

And remember to always periodically test out your defensive rounds! Nickel plated brass should be more corrosion resistant, offer slicker feeding, and designate your defensive rounds easier. The advantages of nickel plated brass are numerous and we believe you can use all the things you can get in choosing defensive ammo. Plating may flake and get into dies where it can scratch die and future rounds.Different metal properties may require modification of reloading dies (check length and crimp).More brittle so may neck split/crack after fewer reloads.Looks pretty/different which allows easier identification of brass at the range or designation of a special loadĭisadvantages of Nickel Plated Brass Cases Split Nickel Plated Brass Case, Smith & Wesson Forum.Lower coefficient of friction which allows slicker feeding in semi-autos (easier sliding rounds on top of each other in the magazine).There’s a reason that many high end defensive ammo such as the Federal Hydra Shok 9mm above have gone towards nickel plated brass: Nickel plated brass is just that…it is regular brass that covered by a thin layer of nickel through electroplating.įun random fact, as of the end of 2013, it costs 9 cents to produce a US nickel coin which is 25% nickel and 75% copper.

Tarnished Brass Cases What is Nickel Plated Brass? Brass vs Nickel Plated Brass Casings We went over the numerous advantages of brass cases, but the one large con of brass cases is that they tarnish, especially when repeatedly handled, stored in adverse conditions, or kept in leather holsters.
