Case doesn't shoot well

[Chiquita]

Similar to a bullet that may not shoot well in a barrel. Is it possible that a certain case doesn't shoot well in a rifle?

 

[Timberyote]

I have a Remington 700 Varmint in .308 that shoots extremely well with all brass except Lapua brass. My other .308's shoot well with all brass.

 

[Fuj]

And why you do case prep and fire forming......

 

[MikeRu]

Maybe the cases that shoot well generate a more consistent pressure curve. I tested 3 or more brands in my 300 WinMag they all shot different.

 

[brokeasajoke]

I have a Remington 700 Varmint in .308 that shoots extremely well with all brass except Lapua brass. My other .308's shoot well with all brass.

My Remington 700 .308 gets Lapua cases but in fairness that's all it's ever got outside of Federal GMM and Lapua is the only case I've worked with. I prepped all the Lapua from the beginning including skimming the necks. Maybe I'd get the same or better results with another brand of brass.

 

[markm87]

Similar to a bullet that may not shoot well in a barrel. Is it possible that a certain case doesn't shoot well in a rifle?

There's guys here who know which piece of brass in their box doesn't shoot right. I wish I could be so buttoned up.

 

[LCazador]

Like the old BR saying goes. It's the three B's that make the rifle shoot, bullets, brass, and barrels!

 

[Doom]

I don't know that I've come across a specific test on cases by manufacturer for accuracy and precision, but I'll bet someone has done one. However, there is a mountain of anecdotal evidence that case consistency as measured by uniformity of physical dimensions and material properties contribute to higher precision and uniformity in both chronograph and target results. That anecdotal data ranks Lapua near the top and Winchester near the bottom. Buy a given lot of Lapua and the case volume and weight and construction are very consistent. Not nearly so much in a given lot of Winchester.

So to answer the OP's question, the answer would appear to be yes, some case manufacturer's cases will likely perform better than others. Can Winchester perform as well as Lapua? Maybe, but the first requirement would be to sort out the inconsistencies in volume and weight as we know they matter.

I have a Remington 700 Varmint in .308 that shoots extremely well with all brass except Lapua brass. My other .308's shoot well with all brass.

Not knowing what you base this statement on I would consider it with some skepticism. Not that it may not be true but it is a data point that runs against the myriad of data available.

 

[SKWERLZ]

I’ve had pieces of brass that I culled for not playing well with it’s friends.

 

[6BRA]

I’ve had pieces of brass that I culled for not playing well with it’s friends.

The chronograph is your friend. With the refined loading tools we have now, easy to see a case capacity difference.

 

[SKWERLZ]

The chronograph is your friend. With the refined loading tools we have now, easy to see a case capacity difference.

Yep
Especially now with the chronographs we currently have.

 

[DLT]

I have a Remington 700 Varmint in .308 that shoots extremely well with all brass except Lapua brass. My other .308's shoot well with all brass.

A good friend of mine had a 243 built. He developed a load with win. brass the rifle shoot well. Tried redeveloping the load with lapua brass it never would come around. Don’t know why that is sometimes

 

[SKWERLZ]

A good friend of mine had a 243 built. He developed a load with win. brass the rifle shoot well. Tried redeveloping the load with lapua brass it never would come around. Don’t know why that is sometimes

I used blue bag Winchester 243 brass for my 260
Good case capacity and surprisingly decent brass.
I tried nosler and lapua brass but went back to Winchester.
Both the nosler and lapua had less case capacity.

 

[M-61]

Not a big 308 shooter
Have a 700 P
Best brass by far for consistency and concentrciy by far is IMI and TZ
Don’t have to turn the necks but I do. That brass takes the smallest (if any) shaving) of any brass I’ve ever turned.( not a huge amount but At least 6 different makes including the highly touted Lapua)

 

[K22]

I have never been able to attribute poor precision to a specific brand of cases even though I have seen some brands and specific lots of cases vary a quite a bit in quality. But I am not shooting at the benchrest level of precision either. The chief problem I had with some brands / lots in uniform sizing. Of the poor man's brands of cases, I found Winchester and Hornady to be the most consistent sizing wise.

I believe the key to stabilizing case performance is fire forming until case produces uniform case head space then F/L sizing only the amount necessary to produce optimum chambering.

While I uniform pockets and deburr flash holes, I can't say positively that these case prep steps produced any noticeable improvement on target at the level I shoot at.

 

[Chiquita]

So it sounds like not all brass shoot in every rifle.

The reason I ask the question, I have Lapua .308 on its 12th firing in a HOWA chamber. I have tried 3 different powders, 3 different and different bullets/weights/manufacturers and different primers, I can't get the Lapua to give me consistent results.

Every time, I anneal, full size with 2-3 thou shoulder bump.

Thank you all for replies.

 

[SeabeeKen]

I was forced to change from lapua to nosler brass in a 40x 223 in mid season last year. The nosler was virgin and the necks were turned for the chamber and pockets uniformed. It took 6 firings before headspace dimension stabilized with only neck sizing between matches. The rifle shot well thru it all. I also found no discernible difference in how it shot being neck sized vs shoulder bump. it was an interesting and educational switch though.

 

[NZ_Fclass]

While change may be good for manufacturers, it can be less beneficial for us. Frankly, "developments" in brass or bullet tech are a bloody nuisance. I find a load that works - and within a couple of years, the components are no longer available and I need to spend time and money developing a load that equals, rarely betters, the previous one. After 2 years of occasional messing about, I have yet to tune a load for my 223 that betters ADI brass/ Hornady A-Max 75g /24.4 Varget. I'm currently testing LC brass/75g Hornady Match with Varget and H4895. Shows promise. And before someone tells me that the Berger/:Lapua combination works better...Merry Xmas. ( It's a nice sunny morning down here - and a promise of dry weather for the New Year. )

 

[M-61]

2-3 thou shoulder bump.

Why are you bumping the shoulders?
Is the round chambering with difficulty?
The only time I bump a shoulder is if a cartridge takes effort to chamber meaning closing the bolt is either too stiff or not at all.
If I have this problem 1st I try f/l resizing again but allowing the case to sit in the die for 5 seconds or so. Most times that solves the problem. I try to work the brass as little as possible. Some, like my 222 have never had the shoulders bump. But my experience has shown me that cartridge to be very easy on brass.

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

I think often we (reloaders) may unintentionally contribute to inconsistent results from our rifles. Trying/experimenting with new equipment, slight changes in methods or processes. So many variables are involved, producing repeatable results can be frustrating.