Norinco .223 brass for reload?

goggles

goggles

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Anybody reload pre-fired Norinco .223 brass?

Any split cases? and how many times did you (or would expect to) re-use? Would you go beyond 25 grains Varget?

With Lapua .223 brass at nearly $1 each, wondering what I can get away with with my used Norinco brass that originated from an 800 round spam can.

Tried 40 reloads with 24.5 grains Varget using 69Grain SMK; full-length resized cases and trimmed to 1.750".

Got a 10 round sub-MOA group at 100 metres.
 
I reload it to shoot matches with my Swiss. It launches brass far away to the 1 o'clock position ahead off the line. It works fine, and I don't frett if I lose it. Most flash holes are off centre, and a few have been loaded 5 times so far with no issues. The load is 24 grains of BLC2 and 77 grain SMKs. I trim them every second sizing.
 
I've reloaded about 1k rounds with cj95 brass and have seen no split cases. They only thing I've noticed is that all the once fired brass needs to be trimmed. I'm pretty happy with them so far
 
I would never pay for quality lapua cases for a semi auto that chews my brass then spits it all around on the ground.....
All my ar15 ammo is once fired mixed headstamp brass.

Keep the lapua cases for benchrest.
 
Ive actually been finding that the winchester and remington 223 cases have been the worst qualty cases. I would compare the norinco cases to federal in quality.
Ivor
 
Rounds loaded with Norinco cases shoot about the same at 200 yards out of my AR as those loaded with other brands of brass. Not having to ream primer pockets is a plus.

Even if I get the odd prematurely split case neck, I still figure I got my money's worth out of the crate of Norinco .223 I bought.
 
Im just finishing prep on my batch of Norc brass. Have culled a few after just 1F through my rifle; they do ned to be trimmed off the get go, and have a buddy that has quite a few reloads on his Norc brass. Hoping to get at least 3 through most anything else is a bonus!
 
I have thousands of cases I picked up at the range. I tumble clean it and then sort by headstamp. the Norc gets loaded for myAr-15s. It works just fine, Some cases have been loaded several times. i have yet to find a split case, and will not be too fussed when I do.

IMG_1556.jpg
 
No problems with Norc. I'm a lazy bastard with my .223. Next to no prep at all and my AR is getting 3/4 moa with 69gr matchkings and 25.1gr varget. My Savage LRPV shoots the same load and getting sub 1/2moa. No complaints from Norc brass.

Keep my Lapua for my long range gopher loads!
 
I was asked:

Hey just seen you have loaded lots of semi autos. I have ruger mini 14 target and tavor. I would like to figure a load out. I have got Hornady 55 grain and Barnes 50 grain varmint grenade. Do you use magnum primers?

I have varget powder. I Loaded 40 last night to shoot around 28-2900 fps. Any help is appreciated.
I also found out I can't shoot 556 in my target but I believe I have been.
As the 556 and 223 fmj ammo got mixed in. Did I wreck anything in my gun or just stop shooting 556 going forward.

I use magnum primers in 223 when loading ball powder. If I don't, I get some failed ignition issues. With Varget I would use a regular primer and about 25 gr of powder.

223 and 556 are very similar when dealing with factory loads of 55 or 62 gr of ball ammo. The difference in the chambers is the throat. Te 556 throat is longer and more tapered to better accommodate the very long 5.56 tracer round. This round can cause serious over pressures in a standard 223 chamber.

I doubt that very may makers use a standard 223 throat in their guns. When I was helping Savage change to a 1:9 twist, I also suggested a new throat to make sure all ammo would eb safe. I suggested a Wylde profile. They opted for a SAAMI body and a NATO throat.

