What are you currently reloading?

I got a pile of once-fired 30-30 mixed head stamps. It’s 160 or so total with 2/3 being Remington. For yucks, I weighed out the five flavors (avg/5) and rattled my core belief in R-P brass. It was the lightest! Federal was the heaviest. Now this collection is of unknown age (several Win Western cases found and those were excluded).

Federal: 144.3 grain
PPU: 143.96 grain
Hornady: 138.02 grain
Winchester: 137.32 grain
R-P: 134.5 grain

So where is it thin? It’s not been my experience to have split necks in R-P so maybe the 30-30 rim? Federal has given me the fewest reloads (primer pocket). Winchester has not let me down. I don’t have enough experience to have an opinion with the other two.
 
I got a pile of once-fired 30-30 mixed head stamps. It’s 160 or so total with 2/3 being Remington. For yucks, I weighed out the five flavors (avg/5) and rattled my core belief in R-P brass. It was the lightest! Federal was the heaviest. Now this collection is of unknown age (several Win Western cases found and those were excluded).

Federal: 144.3 grain
PPU: 143.96 grain
Hornady: 138.02 grain
Winchester: 137.32 grain
R-P: 134.5 grain

So where is it thin? It’s not been my experience to have split necks in R-P so maybe the 30-30 rim? Federal has given me the fewest reloads (primer pocket). Winchester has not let me down. I don’t have enough experience to have an opinion with the other two.

Could just be how thick the brass is in the case head, flash hole area. Heavier doesn’t always mean stronger.

Picture for example:
1791031658156.jpeg

Alpha and lapua primer pockets are tough, extra thickness of the others is a waste. Split necks and weak primer pockets are more about metallurgy than thickness.
 
Finally got a chance to shoot some of these 143 lever hammers through my 30-06 today. Using IMR-4064, started at 52 grains and worked my way up to 56 where I started to see slight signs of high pressure. Think I’m going to stick with 55 grains. Those averaged just over 3200 fps.
 
Miss T took over my computer all day today. Two part epoxy curing on another project, Square body caught up until I get the heater core.

I put pork ribs on slow roast.

Spent a couple hours prepping .308 Win/7.62x51 brass. I have to trim up about 1000 rounds of mixed head stamps. Making plans to mill my AR-10 receiver within the next couple of weeks. I have AR-15 jigs, but not AR-10. Thankfully not hard to find a buddy around North Idaho who does.
 
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