old shells

[KV's Arsenal]

been shooting mostly with reload minimum powered .45 round, and on some occation my 1911 would jam because of old, worn out shells. how many times do you guys reload the same shell before dispossing it?

[BillD]

How exactly are they worn out? If you still have a rim, the pocket will hold a primer and there aren't any cracks in the case, it should still work.
Your problems may be due to something else than your brass.

I reload mine until they split. I decided long ago that I wasn't counting the number of reloads per case.

[RetiredRod]

Ditto what BillD said.

I've reloaded some of my .45acp cases many, many times. As long as they still hold powder and primer in place, I'll load 'em & shoot 'em.

The big caveat is that this is for low power target loads only. High powder loads only go in cases that the headstamp is still readable.

Good shooting.....Rod.

[fecmech]

"The big caveat is that this is for low power target loads only. High powder loads only go in cases that the headstamp is still readable. "

Good shooting.....Rod.[/QUOTE]

It's nice to know there are other discerning reloaders out there like myself. Rod you made my morning! Nick

[BillD]

Originally Posted by fecmech

"The big caveat is that this is for low power target loads only. High powder loads only go in cases that the headstamp is still readable. "

Good shooting.....Rod.

It's nice to know there are other discerning reloaders out there like myself. Rod you made my morning! Nick[/QUOTE]

I was at a match last year when I asked the guy who just completed shooting if the MT's I picked up were his. He asked what the headstamp was. I started to tell him and he said, "Don't worry about it, if you can read the headstamp, they're not mine."

[Walking Point]

The rims could be bunged up. I've never seen it cause a functioning problem, but I know 99% of my rounds that fail a case gage are due to bad rims (quick and easy to fix).

I reload mine until they split. What I consider to be "B" quality brass gets used at matches. Around here all USPSA matches are "lost brass" matches. Suits most of us fine, but some new shooters tend to scramble around picking up their .45s.

[bumm]

If you're having feeding problems, it could be you need to apply a gentle taper crimp to smooth things out a bit. The loaded shells should drop easily into the chamber of your barrel.
Marty

[Black wallnut]

I use them until either they split, I can't read the headstamp, or the mouth gets dinged by a brand new Kimber that has a malfunctioning extractor!

[Hank Ellis]

Wander over to the Dillon web site and pick yourself up a case gauge.

Wonderful tool. Drop in your round. If the point of the bullet sticks out the front, your OAL is too long. If the rim isn't flush or slightly below flush, either the crimp isn't correct or the rim is dinged. Too see if the rim is the problem, stick it in the gauge rim first. A bad rim will show itself by not going in.

I case gauge all my match ammo. I have about a 5% reject rate mostly due to dinged rims. The all work fine in practice however.

I'm like most. For practice I use most any brass and run it till it cracks or I lose it. I've had to toss a few due to the primer falling out of the pocket also. For match use I stick with one headstamp of mostly once fired. This is for consistency at the chrono and not a function issue.

One thing to consider, you did mention that your running minimum powered (aka bunny fart) loads. Is your recoil spring matched to the loads your running? Too heavy a spring on too light a load will cause the gun not to run. Been there, done that.

[Smythe]

I am with most of the others. No problems with my reloads, though do admit I use light loads for cast 185gr SWC. The case head has to disappear or by that time they will start to split & so scratch both.

The suggestion by Hank about a cae gauge sounds good, but have not purchased one myself.

If I find something different or not to my liking then I trace back what I might(?) have done with the dies for mine do not move. Just one press for 45ACP, another for 38Spl & another for 9X19, Also two spare die heads if I so want to add on another caliber or two I want to leave "as is" once they are correct.

Last time I ran into some problems what when I removed the seating die & had taken it out of the die head to clean out the excessive lube & so a slight error in resetting it as before.

[KV's Arsenal]

Originally Posted by Hank Ellis

One thing to consider, you did mention that your running minimum powered (aka bunny fart) loads. Is your recoil spring matched to the loads your running? Too heavy a spring on too light a load will cause the gun not to run. Been there, done that.

yah, i havent changed my recoil spring, I have a 13 pound recoil spring but i still use the armscor spring, be it minimum power or factory round.