as I fireform in a fireform barrel without a bullet. I have very very little left to expand. The brass does not seem to shorten this way.
Butch
Click to expand...

I have to add 1 more thing to Butch's method. When I form 30PPC brass from 220 Russian, blowing it out is the ONLY way to go!! I have a crapped out 6mm barrel that we made into a 30PPC chamber fireform. Full case of RedDot, crap 22 bullet on top. Shoot it into a dirt bank. But I must STRESS, 22 bullet in a 6MM barrel. NO pressure. DO NOT try this with a 22 barrel!!!! Catastrophic pressure!!!! Somebody gets hurt. Same kind of thing could be done for 30BR from 6BR brass. And Butch is correct, no case shortening.

David
 
MY norma experience

I am inclined to agree with the soft norma theory. Although I have never used Norma brass in a 30BR I have in various other calibres. The primer pockets did seem to get loose quite quickly and I had to start tossing them here and there from that point on. Not so with the lapua brass.

However the best brass I had ever come across was the stuff with the FC Lovelock head stamp on it. But alas I don't see it anywhere these days. Just vanished from the market.
Andy.
 
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