Split case necks on Grafs .32 Rem hand loads

[cantgrowup]

I just shot my recently acquired 1936 first year Model 81 in .32 Rem using handloads of Grafs brass. All 10 rounds suffered split necks and/or shoulders. These were first loads using new brass. I had previously shot 20 of these same loads in my Model 8 .32 Rem and did not have any splits. So..... oversized chamber? Visually, the chamber and bore of this rifle looks great. I've never done a chamber casting, but may have to if y'all think Remington quality control was dubious in 1936.

I am also beginning to suspect Grafs brass in general. I had some case ruptures on some of their brass in 6.5 Carcano after only a second loading.

[81police]

Hi cantgrowup, although I don't reload ammo I do recall a discussion on these forums years back about other shooters having issues with split necks using Grafs brass. You may search the forums for that.

[cantgrowup]

Thanks Cam. I just did a search (should have done that first, I guess) and sure enough, there was a 2019 thread on split necks on Graf .30 Rem brass..... started by me!

I load so many calibers that I had totally forgotten about that. But being my second issue with Model 8/81 cartridges, I guess that I'm going to start pointing the finger at Graf brass. Not that we have much choice for brass for these "obsolete" cartridges. I guess that I'm going to have to start annealing the neck and shoulders on all Graf brass before initial and every reloading. I don't actually shoot these old guns much after first getting one and loading up ammo for it. But it is irritating to have new brass fail after one or two firings.

[Bandersnatch]

I've had issues with Graf's brass in 25 Rem popping primers out at the second firing.

[chas1949]

Is it possible that with the scarcity of parts for these rifles that parts have been interchanged from other rifles. As collectors of these old girls we all have probably been required to use non original to rifle parts.
If so it is possible that head space has been altered (opened up to the point that round is not tight in chamber before firing allowing case to over expand).
Does anyone here go-nogo gauge these.

[cantgrowup]

I took a brand new batch of Grafs .32 Rem brass and annealed them. Then I loaded 20 of them with the same loads that had split the neck/shoulders on the previous batch. Of these, today I shot 10 and none experienced split necks or shoulders. My lesson learned is that I will anneal ALL Grafs brass from now on.

I don't know who makes their brass for them, but I've had problems with several of their cartridge brass splitting..... 6.5 Carcano splits near the base on second loadings, .25 Rem neck splits on first loads, and now .32 Rem on first loads. It's not like we shooters have a lot of choices other than Grafs when it comes to these obsolete cartridges, but from now on I'm going to anneal before shooting, and maybe every second loading thereafter.

P.S. I know that the 6.5 Carcano splits near the base can't be remedied by annealing. But it's just another data point as to the quality of Grafs brass manufacturer.

[9.3shooter]

Have you let Grafs know there is a problem? I have used Graf brass in other cals over the years with no issues at all. As I just purchased 100 pcs of .32 Rem brass recently from them that makes me a little nervous.

[9.3shooter]

I took some new Grafs .32 Rem to the range the other day and fired them in my Rem 14 pumper and brass looked new coming out, no issues. Took them home, sized them, still looked fine and then reloaded them all ready for the next go. So far so good, will update as needed. Didnt anneal anything.

[Hibby83]

I can't say that I've had a bad experience with graf brass in 25-30 or 32. "Yet" Grafs brass has been a winner for me so far.

One thing I notice on a couple of the guns is the primers back out a tiny bit. From all i have read that is headspace or (low) pressure related.

Best wishes and enjoy shooting your old Model 8/81's.

[Long Recoil]

Same problem. I had 40% of new Graf .32 Remington cases split at neck or shoulder. Annealing solve the problem. New good quality cases should not need annealled. Since I bought the Graf cases I ran into a lifetime supply of Remington rimless cases and don't plan on buying any more Graf.

[fechnerj]

So, I purchased 100 brass in .25 cal from Grafs and reloaded 50 of them. With this thread going on I inspected the reloaded cartridges and found 23 of the 50 have split necks. The 23 are junk and am leary of the rest of these (27) and have a question for all you.
Can I safely pull the bullets, empty the powder charge, and anneal the necks of the balance of the 27 with the primer left installed?
Needless to say I will be annealing the unprimed rest of the 100, but are these 27 salvageable?

[Long Recoil]

No

Don't anneal with live primers. A primed case slipped into a big batch one time with me. Not fun.

[fechnerj]

Bummer.
Reloading supplies are hard to come by these days.

[Phyrbird]

Be very careful w/ primed cases.
=pull bullets
=dump powder, I don't suggest reuse
=pop primer in the rifle
=anneal; torch or leadbath, drop in H2O
=reload
Note: I've found almost none of new brass is right on neck thickness. A turn w/ an outside turner is good for accuracy

[fechnerj]

Thanks to all for advice.
BTW, I sent email to Grafs three weeks past informing them of the problem I'm having and heard crickets.
Disappointed to say the least, but what other sources are there out there for .25 cal brass?

[Rifleman]

Had a discussion on another forum about Graf's brass neck splitting. At one time when I bought some 30/40 Krag brass from Graf's I talked with Graf's and was advised by them at the time that Jamison/Captech made their brass. Jamison bought out by Captech was a quality made brass especially for older no longer made brass by major makers.

Found out that Captech went bankrupt after doing some investigating and no longer in business. Tech guy at Graf's advised they hadn't done business with them for some time and sold all of their inventory on hand. Advised that Privi Partisan and an outfit called Petersons now supply their house Graf branded brass. If it was me, I'd be calling Graf's until the phone rings off the wall for some satisfaction. Appears alot of problems with Graf's brass/

[fechnerj]

Rifleman,
Thanks for the info. I'll probably do just that after the holidays.

[Bill in Oregon]

Following. I necked down some recently purchased Graf's .32 to .30. We shall see.

[Bill in Oregon]

I used the candle method yesterday to anneal 40 of the Grafs .32 cases necked to .30. Shot 10 rounds of handloads this afternoon -- first time shooting this particular rifle -- and didn't have any split necks, so I hope all 50 cases will last a bit.

[fechnerj]

Good to know. I upgraded my propane torch system in combination with a temperature stick to keep temp in bounds (600-700F). I tried some brass annealing using this method but can't reload untill I can aquire some primers, which are really hard to come by around my neighborhood.

[fechnerj]

Well, I finally got back to Grafs regarding the split necks in 20 of the 50 cases I reloaded.
These were unfired cases. Reloading supplies like primers and powder have only recenctly, like in the last month, begin to show up and so there was a almost 1 1/2 year wait between getting the cases and being able to reload same.
Bottom line is that because of time lag they (Grafs) won't do anything to compensate my problem with the supplied cases.
Cases for the 25 Remington are hard enough and expensive enough already, don't need this snafu. Guess I'll look elsewhere.