Blank brass

[Culpeper]

I am not making judgements in any direction. What are your opinions of this post on the CMP forum?

http://forums.thecmp.org/showthread.php?t=193733

I have heard stories/rumors about blanks being seconds or inferior but have never found solid evidence good or bad about the subject.

I have two ammo cans of krag blanks if this is a doable thing. Maybe I should try my own experiment with it.

[butlersrangers]

It has to be old brass. It likely was originally corrosive primed. I believe there was a factual basis about inferior brass being relegated to 'Blanks'.

Three strikes you're out. Too risky for me!

[Culpeper]

That's what I have always went by in the past. And it slipped my memory about corrosive primers too.

I wonder if he had annealed before he once fired them.

[Dick Hosmer]

More hearsay and theory:

I do not believe THAT brass (if loaded at Remington/UMC) was corrosively primed. FA stuff from same period, yes. And, if FA assembled the ammo from Rem-UMC cases, then it could well be corrosive.

I'm not sure that the commercal makers used reject cases, though I am fairly certain that the military did.

I might be inclined to try some out for light plinking loads, saving your good brass for more serious shooting. I'd also be inclined to use any lower, or suspect, quality brass in a Krag, which has a better lock-up than the springy rear-locked 1895.

Just my thoughts.

[psteinmayer]

I have some Rem-UMC cases, but I'm pretty sure they're not from blanks. I no longer use them, and have relegated them to serving as dummy rounds (no primer or powder) from practice and for testing the chargers. That said, with the brass shortages becoming an issue for those of us that load and shoot often, I can see these being a valuable asset... as long as they're safe. But as you all have pointed out... how does one tell if they're truly safe?

[butlersrangers]

Fact: Brass gets brittle and 'work-hardened' with age. .30-40 Blanks have not been made for some time. A dollar a case is expensive.

IMHO - I would rather improvise and use 'fresh', available and less expensive .303 British brass, reformed to .30-40. It is not perfect, but, a more viable solution.

[Culpeper]

I think I will grab a box and do my own experiment. What could go rong? Split neck? Split case? Ol' Culpeper gets a new metal implant in his skull? Pffft. That would be the least of my worries.

I'll get on it in a week or so. Should be interesting.

[psteinmayer]

So... I guess I'll have to use a metal detector to find you at Perry then? Haahaa.

Seriously though... Be careful ole friend! Don't want to lose ya yet!

[CigarArsonist]

I'm new to Kragig collecting just bought my first rifle this week. And I am finding there is a lot of old brass and blank ammunition available but not modern loaded ammunition for them. Has anybody tried using blank cases to do low-power plinking ammunition?

[reincarnated]

The "standards" for reloading back in the days when the Krag was commonly in use; Phil Sharpe's "Complete Guide to Handloading" (1941 edition) and Earl Narramore's "Principles & Practices of Loading Ammunition" both state quite clearly that blank cartridges were made from reject brass and advise against using them. Narramore was a career Army officer and a specialist in ammunition production. He ought to know. Your eyes cannot be replaced.