Nickel plated cases question

[jnyork]

A friend is just getting started in reloading, beginning with some .357 Magnum stuff for his lever gun.

A guy gave him a bunch of very old brass, including some that I take to be nickel plated. He has tried but is unable to resize these , he says regardless of case lube used the cases will not go all the way into the die and tend to get stuck. I have reloaded thousands of nickel plated .357 cases with the same brand of dies (Lee) and never had a problem. I recommended he get some new cases, but it still makes me curious what's going on here. Any ideas? Thanks.

[JerryB]

Maybe you might visit him and check the dies and see what the problem is. Maybe take a few of your .357 brass and try them in his dies.

[GunnyMack]

I agree with JerryB- sounds like his dies might be the issue.could be just an adjustment is needed.

[Pisgah]

Maybe the dies, maybe cases that have been fired in an oversize chamber. I'd tell him that regardless of the die dimensions I have always found nickeled cases to be brittle and prone to early failure as compared to unplated ones. If someone gave me a bunch of old ones, I'd thank him kindly -- and throw them out.

[2ndovc]

Maybe the dies, maybe cases that have been fired in an oversize chamber. I'd tell him that regardless of the die dimensions I have always found nickeled cases to be brittle and prone to early failure as compared to unplated ones. If someone gave me a bunch of old ones, I'd thank him kindly -- and throw them out.

Same here. I inherited thousands of nickel plated .38 Spls and.45 ACPs from my grandfather. He had a pistol range in the basement of the office building he owned back in the '60s and '70s. The local PD would stop by and practice when they could and rarely picked up their empties. Some of them have been reloaded so many times to plating is wearing off, but they usually split before that happens. This was way back before carbide dies too. By the time I started reloading in the '80s I would get maybe one or two reloads out of them before I'd get a split case. The last batch that my uncle gave me from grandpa's stash went right to the scrap yard after I sorted out anything unusual. There were a bunch of .351 Win. in there.


jb

[fordwannabe]

I use brass cases for all my 38 specials and nickel cases for all my 357 mag. I have three 45-70 guns, one has a shorter chamber than the others so that 1886 gets all nickel cases. I have 30-30, 35/30, and 38-55 the 35/30 gets all nickel cases. I can tell at a glance what ammo I have in my hand. I have not had any issues other than when resizing to 35/30 from 30/30 I split some cases, but since I started using a 32 Winchester special as the first forming die I have not split a case. I know after many many reloads they will split but it has not been an issues for me yet and I have hundreds of nickel cases. As to the resizing issue from OP I am betting on the lube, try Imperial sizing wax.

[piller]

I use Lee carbide dies for my straight wall pistol brass. Nickel plated or not, I have not had any issues. I don't have anywhere near the experience of several others on this forum, and I understand that. I have had a rifle case get stuck in a die in the past, and it was my fault due to getting distracted and forgetting to use any type of case lube. My go to lube is the Hornady lube in the tub. I can find it at the stores near me, and have never found Imperial sizing wax. I tumble my brass and rinse and dry it before sizing. The carbide dies with straight wall pistol rounds have always worked fine without any lube on clean cases whether they are nickel plated or not. Just my experience.

[gundownunder]

I use Lee carbide dies and Winchester nickel cases for all my 357 stuff.
I actually think the nickel cases are tougher than the plain brass, they are certainly tougher to size, requiring a bit more grunt on the press handle.
Normally I lube them a bit to make things easier, which I never did when I was using plain brass.
Maybe the cases he got were shot in an oversize chamber, or maybe they were used for full snort loads, like the ones I use for 200 mtr silhouette.
You'd need to determine whether they are actually getting stuck, or are just tighter than normal.
If I didn't trust them, I'd scrap them and go buy some more.

[marlinman93]

Have you asked him what case lube he's using?

[Pisgah]

Just a hint to those who use -- or would, but can't find -- products like the Imperial wax. Plain ol' Johnson's Paste Wax, found in supermarkets everywhere, works just as well, costs a bunch less, and one can is virtually a lifetime supply. No knock against Imperial, but as a dyed-in-the-wool cheapskate, the Johnson's is all I have used, with complete satisfaction, for 20+ years.

[yooper2]

Just a hint to those who use -- or would, but can't find -- products like the Imperial wax. Plain ol' Johnson's Paste Wax, found in supermarkets everywhere, works just as well, costs a bunch less, and one can is virtually a lifetime supply. No knock against Imperial, but as a dyed-in-the-wool cheapskate, the Johnson's is all I have used, with complete satisfaction, for 20+ years.

Amen!

Eric

[gundownunder]

Might be a dumb-as question but are you sure they are 357 mag, not 357 max, that got mixed in there.

[Rusty]

I've shot many a nickle plated .38 Spec till the nickle wore thru to the brass with no problems. I'd say the biggest factor is hot hot the round is. I never practiced with hot ammo.

[mikld]

Add me to the "No Problem Sizing Nickel 357 Brass" group. I started reloading 357 in mid '80s and picked up a lot of nickel 357 brass at the local police range. I still have and reload some of that brass today. Some have been reloaded enough times that the plating has worn through to the brass, and no flaking or galling. No lube, and lightly tumbled in cob blast media.Lee 38/357 dies...

[earlmck]

We need a little more info Jerry if we're going to give educated help. Picture of the case and the headstamp maybe.

I've not ever had such a trouble as described in many years of loading 357 of both brass and nickle-plated. And haven't used lube since I got my first carbide die (which was a Herter's, so you know that was a few years ago). The old Herter's die kind of over-achieved on the sizing so I eventually got an RCBS that has been in use for at least 30 years now without ever sticking a case or having any noticeable problem. My first guess without further information is that he has acquired some manner of weird cases.

[Thunder50]

Wouldn't think it would be 357 max brass as nickle plated max brass is fairly rare. Even if it was, it would size just fine in a 357mag sizer as thats what I use for my 357max's. I would think more than likely an oversized chamber from whatever it was shot in.

[bmtshooter]

I believe that if he is just starting out and running into issues such as this, he needs someone with reloading experience looking over his shoulder. Reloading can get dangerous pretty quickly. A smart person learns from their mistakes, but a brilliant person learns from other folks mistakes ...... eh?

[jnyork]

I am about 1000 miles from him, gave him basic lessons when he was here visiting. We call and talk as he progresses, we will both be in Yuma for the winter in a couple of months and I will get him well tuned up at that time.

Immediate problem is solved, he threw away the cases as I suggested.

[GunnyMack]

As I'm following this post it occurs to me that maybe he doesn't have the die set up to get all of the case inside the die.
Does he have the die set up correctly...I suspect not.
Being a straight wall case, even if shot in an over size chamber the leverage of the press handle should size it just fine.

[jnyork]

No, I dont think that was the situation, the plain brass cases he was working at the same time sized just fine.

[AJMD429]

Immediate problem is solved, he threw away the cases as I suggested.

Man I hate to throw stuff like that away, but sometimes it has to be done.....!