Most of their cases - 99% according to their rep - are made with proprietary headstamps such as S|G, HPR, GBW, TNQ, and a bunch of others, but also with their own JAG. JAGEMANN (YAY-geh-mahn) is another up-and-coming case manufacturing firm in Wisconsin. They were in a glass display case and I wasn't able to get a good look at them. In January I saw a bag of SIG 9mm cases (presumably FORMAX process) at the Shot Show in Las Vegas, with a lot number equating to December 2017. Recently SIG began buying their cases from another company - whose name I can't remember - who has also bought a FORMAX machine. Then SIG used Jagemann cases which differ from Starline in that they don't deburr the flash hole and the I in SIG is like a pipe - no serifs ex. These cases had deburred flash holes - a Starline exclusive - and the I's had serifs. SIG started off using Starline cases with the proprietary SIG headstamp. FORMAX got a patent for that improvement. The difference between SPEER/CCI, Federal and Remington FORMAX cases is that the Remington cases are the same weight as their drawn product. They also have a dot in the headstamp at about the 2:30 position. Remington's FORMAX cases are easily identified as they are primed with not-nickel-plated Remington primers. Remington also got its own FORMAX machines a couple years back and also still makes drawn 9mm cases. When I weighed some SPEER and BLAZER (suspected they were FORMAX but no dots) cases just now they were all about 60 grains so it appears that SPEER/CCI has dropped the dots before and after SPEER and BLAZER to identify their FORMAX product.

The SPEER/CCI and Federal FORMAX cases are interchangeable and weigh about 60 grains. The majority of Federal FORMAX cases use dots in the headstamp to identify that it is a FORMAX case. Since then Federal has acquired its own FORMAX machines and is producing both drawn and FORMAX cases in-house. At the same time SPEER/CCI was supplying Federal with FORMAX process cases headstamped dot FC dot (.FC.). Also the drawn cases weighed 56 grains plus/minus 1 grain and the FORMAX cases weighed 60 grains plus/minus 1 grain. One way to tell the difference between the two was SPEER/CCI/BLAZER/*I* -headstamped cases without dots before and after the SPEER/CCI/BLAZER/*I* were the drawn type and those with dots before and after the SPEER/CCI/BLAZER/*I* (.SPEER./.CCI./.BLAZER./.*I*.) were produced by the FORMAX process. SPEER produces standard drawn cases - using brass cups, heat, and pressure to draw out cases in a multi-step process - and the FORMAX process which takes room temperature brass wire and extrudes it into cases. SPEER/CCI has been using the FORMAX process for decades. What has that got to do with brass 9mm cases? The same principles are applied to taking brass wire and extruding it into cases. FORMAX makes machines that extrude hamburger patties. Two up-and-coming 9mm cases are made by FORMAX and Jagemann. Now, however, there are many more varieties to choose from.

I haven't regretted that decision and have put away more cases than I'll ever use. At that time they'd used the same headstamp for the previous 10 years and the average case weight had remained the same for 60 years. Over a decade ago, I decided on Remington 9mm brass.

Wcc 9mm brass