How many times do you reload belted magnum brass? I got all my brass from factory rounds (thats fired once to get the brass), then I reloaded them to work up a round (now thats fired twice), and Im already seeing signs of case seperation (or at least my dad says so). What are the sure-fire signs of case seperation (besides only half a brass coming out when you open the action)? Would nickel brass be capable of being reloaded more?

on average I get five to eight loadings from a case with my magnums.If you are getting case separation after two loadings either your die is pushing back the shoulder too far and your brass is stretching too much on firing or your chamber is too long on your rifle.

[ 08-02-2002, 08:35: Message edited by: stubblejumper ]

In both 338 Win mag, and 375 H&H I usually get at least 5 runs before I see signs of stress on the brass.
One tips I got from an oldtimer was to straighten a paper clip and then make a small 90 degrees angle on the end of it. With that you can probe the inside of your cases in the web area, and belive me, you can easely feel when a crack / separation groove is developing.

If for nothing else, just to make sertain that the case is ready for the trash bin.

The only absolutely sure way to inspect brass for impending separation is to sacrifice one, section it, lengthwise, and see if how thin the ring above the case head is. If the brass is from the same source, and shot with the same loads, they will all be about the same.

The more headspace, the faster the separation. I have a 7mag I neck size for, and she gives me well over 10 loads per case (o.k., so I lost count; but it's at least 10). HTH, Dutch.

A couple of tips...(1) get the Stoney Point tools that allow you to measure from the base of your case to the datum line and then set you die to only bump the shoulder back about 2/1000" (2) learn how to anneal your cases and anneal them every 4th or 5th reloading...they will last forever if you don't blow the primer pockets and if you do, back off the load (3) if you want to check the inside of your case forget about the paperclip "trick"...instead ask your dentist (or go to a dental supply place) and get one of the little crooked sharp thing he sticks in your mouth to pick at the crud in your teeth...they work perfectly plus they are great for things like picking tumbler media out of primer pockets etc.