PPC brass - how long until you trash it ?

B

BJS6

Guest
How many firings do you put on your competition brass before trashing it.

A yardage, two yardages, a 2 gun, a couple of 2 guns ??

Why ??

I am currently shooting brass 2 - 5 times before a shoot and then using it in a 2 gun and then trashing it. To much, to little ??

Thanks

Bryce
 
You will get all varieties of answers to this question I use my brass and always have for many reloadings, some people just shoot their brass for a weekend.

One thing I predict, the way prices are going up and availability of things is going down some people will be using it longer.
 
Bryce,

As Dick said, you will get a lot of different answers.
How long brass last depends mostly on how hot your loads are. There is no doubt that elevated pressure loads tend to shorten barrel life, even with vigorous full length sizing.
A good example of how some of us use brass is this. For our first match at Tomball, which was 10 shot Unlimited and HV combined for the Two Gun, I took 30 new, (twice fired), cases. I continually used 18 of them in the Unlimited Grand Agg, which amounted to about 8-9 firings each.
At the end of the day, they were ready to be recycled into plumbing fittings.
I started the next day with the remainder 12, and at the end of that Grand Agg, they were toast as well.
I will make up 30 new ones for the next Two Gun Event.
I do keep the cases, they will still shoot, but they all tend to get a little difficult to get in and out of the Rifle. I do not like that on the line.
After saying all of that, I can say this. Nothing shoots like new brass.........jackie
 
That is Ass-u-me

Butch Lambert said:
When it is sized properly and it gives the deadly click on hard extraction, you have gone too long.
Butch
Click to expand...

ing that your die is correct to start with. Basically, theer is NO guideline on how long brass lasts. If you anneal your brass, you may well get the life of a barrel out of a set, especially if you make 25-50 pcs and religiously rotate it. If you are like many of us, shoot it HARD AND FAST, you may well get a couple of 2 gun aggs out of it. And then if $$$$ is NO object, you can throw it away after every weekend. SOmewhere in there is where you will fall.
 
Thanks gents.

My loads are warm but not so hot as to render the brass beyond use after 8 - 10 loads. After 20 plus loads they still chamber and extract freely and they shoot well so I guess I will just keep using them and see what happens.

It just somehow doesn't seem right to ask the brass to keep going and going ..............

Jackie, I have heard that comment about fresh brass and agging. Is that something that you have observed on a regular basis or a more gut feeling deal ??

Bryce
 
Bryce

Making brass is a lot of work. Plus, every time I throw one away, that is like tossing 50 cents in the trash. No body is giving this stuff to me
So, you will just have to trust me when I say that it is more than a gut feeling.
It is sort of like my tuner. Shooters constantly ask me, "do you really think it helps". Well, It sure isn't on there because it looks pretty......jackie
 
Thanks Jackie,

That is certainly good enough for me !! :)

With the cost of other components down here I am quite happy to toss $20 worth of brass after a 2 gun if I can see that a fresh batch shoots better.

I suspect that my current skill level would not be able to tell the difference but I like to try and do the best I can so far as the rifle and loads goes, seems to me the more accuracy one has the better despite the current skill level. I can't improve my flag reading overnight but I do have some control over the rifle, barrel, bullets, tune etc ....

Bryce
 
Hey Jackie, you should check the current price for brass, .50cents, I wish. I would buy 5000 tomorrow if I could get it for that. The new Sinclair catalog has it listed for $84 a hundred. yikes

Joe
 
Brass Life?

I have two lots of 6 PPC brass with over 30 cycles. Yes, New brass may be better but for the most part I can not tell the difference. I usually shoot with 28 to 29 grs of N133. Not real hot. After 5 to 7 cycles I always anneal using a lower temperature anneal with the wheel machine.

After annealing I FL resize and then check OAL. The rest of the time I neck size. Accuracy is always better on Cycles 2 to 5. I have see this time and time again. I load with the bullet into the lands.

Back before we got the fancy annealing machine I use to anneal with the torch and the brass setting in a pan of water. This works just a well if you are careful and do not get the brass to hot. Over heating brass when annealing will kill it fast!
 
Butch Lambert said:
You are wrong Tim. After it eventually work hardens it will be hard to extract. Sizing won't fix work hardened brass.
Butch
Click to expand...

Well...I digress. Let me splain.With my die [nothing unusual] which more less hits the base and the shoulder because the base really is never allowed much expansion. After a bit I will have to put another shim in because the shoulders do spring back and I only bump them between 1/2-1 thou. And for winter league stuff I have cases I've annealed 3-4 times no problem. This is all on a Viper which cams over somewhat less progressively, used to develop the click quite fast before Dwight made me a die, now never happens. For match stuff I only use'em for a couple then they become sighter cases.
 
Butch Lambert,


I've got hundreds of cases that've been fired between 15 and 50 times. Fired in PPC's at 3400+ with 68's and 6BR's at 2900+ with 105's. These cases size and extract perfectly every time. I can't even imagine having to deal with Octopus' situation where loads 2 and 5 shoot better :confused::confused: I guess you only take cycles 2 and 5 to the big matches Octopus?

I recently took cases which had been fired in one 6BR chamber 15 times at high pressure and bumped the shoulders back .002 to shoot in another chamber (same reamer)............. no problem whatsoever. I routinely resize work-hardened brass. No you can't roll the shoulders back ten thou nor can you squeeze down a swelled casehead but resizing work-hardened brass just for chamber fit is easily accomplished PROVIDED the brass was properly made in the first place.

I've got 25pc of brass each for 5 different PPC barrels, brass which is fired HOT! I expect the brass to live out the life of the barrels without even needing to be trimmed. Most of these cases already have over ten firings on them, some have been fired nearly thirty times. These cases extract with the flick of my pinkie. NO click. I have this same situation with chamberings from 22BR up to .308's and am fully expecting the same results from my 300WSM project.


BTW I ended up getting a PacNor 1.450 to Sporter custom taper 34" tube....... I'll probably be calling you about having it melonized. OR!!!....I'm still needing a second barrel. Keep on the Shilen guys about a CM 1.450 stick.........


al
 
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