What's up with this LC brass?

[slowr1der]

I picked up some brass at the range the other day and in it was some LC 5.56 brass. Now, I've come across this in the past, but normally don't pay much attention to it because I don't reload 5.56 at this time. Anyway, I noticed that it has 4 rings around the case on the body of it right before the shoulder. It's almost like a really wide crimp or something with 4 rings in it. All of this is like this. I don't really know how to explain it, but you can see it and slightly feel it. Anyone seen this? What's the deal with it?
Here are a few pictures.





After looking through the bag I realized some has more than 4 rings, and some has 4.

 

[Jim K]

"Whaddaya mean, flush out the chips when using a chambering reamer?"

Jim

 

[spleify]

My guess would be that the weapon this was fired out of has these rings in the barrel and it it 'fire forms' the case when fired.

Only a guess and all I could come up with.

 

[slowr1der]

I'm not going to fire this since I don't reload for a 5.56, but I do have a buddy I was going to give it to. Is it safe to load and just fire so it will form to his chamber, or is that a bad idea?

 

[spleify]

I would 'think' he will be fine. If he is a seasoned reloader he will know if he is comfortable with it or not, and he can always load 10 or 12 of them and shoot them to see so they react

 

[Miata Mike]

I also agree that it must have been fire formed from a specific gun. I can't even think of how else it could have happened.

I also would full length resize the brass and try a magazine or two. I would think your buddies chamber would reform back to normal. How much brass are we talking??

 

[slowr1der]

I didn't count it, but it's probably a good 60-80 pieces.

 

[243winxb]

Chamber Adapter ?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Could the 5.56 have been fired in a bolt action 22-250 or other cartridge type using a Chamber adapter? I dont know that one is made. But there was some adapters that allowed 308 win to be fired in 30-06 chambers. http://www.mcace.com/adapters.htm The case on the left has a bright shiny ring just above the web area. This is a sigh of excessive head space & start of a case head seperation.

 

[Miata Mike]

I myself might try a magazine or so, but for 60 - 80 pieces I might just recycle them. I am however curious.

 

[jcwit]

Bad chamber. I'd reload them.

 

[Walkalong]

"Whaddaya mean, flush out the chips when using a chambering reamer?"

LOL....

I betcha Jim K is right.

Doesn't look significant. Should reload fine, but I would not be too happy if that was my gun they were fired in.

 

[Seedtick]

I betcha Jim K is right.

Me too!

Are they circular rings or are they spiral? Spiral would be definitive.

Seedtick

 

[slowr1der]

They are circular.

I don't think he was using a chamber adapter so it must be a bad chamber. I say I don't think, because he was firing these in an AR not some other sort of rifle. I can't be sure it was really chambered for 5.56, but I'd assume it was and I hope he wasn't firing a round in it that it wasn't chambered for. He did have a lot of jams when using some cheap made in China mags, and after he was done shooting he threw away 4 mags telling us how big of pieces of junk they were. After he left another guy at the range went and got them out of the trash to check out. He then tried them and the mag wouldn't latch in with 30 rounds in his rifle, but if he only put 29 rounds in they latched in fine, and didn't jam at all. So I'm thinking this rifle may just have been problematic. At the time I hadn't seen the marks on the brass, I didn't notice them until after I tumbled them.

 

[rcmodel]

I would sure reload them, but only after inspecting them all for head separation stretch rings.

The one on the left side of the picture looks like it is all ready to crack right where they crack.

rc

 

[amlevin]

Were these the only rounds to get these marks or did all the others from the same rifle have them too?

As for loading and shooting them, I've loaded and shot brass that looked far worse and it lasted several loadings. You'd be amazed how some marks just disappear after they're "hammered" on a couple of times.

 

[kingmt]

It looks like the chamber has chater markes.

 

[slowr1der]

Were these the only rounds to get these marks or did all the others from the same rifle have them too?

As for loading and shooting them, I've loaded and shot brass that looked far worse and it lasted several loadings. You'd be amazed how some marks just disappear after they're "hammered" on a couple of times.

Every one of them out of the 60-80 I got have it.

Thanks for the advice guys, I will just give them to him and let him decide what to do with them.

 

[Master Blaster]

excessive headspace? Rough chamber, decorations left by space aliens? WHO KNOWS

I sure Would Not take any chances by reloading them whatever the reason for the rings, its not normal, and I like my fingers eyes and guns too much to take a chance. Put them in the recycling can and buy some new brass instead.

JMHO YMMV

 

[rcmodel]

Still say the rings in front won't hurt anything a tall.

But the one on the left side of the photo is getting ready to crack right at the case web.
Which is totally unrelated to the harmless rings up by the shoulder.

rc

 

[sugarmaker]

Someone shot out the throat and set the chamber back, looks like they may have reamed it "dry".

 

[243winxb]

The rings look to uniform to be an accident while chambering. Could the firearms manufacture have placed the rings in the chamber on purpose, to slow ejection until the chamber pressure drops ?? 223 saiga?

 

[slowr1der]

The weird thing is I went to the range again today, and there was a guy shooting an AR. I don't think it was the same guy, but I can't remember for sure what he looked like last time. Anyway, after he was done he didn't want the brass, so I said I'd take it. It's several hundred pieces of LC brass and it has these same rings on it. I wonder if someone locally is selling AR's wtih messed up chambers. The whole thing is really weird.

 

[LiveLife]

I say as long as they shoot fine, reload 'em!

 

[buzzg]

Chatter marks from a bad chamber reamer. I've seen this before in other calibers. It should fire form right back to original appearance with out a problem.

 

[W.E.G.]

Fire those rounds in an HK, and leave the brass, just to really mess with the head of the next scrounger.