Lapua 6BR brass in pasteboard box vs blue plastic box?

[Jimmy James]

I just got 2 blue boxes of Lapua 6BR brass from Cabelas. Nice and shinny. Sent to DJ for hydra forming to 30BR and neck turning. One box was for a buddy. He gave me a pasteboard box of Lapua 6BR for the brass I sent in to DJ for him. That brass has been heavily annealed and looks nothing like the blue plastic box brass. Looks like the difference between Federal 308 brass and Federal 7.62 brass. The 308 is shinny and the 7.62 is annealed and dull. ???

 

[JRS]

It's the process DJ uses. He knows what he is doing. Don't worry about it.

 

[ASbobcat]

I just got 2 blue boxes of Lapua 6BR brass from Cabelas. Nice and shinny. Sent to DJ for hydra forming to 30BR and neck turning. One box was for a buddy. He gave me a pasteboard box of Lapua 6BR for the brass I sent in to DJ for him. That brass has been heavily annealed and looks nothing like the blue plastic box brass. Looks like the difference between Federal 308 brass and Federal 7.62 brass. The 308 is shinny and the 7.62 is annealed and dull. ???

"Heavily annealed" is a good sign. You MUST anneal after any significant modification of shoulder or neck. Tumbling to make it look pretty basically negates the annealing of the case mouth. You should be happy.
If you want pretty brass, I recommend hand polishing with IOSSO "bio" paste.

 

[Jimmy James]

No...i guess i did not make myself clear. The brand new paper box of Lapua brass is heavily annealed and dull looking. The new Lapua brass in blue plastic box looks nothing like the brass in the paper box.

 

[dkhunt14]

Even though Lapua says not, the old brass in the cardboard box had a different appearance. It looked darker and harder annealed. I beleive the metal content was different even though Lapua says it's not. They both will shoot ok. Matt

 

[Dusty Stevens]

and its alot older so its got some age tarnish on it.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

you could always trade that one box for 2 of the blue boxes

 

[JRS]

As the brass is being worked in the dies and re-forming process, the brass loses the original shine. It isn't a big deal. Lapua leaves the patina on the brass from the last annealing. Most manufactures run the brass through a final pickling process to remove that patina. Look at NORMA factory 6BR brass as compared to Lapua 6BR brass. Shiny is pleasing to the eye, and comes with an additional cost.

 

[Jimmy James]

10-4. Thx guys.

 

[JimPag]

I just got 2 blue boxes of Lapua 6BR brass from Cabelas. Nice and shinny. Sent to DJ for hydra forming to 30BR and neck turning. One box was for a buddy. He gave me a pasteboard box of Lapua 6BR for the brass I sent in to DJ for him. That brass has been heavily annealed and looks nothing like the blue plastic box brass. Looks like the difference between Federal 308 brass and Federal 7.62 brass. The 308 is shinny and the 7.62 is annealed and dull. ???

Jimmy. Ask DJ if there is a difference between the 2 and he will tell you. I sent him 350 loose gold box cases to be hydoformed into 30 BRX and 30 Thrasher cases. When I was on the phone with him talking to him after he was done, I asked him how it went and the said that it was a little tougher than normal to form them, then he said to me, those were the old GB cases weren't they, and I said yes they were and he said I thought so.

 

[Jimmy James]

Good to know. I'll save them for plain ole 6BR.

 

[rkittine]

Is the old Brass, the Gold Brass? My understanding, though only through reading about it, is that there is a difference.

Bob

 

[Jimmy James]

I would have to say yes. The older brass is the gold paper box where the brass is heavily annealed with a duller finish. I just got 2 blue plastic boxes of brass from Cabelas from a new shipment from Lapua. That brass is shinny.

 

[rkittine]

I just looked at my Blue Box Brass and my Blue Box Factory ammo compared to some Red/Black box older factory Lapua ammo and there is definitely a cosmetic difference.''Bob

 

[ASbobcat]

No...i guess i did not make myself clear. The brand new paper box of Lapua brass is heavily annealed and dull looking. The new Lapua brass in blue plastic box looks nothing like the brass in the paper box.

Sorry, I did misunderstand.

I still have half of a cardboard box that I bought ten years ago and it looks shiny and brand new. I can't tell it from a blue box I just bought. I suppose it is possible that your cardboard box was not kept in optimal conditions.
I have noticed that blue box seems to hold it's shine longer when polished after use. I suspect that Lapua may have added a tiny bit of Chromium when they switched. When they say they didn't change the alloy, I assume they are not mentioning very small changes in trace elements. No proof, just a guess.

 

[JimPag]

Is the old Brass, the Gold Brass? My understanding, though only through reading about it, is that there is a difference.

Bob

Bob. Some people say yes others no, Lapua says there is no difference. DJ who works on cases for a living says yes. He noticed it when he was hydraulically forming my GB brass that I sent him without the box. It took a lot more effort to do so. As far as a difference in appearance, I still have 3 cases of GB stuff and it doesn't look any different from the Blue box stuff if you put them side by side.

 

[Jimmy James]

The plot thickens...

 

[KevinThomas]

There is no difference in material. The difference in the degree of shine on the cases is that anything in a cardboard box has been sitting on the shelf, exposed to who knows what vapors, humidity, etc., for at least ten years.

It's brass. It tarnishes.

 

[urbanrifleman]

It's brass. It tarnishes.

Classic... haha

 

[dkhunt14]

There is no difference in material. The difference in the degree of shine on the cases is that anything in a cardboard box has been sitting on the shelf, exposed to who knows what vapors, humidity, etc., for at least ten years.

It's brass. It tarnishes.

Not according to metal tests. I even read where Lapua announced a change in the amounts of metal they used in their formula.
Matt