I am reloading some brass cases fired from my Glock 23 (.40 S&W) to be reused in the same gun. When inspecting the brass, I noticed that one side of the case near the base is slightly bulged out. Should I be concerned?
Buldged brass is always a concern in high pressure cartridges, Glock or not. My understanding is that the Glock chambers offer far more support on the later models, so your chances of this are already reduced. However, there are steps you can take.....
• Like these other gentlemen, you could reload and shoot lower power loads. They'll simply be less case deformation with less pressure. And you brass will last longer with less expansion.
• You should check that your sizing die is going all the way down to the shell holder to size the maximum length of case. Obviously, any standard sizing die cannot reach over the
entire case simply because of the shell holder blocks the progress of the die. That's usually OK because the brass is thicker at the rim and there is much less expansion in that region.
To check this and add an "insurance step" you might purchase a
case gauge or
cartridge gauge from Wilson or other. After sizing the case, you simply slide the case into the gauge. If it fits, then the case is good to go, and will chamber in any 40 cal handgun.
People who measure for a living understand that "roundness" is very hard to measure. A simple caliper or micrometer only measures at 2 points, which can often lie about a out-of-round condition. It could completely miss a bulge without multiple measurements on each case. Such a gauge measures at ALL points in a single pass, and thereby insures roundness.
CLICK HERE A case gauge also quickly checks dimensions that "look" OK. In the photo above, the case has expanded out of spec by less than .002" and is caught by the gauge.
Hope this helps!