Norseman 0 Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Heard some rumors that you can reload wolf .223 steel cased ammo. I decided to give it a whirl. Loads fine, chambers in both of my ARs, fires fine. Who knew? -E Quote Link to post Share on other sites
THE_HUNTER 2 Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Berdan right?How did you go about dealing with them???? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MD_Willington 11 Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 I thought they were boxer, like the pistol ammo... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Norseman 0 Posted May 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2008 .223 is boxer just like the 9mm and .45acp. It works pretty good. Now I have the fun job of sorting through a 5gal pail full of spent steel cases Thats gonna be a whole lot of fun. -E Quote Link to post Share on other sites
pogy 5 Posted May 9, 2008 Report Share Posted May 9, 2008 (edited) .223 is boxer just like the 9mm and .45acp. It works pretty good. Now I have the fun job of sorting through a 5gal pail full of spent steel cases Thats gonna be a whole lot of fun. -E Well, you're only half right Norseman. I had 500 rounds of .223 Wolf in a black box which was Boxer primed. It's almost gone now. I ordered another 1000 rounds of Wolf Military Classic in .223 last year. It's in a Camo box and it is Berdan primed. I guess it depends on what you bought. Edited May 9, 2008 by pogy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
pogy 5 Posted May 9, 2008 Report Share Posted May 9, 2008 (edited) Sorry, double post! Edited May 9, 2008 by pogy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Twinsen 86 Posted May 10, 2008 Report Share Posted May 10, 2008 What is the theory behind not being able to reload steel cases? A guy once asked me if it was reloadable, I told him no, and he asked why. I didn't have an answer for him, I just said that I assume it must weaken the steel somehow in it being fired once. *shrug* Quote Link to post Share on other sites
buckandaquarterquarterstaff 5 Posted May 11, 2008 Report Share Posted May 11, 2008 The reason you don't want to reload steel is that it's more brittle than brass and doesn't take as well to being reformed multiple times. I have heard of people reloading the wolf 45 acp ammo with mixed success. The typical failure is the start of a hairline crack down the length of the case. Not sure if that's from the steel getting worked over in the press, or some other reason. Anyhow, what I read is that the cracks occur in about one in 10 reloaded rounds (as inspected after being fired the second time). Most of the time it's not a problem since the 45 isn't a real high pressure round. 223 might be a more risky however. SGN had an article about reloading steel recently. They also have had interesting articles about reloading berdan stuff in the past as well. My opinion (and it's just mine, create yours at your own risk) is that it's probably OK to reload for a single reuse, but I wouldn't go beyond that. It might be worth keeping a stash of the steel cases just because they can be found at just about any range, and nobody wants them (except to resell for the steel content). Someday, if brass is rationed or hyper expensive, then dip into the stash. Likewise, if you find a mess of pulled bullets with really bad marks on them (I've gotten caught in the buyer beware situation myself), then the steel cases might just be the ticket to load up bullets that probably aren't going to be real performers at the range. Not a bad idea for a 45 carbine. Cast up some wheel weight bullets, load them into steel cases. Significant savings for plinking. If you have at it, let us know how it goes... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Gunfixr 76 Posted May 19, 2008 Report Share Posted May 19, 2008 I have reloaded approx. 4-5 hundred Wolf .223 rounds and a few (read handful) Wolf .45acp rounds. The .45s didn't work, the projectiles wouldn't get tight in the case, I could pull them with my fingers. That said, I know someone who loads them successfully. The .223s worked with some mixed results. Only a few of them were the lacquer coated cases, and they loaded the same. I had 2 of the silver Barnaul cases and they were Berdan primed. About 100 of the .223s were loaded a second time. Some noted observations: The steel cases don't grow like brass. They do take a little more pressure to get them into the sizer die, but they go fine, and the polymer stays on. I lubed them the same as brass. The primers are Boxer, but tend to run on the tight side. I found that primers went in tight, and shaved a bit often, necessitating cleaning out the shavings. Chamber size of the gun first used to fire the rounds is very important. I picked up a lot of the steel off the range, so I got mine back, as well as others'. Someone was using a rifle with a large chamber, making sizing substantially more difficult. Also, about 1 in 30 rounds had the case neck split on resizing, and I believe it was these larger cases, being overworked, as steel isn't as resilient as brass. So yes, it can be done. Personally, I have stopped loading the steel, and don't plan on changing unless the situation dictates. I am keeping about 300 or so on hand for rainy range days. Nothing worse than trying to get mud out of the cases, so I just leave them on rainy days. I'll keep sme steel loaded for this, and replace them as necessary, but not load them all of the time. The splitting is the real problem. I'm loading them on a Dillon, and stopping constantly to look for cracks kind of negates the speed of loading. Just my .02. