doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com 256 Newton head stamps?

On a lark, I bought a bag of 14 pieces of .256 Newton brass. With the exception of one piece, it doesn't seem to have been fired, so I'm assuming it was bought as "primed brass".
10 of them are marked "WESTERN 256 NEWT" which is the head stamp I've seen most commonly. 3 of them are marked "REM-UMC 256N" and the last one, "WESTERN 6-17"
Does anyone know when the REM brass was produced or the story behind the Western 6-17 brass? Thanks!

I would hazard that the Western 6-17 is a case formed from a military 30-06 case. Western Cartridge Co. in Alton, IL.
Thaine

Thaine,
I think you are correct and it was formed from 1917 military 30-06 brass, but I'd like to know why? It came from a factory and not someone's garage. I'd like to know in what years it was produced, by whom and why.

I too thought it looked like a military headstamp.If it came from the factory,I would opine that they were using "overrun" cases from WW1 contract.Since there is no caliber marked, it would have been a good way to use 30-06 cases rather than scrap them.They would have been loaded after 1917, I would think after the Armistice,maybe 1919 or so.BTY,after DWM went under and RWS bought the assets;I bought RWS 7x57R ammo(in RWS boxes)with DWM headstamps.No factory is likely to throw money away.
Mike

Towards the back of Mr. Wales book there is a photo of all the known Newton head stamps, the Western 6-17 brass among them. I believe it says they were produced from military brass, but not when or by whom.