Inspect your brass!

[stewiegriffin]

Inspect your brass! Especially range pick-ups.

I recently read a thread where a user mentioned that not inspecting your brass is a gamble. You may get away with it, but someday it may come to bite you. Well, that post made me think, "I think i'll start paying more attention to my brass...." So as I was loading some 45 ACP this morning, I thought to take a closer look at each piece before I placed it in the progressive..



Inspect your brass!

[Sheldon]

Not desireable to load them, but I have done and seen it often enough that I don't worry too much. In all honesty if you would have reloaded it and it actually fed into the chamber it probably would fire ok. Depending on how bad the split is and how tight your chamber is, it may not feed all the way into the chamber and jam into the chamber instead, but short of full seating.

If it did feed into the chamber and fire the split would get bigger and if you were shooting on concrete you'de hear the difference in sound that case would make when it hit the ground. Split caes make a distinct sound that you will learn to pick out if you hear it hit solid ground, or happen to be jingling a handful of cases in your hand, or if you happen to have the tumbler lid off and that cases sifts up to the top.

[vwynn]

found many of those in my brass pile. Usually ill find em before loading them in the tumbler.. and if they pass through then ill hopefully find them after i finish tumble them or while i load my magazine.

[kostner]

Finding a spit case in range pick ups is not a surprise just lets me know fellow reloader have be there. Usually catch them when placing in the shell case holder. But sometimes a Gap 45 will sneak by and cause a stoppage.

[Sub95]

I look at all my range pick ups when i am picking them up, and then again when sorting them out.

[CK_32]

I always do a quick look over when I pick them up. Do another quick look over when you pull them out of the tumbler. And then a good look through before I start loading them and always make a good final expection after the process. Reloading isn't quick. That's how mistakes are made. Take your time and do it right. Reason I like single stage press' because each case I use gets my full attention. I don't have to scan between 5 and make sure the press works at the same time.


The simpler the better IMO. just look at mass production... Over hand built... I learn from history not repeat it

[Full Clip]

If I miss a split case before it goes into the press with a charge/primer/bullet, I usually find it as soon as I pull that lever. There's a very apparent difference between good and bad cases. Of course, I'm on a single-stage press, not some fancy rig running hundreds of rounds an hour.

[m1a1driver]

I hate getting those when I buy range reloads. They dont even inspect their brass and I end up with those that look like the picture....

[bruceflinch]

After I tumble the brass, I grab a handful at a time & rattle them in my hand. A split case will make a "tinny" sound quite different from the "jingle" sound.

[CK_32]

After I tumble the brass, I grab a handful at a time & rattle them in my hand. A split case will make a "tinny" sound quite different from the "jingle" sound.

But what if your def....

[bruceflinch]

But what if your deaf....

Well if you didn't use your hearing protection....guess you're back to the old fashioned visual inspection method.

[ocabj]

I catch these in the resizing process. Split cases will feel very loose in the resizing die. As far as rifle, I'll spot these when I lube the case.

[bohoki]

wow that one looks like it has been loaded like 30 times the knurling is almost gone and it looks like copper is getting free of the zinc

[Striker9]

If I miss a split case before it goes into the press with a charge/primer/bullet, I usually find it as soon as I pull that lever. There's a very apparent difference between good and bad cases. Of course, I'm on a single-stage press, not some fancy rig running hundreds of rounds an hour.

I have one of those fancy blue rig running presses, but still inspect every case before it makes it to 1st station. And I check them again after they come out finished from station 4. Its all in how careful you (not lazy) want to be. Plus, I usually clean and uniform flash hole/pockets, swage mil brass, etc. so there are should be plenty of opportunites to find cracked cases before they make it to the press. I just don't try to rush things and pump out 400 per hour. I'm happy with 200 quality rounds in an hour. I swaged 1000 mil crimps today and found 2 cracked necks. Its not uncommon, and I NEVER reload those. Guess I'm to careful or concerned about hurting myself or others to risk a $0.05 piece of brass. I like having two eyes.

Happy 4th!

[ireload]

I inspect case from other sources besides my own. I'm not fond of "surpise, surprise, surprise". Gomer Pyle moment that is.