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Reverendfranz 160 Posted May 19, 2008 Report Share Posted May 19, 2008 news to me. i might be missing something, but anyone try annealing the cases? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Azrial 1,091 Posted May 19, 2008 Report Share Posted May 19, 2008 I have reloaded approx. 4-5 hundred Wolf .223 rounds and a few (read handful) Wolf .45acp rounds. The .45s didn't work, the projectiles wouldn't get tight in the case, I could pull them with my fingers.... Have you tried taper crimping them? If not, I highly recommend it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Gunfixr 76 Posted May 19, 2008 Report Share Posted May 19, 2008 I have reloaded approx. 4-5 hundred Wolf .223 rounds and a few (read handful) Wolf .45acp rounds. The .45s didn't work, the projectiles wouldn't get tight in the case, I could pull them with my fingers.... Have you tried taper crimping them? If not, I highly recommend it. Yes, I did that. In fact, in an effort to get them tight, I adjusted the die down so far that I had to back it off for brass. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Gunfixr 76 Posted May 19, 2008 Report Share Posted May 19, 2008 news to me. i might be missing something, but anyone try annealing the cases? Perhaps, but it would burn off the polymer, and the cases would then rust, not to mention they would more than likely stick in the chamber when fired. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Norseman 0 Posted May 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2008 So yes, it can be done. Personally, I have stopped loading the steel, and don't plan on changing unless the situation dictates. I am keeping about 300 or so on hand for rainy range days. Nothing worse than trying to get mud out of the cases, so I just leave them on rainy days. I'll keep sme steel loaded for this, and replace them as necessary, but not load them all of the time. The splitting is the real problem. I'm loading them on a Dillon, and stopping constantly to look for cracks kind of negates the speed of loading. Just my .02. I only started reloading it to see if it could be done, Since I have started loading .223 the only store bought ammo I use is brass so I can reuse it. I filled a 5gal pail 1/2 full with .223 steel was planning on taking it to the scrap yard, then I figured I would try reloading it just for shits and giggles. I plan on keeping some around now, just in case. -E Quote Link to post Share on other sites
THE_HUNTER 2 Posted May 26, 2008 Report Share Posted May 26, 2008 I've heard steel cases are hell on reloading presses.No experience though on my end. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
snake54 0 Posted June 6, 2008 Report Share Posted June 6, 2008 Have been reloading Wolf .223 for about a year, both the poly coated and the lacquer coated with no problems. I use very light loads, usually the minimum recommended starting loads. These will not always cycle an AR15, but other wise work well. My Stevens .223 likes them. Have gotten up to 7 reloads. At that point about half will get split necks, so I toss the rest. Primer pockets stay tight and cases do not stretch. This is a very soft steel so your dies will not be damaged, at least mine look ok after more than 1000 cases. Just make sure there is not any grit on the cases when you size them. Of course YMMV Quote Link to post Share on other sites
IndyArms 10,186 Posted June 9, 2008 Report Share Posted June 9, 2008 What about tumbling?!?!? I tumble the brass cases so they are nice and clean, and ready to work with... will the steel cases have the coating come off if tumbled?? I like to tumble them so they are super clean... especially for the dirty, full of schmutz brass that I pick up on the ranges... How do ya think the steel will do? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MD_Willington 11 Posted June 9, 2008 Report Share Posted June 9, 2008 Steel ain't that bad.. there is a Canadian company that is making stainless steel cases for general use and reloadability. The steel can be as soft or as hard as you want it to be, it just depends on who's cooking up the steel. Toss a couple dryer sheets into the mix when you tumble it, the cases come out "cuddle soft".. LOL Actually the dryer sheet picks up a ton of crap. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.