223/556 reload`

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drmajor

New member
Thinking of reloading for 223/556.

How much do the cases normally stretch and need trimming?

What trimmer is economical and not too slow?

Will use Lee 4 hole turret..
 
Same boat...here's wha I've learned

DrMajor:

I've been reloading for 30 years, but just started reloading for AR15. It has been the biggest PIA so far. Wildcat cartridges have been easier. I've busted 3 primer pins in 3 loading session. I had to purchase a primer pocket reamer [thanks to all the great info I got here] and am looking into another set up dies [small base.]

In the Thompson Center Contender, I did not notice severe stretching and almost none in the 7mm TC/U. Case trimmer I have is a modified [drill operated] RCBS.

You'll need to chamfer after trimming.

It is the ONLY cartridge that I am honestly considering to simply purchase new ammo :-)

Clearly, I'm still in the learning/gear acquisition category for the 223. Once it all gets worked out, discard military primed brass, trim all cases, decrimp all cases, chamfer all cases, find the right load..... It'll be swell

Rick
 
Rethink that. Well, that depends. What are you shooting it in?

What kind of volume are you talking?

what do you expect out of your reloads?
 
Shooting in Stag AR15.
Mostly hunting deer and hogs.
Exspect more uniform shots and cycling. Would like to load as 556. Use Hornady SP bullets.
 
dr major asked:
How much do the cases normally stretch and need trimming?
Click to expand...

It depends on how closely your resized case matches the dimensions of the chamber it is being fired in. The more the case must stretch to fill the chamber, the more often it will require trimming. It has little, if anything, to do with the brand of your rifle.

What trimmer is economical and not too slow?
Click to expand...

I load in batches of 25, 50, 100 or 200 at any given time. I use a manual Forster case trimmer. At a relaxed pacer, I can ream the primer pocket, lubricate, size, trim, chamfer and debur 100 cases in under an hour using my RCBS Single Stage press, Forster trimmer and L.E. Wilson chamfer tool.

If you're in a hurry or want to do large volumes of cartridges then any of the powered case trimmers should do about as good as job as any of the others. Some look like little lathes, some fit in the press like a die, some use a pilot, some don't. Some people have strong feelings for one configuration over another, but it really comes down to what you want to do and how it works best for you.

In my case, I load 223/5.56 for four different semiautomatic rifles and one bolt action rifle. Based on 38 years experience, I have my standard (not small base) sizing die adjusted so that the cases coming out of the die will function in any of the five guns. Where I shoot, I collect only a fraction of my brass and know that, statistically speaking, it will all be lost in the weeds by the 6th loading. I trim my brass to 1.753 inches because experience tells me that it will not stretch beyond the 1.760 trim length before the 6th loading, so once I trim a case, it will be lost before it needs to be trimmed again.

Until you can build up years of experience with your brass, it might be a good idea to trim it all to a uniform length (like the suggested 1.750 trim-to length) and then take a sample of your fired cases and measure them to determine an average amount of stretch.
 
Heck I enjoy reloading almost as much as shooting anymore. However unless you are as deluded as I am or shoot a lot you may well be better off to buy loaded ammo. However if you do want to reload I can only tell you what I use. I bought a batch of brass online cheap and spent a couple weeks decapping, wet tumbling, re-sizing and trimming, and removing primer crimps, I didn't even attempt to.figure out which were crimped, just chucked the business end of a Lyman primer pocket reamer in my drill press and did them all. Then put them in ziolock bags of 100 each and have been working my way through them. When I do trim I trim to .010 less than factory spec and have never had a problem. I do check batches of brass that buddies bring me to see if they need trimmed, so far no. I do.load to a pretty mild load and don't try to make my .223's into .22-250s.
 
Get yourself a universal decapping die. I have Lee's and it may be their best product. It works, and you wont break pins. I bought a spare pin years ago and never needed it.
I have reload LC brass 5 times plus and NEVER have need to trim yet. LC 7.62 is another story, they all need trimming. If you use 223 dies, propery set up you should have no problems. I load for an Axis and Mini-14. Neither is picky. You MUST understand the actual measured dimensions of YOUR rifle. They vary, even between rifles of the same brand and chambering. My Axis has a LONG chamber and can handle longer than spec bullets. I have another Savage that will not. They both say 223 on the barrel. You "may" find a small base die makes rounds feed better in an auto loader. I would stick with tame 55 gr loads for your first 1000 reloads. Then when your skills are proficient, tune and experiment to find what works best in your gun. I found that I can shoot very standard loafs in any of three rifles. But when I move up to hotter loads and longer (heavier) bullets, I can need different loadings for different rifles, and need to keep them segregated.
 
Like Marco said get a lee universal decapping die. I reload my brass up to 5 times before I have to cut the neck off to convert for 300 blackout. I don't crimp the brass so there is very minimal stretching. But I am plinker not a competitor so I am not as critical about groups, but I do get sub Moa groups.
 
