Winchester ammo -quality or not?

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I recently picked up a few boxes of Winchester .308
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And this is what I found
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This is the first time I've run into ammo like this by any manufacturer. It really surprised me, but in all fairness to Winchester they don't have any control of how their ammo is stored or handled after it leaves their factory, so I really have no quarrel with them concerning the condition of this particular ammo.
However, I do hold them responsible for the very inconsistent seating depth shown in the pic below. All previous Winchester ammo I've bought over the years has always been consistent.
Is this common? Or is it just a case of a bad run of ammo?
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Speckled brass aside, there seems to be quite a difference in seating depths in those rounds pictured, as well as a sloppy crimp.

I assume you bought it new? I'd call Winchester
 
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Bullet tip contour will vary, but I have never such an OAL variation nor horrible crimps on factory ammuntion before.

I wonder if Winchester even makes their ammunition or have the sub contracted the stuff to some slave labor country.?

I believe the box was made in the USA, what about the rest of it?
 
Don't shoot that ammo. Was the box sealed? Call Olin and give them the lot number and the store you purchased it from.
 
I've been shooting the Power point ammo in my 35Rmington for a few years and harvested quite a few animals with it. It always does what it is supposed to leaving large holes and flies truer in my lever than Core-lokt.
 
Power points and Federal blue box are sloppy and only one of my rifles will group them worth a darn (My Tikka) Ballistic Tips and Core-Lokts are much better factory ammo.
 
I shoot the same stuff in .30-06, but none of the brass I have is even close to that bad. In my rem. 700 the 180 gr shoots sub-moa, and I like it, until I get my act together and start handloading.
CApighunter
 
Update: After contacting Winchester I received a very speedy response. They offered to pay to have the ammo shipped to them for replacement. They were also quite accommodating and pleasant to deal with, so I certainly can't complain about their service.
 
Unless the box showed signs of exposure to moisture i would also suspect the specks are not the result of improper storage.

Where did you buy it? I gota wonder if somebody didn't just stuff some reloads in a factory box.
 
The box is in perfect condition. I'm wondering if it had been stored near some sort of chemicals as I bought it from a farm supply/hardware type store, very reputable I might add, but I do know their stock storage is in a building where all sorts of other things are stored as well.
I have purchased ammo from this same place over the years with this being the first time getting ammo that looked like this. Other than this one box being corroded/stained or whatever it is, all the others (I'd bought 8 boxes at the same time) were nothing like this one.
BUT, all the boxes had bullets seated as inconsistently as the one box pictured above.
 
I have seen spider webbing corrosion on factory rounds, these pictures are more like dots. This type of spider webbing corrosion pattern occurs underneath something, like a film, and because of that I believe factory rounds may have a wax coating.
 
NOT quality. That's my vote. I think it used to be, but not anymore.

Not even their premium line of pistol JHP intended for LE use is good enough for me to buy anymore. Terrible quality control

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That is definitely more than a storage problem. I dont care about the cosmetic blemishes since that will change after i process it. The real concern is what you dont see. You have to wonder if they were this sloppy on the critical steps. What if they gave you an extra pinch or two of powder for free? That might earn the "no thumbs up" award or be just fine. The risk is not worth the reward. Consumer confidence begins with image and appearance.
 
i have sworn off winchester products after ordering 1000 pc of brass this year and having several ridiculous and obvious quality problems with it. i sent it back to them with a lengthy note and they basically told me i was wrong, it was fine, and gave me a $5 off certificate for another order of their product.

seriously?? no. why would i ever purchase more winchester product?!? i won't in the foreseeable future.
 
WOW OAL is horrible, and the crimps!!!!! Wow. Most stores have a no ammo return policy which stinks in this case. I hope you try calling Winchester. Quality Assuance was definitely not there, or they made this batch of ammo when the Quality Control guy was on lunch or vaction.
 
Didn't winchester just move all their production from East Aton Illinois to somewhere else (Georgia?) I remember reading a story in the Chicago Tribune about it. They were moving because of the ridiculous taxes imposed on business here in Illinois. Oh yeah, we're creating jobs... for other states. I could see how they are having recent QC problems because they have new employees, and recently set up equipment that peviously may have been dialed in for 50 years, and is now getting all the kinks worked out. But all in all, that is terrible to be leaving the factory like that.
 
I used cheap Federal Champion plinking ammo for ever since I got the gun and it was very reliable. First field trip with Winchester WB and my groups opened quite a bit. I loaded one mag with Winchester and another with Federal and the difference was quite noticeable.
 
"Value" not quality, lolz........

The rifle brass that meets spec is still worth sorting through, IMHO unless you are going to buy ultra-premium brands at triple or more the price.
 
I just purchased 150 rounds of 30-06 Winchester brass and there were 3 rounds in the batch with that type of corrosion. The brass was also very ragged at the end of the neck and it was hard to push the neck expander into the case. It was still a good buy at the price. If Winchester did move their operations from Illinois to Georgia to take advantage of the lower operating costs they should be commended. There'll be a lot of movement to the right to work states. I'll keep buying their products. Shooter
 
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