Do you crimp for your semi .223?

I would have said 3 thou.

Does your sizing die allow you to take the button off? This would give you maximum neck tension, and would not hurt.

One thing you could do is size as normal, and then run all the brass through the sizer again, with the decapping rod and button removed.

The only time I have had the problem you describe is when the sizing die had worn out in the neck.

FWIW, since I load ball powder in 223, I use a lot of neck tension plus a firm Lee factory crimp to help guarantee 100% ignition and to prevent the bullets getting set back into the case.
No, I can't remove the bottom of the rbcs die. I have nothing against a lee crimp die , but it will take 3 wks to get it. Could you explain " a lot of neck tension ".
 
The fact that you are seeing different measurements after sizing, makes me wonder about the accuracy of your measurements. That lack of accuracy, may render the entire process meaningless.
It was a bit , different, but since I resized and trimmed to same lenght , they are now consistent .
 
No, I can't remove the bottom of the rbcs die. I have nothing against a lee crimp die , but it will take 3 wks to get it. Could you explain " a lot of neck tension ".

If you measure the neck OD of a sized case, and then seat a bullet, and the OD increases by .003" or more, then you have a lot of neck tension.

It was a bit , different, but since I resized and trimmed to same lenght , they are now consistent .

You still have a .002" variance among the cases, which is a lot. And trimming doesn't change the OD of the neck, it should be measured at the mid point of the neck, not at the very edge of the mouth.
 
image.jpgI've made 30 more rnds, this time I could feel pressure at the end of the stroke, unlike the first thirty, where I felt no pressure on 5 of the 30. I can't push the projectiles back into the case. I resized and trimmed all cases to 174.5. I measured all cases OD , at the top.( before I read this post). I also put a new battery in my caliper. Here's a pic of one of each. The other cartridges are the same as these 3. These are befor and after measurements.
 

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View attachment 19589I've made 30 more rnds, this time I could feel pressure at the end of the stroke, unlike the first thirty, where I felt no pressure on 5 of the 30. I can't push the projectiles back into the case. I resized and trimmed all cases to 174.5. I measured all cases OD , at the top.( before I read this post). I also put a new battery in my caliper. Here's a pic of one of each. The other cartridges are the same as these 3. These are befor and after measurements.

With those rounds , the neck tension is adequate, especially with the Remington and Hornady brass.
 
The 5,from the other batch, that I had setback with, were all win brass. Should I get rid of the win brass?

To keep those five cases from causing any more issues, I would toss them or give them away. Fives cases aren't worth much, especially when 223rem brass is so easy to come by.
 
There is likely nothing wrong with the necks or neck thickness of your brass, it probably just needs to be properly re-sized. Btw.
Oh, and the fact you are using three different manufacturers of brass (as in the above photo), in addition to the variation in tension, is another reason some crimp their brass. Just FYI. Good luck.
 
There is likely nothing wrong with the necks or neck thickness of your brass, it probably just needs to be properly re-sized. Btw.
Oh, and the fact you are using three different manufacturers of brass (as in the above photo), in addition to the variation in tension, is another reason some crimp their brass. Just FYI. Good luck.
Thanks, I'll just put it aside, I have lots of rem and hornady brass anyway.
 
There is likely nothing wrong with the necks or neck thickness of your brass, it probably just needs to be properly re-sized. Btw.
Oh, and the fact you are using three different manufacturers of brass (as in the above photo), in addition to the variation in tension, is another reason some crimp their brass. Just FYI. Good luck.

If he has run all of the cases through the same die, using the same procedure, yet some of the neck ODs increase by very little,or none at all, when a bullet is seated, while the other neck ODs increase by .002" to 003", then obviously there is a significant difference in the neck thicknesses of his brass.
 
OP. a few options to consider
1. Check your sizing die- most unlikely but it doesnt hurt to measure "expander" area on your decapping pin, maybe its oversized.
2. Seating Die- check your Seating die, maybe the die body is screwed way down, try backing up the body about 1 turn to 2 turns, some seating die seats the bullets and the same time crimps which I dont want to do.
For plinking I dont crimp, regardless of the bullet type, and besides a 223/5.556 on an AR doesnt really recoil that much. Military ammos are crimp for the reason that it will use/fired in a full auto mode and transported on a harsh conditions. good luck
 
If he has run all of the cases through the same die, using the same procedure, yet some of the neck ODs increase by very little,or none at all, when a bullet is seated, while the other neck ODs increase by .002" to 003", then obviously there is a significant difference in the neck thicknesses of his brass.

I'm not convinced this is the case (no pun intended). I believe there was an explanation that there was further adjustment of the die.
Regardless, I would ensure the sizing die is thoroughly cleaned, set up properly, and then run those cases through again.
 
I'm not convinced this is the case (no pun intended). I believe there was an explanation that there was further adjustment of the die.
Regardless, I would ensure the sizing die is thoroughly cleaned, set up properly, and then run those cases through again.

As you can see from my pics all the brass has increased in size. 2 out of 3 has increased by.2 and the other by .3 . Are these acceptable increases? Also the hornady brass is thicker , so that's why there's a difference from the other 2 . But overall the increase is the same. The only thing I did different , the second time is, I trimmed all to same lenght and I cleaned the inside of the neck with a cue tip and alcohol .( removed lube that was there from the brush)
 
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