Shell Shock Technologies launched their first product the NAS3 two-piece 9mm Nickel Alloy Shell. The NAS3 two-piece case consists of a solid nickel-plated aircraft aluminum head and a proprietary enhanced nickel alloy stainless cylinder. The 9mm case is 50% lighter and costs significantly less than conventional brass cases. The weight savings will be even more dramatic for rifle cases. Shell Shock has 9mm Luger cases available now. The next caliber to be released will be the 5.56mm early in 2017. Over the next 12 months Shell Shock is intending to introduce NAS3 cases for all popular pistol and rifle calibers. All Shell Shock’s cases are proudly made in the USA!
The nickel plated aircraft-grade aluminum head, offers greater lubricity than brass and will not abrade, clog, foul, wear-out or damage breach and ejector mechanisms. SST's patent pending design also prevents 'ballooning' caused by pistols and automatic weapons with an unsupported breach. The head can be anodized in different colors for branding purposes and easy load identification. Polished Nickel and Black heads are immediately available, additional colors will be introduced in the near future.
The proprietary nickel alloy stainless cylinder offers uniform wall thickness and a case capacity that is fractionally larger than a standard 9mm shell. Outside dimensions comply with SAAMI specifications. In addition, the case design incorporates a fractionally larger flash hole which helps eliminate back-face pressure, increases burn efficiency and is ideal for the new generation of environmentally friendly primers.
The combination of materials offers greater corrosion resistance, tensile strength (2x stronger) and elasticity than brass. NAS3 cases will not split, chip, crack or grow (stretch) and are fully-reloadable with SST's custom reloading dies. Testers have reported up to 40 reloads. NAS3 cases eject cool to-the-touch and can be picked up with a magnet (great for outdoor ranges). Shell Shock has an agreement with Anderson Arms (through their subsidiary, Oak Island Ammunition) to provide a ‘buy-back’ program for spent NAS3 shell cases. The purpose of the program is to offer any range a convenient opportunity to sell spent NAS3 shell cases collected at their facility. Anderson will match the price per pound ranges currently receive for used brass cases. Anderson is fully equipped to reload NAS3 cases as part of a remanufactured target ammunition program.
NAS3 cases have been successfully tested on a variety of automatic and hand loading machines including Ammo Load, Camdex, Alpha/Bitterroot, Hornady and Dillon Precision.
NAS3 cases are the perfect platform to support lead free and frangible projectiles. Lighter bullets demand +P and +P+ loads to achieve desired energy levels; NAS3 cases have been tested successfully with pressures up to 65k psi.
NAS3 is "Best in Class" for maintaining consistent velocity between rounds. In an independent test performed by H.P. White Laboratory (a major munitions testing facility), rounds fired using NAS3 cases achieved a velocity standard deviation of 0.093 FPS (124 grain FMJ bullet, 4.2 grains Titegroup powder, 10 rounds, extreme variation 3fps). Unbeatable performance!
Cost is king and NAS3 cases are priced lower than brass and beat brass on every performance metric. NAS3 cases contain no 'red metal' based raw materials. Unlike brass, unstable and unpredictable swings in copper prices do not effect NAS3 pricing. In addition, NAS3 cases are drawn not extruded, drawing is a cheaper, faster and a more accurate production process.
In sum, NAS3 wins on Price, Process and Performance and most importantly gives ammunition manufacturers a way to get out of their reliance on brass.