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Joined: May 2008
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Campfire Regular
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Joined: Dec 2004
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Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,325 |
According to an article published in Handloader magazine, lifespan of .308 brass that they tested was as follows: 1. Norma (24 reloads to failure) 2. Remington (nickel plated) (22 reloads to failure) 3. Remington (not nickel plated) (20 reloads to failure) 4. Lapua (15 reloads to failure) 5. Winchester (14 reloads to failure) 6. Federal (nickel plated) (13 reloads to failure) 7. Federal (plain) (13 reloads to failure) 8. Hornady (12 reloads to failure) 9. Federal (military) (11 reloads to failure) 10. Nosler (11 reloads to failure)
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Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 759
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 759 |
No complaints about FC stamps from me. Case life is not a problem in any of the cartridges I load with it; .30'06, .280 AI, .270, .308, .243, and .30-30, and several of those bolt action loads have been at or just above book max. In fact, all of my .280 AI brass is fire-formed FC .280 Rem. Zero trouble.
I have .243, .308, and .280 AI dedicated load testing cases all between 8-10x, .30'06 6-7x. No primer pocket issues, no problems of any kind, still matching groups with new hunting dedicated brass just as when they were 2x.
It's heavier than RP or WW, across the board, but pretty uniform in weight. I've found it to be the most accurate brass for some of my loads, and not inaccurate for any of them.
Maybe I need to start expecting trouble when I enter double digits, but I'll just keep inspecting it and see how long it goes.
To date, I have no reason not to look for it when I want to pad the brass bank.
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,206 Likes: 23
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,206 Likes: 23 |
According to an article published in Handloader magazine, lifespan of .308 brass that they tested was as follows: 1. Norma (24 reloads to failure) 2. Remington (nickel plated) (22 reloads to failure) 3. Remington (not nickel plated) (20 reloads to failure) 4. Lapua (15 reloads to failure) 5. Winchester (14 reloads to failure) 6. Federal (nickel plated) (13 reloads to failure) 7. Federal (plain) (13 reloads to failure) 8. Hornady (12 reloads to failure) 9. Federal (military) (11 reloads to failure) 10. Nosler (11 reloads to failure)
That looks about right..
I try to stick with the basics, they do so well. Nothing fancy mind you, just plain jane will get it done with style. You want to see an animal drop right now? Shoot him in the ear hole. BSA MAGA
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Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 21,978 Likes: 1
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 21,978 Likes: 1 |
One other thing, I don't just load indiscriminately with the same powder charge in all cases. I sort cases by brand, or at least by weight. Federal brass is often heavier, = lower capacity, so charges must be reduced a wee bit. If you don't do that, and you're already loading a max load for other brass, over max pressure is likely, and corresponding poor case life.
That's been my experience. I don't buy any Fed brass, but all my 308 hulls come from a police tac unit and they are all Federals. Low runout and get fed .5-1 grain less powder as the Win. Rems I used to use to hit the same clock numbers. No issues.
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Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 44,887 Likes: 11
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 44,887 Likes: 11 |
According to an article published in Handloader magazine, lifespan of .308 brass that they tested was as follows: 1. Norma (24 reloads to failure) 2. Remington (nickel plated) (22 reloads to failure) 3. Remington (not nickel plated) (20 reloads to failure) 4. Lapua (15 reloads to failure) 5. Winchester (14 reloads to failure) 6. Federal (nickel plated) (13 reloads to failure) 7. Federal (plain) (13 reloads to failure) 8. Hornady (12 reloads to failure) 9. Federal (military) (11 reloads to failure) 10. Nosler (11 reloads to failure)
I don't remember the sizing regime they used.
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 655
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Campfire Regular
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Joined: Dec 2008
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Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Dec 2008
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non 223 federal seems harder to me when I resize it, but other than that it seems ok. .All my federal brass is once fired range pickup. 223 federal does tend to get loose primer pockets as does hornady.
"Life is tough, even tougher if your stupid" John Wayne
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