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For inexpensive ammo, Blazer Brass is acceptable for what it is. I've reloaded some of their cases, no different from other brands.

I bought a 1,000 piece bag of CCI aluminum .38 Special cases from Rocky Mountain Reloaders some time back. These were unfired cases that had been pulled down. They were primed, but I felt it wise to resize them (without decapping) even though they hadn't been fired. Aluminum has a different "memory" than brass. Anyway, they didn't need cleaning, were already primed so I ran some through my Dillon 550, no problems. My grandson has fired a lot of these with low-velocity wadcutters. One use and they are scrap, they don't hold up to multiple loadings.
They didn't get crushed when you resized them? You sir, have a delicate touch on your press. Well done working those cases.:s0155:
 
We've discussed this in another thread, but it's amazing how mainstream small arms cartridge technology hasn't changed all that much in its basic form for about 120 years. Yes, some weird proposal products have come along like Gyro-Jet, Dardick Trounds, and others but the metallic cartridge case is still with us.

They didn't get crushed when you resized them? You sir, have a delicate touch on your press. Well done working those cases

I won't say that I haven't crushed a few, but I've done that with a few brass as well. For all its merits, the Dillon can be fiddly. Turning that around again, I've crushed a few on single stage loading as well. An aluminum case won't "ding," it will fold.

Still, I'm interested in that new polymer cased ammo

I think the main base of interest in composite case ammo now is the US military. Brass may disappear on some small arms ammo in the next generation of weapons which are thought to ditch the 5.56mm.

We'll see how well plastic in weapons systems fares in the future. Cartridge firearms of their very nature seem to need some decent amount of substantial material to survive and perform. A good example for this issue might be the H&K G36. Designed to be lightweight, it turned out to be too light. Overheated, accuracy dropped to about 7% hit rate at 100 meters in tests.
 
I completely understand peoples aversion to steel cased ammo if it doesn't run in their chosen platform. But playing devil's advocate, what does one do when your precious stock of brass ammo along with the means to reload it goes away? Might be wise to choose a platform that will run both.
 
I completely understand peoples aversion to steel cased ammo if it doesn't run in their chosen platform. But playing devil's advocate, what does one do when your precious stock of brass ammo along with the means to reload it goes away? Might be wise to choose a platform that will run both.

playing devils advocate if I run out of brass it's probably because someone took it all after my demise :(
 
Steel for commie guns, brass for the rest.

But why bother stockpiling? According to internet commandos common calibers will laying around everywhere like a video-game resupply level up cache after SHTF... :rolleyes:

Then there's folks like me whom stand by the assertion of should something pooptasctic occur, what you have is what you have.

More than likely reality will be somewhere in the middle.

How far in the middle, and which direction, tho?

ie reasonably easily obtainable (via purchase or simple trade) vs markedly challenging to obtain (unaffordably expensive to buy or trade) vs obtainable only via immoral means.

Hence, since ammo (and components) are so relatively inexpensive now, stock up. If one can, and one enjoys the shooting sports.
 
I completely understand peoples aversion to steel cased ammo if it doesn't run in their chosen platform. But playing devil's advocate, what does one do when your precious stock of brass ammo along with the means to reload it goes away? Might be wise to choose a platform that will run both.
Why do you think at that point in time there would be any steel-cased ammo left either?
Unless you are suggesting it can be found in abandoned guns that were jammed by it:D
 
I practice with Wolf Gold, so I have thousands of rounds of it on hand.

I got some mk262 for serious work, but the wolf gold is Taiwanese m193 and will work fine in a pinch for close in social work. Its like .27/rd by the case online. Worth the extra $70 over steel to me amd very accurate in my guns.

If I was going to stockpile steel, it would be this, but it only saves me $20 bucks, so not worth it.


The other consideration is if you gun is perfectly tuned to cycle full power 5.56 brass, via adjustable gas block or buffers, it may not cycle steel case.

I agree with others here, if you want to stock massive piles of ammo, buy a decent AK, 10-20k steel cased russian ammo, throw it all in a big pelican case with a pound of desicant, and sleep tight at night.

