4seventy,

As I said, I bought my .500 3" NE Merkel last April.

I was already in the loading business for the .500 3" because I had my .500 BPE Purdey. That rifle was bought in September, 2003. That's when I first bought HDS brass in .500 3". I bought 80 in Sept, 03 and bought another 80 in April, 04.

I have 160 rounds of the HDS brass. I have shot them all more than once. Most, if not all, have been shot in both rifles.

The Purdey's chambers and groove diameter are larger than the Merkel. It's groove diameter is .514, and the chambers accommodate the larger bullet. Rounds loaded for the Purdey won't chamber in the Merkel.

I segregate my brass into 20 round boxes and keep a record of the number of firings and in which rifle. I just checked them, and the batch that has been fired the most was fired six times in the Purdey (with larger chambers) and once in the Merkel. They show no signs of wear or fatigue at all. And I'll point out that I am full length resizing for both rifles. Thus, they get a better workout in the Purdey than in the Merkel.

There is only one quality hitch I have found with this brass. Of the 160 rounds there were three whose rims were slightly too thick to chamber in my Merkel. I have a buddy who bought a Merkel when I did. They will chamber in his rifle. My headspace is a little tighter than his. I remedied the problem by reducing the head on fine emory paper. Mind you, I know the thickness should be taken off the front of the rim, but I don't have a lathe. I didn't take off enough to remove the headstamp, nor to appreciably change the depth of the primer pocket. Primers still seat just below flush.

So in conclusion to this long-winded epistle, I am pleased with HDS brass in .500 3".

Alan, you are right about the .500 3.25" brass for .470. I don't have a .470, so have never put thought to it. If I had one, that's what I would do.

Here's a shot of one of the pieces of brass I had to doctor on (loaded for the Purdey):

Regards,
CptCurl