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Turkey Guns & Shooting => Turkey Guns => Topic started by: Curtdawg88 on February 18, 2012, 06:50:04 PM

Title: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Curtdawg88 on February 18, 2012, 06:50:04 PM
The brass on the Hevi 13 shells with I hunted with last year is dented pretty good from loading and unloading so many times.  Is this a problem?? I have never shot one with dented brass so I don't know if this poses a safety hazard or not.  I don't want to throw them away if they are perfectly safe, but if they are unsafe then they are gone!  Thanks for the help!
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: crenshawco on February 18, 2012, 08:31:36 PM
The real problem is you didn't shoot enough. Just kidding man but I don't know the real answer
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: sippy cup on February 18, 2012, 08:34:01 PM
Mine did same thing don't know what causes i :OGturkeyhead:t
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Curtdawg88 on February 18, 2012, 10:20:52 PM
Quote from: crenshawco on February 18, 2012, 08:31:36 PM
The real problem is you didn't shoot enough. Just kidding man but I don't know the real answer

I'm not denying that!  We had the jake epdemic last year.  I hope they hung around for this year.
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Curtdawg88 on February 19, 2012, 09:01:55 PM
Does anybody else have any experience or knowledge of this? Thanks!
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: gobbler74 on February 20, 2012, 09:14:22 AM
Do you hunt with an 1187? They have been known to do this on shells.
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Borat on February 20, 2012, 10:05:35 AM
I exclusively turkey hunt an older 11-87 SPT that regularly makes it's mark on the brass after each load/unload.  I had one shell in particular that for some reason or another was unlucky and had not been fired throughout the season.  Well, I found myself in NY at the end of May and only had 2 shells left.  After a successful first day, I reluctantly loaded the severely dented shell in the chamber on the 2nd morning and went to find a turkey that wanted to fall in love.  The particular shell operated flawlessly that morning and gave me no reason to think that the dents caused any performance issues with the shot.  I have shot numerous turkeys with shells that had just a minor dent or two, but this one really looked quite poor.  Although my field testing is limited, I haven't had a result that would warrant further analysis.
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: gobbler74 on February 20, 2012, 11:48:38 AM
Heres a pic from a friends 11-87 cycled shell. It was a follow up round that stuck when chambering after firing the first. Ive seen that dented brass on more than one shell from 3.5" 1187's. Is yours a 3" or 3.5" gun?  This denting brass is not a shell problem but a mechanical issue with the gun. The particular round was a 3.5" Remington lead
(http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee288/gobbler74/gun%20pics/IMG_0344_1.jpg)
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: paboxcall on February 20, 2012, 12:37:48 PM
Quote from: gobbler74 on February 20, 2012, 11:48:38 AM
Heres a pic from a friends 11-87 cycled shell. It was a follow up round that stuck when chambering after firing the first. Ive seen that dented brass on more than one shell from 3.5" 1187's. Is yours a 3" or 3.5" gun?  This denting brass is not a shell problem but a mechanical issue with the gun. The particular round was a 3.5" Remington lead
(http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee288/gobbler74/gun%20pics/IMG_0344_1.jpg)

I have one similar from my 1300, somehow got caught under the ramp.

I think the OP's question is 'is a dented shell safe to shoot?'

I don't know the answer to that.
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Gooserbat on February 20, 2012, 01:49:54 PM
My 870 dose the same thing to shells and I've shoot many of them with no problems for me but big problems for turkeys.
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Grunt-N-Gobble on February 20, 2012, 02:46:20 PM
I have an 11-87 and its never dented a shell like the photo above.

But it does mark-up the back of the shell brass pretty bad at times around the rim.  I just don't let the bolt slam into the shell anymore.  But I do make sure its fully engaged to prevent any mis-fires.
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Curtdawg88 on February 20, 2012, 02:51:20 PM
I shoot an 870 with 3.5" hevi 13. I also use this gun duck hunting but rarely is the same shell loaded and unloaded repeatedly when duck hunting like it is turkey hunting so I've never noticed any dents except on my turkey loads. It sounds like it is safe to shoot based on one reply above. I would like to keep this thread going to see if anyone has any bad experiences with this. Thanks for the replies!


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Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: deadbuck on February 20, 2012, 03:36:39 PM
I have shot many dented shells and never had a problem. If you are going to throw them away I will pay postage for u to send them to me!
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: K9Doc on February 20, 2012, 04:48:56 PM
I have shot several over the years and never had any issues.  It could be an increasein the psi of that load, but not likely much too worry about.  Shoot at your own risk.  Shells are cheap compared to a gun repair or going to the hospital.  That being said, i would shoot it. :TooFunny:
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: gobbler74 on February 20, 2012, 05:22:28 PM
I've got 4-  1187's. All mine are 3" guns. I've seen the typical scrape marks on brass but havent seen any denting from 3" guns. This topic has came up a couple times in the last few years. If the dent were minor I would shoot it myself. I'm interested if this is a problem associated with 3.5"
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Gooserbat on February 20, 2012, 05:35:57 PM
I will to add that all mine are 3.5 shells that dent my 3" gun dosen't do it.
Title: Re: Shell dented brass?
Post by: Gobble! on February 20, 2012, 10:07:43 PM
My 870SM seems to dent my 3.5" shells up pretty good. Never had a issue with one firing though.