I can get a deal on some new unfired Federal brass. How is the quality these days? It was excellent brass up until a handful of years ago, then it went soft. What say you, gents?

A while back I was down on Federal brass precisely because I found it to be soft, and no I wasn't loading it hot. But a few years ago it, at least in the 308 Winchester I tried, got better and gave good service. The handloader must take into account it often is thicker and of smaller capacity than some other makes. For example, 46 grains of Varget under a 168 is pretty much a reference grade load in WW 308 Win. brass. The Federal brass is about 25 grains heavier and doesn't get along with that much powder.

I've been using quite a bit of recent production Federal brass lately in .223 , 243, and .308.

I have not had any issues with primer pockets loosening with max & close-to-max loads in all three.

The brass is as about as easy to FL size as the Hornady brass in those calibers, and, as mentioned, is slightly thicker than WW or Rem, allowing for slightly less powder.

Ed

That one is a big change. Their 223 was the worst.

I can't speak for newly manufactured Federal brass but I've got several hundred pieces of new Federal 280 Rem brass from 8-10 yrs ago. Some of the most consistent brass I've owned.

I prefer my brass on the soft side. As such, have never been a fan of FC.