mil. brass vs. comm. brass

billy · 01-10-2008, 10:14 PM

i am going to try some commercial brass and see if it is easier to work compared to military brass.
i have a bunch of different kinds of brass.
and it seems like this mil. stuff is pretty hard to size.
any thoughts?

it's all .308

toolman · 01-10-2008, 10:22 PM

Don't know brother, all of the mil-surp stuff I have is berdan-primed scrap metal.

SwedeSteve · 01-10-2008, 10:22 PM

I think you are probably right. I used to reload US Mil 7.62 Nato a lot, and the commercial stuff seemed easier. Maybe the Mil stuff needed annealing. At FT Benning we went through beau coup ammo on the M60 ranges. They used to have lots marked as throwaway, ie. the brass I mean.

dogman2 · 01-10-2008, 10:30 PM

Military brass is thicker and has less case capacity than commercial.

samuel · 01-10-2008, 10:31 PM

The commercial brass has much better anealing plus the military is heavier.I just dont mess with molitary brass any more. sam.

Mooseman684 · 01-10-2008, 10:32 PM

A lot depends on how worn the chamber was on the gun that fired that ammo and how swelled the brass is...New Brass is way easier to work!
Rich

billy · 01-11-2008, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mooseman684

A lot depends on how worn the chamber was on the gun that fired that ammo and how swelled the brass is...New Brass is way easier to work!
Rich

that seems to be the case. some of these are so tough to do i thought i was going to rip the lag screws holding my press to the floor out!

saving money by buying unworkable brass wasnt very cost effective!

okole · 01-11-2008, 02:13 PM

What caliber is it? Might have been fired in a mg.

Like the wife says, "use lots of lube"

lefty o · 01-11-2008, 02:21 PM

308, and -06 mil brass is thicker. .223 brass is pretty equivalent mil vs commercial. if it was fired in a machinegun, it will be harder to size due to the slightly larger chamber dimensions most MG's have.

samuel · 01-11-2008, 02:26 PM

Sure sounds like M60 to me.Remember the little bulge above the base?For econimy I have found new brass was the real bargain.I havnt bought in a while and suppose it is rough to get a bargain.Using lots of lube and cleaning the die often works fairly good. sam.

dscrick · 01-11-2008, 02:50 PM

Never used any 7.62x51 MIL Brass. It probably did come from an M60. Any scratches on it from the links?

I do use .223 military brass, haven't had any problems with it but man I hate reaming the crimp out of the primer pockets

billy · 01-11-2008, 07:44 PM

i gave up on the milsurp.
i have a few hundred regular cases i am going to play with.

jerry · 01-11-2008, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dscrick

Never used any 7.62x51 MIL Brass. It probably did come from an M60. Any scratches on it from the links?
I do use .223 military brass, haven't had any problems with it but man I hate reaming the crimp out of the primer pockets

try a RCBS pocket swager.

MidwayUSA - RCBS Primer Pocket Swager Combo

billy · 01-13-2008, 12:38 PM

i have never loaded brand new .308 brass .
i just bought some as a extra special treat.

samuel · 01-13-2008, 02:18 PM

Except for tumbling I treat them the same as once fired,trimming,resizing & champforing. sam.

01-10-2008, 10:14 PM	#1
billy spiritual counselor Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: a secret lab on the shores of lake titicaca Posts: 12,199 Images: 9 Blog Entries: 146	mil. brass vs. comm. brass i am going to try some commercial brass and see if it is easier to work compared to military brass. i have a bunch of different kinds of brass. and it seems like this mil. stuff is pretty hard to size. any thoughts? it's all .308 __________________ Last edited by billy; 01-10-2008 at 10:15 PM. Reason: Automerged Doublepost

01-10-2008, 10:22 PM	#2
toolman Mr. Fixit Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: abilene,tx Posts: 5,582 Blog Entries: 22	Don't know brother, all of the mil-surp stuff I have is berdan-primed scrap metal. __________________ Don't be messin' with my gun!

01-10-2008, 10:22 PM	#3
SwedeSteve Thor's Hammer Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Alaska Posts: 10,396 Images: 1	I think you are probably right. I used to reload US Mil 7.62 Nato a lot, and the commercial stuff seemed easier. Maybe the Mil stuff needed annealing. At FT Benning we went through beau coup ammo on the M60 ranges. They used to have lots marked as throwaway, ie. the brass I mean. __________________ Thank God we don't get as much Government as we pay for! -Will Rogers Last edited by SwedeSteve; 01-10-2008 at 10:26 PM.

01-10-2008, 10:32 PM	#6
Mooseman684 Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Alaska Wilderness Posts: 9,691 Images: 2	A lot depends on how worn the chamber was on the gun that fired that ammo and how swelled the brass is...New Brass is way easier to work! Rich __________________ You know you might be facing your doom,when all you get is a click when you're expecting a BOOM!

01-11-2008, 07:44 PM	#12
billy spiritual counselor Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: a secret lab on the shores of lake titicaca Posts: 12,199 Images: 9 Blog Entries: 146	i gave up on the milsurp. i have a few hundred regular cases i am going to play with. __________________

01-10-2008, 10:30 PM	#4
dogman2 Banned Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Iowa Posts: 133	Military brass is thicker and has less case capacity than commercial.

01-10-2008, 10:31 PM	#5
samuel Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 5,087	The commercial brass has much better anealing plus the military is heavier.I just dont mess with molitary brass any more. sam.

01-11-2008, 02:13 PM	#8
okole Banned Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: NW Montana Posts: 61	What caliber is it? Might have been fired in a mg. Like the wife says, "use lots of lube"

01-11-2008, 02:21 PM	#9
lefty o Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: mn Posts: 4,812	308, and -06 mil brass is thicker. .223 brass is pretty equivalent mil vs commercial. if it was fired in a machinegun, it will be harder to size due to the slightly larger chamber dimensions most MG's have.

01-11-2008, 02:26 PM	#10
samuel Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 5,087	Sure sounds like M60 to me.Remember the little bulge above the base?For econimy I have found new brass was the real bargain.I havnt bought in a while and suppose it is rough to get a bargain.Using lots of lube and cleaning the die often works fairly good. sam.

01-11-2008, 02:50 PM	#11
dscrick Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Ohio Posts: 54	Never used any 7.62x51 MIL Brass. It probably did come from an M60. Any scratches on it from the links? I do use .223 military brass, haven't had any problems with it but man I hate reaming the crimp out of the primer pockets

01-13-2008, 12:38 PM	#14
billy spiritual counselor Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: a secret lab on the shores of lake titicaca Posts: 12,199 Images: 9 Blog Entries: 146	i have never loaded brand new .308 brass . i just bought some as a extra special treat. __________________

01-13-2008, 02:18 PM	#15
samuel Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 5,087	Except for tumbling I treat them the same as once fired,trimming,resizing & champforing. sam.