New brass

[tightgroup tiger]

Hey guys,
Have any of you had trouble with Starline Brass? I need to start replacing my brass in 357 mag since I've been reloading is for 25 years now and it's getting pretty rough. The primer holes are about twice the size they are supposed to be. I noticed Starline brass costs much less then the Winchester brass I have always used.
Will Starline brass stand up to the test of time? I don't want to buy it if it will have to be thrown away after two or three loadings but if it is good I certainly want to use it.

What are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

Brian

 

[cberge8]

I have used their 9x18 makarov brass. I have reloaded all 300 cases I bought about 8 times now without any having to be discarded (less the ones I stepped on and crushed!). I normally load to about 5% below where I begin to see signs of excess pressure.

I have heard of people having case splits on the first firing. All of these were from first-time reloaders, so I doubt the brass is the culprit.

 

[Scimmia]

Starline is known around here as some of the best brass you can buy.

The primer holes are twice the size as they should be? Is this large primer brass? Or are you talking about the flash hole maybe?

 

[Cherokee]

All the new handgun brass I buy is Starline. Good stuff: 45 Colt, 38 Super, 32-20, 357 Mag. Highly rated by many people.

 

[tightgroup tiger]

I'm talking about the flashhole being burned out to twice the size. I should have pitched them before this but they really haven't cause me any reason to. I do need to replace them though as they are really old and are showing it. I don't want to say how many time I have reloaded these.

 

[ReloaderFred]

The problems I've had with Starline brass have been in .45 Colt and .38 Special, with new brass. The cleaning process Starline uses removes all lubrication from the brass down to the bare metal. If using a Lyman M die, the brass will stick to the M die expander, effectively glueing it to the steel. I've pulled brand new .38 Special Starline brass completely in half getting the M die expander out of the case.

You can get around this by lubricating the new brass in some way. Tumbling is one way, as the residue from the tumbling media will provide a certain amount of lubrication to the inside of the neck of the case. Another way it to lightly spray case lube on the brass prior to expanding, but you'd have to tumble the brass again to remove the case lube.

I haven't found this problem using expanders from Redding or RCBS, but I prefer the Lyman M die for the precise fit of the bullet to the case. If you're not using the Lyman M die, then it probably won't be an issue for you.

I've polished my M die expander until I could actually see my image in the finish, but it didn't help at all. The very next case galled and left streaks of brass on the polished expander. Only lubrication solved the problem for me.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Funshooter45]

Starline is my preferred brass for .357, 44 mag, .454 Casull, and .45 Colt without regard to price. It is just better than the others period. I wish I had some now for my .480 Ruger loads.

 

[FROGO207]

I have a bunch of Starline 357 brass and it is mixed in with all the other I have. I never noticed any problems with mine other than the nickel brass does not last as long, it's the same as the other brands as far as life goes.

 

[gamestalker]

I actually bought some new Starline brass for my .357 mag. loads about a year ago and it has been really good. I actually think it's a little beter than Winchester, once it's been loaded a couple times. I noticed it is kind of soft until the first couple of loadings and the it takes on a good state of hardness. I load with H110 and 296 too, so if it's sub quality quality brass I'm fairly certain I would have noticed something by now.

 

[Obsidian]

I've used it for my .44 Magnum loads. I've seen no difference in it vs other major brands for capacity, and it seems to be of very good quality. I've had less issues with it than Winchester or Remington tagged brass. While I do not have need for new pistol brass at this point in time, any future purchases if I go the new route will be Starline. In addition to that, others around my area that have used it have had no problems with it either and it seems to last a couple loadings longer from what I'm told.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

The only Starline brass I've used is there .45 Colt brass. I had good success with it but I've only reloaded them about 6-7 time so I can't speak to longevity.

Everyone I speak to or read about has only good to say about Starline brass.

 

[tightgroup tiger]

Thanks guys,

I am going to start ordering Starline brass,

appreciate it.

Brian