Difference in 243 brass ?

[weber]

Hello , Iam new to reloading and have just purchased my first reloading kit . I purchased a set of RCBS dies with the intention of reloading some quality 243 shells for my prohunter barrel.The Sierra reloading manual that came with the kit shows that Remington brass is unsafe to use for the recipes that they list . Too bad for me since I have over 100 once fired Remington brass . What is it about Remington brass that would make it unsafe for reloading ? This is the only caliber in the entire manual that has the warning ! Any insight appreciated . Thank You .

[spinafish]

I can't imagine why any brand of brass would be unsafe compared to another one.  I think you should call their 800 number and ask one of the techs.

[victorcharlie]

Yes, I think I'd give them a call.  I've reloaded Remington brass in .243 for 30 years and can't imagine what there problem might be.

My favorite load is a sierra 85 grain bthp over IMR 4381. 

[Kurt L]

let us know what they say

[jhalcott]

  What manual are you using, AND does it state "unsafe"? Or does it just say they are using another make? I have LOTS of Sierra bullets in Remington cases. In fact ,MY Sierra manual(second edition) says they used Remington cases to work up the data for the .243!

[helotaxi]

He's using the Sierra manual.  The Speer manual says similar and the exact quotes are:

"We found the 243 Winchester to be very sensitive to case make; we used Winchester cases.  Do not substitute cases of other makes with these loads or excessive pressure can result."

"WARNING: Do not substitute other brands of cartridge case.  Excessive pressure may result."

I imagine that if two different cases were of seriously different volume you could have pressure issues much like using .223 load data in 5.56 NATO brass.  I just weighed some Frontier/Hornady cases and compared them to the ton of Winchester cases that have and the weigh right in the same range. Provided that you start with a min load and work up, I can't imagine there being an issue.

[cjclemens]

I must have some old manuals.  I've never seen that warning before.  Most of my .243 brass is old as hell and pretty well used.  At one point, I had it all sorted by headstamp, but it ended up in one mix and match grab bag.  I haven't seen any ill effects on pressure or even accuracy for that matter.  I might just be lucky.

[weber]

Thanks for the responses . Im sorry the reloading manual in the original question should have been Speer Reloading Manual #14,not Sierra. The bullets I would like to use are Sierra 100 grain Game Kings . Sorry for the mis-info . But yes the quotes about the excessive pressure just seamed suprising to me . Thanks again.

[Autorim]

The brand of brass is not really the issue. It is the varying volume of different brands due to case wall thickness and is only an issue in max or near max loads. I fired thousands of .243 rounds over a 30 year time frame and the 100 grain bullet and IMR 4350 are made for each other. I eventually shot the barrel out and had a new barrel fitted in 7mm-08. I still sort of miss the .243.

IMHO you should strongly consider the Nosler 100 grain Partition for hunting.

[huntswithdogs]

I keep my brass seperated and always have. I do know that if I load a 100gr bullet and H4831 in Win brass it shoots to point of aim. Remington brass and the same load shoots off ot one side. In my rifle it always has and I've been loading for it since back in the early 80s. Over the years I've used Frontier, Federal, Win and Rem brass with no signs for undue stress to any of it other than an occassional neck splitting.


HWD

[weber]

I think that I will go with the Noslers . After speaking with the reloading supply guy at the local shotgun range . He also strongly suggested the same bullets . He didnt have his Nosler manual so I didnt purchase powder yet but will go with the IMR4350 suggestion .  I enjoy shooting my 243 even with factory remington/winchester loads it groups well .Zero recoil , and since its a single shot its a breeze to clean . Cant wait to see what some handloads do . Thanks for the replies and the advice ! 

[wncchester]

Just have to laff at that books "warning"!  I've put a LOT of Rem cased .243 reloads through my rifle, for a lot of years, quite safely.

NO STANDARD COMPONENT IS UNSAFE TO RELOAD if it is done correctly!  Simply follow the cardinal rule of developing a load with any components or a change of components; "Start low and move up only if no high pressure signs appear. If they do, stop and back off!"  If we don't load that way, NO components are safe nor is any reloading manual.   I recently saw some fired cases with blown primers that came from a mid-point book load, the published data simply didn't match the man's rifle! 

[BBF]

Weber:
My thoughts at random.
You don't state what game you will be hunting.
IMO if you stay within the type of game the 243 Win is designed to hunt you don't need Partition bullets.

100gr Sierra is a hard bullet. My wife and myself have used it on mulies, and in one case on a moose and Whitetail. The only bullet recovered was from the moose and that only because it hit the shoulder blade, back bone and piled up on the inside of the other shoulder.

I lost the White tail, it was a 45 deg from the front shot, very little blood and then nothing. We had a large group of people searching with me. A dog would have been great, but there was none available. the mulies ran a good 50 to 75 yards with double lung penetrations. It was a very accurate bullet, that is why we had stayed with it. My wife no longer shoots a .243 having "graduated" to a 284 Win. and I have just purchased a new one and will use a different bullet.

What I read here, in other Forums and what I have seen out in the field, the Sierra 85 gr. HP sems to make an outstanding hunting bullet for deer size game. I'd give it a try. My conditions here are all close range so I will use RN's.