Who made this brass Rem .223

M

madmo44mag

New member
Had a bad day at the press and a head scratcher to say the least.
I reload range brass for range ammo.
This is paper punching ammo out to 100 yds so I don't sort by head stamp and load mid range powder charges.
I get good accuracy and a economical round.
Well I was punching primers out and re-sizing and pulled the ol handle and felt a little more resistance than usual even for military brass. No so much that it caused concern but a little more resistance.
Lowered the ram and shoved the next round in and the ram did not make a full upward stroke.
Lowered the ram and the de-capping pin is rolled over into a "U" shape.
Well I thought to myself; must have had some media stuck in the case.
Changed the pin and about 20 rounds later it happened again.
Now I am a bit peeved. That's $11.00 wasted in 2 pins.
Now in all the years of reloading 5.56 / .223 this has only happened once before and it was caused by walnut stuck in the flash hole
To have it happen twice in 20 cases I was a bit baffled.
I cut the case open and noticed there was yellow/orange sparks flying off the cut-off wheel. THAT AIN'T BRASS was my 1st thought and then I saw the berdan primer.
WTH!!!!
Looked at the head stamp and well; WTH is this????
Can any one tell me what I have here.
Steel case, brass coated and quite well done and berdaned primed.

Ok folks the question is who made the brass.
I have never seen this head stamp before.
Yeah, yeah, magnets, closer look, etc... I know all that and in all the years of reloading this round I have never seen a brass coated case(this well done) that was steel and berdaned primed.
So who is the maker or military that this brass came from????
 

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Berdan primed cases. When you just pick up rage brass you should get in the habit of inspecting it inside and out. Anyway, you have berdan primed brass which is likely why someone discarded it on firing it.

Ron
 
Brass plated steel? That's a new one on me. Or is it paint? Thanks for posting and sorry you ruined your equipment.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 
Brass plated steel? That's a new one on me. Or is it paint? Thanks for posting and sorry you ruined your equipment.
Click to expand...

There is plenty of regular brass cases out there which are berdan primed.

Ron
 
Brass plated steel? That's a new one on me. Or is it paint? Thanks for posting and sorry you ruined your equipment.
Click to expand...

Brass plated and very well done.
Most brass plated / washed cases are easy to spot. The color is way off.
This looks just like brass and has a good layer of plating.

That is why it got by me.
I've loaded thousands of .223 brass and never seen a steel case that was plated / washed that looked absolutely perfect.

After this I am using a magnet to sort brass with.
 
I recognize the head stamp, but don't remember exactly who the manufacturer is. It is Russian if I recall correctly.

This is why I have a personal boycott against Freedom Munitions. They introduced their "American Steel" case that is brass plated in 9mm.

https://www.freedommunitions.com/ammunition/9mm-luger-115-gr-rn-steel-new.html

As a re-loader, this is very bad news as it is very difficult to sort out without a magnet. They look identical to the true brass case in every way. If they can save a few cents on each case by going this way for 9mm, and it catches on, it probably is not too far off for this to be extended to other calibers. Steel cases that look like brass can create all kinds of problems. I don't care if people want to use steel cases, just make sure they are easily identifiable as "steel".
 
NINEX19 thanks!

I seem to remember seeing a box that looks like the one in the link you posted that day in the garbage can.

It would not be so bad if it were not for the berdan primers.
Even if one got by you it would not cause damage to your equipment / dies.
 
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Dunno about the headstamp, but to me the case looks like either a real poor plating job or just "bronze" paint. (lifelong machinist/mechanic's opinion :rolleyes:)
 
Dunno about the headstamp, but to me the case looks like either a real poor plating job or just "bronze" paint. (lifelong machinist/mechanic's opinion )
Click to expand...

These cases can not be identified from any other brass case.
The lighting in the photo gives it more of a painted / poorly plated look.
Trust me, it looks just like any other piece of brass casing.
 
Looks like an Israeli or Iranian head stamp. Does look more like paint than plating though.
"...$11.00 wasted in 2 pins..." Somebody is having their way with you. Package of 5 RCBS decapping pins run $4.99Cdn in Cabela's up here. $2.99US a Midway. And that's only if you don't call RCBS about 'em.
 
Please be aware that when you sweep up range brass you have no idea if it has been shot once or twenty times and if they ready to split on you the next time you pull the trigger.

If you can see your way to it, purchase 1000 rounds of new brass of whichever manufacture you wish and police your own brass.
 
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