Comparison: Lapua - Hornady - FGMM - R-P .308 Brass

[DHC]

I decided to weigh some of the .308 brass I have for reloading. Having read about the quality of Lapua, I was particularly interested in seeing how some other brands stack up. The Lapua is new, never-fired. The others are once-fired brass after comprehensive prepping - sized and deprimed, trimmed, primer pocket cleaned and uniformed, flash hole uniformed, and light neck chamfer.

Lapua (sampling of 20):
* Range of weights: 170.8 to 171.9 grains
* Weight spread: 1.1 grains
* Average weight: 171.4 grains
* Standard Deviation: 0.3 grains

Federal Gold Metal Match (sampling of 29):
* Range of weights: 174.1 to 176.3 grains
* Weight spread: 2.2 grains
* Average weight: 175.3 grains
* Standard Deviation: 0.6 grains

Hornady Match (sampling of 20):
* Range of weights: 165.4 to 169.7 grains
* Weight spread: 4.3 grains
* Average weight: 167.8 grains
* Standard Deviation: 1.2 grains

Remington-Peters (sampling of 364):
* Range of weights: 162 to 172 grains
* Weight spread: 10 grains
* Average weight: 165.3 grains
* Standard Deviation: 1.4 grains

Notable findings (to me, anyway):

I expected better consistency from the Hornady Match brass. The SD at 1.2 is double the FGMM brass and pretty close to the R-P brass. Given that Hornady markets this as "Match" grade brass, I expected metrics closer to the Lapua benchmark. Pretty disappointed in the Hornady overall.

I did not try to measure case volumes, though if case weight is any indicator (lighter has more internal capacity), R-P should hold the most powder, then Hornady, then Lapua, with FGMM holding the least powder.

Considering that FGMM has a terrible reputation for its brass, I was surprised to see that it had a SD of 0.6 - still twice the SD of Lapua, but half the SD of the next competitor, Hornady.

Obvious in the analysis is that the number of cases counted was FAR greater for the R-P than any of the other three. If the others are representative of the brand, then this may be inconsequential or I might have selected from an anomalous lot - only further study would indicate and I am not planning a follow-up.

Based on this, I've decided to not bother buying Hornady Match brass in the future (assuming all brands equally available). The cost of Hornady is considerably higher than R-P and the metrics do not indicate its slight superiority justifies the cost. This particular Federal brass was once-fired from FGMM factory loads. If the Federal brass can be purchased separately at a cost approaching R-P, or equivalent to Hornady, the FGMM appears the better deal. Nothing compares to the quality of Lapua.

Offered FWIW

[Robert217]

Interesting. Thanks for the report!!

[w748]

Interesting. My checks gave me similar results ; R-P always having the widest range within a given lot. I never checked Lapua but did try Norma and found it gave less variation across lots than R-P gave within a single lot #. Curiously , Winchester always came in second for a lot less money.

[67rschev]

Interesting results . While I do agree with Lapua being the gold standard for cases , with the best overall uniformity and longevity , I think there are other variables to consider . Take a case of each brand or a sample group of each type fired from YOUR chamber , and measure their capacity . The best way is to use water , just ' rolled ' at the top of the case . You will find that the Hornady and Federal will hold more than the Lapua ( No experience with Remington , and Federal is well known to be too soft and will crap out the pockets with only a few loadings , in my experiences ) . Winchester will hold even more . In some loadings this will become a factor , as you will need that extra 2 grains of volume . I personally use Hornady , and while I wish it lasted like the Lapua , it works better for my application . In my experiences , brass uniformity in weight , has little to no effect on accuracy consistency . I don't bother weighing the brass , time is better alloted to the projectile uniformity ( both in weight and ogive differences ) and focusing on ubber consistent neck tension and bullet runout . Of coarse YMMV , and would be glad to take any Hornady cases off of your hands , or trade for some Federal brass [Flower]

[DHC]

Interesting results . While I do agree with Lapua being the gold standard for cases , with the best overall uniformity and longevity , I think there are other variables to consider . Take a case of each brand or a sample group of each type fired from YOUR chamber , and measure their capacity . The best way is to use water , just ' rolled ' at the top of the case . You will find that the Hornady and Federal will hold more than the Lapua ( No experience with Remington , and Federal is well known to be too soft and will crap out the pockets with only a few loadings , in my experiences ) . Winchester will hold even more . In some loadings this will become a factor , as you will need that extra 2 grains of volume . I personally use Hornady , and while I wish it lasted like the Lapua , it works better for my application . In my experiences , brass uniformity in weight , has little to no effect on accuracy consistency . I don't bother weighing the brass , time is better alloted to the projectile uniformity ( both in weight and ogive differences ) and focusing on ubber consistent neck tension and bullet runout . Of coarse YMMV , and would be glad to take any Hornady cases off of your hands , or trade for some Federal brass [Flower]

You make a very good point - that there are many variables beyond the one of case weight. If I'd had the time and the equipment I'd have measured case centricity/runout between the manufacturers as I suspect this might be a more telling indicator of case quality. Maybe next time.

[DHC]

Adding one more brand of cases to the list. I received an order of Silver State Armory .308 brass cases today. The following are metrics from the SSA cases:

Silver State Armory (sample size of 24):
* Range of weights: 176.9 to 179.2 grains
* Weight spread: 2.3 grains
* Average weight: 177.9 grains
* Standard Deviation: 0.57 grains

The SSA cases have very comparable metrics to the FGMM cases measured previously.

I also measured the internal H2O case volume as compared to Lapua. As would be expected, the Lapua being a lighter case (171.4 avg vs 177.9 avg) has slightly more internal volume. My measurements indicate the Lapua cases have an (approximate) internal volume of 54.5 grains and the SSA cases have an internal volume of 54.0 grains.

FWIW