Reloading aluminum pistol cases

[titsonritz]

Aluminum-Cased Ammo at Ammo.com: Aluminum Casings Explained

 

[CLT65]

Aluminum-Cased Ammo at Ammo.com: Aluminum Casings Explained

From that link:
"You'll find reloading debates on firearms and ammunition forums, but the official stance is just don't do it. Though it is very strong, aluminum does have a lower melting point than brass or steel and the structural integrity of the casing simply isn't guaranteed to hold up successfully through one or more reloads.

Also, the decreased flexibility of the aluminum case when compared to brass makes the resizing of the case length, and the opening and closing of the neck, a more difficult process. This is due to the increased likelihood of cracked case necks and shoulder separation – both potential disasters waiting to happen. For the common shooter, recycling aluminum cases is the best option."

This is a very accurate description, in my experience.

 

[Kruel J]

Don't. Aluminum isn't as stretchy as brass. It won't respond well to being resized and then fired again.

This sums it up.

 

[eb in oregon]

I like to tinker and figure out how things work. I've also been reloading for over 30 years. I've done a lot of non-standard reloading stuff in that time, some of which I won't talk about because it was either a stupid waste of time, or potentially dangerous. In all that time I've never damaged or blown up a gun, but I don't tinker or push the limits so much anymore, nor do I recommend such things. I'm just saying I did it, not that it was necessarily right or safe.

There are certain kinds of reloading that I've always though of as "advanced techniques", though I realize that's not a good term for them, because true advanced techniques are things such as what bench-rest shooters do to optimize accuracy. These are more like odd-ball techniques, stuff that can work well if you understand what you're doing, but can be dangerous if you don't. These are things like reloading aluminum and steel cases, converting berdan cases, reforming cases in all kinds of ways, using pistol powder in rifles for light loads, cast bullets in Glocks, etc..

There are a lot of things that can be done, but shouldn't be done, unless you really know what you're doing.

The "flip side" is how do you learn what's "good" or "bad?" Read a book? It's when you leave the book that you start learning. The problem lies in whether a person uses their brain and really pays attention to the material and information at hand.

 

[cookie]

I have tried it and I loaded some and they worked lots of cases split. I can say I have loaded lots of steel 45 acp and 40
S@W cases with great sucess and reloaded them several times to boot.

 

[cookie]

Aluminum work hardens and becomes brittle, much sooner than brass.
When it ruptures, it is catastrophic, not cracking first, like brass.
I have heard of guys reloading it. I wouldn't try - why risk your health and a several hundred dollar gun to save 4 cents?
If you knew metallurgy, knew the exact alloy and the exact forces exerted with each shot, you *could* calculate exactly how many loadings you could do before the risk was too great. While an interesting engineering exercise, just the time it would take setting up the calculations would blow up any value proposition.
AND, you cannot just anneal it like brass. If you don't know the process by which the case was made, not a good idea to try to reuse. Aluminum alloys, when hardened, usually are heated in an atmosphere and then dropped directly into a quench without exposure to air. Commonly used for aircraft parts, they call them "solution" or "Drop-bottom" furnaces.
Caveat, my information may be old, as it's been 30+ years since I designed heat treating equipment.

catastrophic!!! Are you serious? The cases split like brass cases.

 

[P7M13]

I've never seen or heard of a catastrophic failure from reloading aluminum,

catastrophic!!! Are you serious? The cases split like brass cases.

So I gather from the posts here.
Good to know it is just cracking or splits. In the stuff I dealt with, aluminum housings under a lot of stress, it wouldn't be cracks, but whole areas of aluminum "giving out", almost like carbon fiber structures breaking vs kevlar. The aluminum housing itself would become shrapnel in the process of failure. Then along came FEA and the whole process went back to old school -- some parts started being made out of stamped steel, the heavy abuse stuff out of cast iron.
I also had an aluminum rim fail on my Suburban, it wasn't just "cracks" either. Chunks came off the thing, and it didn't happen in an accident. Probably from hitting a curb while parallel parking so many times.

 

[RVTECH]

Sized, tumbled and ready to roll!

 

[WillametteWill]

And here I was in another thread stressing about seating bullets .08" of an inch too deep. I think I'll relax now.

 

[deadeye]

.

