Wsm brass ?

[sksshooter]

Looking for some input on some brass for my 270wsm and 300wsm. I have a decent quantity of both winchester and federal brass for both. I had more federal 270 wsm so when i worked my load up for that i used the federal brass. Ive been able to get pretty consistant .6-.7" 5 shot groups at 100 with 150g nbts. Im now in the process of preparing brass to work up a 300wsm load. I have more winchester than federal there. These are hunting rifles for white tail and my longest to date shot has 340 yards but have opportunities for longer if i were comfortable with it.

Would i see any noticible change between these 2 headstamps in either caliber? Was considering selling off or trading off the one headstamp of each caliber and look at getting more of the one i kept. Looking for some experienced inputs. My gut tells me i should make up 5 of each in the opposite brass and go shoot them but its hunting season and not a good time for that.

 

[Kurz]

Looking for some input on some brass for my 270wsm and 300wsm.

Unless you are one of the top shooters in the U.S., I find it doubtful that you will find much difference between these two cases because of your shooting abilities. The one difference you might find is in the case capacity, one might hold slightly more water when measuring.

In my opinion though (others will disagree I'm sure...), I haven't used Federal brass for 20-30 years due to the cases being softer than other brands. But if it works for you, congratulations!

Winchester is noted as having two different color bags which their brass was/is sold in. The older version came in blue labeled bags while the newer version has red labeling. The older version seems to be more desirable and the red has received some bad reviews. I have mostly blue bag brass but I do have some more recent red bag brass. I have not had the time to compare one to the other.

My opinion though is to stick with the U.S. made premium brass and skip the others. Yes, I'm aware of the lack of supplies and additional cost especially when it comes to the higher quality brass. Use what you have currently but keep a sharp eye out for the better U.S. premium brass. If what you have satisfies your needs, enjoy the process!

 

[Orr89rocz]

Theres a chance the two cases will require different powder charge for the best load. I know i had issues from remington brass to norma brass for my wsm. Had to back off charge in the norma brass. They both work well just different capacity

 

[sksshooter]

Theres a chance the two cases will require different powder charge for the best load. I know i had issues from remington brass to norma brass for my wsm. Had to back off charge in the norma brass. They both work well just different capacity

this was my main concern which is why i'm leaning towards just finding more of what i'm using. with other components being more scarce i hate to have to work up a new load due to a brass change when i already have a good established load.

How are you guys measuring case capacity? i attempted to find case capacity specs from the manufacturers with no success.

 

[MUP]

I actually use Winchester brass for my 300 WSM and 150 gr NBTs and NABs over AA 4350. NBTs to load develop and NABs to hunt with, as they have the same BC but the NBTs are, or at least used to be, cheaper. Holds .5 -.6 MOA out to 500, which is as far as I've gotten to shoot it so far. I have killed 3 good bucks with that rifle and load so far and all 3 dropped where they stood, farthest was just at 130 yards tho. Cases still look good after 4-5 firings.

 

[sksshooter]

I actually use Winchester brass for my 300 WSM and 150 gr NBTs and NABs over AA 4350. NBTs to load develop and NABs to hunt with, as they have the same BC but the NBTs are, or at least used to be, cheaper. Holds .5 -.6 MOA out to 500, which is as far as I've gotten to shoot it so far. I have killed 3 good bucks with that rifle and load so far and all 3 dropped where they stood, farthest was just at 130 yards tho. Cases still look good after 4-5 firings.

good to know on the winchester. i unfortunatly have not had as good of life out of the federal. as was stated above i have found it on the soft side and see splits in as few as 3 firings and i'm not running super hot. my gun likes 61g reloader 22 which is just under the book max and shows no signs of pressure. i have enough federal brass to outlast my current supply of rl22 at least so ill either have to work a new load up due to not finding powder or due to running out of brass time will tell which happens first...

 

[Hudge76]

As already mentioned, there may be slight differences for loads, but very little in my experience. I have both 270 WSM and 300 WSM, and once my current Federal brass is used up, I will never buy more of it. I’ve gotten as little as 2 loads before the primer pockets are shot or the necks split. I’ve never that issue other brands.

 

[Kurz]

How are you guys measuring case capacity? i attempted to find case capacity specs from the manufacturers with no success.

Finding case capacity information from the brass manufacturers will not happen. Too much variability in the weight of the cases as manufactured. This can stem from the alloy used to make the cases to dimensions arrived at by the designers of those cases and the machines they are made on. Stating a case capacity for any particular case manufactured by a company leaves them open to litigation resulting from reloading those cases using that one metric.

I strongly suggest doing a search for finding case capacity. There are several noted methods subscribed to by some very influential shooters. These days, everyone wants to be an expert with a YouTube channel! Try some of their suggestions to see which method works for you and your process. The information you're looking to achieve needs to be consistent across the board with the cases you choose to shoot. Eliminating variables is a reasonable goal.

Sorry this isn't the absolute answer you want but with a little effort, you'll find the method which works for you.

 

[bucweet]

Finding case capacity information from the brass manufacturers will not happen. Too much variability in the weight of the cases as manufactured. This can stem from the alloy used to make the cases to dimensions arrived at by the designers of those cases and the machines they are made on. Stating a case capacity for any particular case manufactured by a company leaves them open to litigation resulting from reloading those cases using that one metric.

I strongly suggest doing a search for finding case capacity. There are several noted methods subscribed to by some very influential shooters. These days, everyone wants to be an expert with a YouTube channel! Try some of their suggestions to see which method works for you and your process. The information you're looking to achieve needs to be consistent across the board with the cases you choose to shoot. Eliminating variables is a reasonable goal.

Sorry this isn't the absolute answer you want but with a little effort, you'll find the method which works for you.

The reason I joined this forum was better info than you tube, so I can relate to finding case volume, so I try my own experiments. Can we just fill the cases in question with the same powder? maybe a ball powder?
And measure the difference?

 

[Kurz]

This is one of the variations for finding case capacities. It's not one I use but it is certainly a possibility.

As I suggested, a simple search will provide articles and threads for your reading pleasure and edification. You will find a variety of answers regarding the question of finding case capacity.

I use water with a drop of rubbing alcohol.

 

[Larryh128]

You could use ball powder, water is more accurate. You won't have an issue with the Winchester 300 WSM brass. I use it on my 300 WSM and have had no issues. I would prefer it to Federal brass. I would like ADG or Lapua BUT for now Winchester works pretty good.