[rhinoh]

In pondering how to keep track of how many times brass has been fired I thought of using one of those small spring loaded punches to put a very tiny dimple for each firing on the case head next to the embossed lettering/primer.
Anyone see any problems with this? Anyone else doing it?

Punch- http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=621&xcamp=google&utm_source=googlebase&utm_medium=cpc&zmam=33951326&zmas=12&zmac=112&zmap=621

[content]

Hello friends and neighbors// I think it's a great idea ! Can't think of any problems.

[kestak]

Greetings,

I use a dremmel and the slimmest cutting round thing and make a small mark on the rim. Easy, fast and minimal damage. I think yours does less damage if done on the foot of the brass, but how will it resist the handling of the brass (cleaningm etc)? I am curious if it will work. Also, it will be slower to do than using the dremmel.

I do that only on my 357 mag, 44mag, 500 mag.

Thank you

[Remo-99]

Small centre punch marks on the headstamp will not cause any issues, after all it's a similar method they use to put the headstamp markings on there.

But it seems a very time consuming task to me, it may all depend on the quantity your processing.

[bullseye308]

When I loaded rifle and kept track of the number of firings, I just kept the brass in ziplocks with an index card in it.

[Sport45]

I just use a file notch the side of the case. Easier to see that way. :)

Seriously, I think an automatic center punch would put a nice dimple in the headstamp area. Just place it mouth down on a wooden block. I'd think holding the case in your hand would absorb too much of the ineria.

Would there be any harm in punching the thick part of the web right above the rim groove? That would be easier to find than another dot on some of the busier case heads.

[The Bushmaster]

I've had one of those spring loaded punches for over 35 years. Only mine is made of steel.

I never thought of doing that...And I'm not thinking of doing that now...:rolleyes:

Keep a written log...

[rhinoh]

Well the logs and zip bags don't work for me..often I shoot with others that don't want their brass, so I'm picking up all of it from various sources, the marks would help me ID mine as well as know how used it is.
I'm gonna try it and see how it goes..I'm not concerned about slowing me down reloading, I'm slow anyway, not in any hurry reloading. I used to get bored reloading but my work and stress has been stepped up a notch, I rather enjoy retiring to the reloading room to relax now and have some quiet time.

[The Bushmaster]

Then use a sharpy to mark your cases. Are the cases your friends shoot fresh factory ammunition? If so...Learn to tell the difference from hand loaded cases and once fired cases...

[jcwit]

There isn't enough room on the base of the case for all the marks the number of times I've reloaded my cases.

[parisite]

OK, sounds fine.........but what's the point?

[lordgroom]

Bushmaster, how do you tell once fired from handloaded by looking at them?

[psyop]

I segregate my Bolt Rifle brass by firings in ziplocs and keep a log.

Batches are marked with different color Sharpies

[ants]

I only keep track of certain cases for certain uses.
Those are easy to segregate and log because there aren't very many.

Everything else gets reloaded until it fails inspection.

[The Bushmaster]

Lordgroom...PM on the way...

[bobotech]

Lordgroom...PM on the way...

Would you mind posting the info for all to see? I'm kind of curious myself. I know some of the basics like colors of primers, lack of sealant in the primer area, and the crimp but I would like to know other pointers as well.

Thanks...

[The Bushmaster]

I would, but I can't post photos on here...And I'm too old to learn or care...;)

PM me an e-mail address and I'll gladly send the photo...:cool:

[Tony Sopranno]

...how do you tell once fired from handloaded by looking at them? After a while the loading action and die marks become too obvious not to notice, and fresh brass has a nice clean fresh factory tooled look almost a 'glaze.' Also, with my reloads I have a fairly clean edge on the necks - I tumble them right after I re-size. Any reloading cutting and tooling comes later. :)

[Tony Sopranno]

In pondering how to keep track of how many times brass has been fired I thought of using one of those small spring loaded punches to put a very tiny dimple for each firing on the case head next to the embossed lettering/primer.
Anyone see any problems with this? Anyone else doing it?...Seems like you'd need to get a lot of 'prick-punch' marks onto a pretty small area. Depending on a lot of things, you can get an awful lot of reloads out of one piece of brass. Some people claim over 40-50 per piece, but I've never gone that high - I'll toss them much sooner. And, once I see a neck crack or any signs of shell separation the whole lot goes into the scrap barrel at the range.
:confused:

For what it's worth keep separate bags and a log, or index cards in the bag, makes the most sense. I usually do ranges of reloads per bag - ie. once fired, two to five, five to ten, etc., etc.

