reloading mixed head stamp brass ?

I'm going with most everyone else,
Sorting seems like a HUGE waste of time/effort.

I'm not a big handgun shooter, and I don't compete.
Plinking ammo is just fine for me when it comes to handguns, about anything that goes 'Boom' is just fine...
 
Almost all my 45 acp is federal large primer pocket and was picked up on a local police range, wish they qualified more than once a year. I only have a few Aquila and Winchester match cases which also are large primer pockets. I like to buy all one head stamp when I have to buy cases.
The 500 mixed 45 acp cases for $25.00 was not from a friend but just a guy at our club, with 1400 members I do not know them all, lol. I passed on the cases and will look for a deal on all federal once fired large primer cases.
 
regs, I have 3 different types of brass. Win, R P & Speer only have to seperate the brass one time. I use to shoot all different head stamps without a problem, I just think its better using the same brass with each reload. Same with bullets same brand 230 fmj. But that's just me
 
I sort the 45 acp rem brass out, as they are thinner/usually shorter and lose a significant portion of their ductility after one firing. Makes a significant difference loading jacketed bullets, especially win 230 fmj.

The Rem brass then gets used separate after using a lee undersize die, with .452 lead bullets.

A good test for case neck tension is loading dummy round (no primer/powder) into mag and releasing slide from lock back. While there will likely be some setback, you can tell if it is excessive.
 
Will I get better accuracy with all the same head stamp or will it not be a noticeable difference ??
Click to expand...

Don't know how well you shoot...

your ammunition should be better than what you can buy no matter what. if you trim all of your brass every time sorting would be a next step. I don't know of anyone the reloads 45 and trims every round. that person may be out there but I don't know them. normally from my understanding sorting brass is normally done for rifles and then normally done for those who do target shooting. most shooters with pistol today are looking for combat accuracy. that is easy with mixed head stamp brass.
 
I reload mainly for 308 benchrest, just got back into reloading 45 ACP auto for fun, The 45 has a taper crimp, if the case wasn't trimmed to the same length wouldn't the crimp be off? When peeping the cases for 308 every case was sized & trimmed to the same exact measurements.
 
I start with new . 45 auto nickel plated brass cases, in this case R-P. I do not mix headstamps, nor do I sort. I pick up only my cases, inspect, re-load & shoot again. I will get about 25 reloads per case & shoot until I lose them or they crack. I'm just anal, I guess, but my eyes are not so good anymore, nickel is easier to spot than brass, & it avoids me picking up some other shooters cases. I do not believe that you will notice any difference in accuracy mixing cases, but might run into some brands accepting the new bullet a tad easier of slightly harder. I crimp very little or not at all. This may not work for other shooters, but works great for me.
 
I sorted all of my 9mm brass when I first started loading for it as I had virtually no experience with pistol ammo. There were some slight variations on how they felt while sizing and crimping but it all fired and cycled fine.
I can't shoot a pistol well enough to notice any difference on how it grouped on paper. Now I just load em as they come, keeping an eye out only for crimped primers that may need a little work on the primer pockets to allow the primers to seat.
This being said, I'm only loading light to medium loads. So far, not a problem.
 
I have gotten some Tulammo 9mm boxer primed brass that has found its way into my inventory. This stuff is very soft brass and will last about 3 or 4 reloads before it has a blowout or becomes distorted enough with a smile that it will not chamber unless it gets indexed. I used to not sort head stamp but the Tulammo brass has forced me to closely inspect my 9mm.
 
3-4-2004 I got a 4" 20 shot group rapid fire at 100 meters with mixed brass 45acp, 460 Rowland level pressure 230 gr FMJ Montana Gold. 1903 Turk Mauser Shilen 26" bull barrel, 40X scope, 0.469" chamber [way tighter than SAAMI].
 
I've always just loaded mixed headstamps, obviously inspecting first for defects, known inferior quality brands, and small primer pockets, as others have mentioned. There's one guy on my Bullseye team who sorts his brass by headstamp, but having done that he loads up batches of maybe 4 or 5 different brands. I asked him once if he adjust his sights depending on which brand he's shooting in a match, or otherwise moves his point of aim and he said no, he just shoots them all the same. Well, if you're gonna shoot them all the same way, presumably because the various headstamps all shoot more or less to the same point of aim and group well enough, why bother to sort 'em out in the first place?
 
reloading mixed head stamp brass ?

Not me; I do not mix head stamps when reloading. I know; there is that thing about separating cases after tumbling. Not a problem, I have always considered there were a large variety of different head stamps for the sole purpose of separating after tumbling.

Then there is that other problem,; weight. The last chance I have to check for a double charge is just before I pull the trigger. If I do not know the weight of the case, bullet primer and powder How am I going to determine if I have heavy cases or too much powder. I know, it sounds cool to stand back and say ‘nothing matters’. If I sort cases I will explain why.

F. Guffey
 
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