223 Reloading

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Apex350

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Hey,

First time reloading 223 rounds, so seeking a bit of advice. I was setting up my press and put together a dummy round to test out. When I chambered it in my AR, the bolt didn't want to release/eject. I had to pull quite hard on the charging handle and eventually it ejected.

Notes on the dummy round:

Case was cleaned spotless, including primer pocket
Pocket was swaged
Case was sized then trimmed to 1.750 per loading manual specs
OAL was 2.260 per manual
No crimp

Now here's where I'd like the feedback. I pulled out a factory AE round and measure it. The case length is 1.740 and OAL is 2.200. I tried seating my dummy round to 2.200, same issue persisted. I then took a case trimmed to 1.740 and seated to an OAL of 2.200. Round now ejects just fine.

I have four reloading manuals, each states the case length of 1.750 and OAL of 2.260 for the bullets I'm using (Nosler 55gr). Should I just throw that out and load like the factory rounds at 1.740 and OAL of 2.200??
 
Try measuring the diameter of the case, just below the shoulder. SAAMI spec. is 0.354" but you may find that your rounds are wider than spec. Most case gauges only measure case length, not width.

Also take a look at the finish of the chamber. I just started shooting a Rainier Arms Ultra-match barrel where the chamber finish looked like it had been reamed with a Dremel. Both reloads and some commercial were sticking so badly that it required gunsmith help. After lapping the chamber, I am now getting reliable function.
 
When you set up your press with the Full length die, does the die bottom out on the shell holder? It has to if you want a proper sizing.

When you finally get the case to eject, you should see marks on the case and/or bullet to show where it is hanging up. If it is on the case, that suggests you are not FL sizing enough. If you see marks on the bullet, seat it deeper until they clear the rifling.

The OAL in the book is for THEIR rifle. Unless you are borrowing it, you have to test your chamber to see what OAL is required.

It could be that your chamber is quite short and the cases are bottoming out on the mouth. In that case, your cases will need to be trimmed. personally, i have never trimmed a 223 case.
 
Got a good article in an AR 15 mag that says you need to trim after EVERY firing and it advises an extra .003" as the cases stretch that much during resizing.

By the time I've tumbled, resized, tumbled again to remove lube, trimmed and removed the primer crimp, I've invested so much time and energy that I'm wondering if it's really worthwhile.

I do this for my M1 Garand, but I don't put as many .30 rds downrange as I do .223. I do agree that the semi-auto actions tend to stretch your brass on firing, augmented by the resizing process. Hard to get away from the trimming chore.
 
I had a similar problem, my cases were thicker in diameter at the neck ,than the body. I had the dies set up incorrectly ,and after readjusting, the cartridge fed and ejected smoothly. Measure the case at the body and slide the caliber toward the shoulder , it should taper and get smaller.
 
Ganderite said:
When you set up your press with the Full length die, does the die bottom out on the shell holder? It has to if you want a proper sizing.

When you finally get the case to eject, you should see marks on the case and/or bullet to show where it is hanging up. If it is on the case, that suggests you are not FL sizing enough. If you see marks on the bullet, seat it deeper until they clear the rifling.

The OAL in the book is for THEIR rifle. Unless you are borrowing it, you have to test your chamber to see what OAL is required.

It could be that your chamber is quite short and the cases are bottoming out on the mouth. In that case, your cases will need to be trimmed. personally, i have never trimmed a 223 case.
Click to expand...

This. I had similar issues when I first started loading 223. Turns out my die was just a few thousands of an inch from kissing the shell plate. Snugged it down and problem solved.
 
If you don't already have one... Get a case guage.
I guage all my cases just prior to priming/loading.

Once in a while I'll encounter a case that will not seat.
Often it's due to a deformation/defect in/around the base/rim of tge case...
Other times I can't tell why the case won't seat .
These cases get tossed.
 
A huge issue with necked+crimped cases is that they MUST be inspected and if needed trimmed to length. Otherwise, the bullet seating/crimping process will actually prematurely crimp and then compress the brass downward. The result is that the base of the shoulder will be expanded outward. This will cause fitting issues inside the chamber.
 
For me, .223 seemed to be a little bit of a challenge initially. I had issue with the sizing die being just a few thou out. I also had an issue with my seat/crimp die being just a thou or two too far in and creating a microscopic bulge at the shoulder for crimping pressure on the case. Fixed both of those and no issues since. I case gauge every case and trim if it's longer than 1.758 back to 1.750.
 
