Once fired brass
- Thread starter Jack B.
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Varminterror
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You can’t.
badkarmamib
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5.56x45 you can tell if the primers are still crimped. Sorry, had to...
If the cases have crimped in primers and the crimp is still there, it is probably once fired.
But, crimped primers are pretty much limited to military cartridges and there is a good chance the rifle cases were fired in a full auto gun. So, variety of availability of different cartridges is limited.
I've stopped buying cases that I do not know their history. More aggravation than the benefits.
But, crimped primers are pretty much limited to military cartridges and there is a good chance the rifle cases were fired in a full auto gun. So, variety of availability of different cartridges is limited.
I've stopped buying cases that I do not know their history. More aggravation than the benefits.
mcb
Member
A lot of the once fired brass that is sold by reputable re-sellers is coming out of various LEO, security, and in some cases military training facilities. All the ammo use is factory new so when they clean up the range they know it is all once fired. Frequently these places sell/auction it off and the brass re-sellers usually swoop in and buy it up. With a couple guys I use to shoot a lot of USPSA with we won one of these auction and bought ~2000 lbs of 40S&W off the Pennsylvania State police when they where still using it. It was all once fired Winchester with a little bit of 38 Special and 223 Rem mixed in.
lightman
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Like the others have said, you really don't know. On military brass having an intact primer crimp will tell you. I just use new brass or brass from factory ammo that I bought for important stuff. Hunting, match ammo or defense. Practice, informal target shooting or just plinking gets the range brass and unknown stuff.
mcb
Member
And with pistol brass I don't really care much if it is actually once fired. The majority of my 45 ACP is range pickup. I have found head stamps dating back into the 1940's in that pile of mixed brass and I just keep reloading it and running it. If it ain't split yet I reload it again.
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whughett
Member
Most straight wall cartridges will last many shots. Fire until the mouth splits.
You didn’t specify pistol or rifle. Bottle neck rifle I’d be cautious.
You didn’t specify pistol or rifle. Bottle neck rifle I’d be cautious.
With my recent foray into 300 Blackout I'm finding that crimped primers are very common. Hornady, Federal, and CBC all crimp the primers in their 300 Blackout ammo.
"Once Fired" = used. Years ago once fired brass was 98% military and police range pick ups. But today the best indication of truly once fired is military brass with the primer crimps still in place. I have purchased "once fired" for almost all my reloading calibers with very, very few problems (I once got 100 45 ACP cases and had 2 steel cases and one Berdan primed. But the vendor's count was 105 so I came out ahead by 2 cases 
). One advantage is getting mixed brass and when working up a load I sometimes sort by headstamp and compare results, both reloading and firing, of different manufacturer's brass.
). One advantage is getting mixed brass and when working up a load I sometimes sort by headstamp and compare results, both reloading and firing, of different manufacturer's brass.
Reloadron
Contributing Member
You can't which is why you want to deal with a reputable distributor. I liked dealing with Brass Bombers as did several others but they are gone. When buying in large bulk and getting headstamps like LC or WCC you can pretty much it is once fired. Just try and choose your supplier wisely and highly recommended.
Ron
LiveLife
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No, actually you can tell the difference between once fired vs fired several times with most magazine fed semi-auto pistol brass, by carefully inspecting the case rim for extractor marks and case mouth/neck for center slide rib scrub marks (If not tumbled) under magnification.
For semi-auto rifle brass, if primer pocket crimped military (or commercial) brass that won't allow the primer to seat, presence of primer crimp is another indicator as you often need to remove the crimp before you can seat another primer.
Once fired brass will have ONE extractor mark on case rim as slide returning from recoil and extractor riding over the case rim of round on top of the magazine and if the brass has not been polished (Reason why many prefer to buy unpolished brass), will have ONE scrub mark on case mouth/neck that bottom of center slide rib made when pushing down the case mouth/neck of round on top of the magazine as the slide recoils back so the case rim of extracting spent brass doesn't contact the bullet nose/case mouth/case neck of round on top of the magazine pushed up by magazine spring tension. Less sure signs of once fired brass is sharp case mouth edges and tighter primer pocket internal dimensions.
Multiple fired brass will have MULTIPLE extractor marks on case rim, MULTIPLE scrub marks on case mouth/neck from center slide rib, rounder/less sharp case mouth edges and looser primer pocket internal dimensions. If brass has been dry/wet tumbled, these marks can be polished smooth and less visible but sharp/deep extractor marks can still be seen under magnification.
Dual lens flip in illuminated head magnifier helps see these marks along with zoom feature on your cell phone camera (If has good enough macro zoom feature) - https://www.harborfreight.com/magnifier-head-strap-with-lights-38896.html
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You too can become like CSI ... with right equipment
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entropy
Member
You can't for sure, but often those brass are range pickups from LE and military. If it has a primer crimp still in, probably once fired. Also cases with different primers than the factory uses would indicate not once fired, though having the same mfgr. primer isn't necessarily an indication of being once fired.
Only in certain calibers out of certain guns. Not all guns leave marks on brass that are obvious or can be detected without going into forensics. Revolvers in particular come to mind.
LiveLife
Member
Good point as my post was for magazine fed semi-auto pistol brass.
I revised my post to say "for most magazine fed semi-auto pistol brass".
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Varminterror
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Every Impala/Mustang/Corvette/Camaro in the history of the World was previously owned by a retired man who died and his wife kept it in the garage and only drove it to church on Sunday...
Yes, there are some cartridges not generally used by military concerns that have crimped primers. And, the numbers are increasing as time goes by. My original comment was not meant to indicate that only military used cartridges have crimped primers.
But, if the primer has been crimped, it is probably only once fired.
As I said before, if I do not know the history of the cartridge, I do not use it. It is just not worth the aggravation opf dealing with cases that will not function well in the reloader.
Hooda Thunkit
Member
Very true. I have some Aguila .223 Rem with crimped primer pockets.
I've also seen 38 Spl with crimped pockets. I don't think 38spl has been used by any North American military in decades.
Eddietruett
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I agree totally with @whughett. Straight wall cases it really doesn't matter. I load a lot of 38 special. I've got cases that have been loaded well over 10 times and you can't tell the difference in once fired cases. I load them until the primes don't have a tight feel or either the case mouth splits. Bottle neck cases are a different matter altogether. I've bought processed brass from Everglades ammo and been very pleased, but most of my brass I have today came from ranges and gun shows. I quit worrying about how pretty it is and just make sure I tumble until its good and clean. Then I load it and shoot it again.
LiveLife
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When your primer pocket becomes loose, you can use metric primers like Fiocchi SP with slightly larger cups to extend the life of your brass.
Arkansas Paul
Member
I remember reading an article from a guy who wanted to see how long .38 special brass would last, so he took one case and just loaded and fired it over and over until it split.
I forget the exact number but it was well over 100 times before it did.
Now he wasn't hot rodding anything, just a standard target load.
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