Slightly Dented Brass

[RCGunDude]

Processed some 7.62x39 brass I found at the range from an over gas'd AK looks like.......is this ok to full length size and run?

Not experienced with the level of dents to stay away from or go ahead and size.

Thanks! Pics attached

[baih777]

The small dent i would resize and check.
The big dent no. When the dent has a crease in the dent. NO.

[RCGunDude]

The small dent i would resize and check.
The big dent no. When the dent has a crease in the dent. NO.

Ok thanks for the reply.....I'll toss the cases that have a crease. I haven't sized any of those yet after cleaning thankfully, had a feeling they would be too weak at that point.

much obliged

[Corbin Dallas]

The small dent i would resize and check.
The big dent no. When the dent has a crease in the dent. NO.

This!

Those creased cases go in my recycle bucket.

[slamfire1]

This!

Those creased cases go in my recycle bucket.

Just size the things, and leave the lubricant on when you fire them. And it does not take much, the wax layer on the 20mm cannon ammunition fired at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, the max thickness was in the couple of ten thousandths, and that was enough lubrication to extract the rounds from Oerlikon's. This is from Chinn's Machine Gun series.

If you just leave the sizing lubricant on, when the case is fired, the case walls won't stick in the chamber, and that will allow the case to fill out to the chamber walls without friction resistance. Any dents, creases are going to be uniformly flattened by the pressure. As long as the dents are not chock full of lubricant.

I dipped these bullets in lubriplate AA130, and deliberately left a gross amount of grease



you can see that grease flowed down the sidewalls and exited out into the chamber.



"Big Grease"



Our monkey brains evolved in a 14.7 psia world, so we think brass cases are strong. But at 40,000 to 50,000 psia, brass cases bend and flow like tissue. Cases are a gas seal, like an O ring, not a stand alone pressure vessel. The brass case must be supported or it will rupture. Keep the case from sticking to the chamber wall and you will have a perfectly fire formed case at the end of the process.

[bigbossman]

meh - I run the dented case through the sizer and then make a determination..... but I'd probably reload that pictured case and fire-form it.

[dadswickedammo]

It's the standard AK kiss.
I have loaded 1000s of dinged and dented AK brass the only problem I have had loose primer pockets and cracked necks.
Shoot load repeat.

[Full Clip]

Just toss any with dents that ruin the shoulder.
I'd use all the ones I see here.

[Sailormilan2]

[Cowboy T]

OP: Case dents like that are going to happen with some semi-auto rifles. Just the nature of how they work and the ejection process. Those cases should be fine for several more reloads.

[Spyder]

I'd use the two pictured without reservation or concern.

[IrishJoe3]

So. Maybe I live on the wild side. I've loaded and shot WAY worse. I'll lube it extra, ram it home, and if I can bottom out my press and the case neck looks good, it gets loaded and fired

I'm not sure what the concern is for dents or dings that don't compromise the case. Heck, in the early days of cased ammunition (such as the Martini Henry) the cartridge was brass foil wrapped around a steel head that contained the primer. Predictably they ran into issues when soldiers would bend the cartridge and it wouldn't chamber or the foil would tear off in the chamber. But the weapon functioned fine and as intended with no safety issues

https://i.servimg.com/u/f32/20/15/39/83/tm/we5zmy10.jpg

[Spyder]

So. Maybe I live on the wild side. I've loaded and shot WAY worse. I'll lube it extra, ram it home, and if I can bottom out my press and the case neck looks good, it gets loaded and fired

I'm not sure what the concern is for dents or dings that don't compromise the case. Heck, in the early days of cased ammunition (such as the Martini Henry) the cartridge was brass foil wrapped around a steel head that contained the primer. Predictably they ran into issues when soldiers would bend the cartridge and it wouldn't chamber or the foil would tear off in the chamber. But the weapon functioned fine and as intended with no safety issues



https://i.servimg.com/u/f32/20/15/39/83/tm/we5zmy10.jpg

And I always thought I was the wild crazy dumb one out of us! Hahahhaa.

I'm tempted to find/make ammo for my Martini and shoot it. And I've recently started on a halfassed search for 56-46 Spencer brass so I can shoot that thing too. As well as the 1862 Sharps & Hankins Navy 56 Rimfire, in case you come across anything that could work in any of those...

[ar15barrels]

Processed some 7.62x39 brass I found at the range from an over gas'd AK looks like.......is this ok to full length size and run?

Not experienced with the level of dents to stay away from or go ahead and size.

Whatever is left after sizing will disappear during the next firing.
You may get a whole NEW dent from the ejection cycle of the next firing though.

[pacrat]

Whatever is left after sizing will disappear during the next firing.
You may get a whole NEW dent from the ejection cycle of the next firing though.

Absolutely............AKs are notorious "port dingers".