.470 Nitro Express Brass life?

[deewayne2003]

Those of you that shoot & reload .470 Nitro Express, do you have a brass preference and how many loads do you get out of your favorite brand of brass?

I ask because my choices for brass appear to be.....

1. Wait for NEW Jamison brass to get back in stock with a certain supplier (1 month wait)

2. New Federal nickel plated brass - Bullets pulled from factory, so will have to resize the neck and also replace the primers.

3. Once fired Norma brass - Found a source for once fired Norma brass from a company that uses it to regulate their doubles.

Any experiences with these brands of brass would be appreciated as well.

 

[mikecatt13]

I'm also interested in brass life. Planning on using once fired federal and barnes that I used to check zero and practice with

 

[Luvthunt]

Annealing or not?

 

[deewayne2003]

Annealing or not?

How about with & without annealing?

 

[Major Khan]

According to a book which l have read , the very best ( and most durable ) brass cartridge cases for the English double barreled rifles , comes from a company named ...
Brass Extrusion Laboratories Limited ( B.E.L.L ) . The story goes that these brass cartridge cases last 15 re loads on average.

 

[IvW]

Norma makes excellent brass...

 

[deewayne2003]

Nobody knows how many times you load .470 Nitro brass?

 

[cmk]

Have to agree that Norma has a great reputation.

I use that for all my calibres I reload, but then I live in Norma-land so it is basically free - at least in ordinary calibres.

I do not think that their 470 brass is any worse than for other rounds. No experience with the others mentioned.

Being careful with resizing, annealing every 5 times or so, moderate loads etc. I think that 15 reloads sounds certainly doable. How tight/loose your chamber is will affect your brass longevity.

 

[fourfive8]

Unless you buy factory ammo to scavenge brass, the two most readily available sources appear to be Hornady and Norma. I've had good luck with both in various calibers. I agree that you might get 15 loads out of a case if the pressures are kept reasonable. The other variable about useful longevity, is how much resizing is required each time and how closely your resizing die matches the contour of your chamber. If the brass is sized just enough (and no more) and the cartridge goes "plunk" into the chamber without resistance- that is about as good as can be done. Annealing can help prevent neck splitting and extend useful case life. Of course, you'll want to go closer to full pressure loads for serious hunting but if just for trigger time, loading practice and plinking now and then and pressures are kept well down to maybe 20-30kpsi tops, I wouldn't doubt more than 15 or so loadings possible. Correct annealing can certainly help prevent neck splitting, but the real culprit that can't be mitigated, because of cumulative pressure effects, is the area around the head and especially the primer pocket. Once the pocket expands beyond a good primer fit, the brass is finished. The lower the pressure (s) the less the cumulative effect.

 

[Jeffrey]

NO EXPERIENCE HERE, but I’d go with Hornady brass if I were USA based simply due to its continuous availability in the USA. Your brass life will vary with the difference between your die and chamber size playing a role, as mentioned above.
I’d consider anealing. Look up the YouTube video for $15 annealing setup.
The 470NE is a relatively low pressure round to start with, so brass life should be good. Sorry no knowledge of how many reloads anyone’s got.

 

[DrBob]

I have used Norma, Jameson,Bell and Hornady. I am careful to just resize to fit rather than "full" resize which is really only about a quarter turn less from full. I anneal after 5 shots. Propane torch in dim room, looking for dull red color on inside neck and hold case at base with fingers as I twirl case neck in flame. The low pressure saves brass. I would easily get 30+ reloads per case. Enlargement of primer pocket never a problem for me. Eventually the case above base thins. I use a paperclip straightened with an end bent 90 degrees and the tip pressed into thin flat edge. I run the clip turned edge and feel for a dip in contour of inner case wall as I rub against the wall. That little indentation means times up for case. Taken care, the cases last a long time.