Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles Y'all reloading your 5.56 brass

not only do i reload 223/556 but i form 300bo, and 25-45 sharps. lots of work but lots of satisfaction too.

I don't probably reload as much as most on here does, but that LC brass is very good brass. I ended up getting a primer pocket reamer that screws into my Frankford Arsenal brass prep machine and the crimped primers are really no more trouble to deal with than just cleaning normal primer pockets. But I do understand if people think they aren't worth the trouble. I've been prepping about 50 -100 a day every morning when I get home from work. Kind of helps me unwind.

What tumbler media are you using if you don't mind me asking. I've been using corn cob media I probably bought a large supply of 20 years ago and my brass never looks that good.

Heck yes I reload it! I picked up some Norma 223 brass a couple of months ago. I loaded it for my BIL's bolt action. I bought a Dillon 600 primer pocket swager.

Been loading it even when it was cheap to buy.

Reloading .223/5.56 ?? Like a possessed mad man. Let the revolution begin.

kwg

Tell it.

Lol.

If I order the RCBS primer pocket swagging Combo2, will I hate myself in the morning for cheeping out?

38 bucks vs 110 for the Dillon.

Yes, and I say that only because I have the RCBS and don't even bother to use it, because I still have to shave brass after running cases through.

Yes, as many have commented above. It is slow and tedious and after swaging many of the cases will still need to be chamfered. If you're going to cheap out use a drill and a primer pocket reamer like the Hornady.

I believe the RCBS does chamfer in the same step?

I had the original RCBS swager and it didn't do a good job of completely removing the crimp. Maybe the newer model will work better.

No, not yet but gearing up for it.

Hadn't thought about, but, with crimped primers do I need anything besides FL die, such as depriming in a separate opperation? Need spare pins?

(Got the crimp removal plan covered.)

I've avoided this until a certain price point which has become a reality!

Buy the Dillon 600 and save in the long run. I didn't. Gave the RCBS kit to a friend that just started reloading and bought the Dillon. The Dillon is much better IME.

Boomer, IME they usually come out easily. Sometimes it seems the foreign brass is crimped heavier, or that might be my imagination.

Spare pins are never a bad idea though.

I have been working on reloading a bunch of my range pick-ups for the increasingly likely SHTF Scenario.

How do you guys decide on a powder charge when running spherical propellants?

Start loads? Halfway between start & max?

I prepped a thousand pieces of LC brass, laboriously one at a time, loaded them with the CFE-223/55 Hornady the AR likes (on a single stage press no less), packed them in ammo cans and stashed them away for a rainy day. Haven't touched the AR in a couple years now. Actually thinking about selling the thing. If push comes to shove I think I'm more comfy with my Garand anyway. I'm too old and gimpy to run and gun with an AR- I'll hang back and lay down cover fire for those who can.😁

Most of my .223 shooting is with a Browning single shot. For that I stick with Lapua brass, Berger bullets and load with LE Wilson straight line dies in an arbor press. Takes all evening to load a couple boxes, but the dividend comes at the bench when that rifle regularly delivers insanely small groups.

An AR and 1000 rounds of ammo would make for quite the package deal right now! I'm sure you could at least recoup for the loading time.

Depends on what I'm trying to do. If I need NATO-spec ballistics I buy the ammo. JMO, trying to duplicate M193 strikes me as a fool's errand. Some of my surplus chronos 3400 fps from a 20". Not going to try that with bulk once-fired brass. For MGs, plinking, and nothing I'd want to get hit with ammo a starting to middle charge behind a 55 gr fmj is gtg. As for which powder, tough to beat H-335 behind 55 gr fmjs. 24 to 25 gr will reliably cycle any gun I'd bet my life upon.

748, BLC-2 would get the nod for 62s and up.

Old fart such as I am, not up on the latest/greatest copper fouling removing, temp-insensitive, cleans your dentures while shooting powders. Maybe they really are better?

I did classic load work up for my bolt gun, found accuracy in it and tested in the AR's; accuracy and function were both good enough for my purposes. IME 95% of maximum has been a good place to start.