First time reloading steps.

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  • MrRobot

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    Hello all,
    I decided to start a post on my first ever reloading process. Many on the form helped me with questions when it came down to bullets, primers, and what to look for and read loading data. Let's get started.

    2 days ago I started to wet tumble some brass I collected in the passed. From brass that I shot and from other people as well. I picked up a lot at the range to the point I had to stop..

    Today I mounted my Lee single stage press down. I decided that I would start to take off the older primer.

    Installing the Dye

    1. I ran the ram all the way up and started to turn the dying until it touched. I back off the ram and did a 1/2 turn to the dye.
    2. I ran 2 brass and everything looked good primer came out.

    Now here's where my questions begin, after inspecting the brass and de-priming it.

    Q1. The first picture shows a dent in the brass. Once I run it threw the resizing dye it looks much different almost like a circle dent. Would this brass still be good? I notice I have a lot of the brass having the same dent before I remove the primer.

    Q2. In the last two pictures if you notice toward the bottom of the brass there are lines that weren't there. is that normal or did I do something wrong when setting up the dyes? Did I put to much lube or not enough?

    I stopped the process for now since I'm tired, and want to get some feedback before I continue. Thank you in advance...

    01.jpg
    03.jpg


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    07.jpg
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    Hurley's Gold
     

    Alpha.Geek

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    Tyler "suburbs"... :)
    Let the lube dry if you are using spray lanolin lube...
    If not lanolin-based, I can't help much (all I use, DIY Lanolin/Isopropyl mix now [used to use Dillon's until the move]), BUT I have shot MANY of dinged cases from certain-rifle range-pickup that worked fine many re-loadings after dings like that. I am more concerned with the case-rim being chowdered/chipped/ruined.

    Have a .223 case gauge?.

    I have never worried about case-head separation, as I have a tool for that, but never had to use it, yet, and many of my .223/5.56 cases have been reloaded at least 15 times...

    If it ever happens, maybe, I'll start chasing the insides with a paperclip to check, but never have any cases I reloaded cracked prior to case-head separation either.

    I've only bee reloading .223/5.56 since Jan 2012, but still that seems to be a long time, and with the number of reloadings under MAX, I think I am doing good...

    Each die MFR has it's own instructions, and I noticed that some need tweaking, BUT a case-gauge helped me a LOT.
    I noticed that my .223/5.56 brass was not sizing fully, and my wife had some problems feeding in her .223 Wylde chamber due to this.
    My 5.56 NATO chamber didn't give a crap. :D 9mm too, some guns didn't care, others I had a couple jams per 300+ rds.

    Since getting the case gauges, I turned down the locked decapping and resizing dies on my .223, AND my 9mm dies a smidgen to fit the cases in the case gauge, as I was not sizing either cases all the way to spec.

    Talking to another .223 reloader at the range, when asking about case-head separation, he said something like...
    he reloads them until they fail, the chamber should support pressures of a blow-out, if it happens, just gotta dig the case out, and suffer range-down-time, no real safety issue. Not sure if that is true, but the chamber is steel, case is brass, work-hardened, and that's what I've been going with. I do not reload for super-accuracy, but for QTY, myself. 2 MOA is good for me, as I shoot with Iron sights, and only out to 100yd in my AR... :)
     
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    Texasjack

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    Brass is still the metal of choice for cartridges for several very good reasons. It removes a lot of heat from the chamber, it's tough under pressure, and it's flexible enough to endure minor "dings" and dents. It takes some time and experience to understand which kinds of flaws are fatal and require you to throw away the brass. The dents on the cases you posted are minor and won't affect reloading. If you see any sort of cracks or if there's a light colored ring slightly above the base, then don't trust the brass for reloading. The rings on your photos are just the edge of the sizing die and are not a problem.

    It's hard to say just when brass has had enough reloads because it depends on the load, the die, and the chamber of your rifle (how much it lets the brass expand). If you limit reloads to about 3 times, you shouldn't see a problem. Some people choose to push the brass for as many reloads as they can, but that means really, really inspecting each case every time. If you pick up range brass, be very careful - you don't know how many times someone may have reloaded that batch. (Of course, every so often you sit next to some "rich guy" who shoots a bunch of brand new cartridges and leaves the brass behind!)

