As per the title really chaps.

I've "inherited" 50 empty Sako 30.06 cases from the Chap whose rifle ?I will be buying and some are in a fairly grotty state with bit of verdigris on the sides although most are just dirty.

Thanks to the heads up from Darren i will soon be the owner of a ultrasonic cleaner and will clean the cases in that.

The question is what am I looking for when it comes to inspecting the cases for safety as far as reloading is concerned.

I have read things like "incipient head separation" and "split case necks", well none of the necks are split but how on earth am I supposed to tell if the case head is going to break off?!

In between the blithering I suppose the question I’m asking is what to look for when inspecting fired cases.

Any and all tips appreciated as usual.

Thanks,


GH

If they're once fired, just clean them and reload them.

The way to check for incipient head separation is to run a wire (I use a straightened paper clip) with the tip bent to 90 degrees down the inside of the case. If you can feel a groove in the brass near the head, that is the start of a head separation and the case should be discarded.

Also make sure the cases aren't too long and trim if necessary.

quote:

Originally posted by Grumulkin:
If they're once fired, just clean them and reload them.

The way to check for incipient head separation is to run a wire (I use a straightened paper clip) with the tip bent to 90 degrees down the inside of the case. If you can feel a groove in the brass near the head, that is the start of a head separation and the case should be discarded.

Also make sure the cases aren't too long and trim if necessary.

Thank you for the promptness of your reply.

The problem is that I have no idea how many times they've been fired, they were given to me in a MTM case along with the sling and a boresnake! I was hoping to be able to determine whether the cases I have been reloaded to many times already. At nearly £80 per hundred on Sako cases it would be nice to reuse at least some of them

I have bought an ultrasonic cleaner and will clean the cases tonight, now that you mention it there appears to be a slight "ridge" around the bottom of the case about 6mm up from the extractor groove, I don't know about on the inside. I will check later on tonight.

Thanks again.

GH

Fifty uses 30-06 cases regardless of brand are not all that valuable.
You might purchase a less expensive brand and toss those.
It may be different where you live but quality once fired brass here is about $5/hundred.

quote:

Originally posted by SR4759:
Fifty uses 30-06 cases regardless of brand are not all that valuable.
You might purchase a less expensive brand and toss those.
It may be different where you live but quality once fired brass here is about $5/hundred.

Oh I see, I was under the impression that cases should last basically forever, unless you shoot hot loads, The sako cases come factory annealed and the weight variation is .7 hi-low for the whole batch!

I see the wisdom in regarding them, as you say, as a consumable.

The question still remains I think, who many times can a case be reloaded and is it possible to tell by visual inspection whether one is at thaat limit?

Once fired Sako brass (or any other quality brass) round this way is difficult to find, one must basically buy new.

At £80 per 100 it is not cheap! I could go deer stalking for a morning and shoot a cull buck for example with £80

I'm just being tight as I wanted develop a load with this stuff and then switch to new Lapua stuff once a suitable load has been found.

Thanks again.

Regards,

GH

There will generally be a ridge on the outside of a fired case up from the extractor groove. That's not important; the important thing is that there isn't a groove on the inside of the case.

You can sometimes tell about incipient head separation from the outside of the case. It will appear a a ring of brass a little shinier than the rest but you kind of have to know what to look for.

You can generally reload 30/06 cases repeatedly but eventually, they will wear out. As you will find out, when you shoot them, the brass will get longer and you'll have to trim it. If the case is getting longer, the brass is obviously getting thinner and will eventually get too thin.

When in doubt about case stretching take one and cut it lengthwise.Remember to size the cases for that particular gun , don't push max loads ,and you shouldhave long case life.s

Case life can vary a lot depending on a number of factors.

1. Quality of the brass
2. How you take care of it.
3. How hot you load it
4. The dimensional differences between your chamber and your reloading dies and the basic brass dimensions.
5. How accurately you set the sizing die.

You can check your old brass for thinning at the pressure ring but you are still dealing with old brass of unknown pedigree which is a safety issue for your eyes.

As an example of the variation in brass I have brass that has been loaded more than 30 times that is still safe. I have also had cases fail on the first reload. I have also found brass at the range that failed when fired as factory ammo. It was not the fault of the brass but the old rifles it was fired in. It takes some experience to learn how to judge brass.

If the brass is questionable, I usually will not use it. After sizing I always look for the bright ring around the case about 1/4" from the case head. I've tossed several that had the ring.

I've tried the "wire in the case" feeler gauge several times as well, but the inside of the case must be clean for it to work properly as you may scratch some carbon and think the case has a weak spot.

Good Luck

Reloader

FWIW, the 30-06 is a plenty powerful cartridge and reloading to mild pressure would most likely be quite safe (and no deer will walk away). Those cases are supposed to have been fired in that same rifle so simply neck annealing then reloading with neck sizing only should be fine. Just check that the fired cases actually do fit the chamber. I have had 'new' cases split on first firing. These were necked down 303 Brit cases that were obviously not annealed during the process. Other 'new' cases, I annealed before loading and these are fine. Hope that helps. (I have had cases showing insipient head separation that survived plenty more firings before I found them still being used!)

If I were given brass that old or not well cared for, I would politely thank the donor and recycle them. Even though the price of maetal has gone down for now I still save up the old stuff and take it to the metal recycler down the road every 6 months or so. If you belong to a rifle club, you might donate it. Most well run clubs recycle brass for a bit of extra income.

quote:

Originally posted by Ghubert:
As per the title really chaps.

I've "inherited" 50 empty Sako 30.06 cases from the Chap whose rifle ?
GH

FWIW. I've only used Sako brass once in my life. That was in 25-06. At the time I was pushing most cartridges to their Max or near max, whatever that is. Found that the Sakos were softer than any of the other cases I was using.

This certainly isn't an abundance of evidence indicating that Sako brass is inferior but it obviously is a heads up. roger

100 Lapua cases are about £87 from MidwayUK who are usually at the top end price wise.

That would allow you to start with the best cases in known good condition with a known number of firings. For all you know some of those 2nd hand cases might be fired only once while others might have been fired 20 times.

Given that I'd go with 100 new cases and remove another variable from the reloading equation. That's what I did and they've all been fired once now and I know they've been fired once and in my rifle.

Once you find that your brass is not useable for another reloading, crimp the case in the middle to prevent anyone else from using it. Throw it in the scrap bucket and no worries.

Tony