Unless you were shooting tracers, you have done no damage to your rifle.
 
ivor said:
Ive actually been finding that the winchester and remington 223 cases have been the worst qualty cases. I would compare the norinco cases to federal in quality.
Ivor
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I once bought a bunch of new .308 Winchester brass. I wasted my time squaring up the bottom of the primer pockets, as otherwise, the primers would stick out a bit. So after that experience, I bit the bullet (sorry for the pun) and bought 400 Lapua brass, and they were fantastic right out of the box... They (the .308's) were 70 cents each at the time. Now, the .223 are nearly 1$ each, so I'm balking on Lapua.

BTW, I'm first firing my Norinco surplus in my T97. But I'm reloading for my Sportco actioned Target Rifle with a 28 inch Palma contour .223 stainless steel barrel. So was wondering if I'm having unrealistic expectations. Maybe not.
 
Ganderite said:
I was asked:

Hey just seen you have loaded lots of semi autos. I have ruger mini 14 target and tavor. I would like to figure a load out. I have got Hornady 55 grain and Barnes 50 grain varmint grenade. Do you use magnum primers?

I have varget powder. I Loaded 40 last night to shoot around 28-2900 fps. Any help is appreciated.
I also found out I can't shoot 556 in my target but I believe I have been.
As the 556 and 223 fmj ammo got mixed in. Did I wreck anything in my gun or just stop shooting 556 going forward.

I use magnum primers in 223 when loading ball powder. If I don't, I get some failed ignition issues. With Varget I would use a regular primer and about 25 gr of powder.

223 and 556 are very similar when dealing with factory loads of 55 or 62 gr of ball ammo. The difference in the chambers is the throat. Te 556 throat is longer and more tapered to better accommodate the very long 5.56 tracer round. This round can cause serious over pressures in a standard 223 chamber.

I doubt that very may makers use a standard 223 throat in their guns. When I was helping Savage change to a 1:9 twist, I also suggested a new throat to make sure all ammo would eb safe. I suggested a Wylde profile. They opted for a SAAMI body and a NATO throat.

Unless you were shooting tracers, you have done no damage to your rifle.
Click to expand...

I fired some of my Norinco case reloads at 300 meters (24.5G Varget, 69G SMK's) and got a 3-4 inch group. Then I fired 5 original 5.56 IVI's and its group was about 3 inches higher and not as tight. Seems the IVI's have a lot more energy. Maybe not a good idea to shoot them in my .223.

Anyway, I had to get the throat in my .223 target rifle reamed a bit, extending the freebore by about .040, as the heavier 77G SMK's and the 80.5G Berger boat tail base go too deep into the case.
 
I've had case head separation and split necks with probably a dozen or so Norinco once fired .223 brass, and now all of what I run across is culled into the recycle brass bin.
The majority of it is probably fine, but I just do not trust the quality.

Conversely, I have a good amount of Norinco .45 cap brass that is excellent.
 
Wow! I never would have even tried it. I always just let the wife waste them in her 7.5" AR15. They are always so easy to find and seeing as I still have 1300 new I feel like I won't ever run out. Thanks all.
 
gtl31 said:
Wow! I never would have even tried it. I always just let the wife waste them in her 7.5" AR15. They are always so easy to find and seeing as I still have 1300 new I feel like I won't ever run out. Thanks all.
Click to expand...

Not worth reloading for your AR if you already have ammo for it, as the cheapest bullet is now at least .25 cents, whereas a complete Norinco .223 round runs you about 30 cents. However, I'm not going to get sub MOA accuracy using Norinco ammo in my .223 bolt action target rifle, which is what I'm looking for. The question is: would there be any difference seating a 80.5 grain bullet into a Norinco case, versus a Lapua case?
 
goggles said:
Not worth reloading for your AR if you already have ammo for it, as the cheapest bullet is now at least .25 cents, whereas a complete Norinco .223 round runs you about 30 cents. However, I'm not going to get sub MOA accuracy using Norinco ammo in my .223 bolt action target rifle, which is what I'm looking for. The question is: would there be any difference seating a 80.5 grain bullet into a Norinco case, versus a Lapua case?
Click to expand...

Maybe 5 years ago norinco .223 was $0.30.
 
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