Does Different Brass=Different Results?

[luvdemcoues]

I have been searching this question and can't seem to come up with a good answer. I have been using Winchester brass for my 270 WSM while searching for that special load. Now that I have found it, if I load up all of my Federal brass in addition to the Winchester brass, would I get different results between the two? If so, how big of a difference?

[Benbrown]

I have been searching this question and can't seem to come up with a good answer. I have been using Winchester brass for my 270 WSM while searching for that special load. Now that I have found it, if I load up all of my Federal brass in addition to the Winchester brass, would I get different results between the two? If so, how big of a difference?

The easiest way to find out is to weigh a few of each brand of cases empty, then fill them with water to the top of the neck and reweigh them. If you weigh in grains, you can easily calculate the percent difference in case volume between the two brands. If the difference is more than one or two percent, you will probably see a difference, if all of the other components (including the powder charge) are the same. Or, you can go ahead and load a few rounds in each brand and try them on a target from the bench. I have seen significant differences between W-W cases and Federal cases in some cartridges but not in others. Curiously, the differences have been most noticeable in cases the size of .30-06 (reformed to .338-06) and larger. Shooting them is the only way to be sure.

[DesertBull]

neck tension would probably be the biggest issue, IMO.

[Couzer]

Yes it does. Different weights have different amounts of powder with more or less space creating different pressures.

[luvdemcoues]

I have also heard that Federal brass is junk. Is this still true or have they fixed their issues?

[jeffro]

It makes a huge difference. Fed isnt that bad. Fed GM is really good, but the primer pockets do get loose sooner than say Win, Lap. Also make sure all your brass is on the same reloading number. This makes a huge difference with neck tension. Stay far away from nickel brass if you want extreame spreads under 100fps. I made that mistake years ago, and all I can say is wow what a pain. If you dont believe me on the nickel brass, pull a bullet and you will see the marks the hard nickel leaves on a bullet. Win brass is good if you do all the match prep to it.

[308Nut]

All the info here has been good. Volume, neck tension, etc...all will translate into differences. How much? It depends on alot of circumstances. Some rifle/brass/load combinations will show very little difference while others can be huge.

 

The best policy? IMHO, use only 1 lot# from a given manufacturer. For the 308, I like Lapua and Remington in that order. Lapua brass may at times be over-rated and over-priced but it is still great brass. I have Lapua brass from 10 years ago (for references) and Lapua brass from less than a year ago. Between those and every other lot# of brass I have had, they are all dimensionally with volumetric capacities that are identical. Their consistency is second to none. That said I have had a few lot#s over the last couple of years of the Remington with the same results. My only gripe is that I dont get as many firings and I have to de-burr the flash holes on the Remingtons.

 

Hope that helps.

[luvdemcoues]

Thanks for the info guys. I did the water test, and the capacities were identical. So the only other variable I will need to field test for is the tension in the neck of the cases to see if that effects the accuracy. This forum rocks! I love the wealth of knowledge that exists here.

[firstcoueswas80]

I have actually found Winchester and Federal brass to be very similar.

[.270]

i have used the exact same load in my .270 for a looooooooooong time. a lot of my brass is resized '06. one time i reloaded a buncha resized military '06 brass with the same load i'd been using. i perferated primers, blew primers out, flattened them so bad they actually smeared outta the primer pocket a little, split cases, jammed the action, you name it, i did it. and with only about 10 rounds. couldn't figure out what the heck was goin' on. another guy that knew a little more than me told me it was the military brass. relatively, it is a lot thicker than any of the factory brass making the capacity less and increasing the pressure. i shoot a load that is probably a little across the line as far as max anyway and when i stuffed it in the smaller capacity military brass the pressure went way up. i pulled all the bullets and saved the powder and have reloaded only factory brass since then in my .270. i have a buncha military match brass i shoot in .243's and it works fine, other than being real stiff to resize. but i don't load .243's very hot either. i have never noticed a lot of difference in factory brass, but i'm not a diehard paper shooter. like Bill says, minute of deer is what i worry about. i have some very accurate rifles that are capable of shooting better than i can, but i don't worry a lot about different brands of brass. usually use either winchester or remington. i've never found that federal brass has any bad qualities and have a lot of it loaded in 22/250 and 30/30. i have a lot of nickel .300 brass it seems ok, but i haven't done any testing with it. i bought some nosler brass and loaded it for my son's .300 ultra the other day and wasn't real impressed with it. about the half the primers wouldn't seat flush. they didn't stick out far enough to keep them from working, but for $71 for 50 empties, i expected better. but i don't use military brass in my .270 anymore, that's for dang sure. Lark.

[luvdemcoues]

I ended up loading up some federal brass last night. We'll see how they shoot compared to the winchester brass (which is nickel plated by the way). I don't think I will be able to notice that much difference. I will let you know.