I have a lot of Norma brass I have shot 6-7 times. I barely bump shoulders each reloading and am not running extremely hot loads either. When do I know it's time to stop using this brass? It looks great, resizes fine, etc. I just don't want case head separation or get a case stuck in the rifle. How many reloading should I expect?
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7mm Mag brass
- Thread starter luke5678
- Start date
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Joe King
Well-Known Member
Bump the shoulder as in just enough the you don't feel resistance closing the bolt? Are your primer pockets staying tight? Do you anneal your case necks? If your not pushing pressures, minimal case working during resizing and annealing, I don't see why a guy can't get 10+ loads on a case. Norma case are known to be a bit on the soft side you might see less, to bad lapua doesn't make 7mag brass.
One thing you can do to check for incipient case head separation is, straiten out a paper clip and bend a hook on the end, so you can feel the inside case wall near the case head. If you feel a grove there you might want to consider tossing those cases into the recycle bin.
One thing you can do to check for incipient case head separation is, straiten out a paper clip and bend a hook on the end, so you can feel the inside case wall near the case head. If you feel a grove there you might want to consider tossing those cases into the recycle bin.
purpledragon
Well-Known Member
A+ on what Joe said,very good reply with great info.Well said
Joe King
Well-Known Member
You most likely either notice your primer pockets loosening up, or some resistance to your bolt closing. Every time you shoot and resize your also working the brass near the head and sooner or later it has to work harden. With how you doing things now I would expect case head separation, without annealing though you notice the necks with eventually start to split.
crazyhorse
Well-Known Member
How bad are loose primer pockets? I've got some that look great with the exception of the primer pocket being loose.
Joe King
Well-Known Member
I've never tested it to find out. When seating primers if I feel that a primer went in to easy I toss the case .03 for a primer is nothing so why risk it leaking gass. I've never had the experience of a primer falling out or leaking either.
moombaskier
Well-Known Member
I have seen a loose primer leak enough to burn a freakin hole in the bolt face on a 300RUM! I rarely handload my 7mag cases more than 3 times. I am using Winchester Nickel plated stuff with a stiff load tho. I get it once fired from a bunch of guys that shoot factory fodder.
I think Joe is spot on. I've used the paperclip, "thingy" since 1983 and I trust it. After you straighten out the paperclip get a, "new" case and run the tip of the clip into the case until you feel it hit the top of the belt. Rotate the case with your fingers as you feel around the entire inside of the belt. It should be smooth. When you run it inside a several times fired case you should start feeling a rough spot just above the belt. Any case that I feel the roughness in goes into the trash. Not worth it.
7stw
Well-Known Member
Truly good Seven Mag brass is getting tough to find nowadays, for the exception of Norma. That stuff is truly the best out there now. The pockets stay tight, the necks are decent, and overall life is very good. If sized and loaded correctly, and cared for, I think 7-10 firings can happen. That all depends on the chamber also, and of course proper resizing.
The domestic brass just dosen't last. I have fired and trashed some with as little as two firings, and with Norma brass, and the same load, at least 6-8 firings.
The domestic brass just dosen't last. I have fired and trashed some with as little as two firings, and with Norma brass, and the same load, at least 6-8 firings.
