16ga.com ~ View topic - Low-pressure ammo options?

Joined: 08 Feb 2009 Posts: 1310 Location: Western WA

Full length brass shells may be overkill for shotguns. As explained to me by a scientist, the main purpose of brass shell heads is not to provide additional strength to the chamber area, but to serve as a gasket or seal to contain the gas and prevent it from escaping out the breech. The brass head need only be long enough to cover cutouts in the breech for bolts, extractors, etc., to fulfill the purpose.

B.

Joined: 17 Jan 2014 Posts: 1381 Location: Denver, Colorado

Brass shells are a throwback, but they offer an alternative to an already spotty supply chain. With them, you can easily taylor a shotshell to your exact specifications (pressure & payloads). It's clearly not for high-volume shooting but... it does allow for continued reloads long after plastic components might become unavailable. Almost any propellant can be used (including real & synthetic blackpowder) and low-pressure loads are relatively easy to obtain. The big advantage here is lifespan, which can be substantial. Not sure how many times a brass shotshell can be reused, but it's almost indefinite, especially if no crimping is involved, just glued (or even waxed) paper disks to seal the loaded shell seem to be a common solution. YouTube has a number of videos available on the subject. My primary use will be with much older, Damascus- barreled weapons.

[url=https://imgur.com/8pH8fbF]

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Lloyd3,
Good info sir, thanks for passing it along! Real nice picture also.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Joined: 21 May 2010 Posts: 603 Location: Victoria BC Canada

Paper shells are older than brass. I don't have my reference, but I did do a timeline for cascity.com on the shotgun topic.

Joined: 17 Jan 2014 Posts: 1381 Location: Denver, Colorado

Thanks Dave. That photo reminds me that I really need to tidy up my bench. What a mess!

Lloyd3,

I know what you mean!

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man