But really, how much ammo you gonna go through before you get hit? I don't have a machine gun, so I won't be laying down figure 8s on an enemy position. Lol.
Lol @ "social work"
 
I completely understand peoples aversion to steel cased ammo if it doesn't run in their chosen platform. But playing devil's advocate, what does one do when your precious stock of brass ammo along with the means to reload it goes away? Might be wise to choose a platform that will run both.

If I can survive long enough to make it through my brass ammo I'll be stoked and happily switch to my AK and steel cased ammo, but something tells be that would be a miracle.
 
You suspect incorrectly
Using Wolf laquered case 5.56 would cause a jam after 20 rounds, like clockwork in a
Kel-Tec SU-16. Remove the stuck case, scrub the chamber with a chamber brush with CLP and 20 rounds later it jammed. The SU-16 shot brass-cased ammo without failures. It only had issues with Wolf I never bothered with Barnaul or TUL
The theory was that the steel case didn't expand enough to seal the chamber so crap from dirty powder would rapidly build up in the chamber till it was enough to wedge the case. I had a similar issue with Wolf .308 in my Loaded M1A. I had to repeatedly come off the line at Front Sight until I gave up on the Wolf and switched back to brass cased ammo.
YMMV, but as far as I am concerned Steel cased ammo is crap. The savings are not worth it if I can't trust it and since I have found it detrimental in 2 firearms I owned, I will avoid it. .
Most rifles run perfectly fine on steelcase ammo, some wont. All my AR'S function fine on steelcase, but my buddy's Rock River arms AR will get a stuck case in about 20 rounds or so. My shooting buddy has ran nothing but steelcase thru his AR since I met him 7 years ago, I like to know which rifles I own car run it reliably and which ones won't just to know even tho I run brass case thru my American guns. I just picked up,a 7.62 upper for my AR that I will run nothing but steelcase thru, and I am sure it will function flawlessly as my buddy has the exact upper. I wouldn't say steelcase is crap because unfortunately it wouldn't run in your specific rifles. Again some rifles are picky, I think because of tighter tolerance barrels but that's just my guess.
 
Most rifles run perfectly fine on steelcase ammo, some wont. All my AR'S function fine on steelcase, but my buddy's Rock River arms AR will get a stuck case in about 20 rounds or so. My shooting buddy has ran nothing but steelcase thru his AR since I met him 7 years ago, I like to know which rifles I own car run it reliably and which ones won't just to know even tho I run brass case thru my American guns. I just picked up,a 7.62 upper for my AR that I will run nothing but steelcase thru, and I am sure it will function flawlessly as my buddy has the exact upper. I wouldn't say steelcase is crap because unfortunately it wouldn't run in your specific rifles. Again some rifles are picky, I think because of tighter tolerance barrels but that's just my guess.
Well, it's all subjective. Its crap for me because of my bad experiences with it. I'm pretty sure I would use steel in an emergency, but for general use, no. But if it works well for someone else, great. They should enjoy shooting it to their heart's content. It just ain't for me.
 
I have never shot steel cased ammo, even before I got bit by the reloading bug.
If I had an AK then yes I'd shoot it in that platform only.
Plus it's just flat out disgusting to see it all over the ground at the pits I frequent (like the shotgun slobs who leave their hulls). When we clean up our shooting place, @Slobray brings his magnet on wheels.:s0155::s0155::s0155:
 
Sealed plastic battle packs! Good!

Sealed primers! Good!

Toss it in a ammo can that still has a good rubber seal with desiccant, stored in a room that has a working dehydrator GOLD!!
 
I'm going to echo the statement about storage. Going thru my in laws house, i've inherited a bunch of guns and ammo of late - and sadly, over 2/3 of the ammo has been bad - badly corroded steel and brass cases :eek: brass is not impervious to corrosion. I've had bad nickel plated brass that's been corroded, polished brass corroded, steel corroded. It's been pistol, rifle, and shotgun rounds. I have a 5 gallon bucket full of ammo soaking in water right now, that was all badly corroded. :(
 

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