45 LC brass life and best brass

[cobra2411]

I've just started reloading 45lc and was wondering how much life you get from your brass and if there are any manufacturers that stand out from the rest.

90%+ of my brass is Remington and it's going on it's second reloading. I try and keep the bell and crimp to a minimum and I'm only loading low power rounds at the moment.

Just trying to get an idea on how quickly I'm going to have to turn over the brass.

Also, what do you do to track your brass. I've thought about using a sharpie to mark the case but I'm worried about chemicals in the sharpie reacting to the brass and weakening it.

 

[44Magnum]

If you load mild loads and work the brass to a minimum those cases will last for years.

I have bags labeled with numbers. Say I load from a bag with "2" on it. After I get home, deprime, clean, and resize I put them in bag "3" I don't even keep track of most of the brass I use for target shooting.

 

[rcmodel]

For mild loads, it will last indefinitely, or until the necks crack.

Then, if you are really industrious, you can trim it back to .45 Scofield length and start over again.

 

[dwave]

Yeah, but don't forget to switch to Scofield data if you trim them back to that length after cracking!

 

[RugerBob]

Are you using cast lead bullets or jacketed? The difference would be the belling. For me anyway. I use 452 lead and .451 jacketed. I seem to get a crack (split) towards the top if I bell or over bell to often. I have cases that have been loaded over 30 times. I load mid range. Not low by any means. I have no preference, just what ever costs less. Mostly starline here. If you have cases you are worried about and they are not cracked or bulgded, and you don't want them, then pm me and I'll buy them postage plus afew bucks. I have hand me down brass that has been loaded over and over for 30 years plus. I shoot mine out of rugers w/7 1/2" barrels and 24" lever guns. Good luck, be safe and god bless, Bob

 

[cobra2411]

I use cast lead... I bell more then I would for say 44 mag with jacketed rounds, but I try and keep it at the minimum. I have a 4 hole turret with lee dies and I only use a light crimp.

So far the only brass I tossed was some A-Merc stuff that had the flash hole WAY off... Couldn't decap them so I tossed them. They seem thinner then the R-P's...

I was reading up on high powered loads and the author said he was cracking Winchesters after 2-3 "standard" loads and only uses Federal.

The bag idea is a good one.

 

[the foot]

I reload .45 Colt extensively- If I bell the case mouth minimally, and use .45 Colt reloading data, I can use cases for 20+ reloads. However, if I use ".45 colt for Blackhawk/ TC Contender" loads, the brass wears out at about the same rate as .44 Magnum.

I keep the brass separate- one set for "pushed-up" loads and one for normal loads. The most important thing is inspecting the brass before reloading it. I use a large magnifying glass to look for problems on the brass- I cull brass with microscopic splits, reducing the chance of using damaged brass.

 

[Clark]

The 6mmPPC guys get the brass to last almost forever.

That is because they get the dies are not much smaller than the chamber.

Get the SAAMI specs on chambers and cartridges and do the math.
Unless we are feeding a semi auto in battle, we are putting up with way too sloppy clearance.

If you want the 45 Colt brass to last forever, measure the brass when it comes out of the die.
Now cut a chamber with .001" clearance.
You may have to resize the loaded ammo to get it in the chamber [ask me how I know], but the brass will last.

The accuracy will improve too.