40 S&W Bulged and Unusable Fired Cases

[243winxb]

Is reloading bulged cases a good idea? What do you think about Redding Reloadings NEW G-Rx Die Set, a unique push through die, which fully resizes the bulged area of the fired case back to within the accepted SAAMI specifications for case diameter. The case may then be resized in a standard sizing die for the remaining reloading process. More info here> http://www.shootingsportsretailer.com/content/view/974/1/ With pressures running at 34,000 psi, i would be afraid of this.

[/URL][/IMG]I don't own a 40 s&w. Just wonder? I know when i bulge a 45acp, it does not get reloaded.

 

[Walkalong]

I would think if the bulge is that bad, the case would still be weaker even when fully sized back. I don't see why it would not work though. Too many good .40 cases laying around to worry with it.

 

[jmorris]

looking at the primer in the case in the above photo I'd say there is more going on there than just a bulged case.

That being said the case pro ( http://www.casepro100.com/) is the best cure for bulged cases that I know of as it also cleans up the extractor grove as well.

The hardest part is getting your hands on one.

 

[ReloaderFred]

I've been using the Magma Case Master Jr for about 10 years for doing this same thing with 9mm, .40/10mm & .45 family cases. Here's the link: http://www.magmaengineering.com/pro...ypage=flypage.tpl&category_id=6&product_id=21 The case Master Jr. works very well, and once you load the feed tubes, it's just a matter of working the slide and pulling the handle, and the cases fall out the bottom as fast as you can work it.

As mentioned, the case in the original posting has other issues besides a bulge at the web. The caption on the picture says Double Charge? It looks like an overloaded round and from the firing pin indentation, it was fired in the unsupported chamber of a Glock pistol.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Walkalong]

No pic when I posted earlier, but whatever did that to the case would have done it to the best case out there.

 

[democrat]

Anybody know where to get that new Redding G-Rx push-thru die? Only Midway appears to list it, but like every other item in their catalog it's out of stock. Has any retailer gotten them yet?

 

[Hoxviii]

Slight digress, but as to the name "G-Rx" the first thing i thought of was "the Glock Prescription".

Wonder if the guy that came up with it thought it was just the medicine the glock owner needed

 

[The Bushmaster]

Cruel person, Thingster. You know those "glock people" are sensitive...

 

[243winxb]

I would think if the bulge is that bad, the case would still be weaker even when fully sized back.

This is exactly what i was thinking. But if ReloaderFred has been doing it for 10 years, i guess its a safe practice. Still i have to think if you keep bulging the case every firing, something is going to let go soon or later??

 

[ar10]

I've picked up a lot of bulged .40 cases, most of them from Glocks. I sized all of them with my Hornady LnL single stage and loaded them 7.1gns HS-6 (180gn) and 7.4 HS6(165gn). So far I've shot about 300 of them with absolutely no problems. I did have some problems with the Federal small pistol primers not seating in the primer pocket. (damn things kept falling out on some of the cases).

 

[Walkalong]

(damn things kept falling out on some of the cases)

Well now.....not just a chamber issue, but a pressure issue.

 

[ar10]

Well now.....not just a chamber issue, but a pressure issue.

That's not when I was fire them it's while I was reloading them. I had some fall out while I was seating the bullets.

 

[ReloaderFred]

Prior to running brass through my Case Master jr, all brass gets inspected at least three times, and any brass that looks suspect gets recycled at the scrap yard (when they start buying again). I inspect the brass as I'm sorting it, then again after tumbling, and the third time is when I'm loading the cases into plastic tubes for feeding through the Case Master Jr.

This process gives me ample opportunity to sort out any suspicious looking cases. If they're bulged more than normal, then they don't get reused. I've never had a problem with any of the brass I've run through the Case Master jr, so I can only assume my process is working properly. I've put thousands of rounds through that machine in 9x19, .40 S&W, 10mm, 357 Sig, .400 Cor-Bon and .45 acp. I wouldn't be without it.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Walkalong]

That's not when I was fire them it's while I was reloading them.

Right. Over pressure from the last guys reloads. Primers don't fall out of primer pockets unless they have been expanded from over pressure (and it takes a lot to do it in one firing), or from many reloads where the brass is just tired and worn out.

 

[Riss]

I have never had a problem sizing Glocked brass with a standard Dillon die on my 550B. IF I would have problems I would just shorten the die a little to get it to run all the way down and size all the way to the shellplate. And I have never seen one like in your pic, except that was either too much powder or lead shot in a factory barrel that created a chamber over pressure issue that blew out the case, but not the primer.

 

[ar10]

Right. Over pressure from the last guys reloads. Primers don't fall out of primer pockets unless they have been expanded from over pressure (and it takes a lot to do it in one firing), or from many reloads where the brass is just tired and worn out.

I know they were nib Blazers, the one guy was shooting an SW MP and the other guy was shooting a Glock. I waited until they finished shooting and asked if I could have their brass. I have no clue why they were loose, 8 of them fell out. What I did was put the rest back in the hand primer had squeezed them down harder. I didn't particularly like it because it seated them deeper than I like but they all worked. The Winchesters and CCI's had absolutely no problem. I can only guess they were a "loose" batch because they all came from the same brick.