What casings for revolvers? Brass? Aluminum? Steel?

[Orion8472]

I'm getting a revolver today. What ammo can I safely use? The Anaconda thread makes me not want to use Aluminum cased ammo. I know Brass is fine. What about Steel?

BTW, I don't reload.

 

[tekarra]

I have used all three with no problems.

 

[MrDig]

I have shot some of the Blazer Aluminum out of my Ruger GP100, so far no problems other than the range I frequent the most does not allow it.
It is too hard for them to separate out of the brass so they only allow Brass and Steel.
As soon as I'm done with the aluminum I will not buy any more because I am learning to reload and the aluminum is a pain in the butt beside not being able to reload it.
I cannot comment on steel I don't shoot it.

 

[Coal Dragger]

I prefer brass for any type of firearms I can think of. I reload so that influences my opinion. I have seen fewer problems associated with quality brass cased ammo than steel or aluminum. My second choice would be steel cases, since they are without doubt more durable and resilient.

 

[Woodsman!]

Orion, I dont re load either. I shoot the cheapest stuff I can Find. Ive shot ALOT of alum. ammo. it doesnt hurt anything !

 

[hardluk1]

I will not use steel . I have shot blazer with no problems . I reload some calibers and have shoot some till the case were harded to the point of slitting. Unload the others then. Look at your ammo closely before useing any. That blazer ammo could have had some corroson issues too.

 

[Warp]

Any of them should be fine.

 

[rcmodel]

I don't think you will find any steel case .44 Magnum or .45 Colt loads made anywhere.
(Whichever your Anaconda is?)

And as you say, I would avoid aluminum after seeing that thread.

All that leaves is brass, or nickle plated brass, so your choice is narrowed considerably!

rc

 

[Greg528iT]

Id stick with brass for the most part. I've only run across a few different brands of 45 ACP that were AL or steel. It was easy enough to keep shopping and find similar prices with brass cases. WalMart has been stocking Remington UMC for about $18 for 50 these days.

 

[Orion8472]

I just purchased a Talo Ruger Birdshead in .45acp, so I'm pretty open on what I shoot through it. The Steel would be the cheapest in price. Right now, I have PMC Bronze.

 

[easyg]

I like brass or steel.
I'm not so much a fan of aluminum.

 

[Orion8472]

It seems as though the Anaconda thread isn't really suggesting to NOT buy aluminum cased ammo. Seems many have had many many problem free rounds through their guns. I'll just shoot what comes cheapest.

 

[Ron James]

I have shot CCI aluminum shells in most of my handguns with no problems.

 

[Havok7416]

I stopped using or recommending aluminum cases the day a 10mm Blazer case ruptured full-length in my S&W 610. No damage to the weapon luckily, but the rest of that ammo was disposed of immediately! I have also seen a number of aluminum auto cases on the floor with cracks in them.

 

[Taurus 617 CCW]

Aluminum is definitely not the preferred choice for most shooters. If money is not an issue most would choose brass. Even if you don't reload...yet...I would recommend saving every brass case you remove from your gun. I did this for years before I reloaded and am glad I did. I now have over 1000 pieces of brass to load for a caliber I never thought I would.

 

[edwin41]

i definitly go for brass casings , i had some nickelplated brass but i swapped
them for brass ones.
i do reload , and i found the nickelplated ones didn t last as long as the brass.

 

[Slamfire]

Brass is the best cartridge case material period.

That is what I use, and use, and use again.

Your cost/benefit ratio, that is a personal decision.

 

[BYJO4]

I also prefer brass and you should save your cases in the event you start reloading in the future.

 

[Walkalong]

Brass is the best cartridge case material period.

Agreed. As long as there is brass, that is what I am going to use in revolvers.

 

[Orion8472]

So, if wanting to go cheap, is it better to go with steel casing? I have access to a supply of Tula, so would save money there.

However, I'd rather spend a bit more IF steel casings would cause damage to my New Vaquero cylinder.

 

[Havok7416]

If it came down to steel vs aluminum, then yes I would personally choose steel.

 

[Orion8472]

Good to hear. But will the steel casing potentially damage a revolver? To me, if inserted with care and ejected with care, I can't imagine steel would be much different than brass. . . . but I could be wrong. Not sure how much "case expansion" plays a part in revolvers.

 

[Havok7416]

Steel won't hurt your gun. If it did Wolf, Tula and Herter's (to name a few) would be out of business.

 

[PabloJ]

Given prices of brass-cased 9x19 fmj ammo the steel and alloy cased stuff does not exist. I have bought only one box of alloy-cased 9x18 stuff because that was the only load available in store. Happily I will never have to use such stuff again.

 

[brnmuenchow]

I have used all three, they should all be fine. The Alum. stuff is my least favorite though.