# a lil bit curious



## thelonerang3r (Jul 30, 2009)

I've heard on here that steel cases can't be reloaded and wonder why. Is it that steel ammo from the Eastern Bloc countries tend to be berdan primed instead of the US standard boxer prime? Does steel show the stresses of resizing more than brass making it unsafe to fire? Another reason I haven't thought of?


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## Surculus Solitudo (Aug 18, 2009)

A brass case's properties allow it too stretch and/or expand when fired and still be sized back when reloading. Of course even brass has limits on this. That is why rifle brass fired at higher pressures will not last as long as pistol brass. Steel _might_ stretch and resize but it won't keep doing it. It is also harder on dies.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

Let's clarify the question.
It's actually only _bottleneck rifle cartridges_ made from steel that can't be properly resized and reloaded.
I have a whole lot of ancient steel .45 ACP cases from the latter days of WW2, and I regularly resize and reload them quite successfully.


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## thelonerang3r (Jul 30, 2009)

Steve M1911A1 said:


> Let's clarify the question.
> It's actually only _bottleneck rifle cartridges_ made from steel that can't be properly resized and reloaded.
> I have a whole lot of ancient steel .45 ACP cases from the latter days of WW2, and I regularly resize and reload them quite successfully.


So, straight cases can be reloaded. It's just the bottleneck rifle cartridges that can't be. That leads me to ask why, again. I've done some searching online and can't find an answer- just that it can't be done. The malleability issue Surculus mentioned? That would make sense- as I understand steel; heating and cooling it will make it progressively harder/ more brittle and more prone to splitting. OTOH- the same properties would apply to the .45 ACP casings you mentioned. Am I missing something or is my metallurgy wrong?


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## thelonerang3r (Jul 30, 2009)

I just found this http://forum.pafoa.org/ammunition-reloading-25/78409-reloading-steel-cases.html where people have stated that steel .223 and 7.62X54R can be reloaded. It just requires more lube. Any comments?


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## mactex (Jan 23, 2007)

I would add that steel will cause dies to wear out faster. Maybe M1911A1 can give us an idea of how much faster?


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

Practically speaking, carbide dies for straight-wall cases don't wear out.
Steel .45 ACP cases don't last as long as brass ones do, and putting the occasional lubed one through the die is very helpful, but neither my Dillon machine nor my pistols can tell the difference.

I once thought to shoot _only_ steel ex-G.I. cases, because then a large magnet would do my shell scrounging for me. Trouble is, there aren't a lot of steel cases around.
I wish someone would invent a brass magnet.

My steel .45 cases don't get hot enough to affect their metallurgy. Steel doesn't work-harden like brass does.
I suspect that bottleneck steel cases may adversely affect a full-length sizing die because resetting the case's shoulder would be stressful. Further, steel would adversely affect an ordinary hardened-steel sizing die's neck. Hardened steel isn't anywhere near as erosion-resistant as carbide.


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## thelonerang3r (Jul 30, 2009)

Thanks for the input, guys. I've been doing some serious thinking about wading into the world of reloading (ammo is getting expensive and my caliber wishlist is constantly growing) and kept coming across the "no steel rule." I still need to learn my ABC's about it, but it should be here Saturday at the latest.


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