Winchester 1876 .50-95 brass from....???

[evodude]

Howdy gang! Im using 45-70 brass to form .40-60 brass, and it shoots just fine in my Chappie 76. Im wondering if anybody has used 45-70 brass to form .50-95 Winchester brass. It looks like its do-able,, the brass is thin enough to be very forgiving. The rim is only a few thousands wider, and, like the .40-60, Im figuring the extractor should grab it just fine. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[john boy]

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

evodude:  Shortened 348 Winchester cases should work (in most rifles) ... with very light loads. 
Cases from 50-90 Sharps can be converted into perfectly fitting 50-95 WCF cases

[evodude]

Thanks for the quick response. So if .348 will work, why wont 45-70 work? They are real close in size, and I think the 45-70 would be easier to resize for the fireforming shot. in checking measurements, the 45-70 rim is .068, and the 50-95 rim is .062. I think the Chaparral bolt face will extract the extra width without any problem. Do you know if the 50-70 is simply a necked up 45-70? Im having a hard time finding measurements for the 50-70. Thanks!!

[john boy]

Im having a hard time finding measurements for the 50-70.

http://stevespages.com/jpg/cd5070original.jpg
Bookmark Stevespages.com for future reference

And spend the 20 bucks to buy a copy of Cartridges of the World.  Every cartridge in the book has in the reference section - every dimension of the case and COAL.
When one is floundering around in unknown territory - one needs a compass aka reference books!

re ...

So if .348 will work, why wont 45-70 work?

evodude -

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."  Chinese Proverb

I'll leave this answer for you to determine ... buy the book!

[evodude]

Sounds like a pretty powerful compass! I guess part of the fun for me has been inventing new wildcats, got two under my belt, the .257 and .311 Predator, both .223 length cartridges based on the .250-3000 and 35 Rem. respectively- guess Im really dangerous with a lathe and a reamer! I think Ive come full circle now, with these older black powder cartridges. A .7mm STW on one end and a '66 in .44-40 on the other! Im looking at that 45-70 case and thinking, heres some basic brass you can buy by the sack! The specs on the 76 cartridges, ie the .40-60,.45-60,.45-75, and the .50-95 all seem to have been spawned from that case. From what Im reading, the Chappy is just a tad more generous in the headspacing department, allowing the difference in rim thickness to still work acceptably. Theres got to be some good folks on this site who have played around with this case for these cartridges- Im just wondering if they were sucessful with it. I dont have dies for the .50-95 yet, but if I can figure out how to neck up some 45-70's and fire them in said chamber, I can send some fired cases to Lee Precision and have a set of dies made up for a mere 50 bucks, and RCBS be damned!!! Because of the slightly thicker rim diameter, neck sizing would be in order to prevent case stretching, but the loads will just be exiting this particular gun, so that is acceptable. Now come on, all you gurus out there in '76 land, who has played??!!!!! As I proceed, Ill keep you all posted. As long as the proper headstamp doesnt bother you, you can save a bunch on brass. I use the Dremel tool with a cut-off wheel to trim back the brass close to size and then trim to exact on my RCBS case trimmer- I unscrew the handle and chuck it up in my 1/2" drill, makes that 'antique' a little power lathe, and really cuts down my work time.

[Mossyrock]

"Looks pretty close" ain't going to cut it.  Get out your calipers and do some measuring.  When you do, you will find that the web of the 45-70 case (not the rim), is .057" too small, and if you blow a 45-70 case out perfectly straight, with no taper, you get very close to .475".  How, exactly, do you propose to neck that up to fit a .512" bullet???

[evodude]

Howdy! Wishfull thinking on my part- I was thinking that with the case headspacing off both the rim and the slight shoulder, the brass from the web to the neck would expand to fill the chamber, and Id pick up the extra several thousands I needed there. I realize that .348 win. brass would work better, its just that, well, being a '71 shooter- you know how HARD it is to use that particular case for anything else!!! 'Preciate that momentary snap back to reality, though!! Thanks a bunch!!! And you ARE RIGHT.

[Chuck 100 yd]

I got my .50-95 brass from Huntingtons in CA. Bertrum brass and seems to be fine quality although I have only reloaded any of it three times.

[DJ]

I think you will start experiencing case head separations in fairly short order--the case head, which is not annealed, will expand very little (or not at all), while the thinner walls, which are at least partially annealed, will expand.  At some point, probably near where the case wall transitions to the case head, the stretching will be uneven and you will likely get a radial tear in the brass.

[john boy]

Final Answer ... the bottom line, buy Cases of 50-90 Sharps that can be converted into perfectly fitting 50-95 WCF cases
http://www.starlinebrass.com/products_popup.php?products_id=106

[evodude]

Well, heres what I did. Got some .348 brass at 27.98 a bag of 50. Set up my progressive press with 1).375 ultramag,2).41 mag,3).45 ACP,4) 45 to 50 expander. Went to town resizing. Lost 1 case at the start with a nice neck split, but lubed the hell out of them and didnt loose any more. Every drop of the handle turned out a .50-95!! Used my RCBS case trimmer to trim them down to 1.196, hopefully upon firing theyll loose only a few thousands. I have the hand trimmer, and after unscrewing the handle, can hook up my 1/2" drill to the shaft and ''power'' trim. Its an easy way to trim, and man is it quick! Soon as my moulds come in, Ill pour a few and see how this Chappy beastie shoots! Ill post my results.

[john boy]

Got some .348 brass at 27.98 a bag of 50

Watch you don't have headspace issues

[evodude]

From what I can see on this case, there really isnt any shoulder to headspace on- the rim supports the case. After my first firing, I will back the resizing die off a tad to just contact the neck, Should keep the brass from working too much. Are you reloading for one of these .50-95's? Id be interested in hearing how you like it.