Marco, MS6852, thanks. I've seen that recommendation a few times now. I was at my local Cabelas yesterday, but they were out of stock.
 
I'm using a bolt rifle.
But i check my length every reload. I use Lee gage/trimmer, and my cordless drill set to low speed.
I full length size on first reload as i'm using range brass.
After that is neck size.

Get the primer pocket reamer! I haven't found any 5.56 or 223 that didn't need it yet.
 
My process for once fired:
1) anneal
2) size and de-prime
3) ream primer pocket if necessary
4) check with gauge
5) trim if necessary

Once loaded mark with primer rim with nail polish. I have 3 colors when the third color is fired leave that brass behind. On subsequent reloads I do not anneal or ream primer pocket but I do the other steps. This is only with 223 as the brass is easily obtainable.
 
If you are going to reload the 223/5.56 you will need a pocket primer reamer like std7mag stated or a swaging tool like the Dillon Swager. I have buckets of range brass that I pick up every time and reload my ammo in stages. For example I will decap all brass one day than clean it another day than full size and check brass for reliability, than another day prime brass I plan to shoot for my next trip, and the final step is load it. All on a single stage press. I have to single stage presses an inexpensive Lee press with my universal lee recapping die and than the Forster Press where I load all ammo. Doing it in stages works fine and it is relaxing.
 
Odd, but none of the AR shooters at my range pick up their brass. I see tons of it swept into the trough, and I am tempted to pick it up for my Saiga .223. Then I remember how many hours of resizing, trimming, chamfering, swaging and reaming I put in on the thousands of pieces of '06 LC brass I was gifted back when, and just leave it. Good luck!
 
drmajor said:
Will use Lee 4 hole turret..
Click to expand...
Nobody really addressed the use of the Lee Turret Press.

I own one and reload 5.56. With that load I generally end up doing some single-stage work on the press. For newly acquired brass I'll decap (using the Lee decapping die), clean, swage (just added the Dillon tool for this to my lineup), resize/trim/chamfer, clean again and prime (using a hand primer while watching TV). Then the brass sits till I am ready to reload it. For my own (now twice fired) brass, I skip the trimming and chamfering and just spot check lengths.

You may find different, but I've found that priming with the hand priming tool (while watching TV of course) is faster than using the press. It also allows me to clean the resizing lube off before priming without another trip to the press.

Thrice fired seems to be as far as I've gotten with my brass due to loss and honestly the volume of brass I end up with. Nobody but me seems to pick up .223/5.56 brass. If I am shooting with someone also shooting 5.56 I'll shoot my commercial stuff so everything I pick up is once fired. I don't do any fancy marking like some folks do but that's a solution as well.

My cleaning is wet tumbling with SS pins. I clean before resizing because I don't want to run the risk of any sticking/scratching. It's possible some of the "quick" cleaning methods people use like boiling with vinegar/water would be faster but I'm not in a rush. I've also moved to homebrew sizing lube which so far is greatly superior to the commercial productt I had been using.

When I do reload the now clean and primed shells I'll leave the resizing die off the turret, and just go through powder, seat and crimp. I have also gone single stage the whole way through. When you do it in batches you don't lose too much time going single stage.

I won't lie to you ... it's a lot easier to shoot all the ammo up on a good range day than it is to load enough to keep the gun fed. It has to be a labor of love otherwise it makes no sense.
 
Glad to see I am not the only one...

As originally posted, I've been reloading for a long time and couldn't believe the difficulty I was experiencing with 223/5.56 brass during reloading.

Misery loves company? I don't like to see anyone having issues reloading, but there is a certain comfort to learn I am not the only one who believes it might be more trouble than worth :-)
 
If you look at the price of components, and then factor in time (which I have very little of these days, it seems...) it's hard to justify generic 5.56mm... and it's not like I'm going to shoot a box of 20 and go home, I shot 1K just over Christmas when I was out in NV.

I could see spending the time to build hunting ammo, I do the same for target ammo for my AR's, but not generic blasting ammo.
 
Charlie -

I couldn't believe the cost of FMJ bullets. The vast majority of my reloading has been for pistol. With pistol, there is a direct correlation between size and weight of the bullet and cost. I [incorrectly] assumed, "55gr. - should be cheap." They are as expensive as 180gr 40cal pistol bullets.

If you purchase quality Starline [or similar] brass, Hornady FMJ bullets, it's actually more expensive than buying packaged rounds.

I can get 20 PMC for $7.50. Purchasing new brass, the cost is $8.44 for 20. It's actually cheaper to purchase loaded ammo, then reload the spent cases.

*the reloading numbers above are based on purchase quantity of 500 - not large bulk purchases*
 
That's actually my process for most any caliber... buy a case of loaded ammo, that way at least I get one firing out of them without the time and effort to load them.

I always challenge people... do the arithmetic for 1000 rounds reloaded vs factory. I'm not talking about hunting or specialty ammo, just generic shooting ammo. Make sure you factor in sales tax, shipping, etc. The answer might surprise you.
 
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