fired cartridge cases

Introduction. Recently in expert practice there registered the instances of using homemade reloaded rifled weapon cartridges. Objects and tasks. To consider the regularities of trace impression formed by reloading facilities on the microrelief of cases. To detect the most stable (specific, characteristic) features reflected on the reloaded cases thus enabling to differentiate between the traces of production mechanisms and arms. Experimental part. Examining the traces formed in the course of a shot and reloading was carried out with hunter’s .300 WIN MAG caliber cartridge cases ejected from .300 WIN MAG caliber Sauer 202 carbine; with.338 LM caliber cartridge cases ejected from .338 LM caliber HS Precission-2000 carbine; with 5.6х39 caliber cartridge cases ejected from 5.6х39 caliber Bars-4 carbine. Discution of results. In terms of the cases examined the analysis of resistance and stability degree of the process of trace impression by the used production reloading mechanisms was conducted. Characteristic features typical of reloaded (repeatedly used) hunter’s cartridge cases for rifled-barrel firing guns were detected.