243 Factory Brass

A

ARqueen15

New member
I'm about to start reloading .243 and thought that instead of buying brass that I might instead just buy an initial batch of 100 rounds of factory ammo....shooting it and getting a baseline for accuracy on my rifle, cleaning up the brass, and then loading it.

Is this advisable or OK? I noticed buying new brass, and brass alone, is oftentimes as or even more expensive than buying factory ammo.

If it is OK and a good idea then are there are any kinds of ammo or companies to avoid?

The cheapest prices on factory ammo I'm finding are on the likes of Prvi Partizan 90-100 grain softpoints, Sellier and Bellot 100 grain softpoints, and winchester super-x 100 grain power-points. So I though to buy a mix of these for a total of about 100 rounds and let that be my initial 'stock' of brass.

Would you say there are any issues with using these 3 types of factory ammo as a source of brass?

I'm trying to keep this as affordable as possible (buying a lee classic loader, etc).
 
I wouldn't suggest S&B or Privi for your expectation of good reloading brass. Win is OK but after you get started, look at Norma for longevity and accuracy.
 
I've done it both ways. I wouldn't buy cheap ammo to get cheap brass though. I have a mix of brass, some came from factory loads, others from virgin brass. It really depends. I used to own a 300 WSM. In all the years I owned the gun I NEVER found brass. None. But a couple of times found closeouts on loaded 300 WSM ammo as cheap as $10/box. That is the only brass I ever found for it.
 
PPU is actually good brass. Still running long term tests but about the same as RP

I don't know that you would get any real accuracy out of either, so you would be using up barrel life to get brass. Hunting is no issue but if you use it for target that eats through a barrel fast. Professional shooters consider new barrels part of the cost and often 1500 round and in some case less use. A bit harder for the rest of us.


And for those that laugh, my RP in 30-06 gets me sub 1/2 MOA with known good loads.

Two brass mfgs I do not like are FC and Winchester, both die quickly under reloading (at least mine have)

I pretty well mainline on RP/PPU and then do upscale loads with LAPUA.
 
I buy 100 new Win or Rem brass. One gun gets Win. The other get Rem. No mixiing between guns.

So far have reloaded 15 and 18 times. FL BUSHING DIE.
 
Thank you for the replies and suggestions.

I'm getting the sense most of you think it's best to just buy brass although one person did mention that PP brass would be OK.


WOuld you answers change at all given...

a....I'm totally new to reloading
b....using a budget, brand new < $250 rifle (although it has a nominal MOA guarantee which i don't take to mean much as most rifles can shoot MOA on occasion when the planets and stars align. I shot an MOA group with my M&P 15-22 today and know it is not indicative of the gun whatsoever but just a fluke.)
 
The biggest enemy of brass life is bumping the shoulder to much when sizing, .003 is the max that I bump the shoulder and also having to resize the neck to much. Again I only want .002 neck tension on the bullets. I control this by using sizing Dies with a bushing.
I have several 243's. One is a Remington model 788. That rife has a slightly oversized neck. It is prone to cracking the case neck after about 3 Reloading's. Only way to fix it is rebarrel it. I use range brass that I pick up so it's not really a problem. It shoots fairly accurately, any ways good enough for a truck gun
 
Saving in reloading is reusing the brass after the first loading. Your not going to save starting out as you have to spend money to save.

If I was going to shoot factory I would buy ammo that I could buy brass for. I had couple rifles before I learned how to reloading and one was 243 and I shot Win ammo. Back then we didn't have selection like today.

I have good luck with Win in my 243 and once you gain experience you may what to change. The MOA factory rifle is base on them shooting selected factory ammo.
 
I'm another guy who's never had a problem with PPU brass. I really like the .223, 5.56, and .308. I haven't reloaded any of my .30-06 PPU brass as of yet, but all in all I wouldn't hesitate to shoot PPU .243 for the recoverable brass.
 
I have something like 300-400 PPU in my 7.5 Swiss. Before I had a accuracy shift, I was shooting constant 1/4 MOA or better with one load.

I have some in 30-06 (good sale) and 308.

While I started with RP and still like it, PPU so far holds its own with RP

I feel RP is the Ford of Brass (I am a Ford guy). Good solid value. Not flashy, but better than Winchester, Hornady, etc.


Oddly, as much as I like Lapua, my RP has come in better condition, often once fired from the range or ordered. Lapua was just not quite there (got there with a firing and a trimming in some cases)

NORMA is the best and ahead of Lapua from what I near, I don't have any.