Trinimon said:
This. I had similar issues when I first started loading 223. Turns out my die was just a few thousands of an inch from kissing the shell plate. Snugged it down and problem solved.
Click to expand...
I thought you have it kissing the shell holder and then give it a 1/8 turn in further, so that you get a small pop at the end of the stroke?
 
Brianma65 said:
I thought you have it kissing the shell holder and then give it a 1/8 turn in further, so that you get a small pop at the end of the stroke?
Click to expand...

When I setup the die, it was kissing the shell plate then I gave it a 1/4 turn more before locking it down. Under case load, there was a gap between the die and shell plate. The Lee single stage press I use at the time does not cam over like the RCBS etc.
 
Apex350 said:
I do have a case gauge, I use them on every round. I'll try turning my sizing die down further and test the results.
Click to expand...

Again, the case gauge is unlikely to measure case diameter unless it is a JP gauge. If your cases gauge to the correct length, I don't think that turning your dies down will solve the problem. I have a hard time believing that there are many commercial barrels/chambers that don't meet minimum SAAMI specs. in terms of chamber length.
 
Trinimon said:
When I setup the die, it was kissing the shell plate then I gave it a 1/4 turn more before locking it down. Under case load, there was a gap between the die and shell plate. The Lee single stage press I use at the time does not cam over like the RCBS etc.
Click to expand...

That 'cam over' motion really creeps me out every time. I get the feeling that I'm doing something disasterous to the case, but it works.

From what I've read here (and elsewhere), reloading .223/5.56mm seems to present a lot more issues than other calibres. Particularly for the AR family of rifles. I'll bet my Mini 14 would digest any rds my AR 15 wouldn't like.
 
Sharps '63 said:
From what I've read here (and elsewhere), reloading .223/5.56mm seems to present a lot more issues than other calibres. Particularly for the AR family of rifles..
Click to expand...


Or not....
I've loaded thousands of .223 round over the last few years and have never had any of the problems I read about here...
Case prep is paramount in reloading any round.
 
Sharps '63 said:
That 'cam over' motion really creeps me out every time. I get the feeling that I'm doing something disasterous to the case, but it works.

From what I've read here (and elsewhere), reloading .223/5.56mm seems to present a lot more issues than other calibres. Particularly for the AR family of rifles. I'll bet my Mini 14 would digest any rds my AR 15 wouldn't like.
Click to expand...

I set the die a full turn or two past where it starts to hit the die. The handle does not 'cam over" (which I used to find annoying). I run the case into the die until BANG, it bottoms out. Case is now sized.

If you use the seater die to crimp, uniform case length matters. A too long case will cause a small bulge which can cause chambering problems I did not used to crimp, so the fact that I have never measured a case length in 223 (never mind trimmed a case) did not matter.

I do crimp 223 now, because I now load ball powder and crimping gets me better ignition. But I use the Lee Factory crimp die, which crimps regardless of case length.

I load about 10,000 rounds a year for 5 different rifles, and so far as I know, I have not had an issue relating to case length. All the brass I load is range pick up brass. Most ammo is loaded to about medium power.
 
667 said:
Or not....
I've loaded thousands of .223 round over the last few years and have never had any of the problems I read about here...
Case prep is paramount in reloading any round.
Click to expand...

That's the rub - case prep.

I just miked 6 sized/deprimed and 6 unsized American Eagle .223 cases. The sized cases averaged 1.742". The unsized averaged 1.743". In other words, running them through my RCBS Comp sizer die did not stretch the cases.

The unsized cases measured a low of 1.738" vs 1.741" for the sized. I don't know if that is typical of American Eagle .223 ammo.

The Speer manual states a maximum length of 1.760" and a recommended trim length to 1.750. That's quite a latitude, considering the cases I miked today. I can see why Ganderite has had no issues with case length.
 
On the volume trimming thing, the best tool is the Giraud power case trimmer.
It's like using an electric pencil sharpener :)
If you're regularly feeding a semi-auto rifle you'll want one.

ht tp://www.giraudtool.com/prod02.htm
 
You're using a full length small base sizing die right? Important that it's SB for AR15.

I have a Giraud and love it. Everyone with an AR needs a Giraud!
 
I shoulda miked the bases of the .223 unsized and sized cases to see if there was any difference. I will and get back .....
 
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