Reloading 7.62 brass for a .308 question

[dm1333]

I'm a very cautious handloader so even though I have done some reading here and on TFL I want to ask this question.

I want to reload 7.62x51 brass for a .308 Handi Rifle. Other than the primer pockets, smaller case capacity because of the thicker, heavier brass is there anything else I need to know? Is there anything that would keep me from reloading the 7.62 brass? Should I full length resize? None of these reloads would be hot loads since I won't be taking shots over 2-300 yards.

 

[USSR]

dm1333,

I am assuming that this is once-fired brass that isn't M118 or M852 match brass? As you know, you will have to remove the primer crimp. Unless you know who shot it and in what firearm, you can safely assume that it was fired in a machinegun. As such, you will need to full length resize it initially with a small base die. Regular FL sizing dies do not resize far enough down the case to the web area, and this portion of the case will be expanded so much that it will not fit your chamber. In all likelyhood, you will need to trim the brass as well. After you have fired this brass in your rifle, the small base die will no longer be needed, and you can reload it again just using a regular FL die. Military brass has a wide variation in case weight, and if you intend to shoot LR with it, it might be worthwhile to sort the brass by weight. Good luck.

Don

 

[dm1333]

It isn't match brass and it was fired in a machine gun. Thanks for the info about resizing with a small base die, in all my reading on here I never caught that before. It seems like a lot of extra steps to go through to reload this brass but I have access to a fair amount of it. My .308 is a single shot so I don't need to have a whole lot of rounds loaded up at any one time. I am going to sort the brass but from what I have seen so far it all comes from the same lot so I should just be able to check what lot it came from and keep them in seperate ammo cans so that lots don't get mixed up. With the price of everything related to loading getting more expensive I'll put up with the minor hassles of all of this.

 

[USSR]

It seems like a lot of extra steps to go through to reload this brass...

Yep, that's why they sell it so cheap.

Don

 

[cpttango30]

I am not disputing you on the small base die resizing but, I have never had to do this to fire it in my rifle. A run threw a regular 308 win dies has always worked for me. Then again I might have a rifle with a slightly larger chamber.

 

[jwr_747]

I also use the mil.surp brass for my .308,use a regular sizing die.only folks that I personally know using a small base die are some benchrest shooters that have rifles with chambers cut on the low side of specs. try to find someone in your area with regular .308 dies, make up some dummy rounds and see if they work. jwr

 

[rcmodel]

A small base die is not only not necessary, but will over-work the brass.
If you have regular .308 dies, just lube & size them and see if they don't drop right in your handi-rifle.
Betcha they do!

BTW: Sm. base dies don't size any further down the case near the head then a regular die. They just make the case body smaller then it needs to be for the vast majority of rifles, and over-work the brass.


rcmodel

 

[dm1333]

I'll give a regular die a try first and see if it works. Anyone else have any advice about this? Being in the military does have a few minor perks, free brass is one of them!

 

[rcmodel]

Only advice I have is get all you can get while the get'n is good!


rcmodel

 

[USSR]

rcmodel,

You obviously have never resized machinegun brass that you want to put into a boltgun chamber. In most cases (unless you have a tight chambered machinegun, HA, AND a generous chambered boltgun, possible), you will need to reduce the web portion of the brass down using a small base die. Once you have done this and fired the brass in your chamber, then you can use a regular FL sizing die. BTDT.

Don

 

[dmftoy1]

I can't speak for a handi-rifle, but it wouldn't chamber in my savage 10flp until I used a small base die. (first time only) This was the military surplus brass from midway. FWIW.

For my .308 I don't find the brass processing all that bad as I can do alot of the prep work while watching TV. (remove primer crimp, debur flash holes, etc.) If I prep up 200-300 rounds of brass that's about all I shoot in a year. . .now if I had an M1A.

Have a good one,
Dave

 

[rcmodel]

rcmodel,
You obviously have never resized machinegun brass that you want to put into a boltgun chamber.

My experience has obviously been different then yours.

I was a 5th. Army AMTU gunsmith & shooter in the late 70's, and I started reloading in 1962.

During that time I reloaded a lot of 30-06 BMG & .308 M-60 machine-gun brass for bolt-gun use.

I have used 30-06 MG brass to form 6.5-06, 25-06 and various other cases.

I have made .243 & .358 brass out of 7.62 MG cases.

I have used reloaded 7.62 cases in Browning & Remington semi-auto sporting rifles, model 88 Winchester lever-actions, and Browning BLR lever-actions.

I continue to load GI .223 for my AR's, and a couple of CZ bolt guns.

So far, I have never found a need for small base dies in any of these applications.

Perhaps the modern day M240 & M249 doesn't treat brass as kindly as the old .30 BMG or an M-60 of my day.


rcmodel

 

[goon]

I have loaded some LC and Cavim stuff. It is a lot of work but what everyone else has said about not needing small base dies has been my experience too. Right now I have about 300 LC casings cleaned and waiting to have the primer crimp removed and then be trimmed. They will eventually make a nice little supply of blasting ammo for my FAL and a couple of boxes of good SP handloads.
I would think that using small base dies on this brass though would be a bad idea. It requires some tricks just to get them resized with regular dies.
First - Lube the hell out of it. Lube is cheap but swear words cost a lot (not really but you get the idea).
Second, take the decapping stem out of your dies for the first run through. The case mouths are often so deformed that if you size with the decapping stem in the expander button will get stuck on the inside on its way back out. Either that, or it will just be really hard to pull back out and you will swear about that too. You can also loosen the dies just a little for the first sizing. Some of this stuff is really expanded and may get stuck in the dies regardless if you try to size too much too fast. Others have suggested running it into a 30'06 die first.
Step three is to tighten your dies back to normal and put the stem back in. Everything should size relatively normal now with out too much effort, swearing, or any hernias.

BTW - How do you get free brass? When I was in they made us clean it all up and turn it in. I was in Germany at the time so bringing it back wouldn't have been practical anyhow, but still.
You are one lucky individual...

 

[rc109a]

I have been using my lee 308 dies in 7.62 machine gun fired brass with absolutly no problems (brass fired within the last month). The brass is LC 74, 90, 91, 95 and 98. No problems cycling through my 700 5R or my friends ar10. Lube like crazy is the key. I Have sized almost 3,000 in the last few months. I have another 2k-5k coming next week from my last shoot. That is just my limited experience...

 

[stubbicatt]

Roger that RC109a. My Lee dies seem to work just fine.

 

[3rdpig]

I've never had to use SB dies for resizing LC 7.62x51 brass, and specially not for use in a bolt gun where you've got some real leverage closing the bolt. Where I do use SB dies is for 5.56 brass for use in AR's. Not absolutely necessary, but it makes for slightly smoother operation and I'm willing to live with the slightly shorter brass life.

Full length resize for the first time, then after firing you can just neck size if you want. Get yourself a decent primer pocket swager tool like the RCBS or Dillon. Don't waste your time and effort chamfering them unless you've only got a few.