"Lever actions stretch pistol brass"

[AJMBLAZER]

I'm still fondling every .357 lever action I see in stores. Still want one bad.

My buddy got the same way for a while and them told me he heard that lever action carbines stretch brass. We are intending on getting more into reloading and hoped to feed our revolvers and (future) carbines with mostly reloaded ammo. He's got cold feet now due to this supposed stretching. Any truth to this?

[akuser47]

I have seven reloads on my current 50 cases I am useing. I have not had any issues yet I have never heard of this. I have a 20" braztech in .357 mag.

[Ranch Dog]

I'm still fondling every .357 lever action I see in stores. Still want one bad.

My buddy got the same way for a while and them told me he heard that lever action carbines stretch brass. We are intending on getting more into reloading and hoped to feed our revolvers and (future) carbines with mostly reloaded ammo. He's got cold feet now due to this supposed stretching. Any truth to this?

Ahhh, I've been reloading leverguns for decades. It's BS.

[AJMBLAZER]

Good to hear.

Now to start saving some more.

[44WCF]

i'm loading my 44-40 (very thin brass) pretty hot for deer hunting loads, just over 1800fps with 200 JHP, and after firing these the trip through the trimmer was almost pointless. so, I call BS on that claim aswell.

any gun can stretch brass if the head spacing is wrong, to say that lever guns WILL do this is just silly.

[pricedo]

I've heard anecdotal internet chatter about the dedicated Rossi 92/45LC chamber being "looser" than the corresponding chamber in the Rossi 92/454 Casull. I own a 92/454 Casull that also fires 45LC rounds but I don't own a dedicated Rossi 92/45LC so I cannot confirm/refute this.

I own Amadeo Rossi 92s & a Braztech Rossi Rio Grande 30-30, Browning BLRs, pre 64/post 64/Miroku Winchester leverguns, Marlin, Ruger leverguns and have fired factory & hand loaded ammo for years and I would bet the deed for the house that the assertion that properly functioning "lever actions stretch pistol brass" or any other brass for that matter is for want of a better description BS.

[WastelandWrangler]

I have never had an issue with brass but I did have serious problems with steel casing stretching and then failing to eject after firing. The ultimate fail was when the ejector ripped off the bottom of the steel case off and I had the rest stuck in my chamber. Lesson learned no more steel cases for me.

[Ranch Dog]

I've heard anecdotal internet chatter about the dedicated Rossi 92/45LC chamber being "looser" than the corresponding chamber in the Rossi 92/454 Casull.

The 45 Colt by SAAMI spec is loose at the web. Somewhere on the forum I posted the SAAMI cartridge and chamber drawings and from them you can see that chamber has airspace around the web of the case. That is how Colt designed it, who knows why. As a comparison, the 454 Casull fits like a glove as do most modern cartridges.

[Johnz]

When I 1st read this thread I thought the "stretching" that was being referred to was a longitudinal stretch & couldn't understand how that could happen.

Then after reading it again I realized that you're probably referring to a radial stretch. If that's the problem then yes, I agree that it does happen in leverguns. I'm new to .357 caliber leverguns so can't comment there, but I can confirm that it definitely does happen to the .45 Colt brass. I've also read where the .44 mag leverguns do it too, so I can believe the .357 brass will over expand also.

I've read that manufacturers do that to facilitate chambering & ejection & if you only use the brass 1x, like the manufacturers want you to, then its a non-issue. Most of us reload so it is an issue so you can't really complain to the manufacturer because they all have policies of warning owners not to use reloaded or "remanufactured" ammunition or it will void their warranties.

I neck size my .45 Colt brass to keep from overworking it & that works fine for the levergun, but they won't fit in any revolver chambers that I own unless they're full length sized.

[Model 52]

I've heard anecdotal internet chatter about the dedicated Rossi 92/45LC chamber being "looser" than the corresponding chamber in the Rossi 92/454 Casull.

The 45 Colt by SAAMI spec is loose at the web. Somewhere on the forum I posted the SAAMI cartridge and chamber drawings and from them you can see that chamber has airspace around the web of the case. That is how Colt designed it, who knows why. As a comparison, the 454 Casull fits like a glove as do most modern cartridges.

It makes perfect sense - for a straight walled black powder cartridge.

If you look as the .44-40, .38-40, .32-20 and .25-20 you'll note they are all slightly tapered and slightly bottle necked cartridges with fairly stout rims. The slight bottle neck helps seal the chamber before the bullet leave the neck, reducing gas coming back along the case and reducing the fouling on the chamber walls. The slight taper then means that the entire case is out of contact with the chamber walls as soon as the case moves even slightly to the rear on extraction, making that process much easier and reducing the load on the extractor. The substantial rim also helps ensure the rim is strong enough to extract the case with the relatively small engagement area of the extractor.

The .45 Colt on the other hand was designed as an untapered straight wall case to maximize case capacity, and it originally had a very small rim. That worked as it was designed for rod ejector pistols like the Colt SAA where the rim was only required for head spacing and the rod ejector did not rely on a small segment of the rim for purchase. (And that's why there were no lever actions chambered in .45 Colt during the black powder era.)

In that same vein it makes sense to have the base of the chamber be a bit over size as it reduces the surface area in an area where the relatively low pressure of a black powder load on the case won't expand it all the way out, or at least won't stick it there all that hard. Thus it will extract easier, and also make it easier to drop a new round into a fouled chamber.