Frankly I would get just one type. I shoot a lot and keep a stock of 600 or so.

At least up here we don't see much 243 at the ragne.
 
A) Buy a copy of The ABC's of Reloading. Your local gun shop or Amazon for about $30.
B) Very much doubt you'll find a BNIB rifle for under $250 that's worth having.
A Lee Classic Loader works just fine(started with one myself long ago), but don't use those daft scoops. They can vary the powder charge plus or minus a full grain. Buy a scale. The only downside is that they neck size only. BNIB brass requires Full Length resize. Anyway, you'll have to FL resize eventually anyway.
As mentioned, Prvi makes good brass. Isn't always as readily available as American brands though. There's absolutely no need to pay the premium for No$ler, Lapua or Norma brass. That stuff is pricey because it comes from Europe and your Uncle Sam demands duty, not because it's any better. So is Prvi, but from a Third World former Warsaw Pact country who's currency is cheap.
"...Back then we didn't have selection..." That's for sure. No match grade bullets until the bench rest guys started using 6mm cartridges. Or the selection of bullet weights around now. Commercial hunting rifles are still rifled for deer bullets though. Even factory 'varmint' rifles. S'ok. A ground hog doesn't care what the bullet weighs.
 
Whenever I've bought a new rifle I've always bought a box of factory stuff with it just so I could stop somewhere on the way home and shoot it. Last three I didn't. But thinking about the cost of inexpensive factory, damn, good idea. I got some new Win 243 brass at the last gun shot I was at for, I think it was $20 for 50. I could buy four inexpensive box's of Win or Rem, take them home, pull the bullet's and end up with 50 LR primer's, 50 unfired cases and 50 bullet's! I like the way you think. But, I don't know what inexpensive factory ammo goes for these days. Also I'd only get Win or Rem ammo as I like their case's. Don't know a thing about those other two that was mentioning which would keep me from getting them. I like to let other people test the product's I don't know much about!
 
No experience with PPU brass but I've heard mostly very good comments from people I know on other web sites. My preferences in brass has been Winchester first, Remington in the number two spot and Federal way down on the list in third place. Just my choices in over 60 years handloading and shooting. I have hears some not so ggod things about Winchester's brass quality lately but as I bought my supplies years ago, some of which has never been loaded yet I don't think I'll worry overmuch about the quality.

My man concern in brass quality is Winchester is now made of unobtanium in 7x57 as is Remington. Federal can be found at least as loaded ammo. My website friends that have used PPU speak quite highly of it with the only complaint being it sometimes needs a different shell holder than the common RCBS #3. Not a big deal.

Almost all my .243 brass is Winchester BTW and it's worked fine. Dunno what kind of quality standard Winchester uses for they factory ammo these days but I would imagine it's pretty good. Bagged brass may be another story as possibly factory seconds. Last batch of bagged brass from "Big W' was for my .280 Remington and every bag was short one or two rounds. Bought them maybe two years ago.

Paul B.
 
I hope some don't think I'm not keep up with the newer brass. I shoot Lapua in my 243AI,30-06 and Lapua 220 Russian in 6ppc.

I have Kreiger barrel on the 243 and if a problem with newer Win 243 brass or if I missed something on brass prep I'd sure see it. My other 30-06 has Shilen barrel and shooting the newer Win brass and no difference.
 
Another who has never had a problem with PPU brass, when it comes my way. However, I do a lot of shooting with a .243 and use new, unprimed Win brass exclusively.
 
Midway USA has Starline Brass for $25 per 50.

In that price range are some other options but the Starline is what I would buy at this point.

I've not used PPU but they do sell it cheaply at your local Cabelas.

It looks like SIG will soon be selling 243 brass at this price point and that would probably be good based on experience with their pistol brass in 10mm.

Whatever you choose, I personally like to have all one brand of brass per rifle. I use Lapua in 7mm08 and 308, and Norma in 7mmRM and 300 WSM.

I have another old 7mmRM from when I was a boy and that gets the Federal brass that I shot from it before I was a reloader as I rarely hunt or shoot it anymore.
 
FWIW the 243 Winchester data in the Speer manual was developed with Winchester brass. They went so far as to issue a warning that their 243 Winchester data should only be used with Winchester brass, and they added that other brands of brass they tried created excessive pressure.

I've used only Winchester brass in my loads, but that's all I have, and I had it before I read Speer's cautionary statement. I have gotten some neck splits (more than I normally see) with the 243. The cartridge is a little overbore, exemplified by the slower powders it prefers. Perhaps it's a little tougher on brass as well.
 
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