    In my experience, .223/5.56 brass is a pain because it is so small in diameter. Checking a .30-06 with a paper clip is pretty easy, but nearly impossible on .223. Some cases "flow" quite a bit, so trimming can take up a lot of time. Case prep is my least favorite part of reloading and .223 takes longer to prep than any other cases I reload. Case gauges like the one pictured below are worth their weight in gold. (Several companies make them, I just found the Lyman picture first.)

    1655122882334.png
     

    Dawico

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    Everything looks fairly normal so far. The die will make a ring where it stops resizing, usually just a visual difference.

    The dings are fine. They'll come out after you fire them again. The circle ding looks like something was stuck to the case or in your die when you sized it. It'll be fine too.

    Carry on.

    If you don't have a case gauge (I've never owned one) you can always chamber it in your rifle to see if it fits.
     

    MrRobot

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    Thank you guys for the feedback. it's good to know that I'm doing it correctly so far. Trust me I would pay attention to the guys next to me. they would pull out new ammo and just fire them when I was at the range. I just started picking them up but nevertheless, I will continue to inspect the brass. I believe I have to case gauge I bought a long time ago. All the items I bought over time here and there.

    Hopefully tonight I will have some time to continue reloading.
     

    Alpha.Geek

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    Tyler "suburbs"... :)
    I started with one of these, and still occasionally use it (don't know where it is since the move), but I really like the chamber case gauges, even if it takes just a bit more time.

    91XZ7a2o6NL._AC_UL320_.jpg


    These can also let you know when you over, or under-size your brass.

    Before I got one of these in 9mm, I didn't know I was not sizing my 9mm brass down enough...
    as I was just doing the plunk test in my shortest throat barrel (PC Carbine, in my case).
     

    xdmikey

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    I would drop the sized cases into your rifle's chamber and see if it seats all the way.

    If not, try readjusting your sizing die(you didn't say what you are using)per the instructions.

    I use an RCBS small base die since I'm loading once-fired(most likely)machine gun fired brass in 556 & 762.

    Good luck with a great hobby.
     

    MrRobot

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    Hello all,
    Well this weekend I had some time to work on my reloading project. I was able to de-prime 223 but ran into some brass that was different or I could not read. Below are some pictures maybe some of you might be able to tell me. One other thing I swage all the brass since it was picked up brass. I even have a go and no-go tool that I bought. Let me know what you guys think.

    Picture 11, 17 I could not make out what it said plus I don't know if it's 223 or not.

    The go tool would not go in until I swage it.
    09.JPG
    010.jpg


    You could see a ring around the pocket plug this one you can't read what it says. After I swage it the ring was still there but the go tool went in fine.

    picture 11
    011.jpg
    012.jpg


    Don't know what kind of brass these are if they are 223 or not.
    picture 17
    017.jpg






    014.jpg


    Hopefully, I didn't screw up all the brass. I did about 100 brass will wait for some feedback before I start to size them.

    Thank you guys once again.
     

    jc79

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    Hello all,
    Well this weekend I had some time to work on my reloading project. I was able to de-prime 223 but ran into some brass that was different or I could not read. Below are some pictures maybe some of you might be able to tell me. One other thing I swage all the brass since it was picked up brass. I even have a go and no-go tool that I bought. Let me know what you guys think.

    Picture 11, 17 I could not make out what it said plus I don't know if it's 223 or not.

    The go tool would not go in until I swage it.
    View attachment 327006 View attachment 327007

    You could see a ring around the pocket plug this one you can't read what it says. After I swage it the ring was still there but the go tool went in fine.

    picture 11
    View attachment 327008 View attachment 327009

    Don't know what kind of brass these are if they are 223 or not.
    picture 17
    View attachment 327012





    View attachment 327011

    Hopefully, I didn't screw up all the brass. I did about 100 brass will wait for some feedback before I start to size them.

