223 Reloading

O

OverPressure

New member
I have 8 lbs. of Accurate 2230 Powder. I was thinking of buying dies for
my Lees Classic Reloader!!! I have several hundred rds. of PMC 55
gr. 223 Ammo. I thoughts at this point are to continue with 55 gr and
see how well the loads chrono graph and if they at least mimic the
PMC loads for accuracy !!!

Should I be looking beyond dies here!!! These are FMJ 55 gr bullets
in my PMC cases!!!

This would be my first rifle reloading attempt!!!
 
Full length case resize die,
Factory crimp die.

Variations in the case length will cause issues with a shoulder crimp die built into the seater.
Bulged shoulders is VERY common which keeps the round from chambering...

The LEE factory crimp die in particular works VERY well,
Uses the SHOULDER to gauge off of, instead of the press ram,
So the excess case doesn't effect the crimp in the slightest.

Shoot the cases a couple of times, then trim to MINIMUM and you never have the 'Issues' again,
(Not that you have them using the Lee factory crimp die)

'One Shot' case lube is pretty good, but clean your sizer die out about every 500 rounds or so,
It builds up over time inside the die.

I take mine outside and use 'Starting Fluid' sprayed up into the die.
For some reason, starting fluid cuts that case lube buildup like nothing else I've used...
Just let the dry before you track that smell back into the house!
 
I don't think a crimp die is needed. As one of the first people to load .223 ammo for competition and some match stages were shot rapid fire, none of the military teams shooting that ammo with no crimps on case mouths had issues in reliability or accuracy. We all knew that after that event in 1971, there would eventually be people that believed such ammo had to have crimped in bullets for use in M16 platforms and their commercial equivalents. In later years, uncrimped ammo continued to shoot the best scores and set records formerly held by 7.62 NATO service rifles.

If you feel better shooting crimped in bullets, do it.
 
i dunno, i have cases of set-back using bullets with no in an AR15. for a new rifle reloader, i highly recommend light FCD use. after some experience you can gauge neck tension and see if crimping is for you or not, but some AR's can be hard on the bullet during feeding.

don't load to MIMICK pmc, or any other brand, load til your find what your rifle likes and do the proper work-up. get a book if you don't understand that yet.
 
The size of the INSIDE case neck sizer ball will determine if the case will hold the bullet in place or not without a crimp...
Punching square back bullets into undersized cases is a PAIN,
Undersizing is required to hold the bullet.

With a boat tail to expand an undersize neck, you might get away without a crimp.

With Volume Production (Progressive Press) I find it MUCH easier to get a little larger neck so the bullets press in without a fight, then use a LIGHT crimp to hold them in place.

I shot a dozen 5 shot strings of freshly loaded ammo,
Came up with 126 feet per second between fastest and slowest.
Not bad at all with a charge bar powder dropper on a progressive machine...

I was also getting slightly over 1 MOA regularly with that same ammo,
(until I got tired and my old eyes started playing games) Using a $108 Simmons scope on a 20" H-Bar AR-15,
Granted, it's a national match grade barrel, but 1 MOA with lousy optics, progressive loaded with recycled military brass isn't a bad deal, and makes for some pretty cheap paper punching and varmint control...

Precise powder measurer (Micrometer adjustable), with V-Max rounds, same crimp, I did 3/4" groups today.
I'm VERY happy with that.

Five strings, 5 rounds each, 48 FPS between fastest and slowest.

An AR-15 isn't what I'd call a 'Bench Grade' rifle, even with a NM H-bar barrel,
So 3/4 to 1 MOA is fine with me.

Bench shooters, Competition Shooters have the hot ticket when it comes to absolutely precise ammo,
But I can tell you, at my age, considering the shooting I do, This progressive press (Dillon XL650) is cranking out consistent rounds I don't have to spend a month of Sundays prepping the brass to shoot roughly 1 MOA,

So I'm happy with what I'm using it for,
The 'Rock Chucker' for my .308 Tack Driver,
The Progressive for my AR-10 & AR-15s...

At 24¢ a round for 1 MOA or less,
Virtually NO case prep other than cleaning,
(Shoot them twice, trim to minimum and throw them in the general case box for loading)
I just can't beat what this progressive is cranking out.

I just bought 17 acres of the most ground hog infested ground you can imagine,
And between the coyotes and ground hogs, I'm going to have REAL FUN this spring!

60 gn. V-Max in VOLUME going though the press right now,
Just deprimed and cut the primer pocket crimp off 4,000 military once fired, and got them all squeaky clean,

Loaded about 1,000 FMJ to target practice with,
And about 500 V-Max to varmint bust with,
And the press is calling my name!
I still have about 1,000 V-Max left to load, and about 2,000 FMJs waiting to load...

Supposed to rain tomorrow, so I just might get some ammo ahead for a change since I'm not working this week...

Can't wait for those pleasant spring days where I can set my table up and wait for the 'Whistle Pigs' to stick their heads up!
 
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