Brass quality..

[ZombieKiller]

Could someone please list the makers of new brass by quality of their product?
I was trying to buy new brass but want to avoid an inferior product....An employee at BPS in Rancho Cuc told me last week that Winchester brass was to be avoided at all costs right now since "their quality has degraded since the buyout"....I had no clue as to what buyout- but I walked out empty handed because I did not know what to think.....hence, I come to you experts for advice....as always- Thanks in advance for the help!!!

Ex:

1. Highest quality




10. Lowest quality

[lazuris]

Depends on the caliber. I like Winchester brass as it resizes well and hold up for quite a few reloads. Also remember that it also depends on how you reload as well. Hot loads will shorten the lifespan versus light loads. Most higher priced brass is priced higher because the cases are pre-sorted by weight where Winchester and Remington is bulk and up to you to sort. In addition most re-loaders will still trim and re-size their brass regardless of the make. By the way, I am not impressed with the quality of persons at Bass Pro Shop. The place looks nice but reminds me of Fry’s when it comes to product and sales persons. If you want quality firearm information go to a quality gun shop not a McSporting good store. BTW the best place to buy bulk brass and IMO get good reviews is www.midwayusa.com. I buy all my bulk brass from them and have found that the reviews are very accurate to my observations.

[ocabj]

It's nearly impossible to rank the quality of brass in order.

All I'll say is that Lapua is the best when it comes to rifle.

Norma is far overrated.

Amerc is to be avoided at all costs.

[rksimple]

Amerc is to be avoided at all costs.

I'd be inclined to add federal to that list as well. Its too soft for any kind of stout loads.

Lapua is the one against which all others are judged. Winchester gets the job done for a decent price. You pick.

[sargenv]

As you can see, there are many opinions either way. I've always stuck to the american manufacturers since it was something that was readily available. Remington, Winchester, and Federal. PMC comes in somewhere near the ok to reload, don't load it too hot category for me. But then I was loading max loads in 40 S&W and had a case head separation so I'm a little biased.

You also didn't mention whether you wanted pistol or rifle brass.

For 38 super +P I use either Winchester or Starline but will use any brass that people give me (free is free )

for 40 S&W in my 610 I use only Winchester.

For 40 S&W in my Sig or Para, anything I pick up goes into the practice bin.

For 38 spl in my 627 with moon clips I use only RP or Federal since that's what fits the moon clips. Starline is purported to work, and I have some of it, but for now I have more than enough Fed brass to use up before cracking into the 1000 pieces of Starline 38 spl brass.

For 9mm I use whatever I pick up.

For 308 Win I like RP but will use Winchester, Federal, or even Mil surp

For 30-30 Win I'll use any brass, it doesn't seem to matter much. I will sort it to brand though just for my peace of mind.

For 223 Rem I sort by brand but will use whatever brand I have. Military brass or commercial.

For 41 magnum.. well, I bought 100 pieces of Winchester brass but would use whatever I could find since it's kind of a rare thing.

For 10 mm in my 610, I use Federal since that's what I have but I'll also use anything I can get my hands on. The lot of 500 pieces I bought some years ago, I've actually worn it out to the point that I need to either trim it or get rid of it and get some newer stuff.

[Timberwolf]

It depends on the application, rifle or pistol, caliber, semi auto or manuel (bolt, single shot, revolver), precision or plinking, etc.

For precision bolt work in a .308 Lapua is just about the best. In the middle is LC Match, LCLR, RP, Winny, and FGMM (yeah its soft but good for 3 or 4 loadings). At the bottom, PMC, or other off brands and mil surp (too much work involved). Black Hills is Winny; Norma and Hornady are good but way over rated.

[50 Shooter]

As far as pistol stuff goes, Starline is probably the best and actually makes brass for other companies. All they do is change the headstamp for whatever company they are running a lot for.

Might be on the pricey side but pistol brass can be used until it splits and so far I haven't had any of theirs split while reloading.

[PistolPete75]

everyone keeps saying that fgmm brass will only last 3 or 4 loadings, but it's not the case if you have "regular" loads. i can load the brass 10 times, and i just throw them away. i wouldn't use them for hot loads though. for hot loads, i would go nosler, lupua, or winchester brass.

[Prc329]

I load my 308 hot so FGMM brass doesn't last long the way I load. Using "normal" loads as Pete said it should last a while.

[wildcard]

everyone keeps saying that fgmm brass will only last 3 or 4 loadings, but it's not the case if you have "regular" loads. i can load the brass 10 times, and i just throw them away. i wouldn't use them for hot loads though. for hot loads, i would go nosler, lupua, or winchester brass.

I'm in the same boat.. in fact.. I use the FGMM brass exclusively for my match loads. Never had the issue of case neck seperations, cracks, loose primer pockets, or any of that stuff.

[Jason762]

If I was going to load .30-'06 for my M1 Garand and 8mm Mauser for my K98, which brass would work "best" between Federal, Remington, and Winchester?

[ocabj]

If I was going to load .30-'06 for my M1 Garand and 8mm Mauser for my K98, which brass would work "best" between Federal, Remington, and Winchester?

Personally, I'd pick Winchester for both given the choice from those 3 only.

Granted, I've only actually used Lake City for .30-06 (M1 Garand). But I've used Winchester for the 8x57 (and use Winchester for other military surplus cartridges).

[rksimple]

If I was going to load .30-'06 for my M1 Garand and 8mm Mauser for my K98, which brass would work "best" between Federal, Remington, and Winchester?

Winchester, Remington, Federal in that order. Best would be to scrounge some LC or other milsurp brass from the range.

[ZombieKiller]

Again....thanks for all the responses...extremely helpful!!!

I just got a case of box of Starline in from the Big Brown Truck- too bad they don't make rifle brass yet cuz the other caliber I am reloading for is .308...

I don't need anything match grade for the rifle....just good reliable stuff. I'll get the match stuff later when I get my bolt gun....

[6079Winston]

I have also found that Federal GMM .308 brass works just fine as long as you load it to a similar velocity and case head expansion as the comparable Federal GMM factory ammo. Lapua definitely has less case head expansion at the same velocity as Federal though. Pistol brass lasts almost forever for me, so I use whatever is cheap, as long as it is a "Name Brand" like Remington, Winchester, Federal etc.. The only place I have ever seen quality issues on brass is in the flash holes. I had one bag of Winchester .308 last year where they looked so off center and elongated that I threw about 10% out.