Been reloading since I was 13, never used nickel plated brass, but now have some.

Might be a dumb question but...does the obvious difference in how it feels to the touch ("slicker" than s***) carry forward to when it is fired and result in less grip to chamber walls and more thrust to the bolt?

Lots of high psi rifle and handgun cartridges are loaded in nickel cases. I use them for my wife’s .338 WM with pretty warm loads.....no apparent issues.

I would assume no real discernible difference, provided that the chamber nor the case is slick with lube! JMO. memtb

I do not think there is a slickness problem, but you will probably will have to set
you sizer die different than for straight brass for head spacing.

I’m NAGW, and I may be the exception, but I’ve never reloaded any nickel plated brass.

I load Winchester's nickel plated brass in my .280 Rem. so as to differentiate between .270 and .280 brass. I haven't had any problems with the nickel plated brass. I even anneal them the same way as yellow brass.
Paul B.

Murkydismal: I have used "nickel plated" brass for my reloading/shooting for a VERY long time. Probably 50+ years.
I use nickel plated brass in some of my Rifles in calibers:
17 Remington
22 Hornet
222 Remington
223 Remington
22-250 Remington
220 Swift
243 Winchester
280 Remington
308 Winchester
Never had even problem #1 with them nor with the dies I load them in.
I like nickel plated brass - always have.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Why?

I used to load .45 ACP nickle brass. Taper crimped. I thought I had problems getting the nickle brass to hold tightly to the bullet. No problem with nonplated brass so I gave all of my nickle brass away.
Maybe just my imagination. No problems noted with .40 or 9mm.

Why?
Nickle plated brass is 'stiffer' than regular brass.
I set my sizing die for the brass to just clear compressed fit when bolt closed.
In all the nickle plated brass I have used over the years, I have needed to
set the die a bit lower to get the head space fit up I want.
I size to fit a specific guns chamber on my bolts and single shot guns.
Just me I guess. Maybe most everyone else sizes down further to start out.

Biggest problem I've ever had is it is tough on case trimmer cutter heads. Nickle is hard.

Exactly this^^^

I have found nickel plated brass to be good for AI cartridges

It's also more brittle.

Had a factory Winchester 7-08 cartridge split upon firing and got hot powder and gas to the face.

I'll take the brass made of brass, thanks.

Any chance the nickel plated .45s were Remington? And were you using .451" jacketed/cast bullets?

Nickel brass is brass. Early nickel plated brass was just that but current "plated" brass appears to be more of a wash than actual plating. At least that's what it looks like on my Winchester .280 Rem. brass. Seems to wear off fairly quickly after a few sessions in the tumbler.
Paul B.

Am liking the Starline nickel .45-70, .44 mag and .480 Ruger cases.

/quote]

It's also more brittle.

Had a factory Winchester 7-08 cartridge split upon firing and got hot powder and gas to the face.

I'll take the brass made of brass, thanks.
[/quote]

Have not found that to be true--especially because nickel-plated brass is just that--brass plated with a thin coat of nickel. There are NO cases made entirely of nickel.

Dunno why the 7mm-08 case you cite split, but it was NOT due to being nickel-plated.

I have used nickel plated brass in .257 Roberts, .35 Whelen, and .30-06 without issues. The .35W is all fired Federal brass from Trophy Bonded Bear Claw ammo and the others are (were) new Remington bulk brass. I saw someone here on the Fire had some nickel plated .300 Weatherby cases. Now that would bring the bling!

I prefer nickeled cases when I can find them as they don't scuz up so bad in the wet conditions here. Having used them in both pistol and rifle applications for a couple decades, I can say there's no difference between plated and unplated brass. Now, if anyone has any nickel plated .458 cases they want to part with.........help a brother out!

I had a 17 rem built several years ago with a fairly tight chamber. During initial load development I used R-P brass ( non nickel plated). I then bought a few hundred R-P brass that were nickel. I used the same load data as before and it was clearly over pressure. I assumed it was due to the necks being thicker from the nickel plating and there not being enough room in the throat of the chamber to allow the neck to swell and let go of the bullet. I went back to std brass and the problem went away. That nickel brass now belongs to a Rem 700 .17 and I’ve. Never had any issues with it in the other rifle. I thought about turning the necks a bit but never tried that.

I loaded nickel plated winchester for my 22-250 and my groups opened up about 1/2 inch compared to winchester brass with same load.

Sorry to take so long to reply. .451 jackets and I don't remember the brass manufacturer, but it was multiple. This happened in '84 or '85.

I've got a couple hundred Federal 22-250 nickel cases I can't figure out whether to use or not.

I have used nickle brass to help differentiate my hotter loads and/or defensive loads in handguns for years. If its a .357, 44 mag, 45 colt or 45 acp in nickle its easily identified from afar. I haven't had an issue with any and most of my .357 is brass I bought from a 5 gallon bucket, so who knows how many firings before I got it.

Unplatted brass cases turn green with corrosion in leather loops. Nickel cases remain untarnished for a very long time.

Just sayin' :-)

I have used nickel plated .280 Rem brass for decades with no real issues. I also use it for my .40 S&W and 10 mm hot self defense loads. Also for wife’s .38 Special+P and .357 Mag carry loads. Adjust the resize and crimp a bit for desired effect is all. I would also agree it’s a bit harder on the case trimmer cutter. For some reason the only real loading issue I remember was with 10 mm auto Federal nickel plated brass, and heavier 180 or 200 grain JHP’s. I just made it a point to use regular brass for the heavy bullet loads. As the world of reloading frequently gets squeezed by supply chain issues or overwhelming demand, I tend not to turn down any reloading supplies of calibers I load for(and even some I don’t) because I may regret it somewhere down the line. Just a thought.

Doc_Holidude

Pulling bullets from nickel plated brass can be challenging other than that.....I prefer nickel plated brass when available. Using the cream case lube is a wise sizing procedure.

I have used it for 30 years in 30-06 and 25-06. I size the same, anneal the same and it shoots the same. Only difference I can tell is what was mentioned about it dulling cutter heads quicker. It does do that.

I am using it in my .280. It is Winchester brass. No issues.

There was some talk a while back about nickel brass. Some benchrest shooters said that small bits of the nickel plating could flake off and enter the barrel. The bullets would then pick up the bits of nickel and score the barrel. Not sure if this is true. I'm still using the .280 brass though.

Back in the day I bought 1000 nickel 45acp brass. my idea was it would be easier to find it in the grass after shooting. I was wrong, it’s just as hard if not harder to find then brass colored.
I have nickel brass in every caliber I load for and never had a problem with any of it.

Never noticed much of a difference with pistol brass like 38 Spl.,or 357 Mag. in regards to nickel plated vs. non plated. The most experience I had with rifle brass was years ago when I had a bunch of nickel plated .30-30 brass and it all seemed good. I was always waiting for some of the nickel plating to start chipping off like I heard could happen but have never experienced it. IME it seems to be a non-issue.

Lots of old wives tales about it. Non seem to hold much water though.

Never a problem. Brass is brass regardless of the color.

GreggH

its all use never had a problem with it loads trims sizes and shoos the same as non plated brass

The only nickel plated brass I use on a regular basis is Winchester 375 H&H brass bought from sps a few years back. It works quite well, although I have to admit no case has been reloaded more than twice.

Only nickel brass I’ve used was for a 280AI.

Quite a few pieces started flaking after fire forming so I gave the lot away to someone on here and went back to regular brass.

Sample of one.