So I gather from the posts here.
Good to know it is just cracking or splits. In the stuff I dealt with, aluminum housings under a lot of stress, it wouldn't be cracks, but whole areas of aluminum "giving out", almost like carbon fiber structures breaking vs kevlar. The aluminum housing itself would become shrapnel in the process of failure. Then along came FEA and the whole process went back to old school -- some parts started being made out of stamped steel, the heavy abuse stuff out of cast iron.
I also had an aluminum rim fail on my Suburban, it wasn't just "cracks" either. Chunks came off the thing, and it didn't happen in an accident. Probably from hitting a curb while parallel parking so many times.

You have to take into account that the case will be enclosed inside of a steel structure ( chamber or cylinder) your examples were not. The case holds powder it doesn't hold the high pressure by itself so any splitting/ cracking is contained within the chamber. If the case held the pressure I would suspect that brass wouldn't be the go to metal. I personally wouldn't reload aluminum or steel as brass is easily available, maybe for SHTF purposes. I wouldn't want to spend the time depriming, priming and charging just to have it split when seating a bullet and become unusable, brass as mentioned is just more malleable for the job.

 

[P7M13]

You have to take into account that the case will be enclosed inside of a steel structure ( chamber or cylinAgrder) your examples were not.

Yes, valid point -- though my thinking was along the lines of a KB. I would suspect with an aluminum case it may be worse.
Edit to add: lately I tend to be more curmudgeonly and literal - in my line of work, everything has to be looked at from "worst case scenario" because that's when you pick up body parts. Time to lighten up and go shooting....

 

[deadeye]

Yes, valid point -- though my thinking was along the lines of a KB. I would suspect with an aluminum case it may be worse.
Edit to add: lately I tend to be more curmudgeonly and literal - in my line of work, everything has to be looked at from "worst case scenario" because that's when you pick up body parts. Time to lighten up and go shooting....

I always go worst case scenario, my wife hates it.

 

[P7M13]

I always go worst case scenario, my wife hates it.

Keeps you alive, makes for buzzkill convos.

 

[CLT65]

I always go worst case scenario, my wife hates it.

Must be a guy thing, I do it to. Got one of those situations going right now, not reloading related at all, a medical thing. I'm on pins and needles as my son is in surgery, and will continue to be so until we get lab results back. Sorry, major OT.

 

[DizzyJ]

Must be a guy thing, I do it to. Got one of those situations going right now, not reloading related at all, a medical thing. I'm on pins and needles as my son is in surgery, and will continue to be so until we get lab results back. Sorry, major OT.

Thoughts and prayers out to you buddy.

 

[Maximillian]

I've heard it's pretty iffy, so I wouldn't. Maybe make some key rings lol

 

[DunRanull]

I inherited a bunch of WWII surplus .45 ammo in aluminum cases. Reloaded several times, no issues. YMMV.

Are you sure they were aluminium and not steel? A lot of steel case .45 auto were loaded in ww2 and just cuz I reloaded some. It's possible to do., if not advisable. Never tried reloading the al cases, which are usually berdan-primed by the manufacturer. Never ran across any ww2 aluminium cased ammo.

 

[cookie]

Remember there is no reason to load even close to max loads 99% ofthe time.

 

[P7M13]

Sorry, major OT.

Makes this entire thread unimportant. I'll keep your son in my thoughts.

 

[thorborg]

Unlike brass, if you try to anneal aluminum visually, or by color change, you just ruined it.
i don't know what shell metal is made from but, You can anneal 6061 alu (which work hardens fast) by heating it just to the point that a pointy toothpick size piece of fir struck across the heated surface will leave a black /brown line on the metal. I have long forgotten what that temperature is but remember Any hotter and it will start to break down quickly, even pitting, when exposed to oxygen.
That said, when you anneal 6061 alu it will never return completely to its manufactured hardness, maybe 50 or 60% maybe one time. a second annealing; a real gray zone of success.
Because reading about something isn't the same as experience gleaned from hands on, I might do it, just to know I could, as an disaster preparedness exercise, Similarly, I have welded with coat hangers which also has severe structural drawbacks. knowing both to be a last resort because of the downsides, but good to know are doable in an emergency. With the benefits of knowing the good and bad from hands on experience, you can opine just what you likely can, or cannot, get by with for future reference..
All in all; I think i would avoid annealing, resize as little as possible, not use a semiautomatic as a test bed, then rest on my laurels.