Thoughts on "reman" vs. "reloaded"...

[GWS]

I used to shoot reloads I'd bought at gun shows back when money was tight. I never had a problem I bought remanufactured ammo at gun shops. Black Hills was a remanufacturer before they started producing their own. brand. Nowadays I don't go to gun shows anymore and either buy factory or reload my own. I have gotten a few stinkers from Winchester White Box 223 including upside down and sideways primers. So for myself, I can honestly say I've had more issues with factory ammo than remanufactured.
At least it gave me the habit of examining any ammo I use before I load it into my firearms.

 

[eb in oregon]

A rookie mistake that is sometimes overlooked by hobbyists and small outfits trying to sell ammo. Yet you can find overlength cases on some unfired factory ammo. Not by great amounts.

True. I once ordered a quantity of .30 Carbine brass from a major manufacturer supplied by a major distributor. And I didn't bother to check the length. New brass, right? When I got around to firing that ammunition both my brother and I had problems chambering some of it in Ruger .30 Carbine Blackhawk pistols. After the struggle I took the brass home and measured it. In a once fired state some of it was almost .01 longer than maximum dimension.

So now I always insure that new brass is run through my die and then run on the Forster trimmer before loading.

 

[CLT65]

Would you rather buy a sammich from someone with the proper bona-fides or just some schlub that can dip a spatula into a mayonnaise jar?

This is actually a good analogy. When you buy a sandwich from a licensed vendor, it may be delicious, or it may be nasty, but you know that the seller at least went to the trouble to get licensed, has some basic food-handling training, and insurance in case you get some serious food poisoning (at least in theory).

Buying a sandwich from some guy making sandwiches in his kitchen and selling them on the side of the road, you have no assurances at all. He may be a clean, meticulous chef, and it might be the best thing you've ever tasted, but on the other hand...

 

[gmerkt]

True. I once ordered a quantity of .30 Carbine brass from a major manufacturer supplied by a major distributor. And I didn't bother to check the length. New brass, right? When I got around to firing that ammunition both my brother and I had problems chambering some of it in Ruger .30 Carbine Blackhawk pistols. After the struggle I took the brass home and measured it. In a once fired state some of it was almost .01 longer than maximum dimension.

So now I always insure that new brass is run through my die and then run on the Forster trimmer before loading.

With a case such as a .30 Carbine, if the brass is too long, the cartridge may not fully chamber and the weapon bolt won't go into battery. .30 Carbine headspaces on the mouth and correct case length is critical.

When I was a rookie, at first I missed the part about case length in my Speer book. My cousin who was mentoring me didn't mention it either. So early on, I had a few .223 Rem. that were excessively long such that they wouldn't fully chamber. Now I'm talking about rifle cartridges that headspace on the shoulder. Depending on the leade / throat of the rifling, the criticality of case length varies. But the worst scenario is when a cartridge with an over-length case is forced into battery. Like you might be able to do with a bolt action. In this condition, the mouth of the case is being jammed into the area where the bullet is supposed to transition. This makes for a very tight fit of case against bullet and no doubt raises pressures. There are other reasons for trimming brass but this is without doubt at the top of the list.

 

[eb in oregon]

With a case such as a .30 Carbine, if the brass is too long, the cartridge may not fully chamber and the weapon bolt won't go into battery. .30 Carbine headspaces on the mouth and correct case length is critical.

Hence the issues with chambering, even in a Ruger pistol.

But the worst scenario is when a cartridge with an over-length case is forced into battery. Like you might be able to do with a bolt action. In this condition, the mouth of the case is being jammed into the area where the bullet is supposed to transition.

Hence the warnings in virtually all reloading manuals regarding cases longer than the maximum specified length. If the case is too long it can crimp the bullet in place which drives chamber pressures to dangerous levels.

 

[jrd541280]

i'd rather have a magazine full of reloads from a friend, neighbor, or other aquaintance that has reloaded a while, than an empty magazine.