[drshame]

Anyone have any experience with USGI M118, Non Crimped Match Brass?

Is it any better than regular USGI Brass..worth the extra $$$$??

Also, it comes non-sized or trimmed so it will need a little xtra work from regular re-processed Lake City Brass from commercial reprocessors.

Worth the extra cost and extra labor..or the same as the regular brass?

 

[Bamban]

I shoot LC LR 02 brass in my number 1 gun for the long line. After resized, trimmed to 2.0, flash holes deburred, primer pocket, neck turned to clean high spots to even the necks to .014 after the 2nd firing, the weight of about 90/100 was within 1 grain. At the dimensions I mentioned, trimmed cases have 54.5 grain water capacity. Very uniform. Could not get there wtih Win brass, reject is at very high rate to get to within 1 grain.

The 1 grain spread is by no means a standard for uniformity, but since this is what I got, might as well put them to good use.

Now I am looking to anneal the necks since I have 4 firings on them.

 

[drshame]

If you cross paths with German Salazar...say Hi for me!
Jeff Bartlett has the M118LR Match cases..I'll try a few hundred to see how they do...even if they do take a little extra work.
Not that I have anything better to do!!

 

[charlesPOSTLEwade]

I was Fortunate I bought 1k of once fired LC brass turned out to be LC LR brass
I have yet to use it

 

[Ken W]

Where have you found the 118 LR brass? I have not found any and been looking all over.

Thanks for the help.
Ken

 

[drshame]

The M118LR Brass I ordered from GI Brass arrived today.
It was basically right out of whatever fired it, cleaned up lightly, with spent primer intact.
If it was my home-rolled ammo..I'd say the primers were a little flat.
The brass was in excellent shape with no dings, and minimal signs of any use and no case banding or other signs of possible abuse.
The primers came out easily and the fl die did it's job with minmal effort.
Of the roughly 200 cases I've processed so far..they all came out of the FL die easily. When I sent them thru my Giraud Trimmer...most needed very minimal trimming. Only a handfull needed a little extra work to shave them down to length.

The cases carry a LC Headstamp with an "LR" on the bottom.

I expect them to clean up nicely and when I fitted them in a Wilson Case Gauge..they popped in and out easily. I expect they are capable of making a very good load, and I will be very disappointed if they show any casehead problems like I've seen from probably MG Fired Brass.
I think I'll use them for a duplicate of M118 Special loads using CCI Benchrest Primers, Noselr 175's and Accurate 4064..probably about 41.5 grains to star.

Any other M118 LR recipes..I've also got BLC(2), H335 and Varget available.

 

[Phil “Murphy” McGrath]

There is no such thing as M118LR-NM either its LR(Long Range) or NM not both, primer pockets are uncrimped for both loadings, and like most LC brass its good in the right places I treat it the same as any mil-surp brass 4 loading and toss. Is it worth the extra money? well it does save a step at the bench and the LR looks cool on the casehead whats that worth too you?


41.5 Varget with a Serria 175 is a great load for 600yds
41.0 Varget with any 168 is a good load as well.

 

[davecampperry]

Anyone have any experience with USGI M118, Non Crimped Match Brass?
Yes, quite a bit.
Is it any better than regular USGI Brass..worth the extra $$$$??
Yes and Yes. It was fired in a rifle chamber, not a MG. You won't have rejects, because 1. any defect will show up on first firing 2. there will be no incipient head separation.
Also, it comes non-sized or trimmed so it will need a little xtra work from regular re-processed Lake City Brass from commercial reprocessors.
This is to your advantage. I don't trust comm processors. They are profit oriented, I don't reload to save money.
Worth the extra cost and extra labor..or the same as the regular brass?

Very much worth it. Get all you can.

 

[davecampperry]

Just a reminder, for those who came in late...

Don't buy M852 brass, with the cannelure 1/2 inch forward of the base. They WILL separate, either in the chamber or the sizing die, and they stretch excessively.

 

[gulliver62]

What DaveCampPerry said. No crimp is nice but that is easy enough to remove in your normal processing.
Knowing it did not come from a machine gun means less work on the brass. How much more it's worth kind of depends on how much work you like to do in prep and what you are using the brass for.

 

[Dave P]

Neck Turning

neck turned to clean high spots to even the necks to .014 after the 2nd firing, .

Bamban - I played this game years ago, and it made me feel good, but saw no change on the targets, even at 600 yards. Do you see the difference?

 

[Bamban]

Bamban - I played this game years ago, and it made me feel good, but saw no change on the targets, even at 600 yards. Do you see the difference?

My earlier shooting background was in Benchrest. During the days of the Houston warehouse I ran around with the gunsmith and shooters mentioned in the article written about rifles shooting in the zeroes. What was emphasized back in those days is the critical neck tension. TJ Jackson used to turn all the necks on my PPC cases on his lathe on two passes to ensure uniformity.

Now fast forward to high power. Considering shooting on the ground and with a sling and the wobble, would you see the difference in the score? Probably not. My long line loads do have single digit ES though, my aging 59 year old eyes contribute to more elevation shots than my loads.

I am retired and have plenty time on my hand, I put my mini lathe to work in the garage. Plus, when I am busy in the garage I can delay the honey dos from my new found boss - my wife of 37 years...

 

[nikernr]

The current LC LR brass is outstanding being VERY consistent in the volume and and weight of the cases. They are also VERY durable I have been shooting the same 300 cases for about 2 years with the reloading count up to about 8-10 per case and I'm now just getting cracks in the necks on a few cases.

Oh by the way I've been shooting them in an AR 10 gas gun.

 

[Lennyo3034]

I find LC LR brass to be more consistent and easier to work with than standard LC brass. However using the same load, the standard LC brass is more accurate. Go figure.

 

[jameydan]

Don't buy M852 brass, with the cannelure 1/2 inch forward of the base. They WILL separate, either in the chamber or the sizing die, and they stretch excessively.

I have reloaded and fired many rounds of M852 brass (several years of regular high power competitions most weekends). I size it down .003" from my chamber size (not extracted brass size). I never saw a fail rate of incipient head separation that was different than Winchester brass. After 4 maybe 5 reloads and firings thru an M1A, they are done.
I suspect other things are at play with early seperations but YMMV.

 

[noob14s]

I wish you could still buy m118 LR for 75 per 500. Those days are gone it seems.

 

[82nd ABN]

I wonder if we will see it on the market again. I haven't seen it for along time. Anyone have a source where it is available now?