Australian source of fired .303 brass

[pedro243]

Yeah the ex-mil stuff is POF. I have run 3 boxes through my gun and only about 3 very very tiny hang fires. I may buy some more for plinking but i agree about the excessive cleaning.

[smellie]

If you check your wartime brass carefully, you will find some Canadian cases headstamped DI. This is Defence Industries. They made ammunition only from 1941 to 1945, but there still is some around. This is the most consistent .303 brass I have encountered, all rims are .063. Nice thing is that the lightly-crimped Boxer primer was non-mercuric AND non-corrosive; remove the little primer crimp and you can use standard .210 primers. Generally, it will be found as single rounds or in 48-round brown card boxes with a tape-seal bearing the letters "DI". Stay away from the "DA" stuff: it's made to British specs, including that awful corrosive/mercuric Berdan primer. Headstamp on DI ammo reads only 3 elements, at noon, 4 and 8 o'clock positions: DI Z and DATE. It is really decent brass; I hoard the stuff.

Failing finding some of this, I would try to source some Prvi Partizan brass, which is far closer to British specs; American brass uses SAAMI specs and some is undersize even by these. I believe you can get Partizan ammunition in Oz under the name HIGHLAND. It is also Boxer-primed.

Hope this helps.
.

[Bearclaw]

I believe you can get Partizan ammunition in Oz under the name HIGHLAND.

Thanks George, I didn't know Highland was Partizan. I was told to stay away from Highland. This was probalby as a loaded round but the brass may be OK then.

Myles

[pedro243]

I was told to stay away from Highland

I have been buying and shooting highland for a while. Everything from .22 - 300 WM. It all depends on what your shooting. If your doing target shooting i wouldn't recommend it but I go goat shooting and it fulfills that purpose by more than enough, and its cheap as. I'am unsure about the brass quality because it doesn't really worry me as i don't shoot that often. I have shot some highland 303 but haven't reloaded any yet because i've still got plenty of loaded stuff. Its only $21 a pack here.

I guess highland has its time and place.

[newbieDAN]

Highland brass is a bit thinner walled than some other brass I have, but the factory stuff gets fire formed and reloads very well, All I've been doing is neck sizing. putting in 46.10 grains of ADI 2209, jamb a 174gr Sierra HPBT matchking on the top, Federal large rifle primer. I've not had a case failure yet. Does the job for my service rifle shooting.

[Old Lancer]

Hey Pedro, can you pm me and tell me where I can get ammo in WA at those prices. Thats almost as cheap as reloading my own.

[smellie]

I will admit that I am halfway in love with Prvi Partizan. They make the brass for my Berthiers (unavailable as local supply since 1950), for my Carcanos (unavailable as local supply since 1947) and a whole raft of others. The real fun part is what you can make the stuff INTO: 8 Lebel makes into .50-70, 12.7 Norwegian, you can bevel the rims and use it in a Kropatschek or you can straighten it out and shoot it in a Gras for a short-case load...... or you can even use it in your Vickers 11mm (short case load) if your neighbours' kids keep you up all night with that lousy Zeppelin.

Carcano brass makes into 7.62x45 and it's only 1 little mm short for Mannlicher-Schoenauer.

And they make 7x57, 8x57, 7.65x53 and a whole bunch I'll never use: 9.3x62, things like that.

What I have loaded works fine.... and it's a lot cheaper than setting up your own plant to make the stuff! Actually, when you get right down to it, it's the cheapest stuff available..... and your supply is a LOT more accessible than ours.

Hope this helps.