    Thank you guys once again.
    Yes, those are all 223/5.56 cases.
    Cases with LC on them are from the Lake City ammo plant, and what the military uses. As you've noticed, the military 5.56 cases will have a crimp on the primer that needs to be reamed or swaged.
    Same thing with the case with the IMI stamp, just that it's made by IMI for the Israeli military.
    For reference, the numbers on those cases are simply the year the ammo was manufactured.
     

    MrRobot

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    @jc79 Thank you very much for explaining the different brass. Well, I finally finished all 100+ brass taking out the primers and finding some that I didn't like.

    Now here come the questions. I started to measure the brass and notice a lot of different readings.

    starting from 1743 to 1763. I know that 223 should be no more 1760. What is the smallest the brass can be?
     

    rotor

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    @jc79 Thank you very much for explaining the different brass. Well, I finally finished all 100+ brass taking out the primers and finding some that I didn't like.

    Now here come the questions. I started to measure the brass and notice a lot of different readings.

    starting from 1743 to 1763. I know that 223 should be no more 1760. What is the smallest the brass can be?
    Resize and use a case gage. Easy.
     

    jc79

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    @jc79 Thank you very much for explaining the different brass. Well, I finally finished all 100+ brass taking out the primers and finding some that I didn't like.

    Now here come the questions. I started to measure the brass and notice a lot of different readings.

    starting from 1743 to 1763. I know that 223 should be no more 1760. What is the smallest the brass can be?
    Like Rotor said, simply resize and use a case gauge. Anything over 1.760 should be trimmed back to 1.750.
    Don't worry about cases that measure a little shorter.
    Cases with loose primer pockets and split necks are the main things to watch out for and throw away.
     

    MrRobot

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    I thought I had everything but the gauge I got is the wrong one. Don't know why since it's 223. Here are pictures that case gauge. I might have bought the wrong one or something.

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    21.JPG



    That goes to show a newbie buying reloading parts lol... Now I have find one before I could move forward.
     

    jc79

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    I thought I had everything but the gauge I got is the wrong one. Don't know why since it's 223. Here are pictures that case gauge. I might have bought the wrong one or something.

    View attachment 327846 View attachment 327847

    View attachment 327848 View attachment 327849


    That goes to show a newbie buying reloading parts lol... Now I have find one before I could move forward.
    Oops! Yeah, that's for 223 and 243 Winchester Super Short Magnum. Very different beast from 223 Rem.

    Did they perhaps send you the wrong case gage?
     

    Wiliamr

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    You should have a reloading manual from Hornaday, Speer, Lyman,> Those give you all the case dimensions and SAAMI drawings. NOW you have to pay attention to what you are loading. READ the manuals. just looking to reload "223" will get you in trouble. If you are looking to reload .223 Remington or 5.56 Remington those are way different than .223 Winchester Magnum. You can not just go about this without reading yuor MANUALS> You will blow your gun up and maybe hurt yourself.
     

    rotor

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    GasGuzzler

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    NOW you have to pay attention to what you are loading. READ the manuals. just looking to reload "223" will get you in trouble. If you are looking to reload .223 Remington or 5.56 Remington those are way different than .223 Winchester Magnum. You will blow your gun up and maybe hurt yourself.

    Books don't agree with each other and there is no 5.56 Remington I have ever heard of. Maybe you are referring to 5.56X45 NATO? Never heard of .223 Winchester Magnum either but I'm guessing you meant .223 WSSM...

    I don't like case gauges. I use the chamber or calipers. Barbaric I know but I don't shoot the tools, just the guns.
     

    Wiliamr

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    Books don't agree with each other and there is no 5.56 Remington I have ever heard of. Maybe you are referring to 5.56X45 NATO? Never heard of .223 Winchester Magnum either but I'm guessing you meant .223 WSSM...

    I don't like case gauges. I use the chamber or calipers. Barbaric I know but I don't shoot the tools, just the guns.
    You make my point (one should not write such stuff after having been up since 3:00 am and driving since 4:00 am). Anyhow 5.56 x 45mm , AKA (officially) 5.56 x 45mm NATO, - different pressures and minor case dimensions that .223 Remington. There are many different "common" names for cartridges and often incorrectly. Thanks for catching my error.
     
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