Brass vs Steel Case Ammo

[minnesotatv]

Luckygunner Labs torture test -

be sure to check out the bullet wear results - copper jacket vs bi-metal jacket

http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/brass-v ... /#dirtiest

[arizona98tj]

Also be sure to consider the # of rounds shot in a specific time frame....and so the resulting barrel temps, etc.

My barrel doesn't see that kind of intense use, which in my opinion, makes the test results somewhat null/void for my situation.

YMMV

[yuppiejr]

So basically at 4000 rounds you are likely going to need a new barrel shooting bimetal vs copper jacket bullets.

Price difference per 1000 rounds is between $70 and 100 comparing average price today on Wolf .223 55 gr compared to the various 55 grain brass case/copper jacket ammo. That works out to a savings of $280-$400 on 4000 rounds.

Depending on where you shop barrels can run $125 on the cheap end (SOTA) on up with $280 putting you into a match grade Wilson unit assuming you have the knowledge and tools on hand. PSA is regularly selling bare uppers for $200-$250, complete with bolt carrier @$370 if you prefer to pin and go.

[LumberZach]

Also be sure to consider the # of rounds shot in a specific time frame....and so the resulting barrel temps, etc.

My barrel doesn't see that kind of intense use, which in my opinion, makes the test results somewhat null/void for my situation.

YMMV

I agree mostly, however it does represent the difference in ammo well. If they took their time they could have gotten more life out of the barrel, but the difference of what the ammo will do to your barrel is really interesting. Also the bit about the money saved shooting steel ammo makes up for the cost of a new barrel+

[andrewP]

Also be sure to consider the # of rounds shot in a specific time frame....and so the resulting barrel temps, etc.

My barrel doesn't see that kind of intense use, which in my opinion, makes the test results somewhat null/void for my situation.

YMMV

I agree mostly, however it does represent the difference in ammo well. If they took their time they could have gotten more life out of the barrel, but the difference of what the ammo will do to your barrel is really interesting. Also the bit about the money saved shooting steel ammo makes up for the cost of a new barrel+

That was an interesting article to read. Makes you wonder what the Russian army's spec for barrel life on AKs is.

Speaking as someone who doesn't own an AR but does own a reloading press, I imagine that this data doesn't invalidate my (theoretical) plan of simply buying a set of .223/5.56 dies and going to town when/if I ever do get an AR. I'd have to look at the exact math to be sure, but if I was a betting man, I'd bet that reloads would come out as cheap as or cheaper than the steel-case stuff while letting you get copper jacketed rounds to load vs doing the bi-metal damage to your barrel, and thus would let you have the best of both worlds.

[LumberZach]

Also be sure to consider the # of rounds shot in a specific time frame....and so the resulting barrel temps, etc.

My barrel doesn't see that kind of intense use, which in my opinion, makes the test results somewhat null/void for my situation.

YMMV

I agree mostly, however it does represent the difference in ammo well. If they took their time they could have gotten more life out of the barrel, but the difference of what the ammo will do to your barrel is really interesting. Also the bit about the money saved shooting steel ammo makes up for the cost of a new barrel+

That was an interesting article to read. Makes you wonder what the Russian army's spec for barrel life on AKs is.

Speaking as someone who doesn't own an AR but does own a reloading press, I imagine that this data doesn't invalidate my (theoretical) plan of simply buying a set of .223/5.56 dies and going to town when/if I ever do get an AR. I'd have to look at the exact math to be sure, but if I was a betting man, I'd bet that reloads would come out as cheap as or cheaper than the steel-case stuff while letting you get copper jacketed rounds to load vs doing the bi-metal damage to your barrel, and thus would let you have the best of both worlds.

I read a post somewhere that because the AK's are a lot lower pressure and velocity the barrel life is much longer. Perhaps as much as 75,000 rounds. I can't confirm this but I would love to hear someone who can prove me wrong.

[yuppiejr]

Based on my own experience you need to shoot a fair amount of .223 to make the time & monetary investment pay off for blaster ammo, particularly when the market is down to $320 per thousand for copper jacket/brass cased stuff right now.

Depending on what other reloaders pay for once fired brass it can work out to being a wash versus shooting steel, I seem to find $35 per 500 for once fired/uncleaned is about right. At $320 a case for Wolf Gold, Prvi or Federal you're down to the same price as a case of Wolf Polyperf if you sell the brass.

[Eric Marleau]

At the risk of being called a smart arse, who really cares about all of this stuff
Too much deep thinking for me.
All of those charts just make the authors feel intelligent. I'm happy for them.
As for me???????
I just reload and shoot.
My Bushmaster AR15 is not in danger of falling apart anytime soon, and if it does, I have an excuse to go out and buy another one




Eric

[Drewski]

+1

[grimbeaver]

All I know is I bought some Wolf WPA 9mm last year when it was all I could find and it left my gun filthy and did not seem as accurate. Now that 9mm is on the shelf again I'll be paying the little extra for something else.

[hopkins]

Steel lacquered cases really gum up my chambers. Not worth the bother. Yeah it is cheaper, but not for my taste.