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30-06 brass

tatercats
a friend gave a 30 caliber ammo can with 30-06 brass on 8 round garand clips. when i tryed to reload them they resized fine and punched the primers with no problem. when i tryed to re-prime them the primers would not go into the primer pocket. the brass looks like military brass. are they non-reloadable or do i need to do something to the primer pocket. any info would be great.
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Comments

11 comments

Date Votes
  • bobinwis
    Military brass has a crimp on the primers. You have to remove it with a 'swaging' tool in order to reprime them. There are a number of them on the market. I use an RCBS tool. It works fine. You just have to remove the crimp once.

    Bob
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  • tatercats
    thanks-bout how much do they cost and do i need a press for one?
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  • bobinwis
    I use the RCBS. It includes both heads for both large and small primers. A separate swager rod is available for .223 caliber. The die fits standard 'C' and 'O' type presses with the 7/8-14 gauge thread. Cabela's lists it for 21.99 in their 2004 shooting catalog. I recently saw a stand-alone swaging tool in a magazine but can't remember where. What it does is form a tiny radius on the mouth of the primer pocket so the new primer will slip in. You have to set it up like any other die but once set, it works just like a decapping or crimping die.
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  • leeblackman
    I wouldn't even bother, just throw it away and order some commercial brass.
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  • Tailgunner1954
    Weather you toss the brass or not, don't toss the clips (unless you want to toss them my way[:D])

    Whittemore
    Some guys like a mag full of lead, I still prefer one round to the head.
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  • Iconoclast
    I don't know if it is still available, but Lyman used to make a crimp *cutter* which I've used on all manner of US military brass with good results. Just stick it in the primer pocket, be sure it is square to the base of the pocket, a gentle twist to remove a sliver of brass, and away you go. Takes a *little* practice not to cut the side walls of the pocket, but it is fast and simple to use. I tried the RCBS swager originally and found it to be a royal PITA. Until I discovered this tool, I didn't bother with military brass. Dillon makes a special tool which is reputed to work well, but this is three figures and unless one is going to load a huge amount of military brass, perhaps as a commercial loader, I doubt the price of admission is worth it.

    Before you invest any more time in this brass, however, check the headstamps. If dated before 1956, some / all could have been loaded originally with corrosive primers. After all this time, the salts could have made the brass brittle - even if fired yesterday, the cleaning process is not worth the time involved. If the brass is old, sell it for scrap and put the proceeds to 1xF commercial or late date military brass.

    Even if you have no use for the Garand clips, save them; typically they bring $1 or so.

    "There is nothing lower than the human race - except the French." (Mark Twain)
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  • temblor
    I'd go with commercial brass if you can. These guys all gave you good advice -- but if you are determined to swage or reem out the primer pockets, take alook at the Dillon tool for it. I have the RCBS tool and it works good but the dillon looks like a better tool to me (although I believe it's more expensive). [8D]
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  • snowtigger
    I've reamed hundreds of military cases with a reamer made by RCBS. It costs about 10.00 and comes with a handle like a screwdriver and a screw-in tip. I un-screwed the tip and chucked it up in a slow-speed drill. After de-priming, this method takes only seconds and saves on the wrist. Don't throw this great brass away!!Unless it is old enough to have corrosive primers, it is superior to comm brass, IMHO. Just remember to start by reducing your starting loads by 5% because the brass is thicker and will cause higher pressures. The benifit from this is more loads per pound of powder. You can see this for yourself by dropping the same powder charge in two cases, one comm, one military. Look at the powder level in the cases, the military case will be noticably higher. If you decide not to use this brass offer it for sale on one of the various auctions. You will find a buyer. I have used it for years, in 30/06 and 308. The alternative is to send it to me and I will give it a good home. LOL

    It ain't what you shoot, it's what you hit.
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  • tatercats
    thanks for the advice-if the brass is newer than 56 i am gonna try to reload it-got a garand and a 03A3 so i need all the brass i can get-definetely not gonna throw the clips out
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  • Pearyw
    I have one of the RCBS swagers that works fine, but I have reamed these for years with a pocket knife. It takes longer but a knife works fine if you are careful.
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  • king999
    Several years ago, I ground a screwdriver blade to fit snugly in a commercial unprimed case. I've used this tool with great success with no problems. By the way someone may advise you that you will need "small base dies" for the Garand; NONESENSE!! Regular dies work just fine.
    Have fun, be careful!
    Morty
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