This is a general warning to anyone who reloads .308 rifle brass (7.62x51 NATO). BEWARE L31A1 Blank brass!

There are a lot of people who have gotten ahold of a large quantity of .308 caliber BLANKS (Headstamped L31A1 and the year of MFG).

This brass is thin walled with a weak case head, and was never designed to withstand the pressures of firing projectiles. It was crimped over from the factory as a blank. Typically the seller cuts off the crimp and resizes & trims it out to be a rifle shaped cartridge. There have been explosive failures of this type of cartridge when reloaded. Some unscrupulous people are pulling it down and reloading it with pulled M80 ball projectiles and reselling it as milspec 7.62 NATO. Since the blank powder is a type unsuitable for use behind a projectile this is highly dangerous especially considering the weak brass.

Some people are selling L31A1 brass on eBay and representing it as reloadable .308 brass. THIS IS UNSAFE and if you choose to do this (given how scarce Lake City or any other good boxer-primed brass is) you are playing with disaster. Is your expensive rifle worth what saving a few pennies on brass will cost if you get a case head separation? Is your FACE or LIFE worth the savings when you get a kaboom?? Investigate your brass before buying!!!

To repeat:
L31A1 brass was BLANK CARTRIDGES and NOT INTENDED FOR USE WITH A PROJECTILE. IT IS WEAK AND WILL FAIL UNDER FIRE.