:)

[The Bushmaster]

Tony...Nope. That's not it...Much simpler and faster then that...

[steveno]

I think it is a waste of time to keep track of how many times a case has been fired. if a case is worn out I find it in the sizing and flaring operations because that is when the crack will show up.

[The Bushmaster]

It is nice to know if you are starting out with a new or once fired case though. Don't you agree Steveno?

[steveno]

I guess I can't say that I worried much one way or the other if I started out with a new case or fired one. I had over 20 loads on some Federal nickel 45 acp cases. the punch marks or file marks would have worn out the cases before the actual firing of the cases would have worn them out. I had some Winchester 45 acp cases that had been shot so many times the "Winchester" was worn off. in both cases I think I lost the cases before I ever really found out how times they would have lasted.

[The Bushmaster]

Yup...You got it Steveno...I see no real reason to pre-damage my brass in the first place...

[parisite]

Again, what's the point? Why go to the trouble?

All my brass is mixed together, range pickups and some I've shot many, many times. If I see it's split it gets rejected.

I put in a lot of hours at work and I shoot a lot on weekends most of the time. Don't have time for such........I hate to say it......... foolishness.:)

[rhinoh]

Again, what's the point? Why go to the trouble?

All my brass is mixed together, range pickups and some I've shot many, many times. If I see it's split it gets rejected.

I put in a lot of hours at work and I shoot a lot on weekends most of the time. Don't have time for such........I hate to say it......... foolishness.:)

Actually I think you enjoyed saying it. Thanks for your useless input, same goes for the others that didn't answer the question but rather wanted to promote THEIR way of doing it.
The thread premise was not how many ways can one keep track of brass.
It was did anyone see any problems with using the punch.
I've tried ALL the mentioned ways of marking/keeping track of brass BTW.

[qajaq59]

I finally got tired of trying to keep track of my brass and bought 300 cases for each rifle. Plus several 8"x8"x8" boxes for each. Now as I fire them they go into the fired box, and after they are sized into the next box, etc. Once I have fired all 300 I mark them all fired once and start over again. It cost a bit initially, but it's just so much easier.

[The Bushmaster]

rhinoh...I've been trying to explain to you to not do this. When you punch the end of a brass case or filing knotches in the rim (really stupid) you are raising the metal and pre-damaging (excellerating wear) the case.:banghead:

If I made your list of "useless input"...GOOD!! I like being on lists...:evil:

Most of these people are trying to help you find other ways to mark your cases with tried and true methods and don't deserve your comment...:(

[qajaq59]

Actually I think you enjoyed saying it. Thanks for your useless input, same goes for the others that didn't answer the question but rather wanted to promote THEIR way of doing it. Punch away and be happy.

Oh, and by the way, if anyone thought that was a really great idea they wouldn't have suggested alternatives.

[fguffey]

If I decided to tighten a case in the chamber (increase its effect on head space) I would put dents on the head of the case with a small punch and hammer, sometimes described as the GLUP effect as it applies to a fluid and metal because both flow.

Manufactures sell ammo in boxes that hold 20 rounds, If masking tape is used to wrap the box all component information can be written on the tape, when fired mark a line through the information, the next time the cases are loaded, drop down and the tape the box again, continue until there is no room for a new strip of tape, then start over, this technique works when going to the range with 20 rounds that have 5 different loads of 4 each. or 4 different loads of 5 each.

Of course reloaders are not like pick-up owners, after the first 100,000 thousand and the vehicle is out of warranty, they skip the next 200,000 miles and go straight to 400,000 miles and head for half a million.

