Thread: Strange marks on brass

I've just brought some "once fired brass" and it has strange marks on the neck/shoulder base, that are like bubbles. There are also scrap marks on the out side of the bases. The brass has been decapped and tumbled, so I'm thinking that it has been fired more than once. Is it safe to use?

I once had a very small mark appear on the shoulder of my 223 brass after firing. It was a very small depression which I found was caused by a bit of muck in the chamber.

What I am seeing on your photos are the opposite ie not depressions. The only time I have seen that is with a rifle that had serious corrosion in the chamber in the shoulder area. Out of interest, does exactly the same pattern appear on each case? Myself I wouldn't be using them.

The other thing is that a verticle split at the base in your first photo? If so she's only good for the bin.

The big dings in the rims indicates a rough life. Once fired mmmm.....?

rough as, I wouldn't use it but that's just me

I once had a very small mark appear on the shoulder of my 223 brass after firing. It was a very small depression which I found was caused by a bit of muck in the chamber.

What I am seeing on your photos are the opposite ie not depressions, lIke you say, bubbles. The only time I have seen that is with a rifle that had serious corrosion in the chamber in the shoulder area aND the bbubbles were for med by the brash flow in ino the pits. Out of interest, does exactly the same pattern appear on each case? Myself I wouldn't be using them. The only thing that doesn't gel, if it is corrosion, is why is it just in the shoulder area.

The other thing, is that a verticle split at the base in your first photo? If so she's only good for the bin.

The big dings in the rims indicates a rough life. Once fired mmmm.....?

The shoulder marks are usually caused by excess lube and crud in the shoulder of the sizing die. The heavy ejector marks are a clue to the rifle that fired them, probably a 6.5x55 M42B Ljungmann semi-auto.

OP said they have been de-capped and tumbled, not resized or FLS ie virtually fresh of the gun, once fired?? OP? Under normal circumstances those marks if from a die either with crud or excess lube would mostly blow out on firing. They are too sharp in relief to be formed by crud in a die. They are also
'bubbles" rather than dimples which are usually the symptom of excess lube. Of course the raised bits (bubbles) may be the areas without excess lube and the valleys where the lube did its mischief. But of course as always, I am probably wrong

Where my theory doesn't float is if it is corrosion why would it just be in the shoulder area.

Didn't think about them fired in a semi. Hope the previous owner of the brass doesn't still have a naughty gun.

In any case I would try for my money back on them.

They look bad to me, particularly the vertical split on the lower body of the case = danger.

That brass looks a bit worse for wear. On that second photo down it looks like there are also cracks where the neck meats the shoulder? As well as that vertical crack towards the base of one of them.
The slight vertical scrape marks on the neck look a lot like that which many lee collet dies create when neck sizing.
I struggle to believe they are once fired and I personally wouldn't be using them either!

I hope it was'nt any forum member who sold you that brass.

they could have been fired in a Ljungman 6.5x55 I had one for a while and they were fairly "positive" with their extraction and brutal on the brass