F. Guffey

[rhinoh]

rhinoh...I've been trying to explain to you to not do this. When you punch the end of a brass case or filing knotches in the rim (really stupid) you are raising the metal and pre-damaging (excellerating wear) the case.:banghead:

If I made your list of "useless input"...GOOD!! I like being on lists...:evil:

Most of these people are trying to help you find other ways to mark your cases with tried and true methods and don't deserve your comment...:(

Actually, NO. No one suggested any other method of marking brass except "kestak" dremeling a notch and "Sport45" filing one and you just called them "really stupid". I was told I was engaging in "foolishness" marking my brass with a punch.
Somehow I thought I was on "The Highroad" where such insulting talk is forbidden, guess I was wrong.:scrutiny:
So bottom line no one has any valid reason why it would be a bad idea to make a small punch mark near the primer pocket/embossing on the bottom of the case head.:neener:

[Roccobro]

I had thought of this type of marking brass after seeing my LC rifle brass with circle marks on the case head. Theirs is from the mrg process, but it has always piqued my interest as the OP is thinking.

Justin

[jcwit]

I guess it might boil down to "just what does this accompolish". Does it make any difference how many times a case is fired/reloaded.

When they start to split, pitch them, very simple.

Now then back to counting the hairs on my arm.

[ants]

Rhinoh

In my humble and small opinion, pin punching the base is not a good thing to do to my own brass. This is my thinking:

When you make a dimple, the brass gets displaced somewhere. It doesn't just disappear.

One pin punch dimple, or two or three: No big deal.

But a lot of my highly-valued brass gets loaded 10 to 20 times unless someone else picks it up when I'm not looking. 10 or 20 punches displace too much metal for my comfort, especially since I use base diameter and pocket diameter as a reliable dimensional metric for the health of the case. Too man pin punches will surely interfere with the metal flow I'm monitoring.

Also, we often anneal rifle brass because work hardening them makes the metal brittle. Same thing happens when you pin punch -- it work hardens the base.

If these things are unimportant to you, by all means pin punch the brass and let me know how it works. It won't hurt me a bit to know that you're performing an experiment from which we will all learn.

[woods]

I keep track of how many firings on my bolt guns. It is important to know when to anneal and when to toss because of the possibility of incipient case head separation. It will also make a difference in the way I resize since a case goes through a progression of getting larger and getting work hardened which increases springback.

The way I do it is to take an electric engraver and make a mark
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v663/bwestfall/CASE%20PREP/DSCN0230.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v663/bwestfall/CASE%20PREP/DSCN0231.jpg

and fill in the mark with a magic marker
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v663/bwestfall/CASE%20PREP/DSCN0233.jpg

Even if the magic marker gets dull or rubs off you can still find the engraver mark
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v663/bwestfall/CASE%20PREP/REL5.jpg

If the head of the case gets too crowded, it's time to think about starting a new batch anyway :D

[jibjab]

When I load a rifle cartridge that I need to be consistent, the brass in that loading has been loaded the same number of times and shares the same lot #
I have notched the edge of the case rim, but I do this so I can orient the case the same way through out the reloading process and then orient the cartridge in the gun the same way with each firing. I like this method for single shot target shooting.

[The Bushmaster]

Jibjab...That is only one notch and as long as it isn't oriented to the extractor it might just be O K...But if the notch orients to the extractor it could be a problem. If you are notching them each time you fire and reload them. Then it poses a problem too...

Seems a bit "anal", but so am I on certain things...:D

[jibjab]

Jibjab...That is only one notch and as long as it isn't oriented to the extractor it might just be O K..
One notch at 12 o'clock.

[jcwit]

I watched the 9 times National Champ in bullseye shooting the last to summers compete, and from all appearances he didn't give a rats behind how many times his brass was reloaded.

But then being line officer maybe I missed something.

[Tony Sopranno]

rhinoh:The thread premise was not how many ways can one keep track of brass.
It was did anyone see any problems with using the punch.Yes. :banghead: It's not a good idea.

[jcwit]

Well with 40 posts with various ideas and many ways to do this and some for and some againest I would think he could make a command decision on his own as to just what he would like to do and what method he would like to pursue.

Somewhere down the line one must take matters into his own hands and make a dicision.

End result GO FOR IT!! Whatever it is.

[The Bushmaster]

That's too simple, jcwit.....:D

[youngda9]

Put cases in a coffee can. Label can with a piece of masking tape. Put a notch on the masking tape each time you cycle your brass through the can. This way you know how many times they have been shot. All brass is at the same life.

[ants]

Buy only one piece of brass.
Load it over and over. Every time you load it, put a Sharpie mark on the wall next to the bench. Easy to keep track, impossible to confuse with any other brass.
When it splits, discard it and buy a new one. Repeat.
Problem solved.