Lc 223 crimp removal.

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A buddy shot his new AR tonight with federal 5.56 x.... ammo and it's stamped lake city with a year and not federal. I cannot tell if these are crimped of not so what do you guys think about running them through Lyman primer pocket reamer?

These are also annealed brass so would this cause an issue in a 223 bolt action?

I've got about 500 cases and would like to use them.
 
I'm not sure about the Lyman reamer - I use a Hornady - but in my experience, if the primer pocket is not crimped, the reamer just won't do anything. Try a few, and see if it cuts.

As for the annealing, all cases are annealed. The commercial stuff is just polished before it's boxed up. A trip through the tumbler will remove the discoloration.
 
RCBS makes a "Swager Tool-2" that opens up the primer pocket, without removing any brass.
Used on a single stage or turret press. It processes both large and small primer pockets.
After processing a lot of brass you will know what needs to be processed.
I've reemed thousands pieces by hand over the years, the RCBS Swager made it alitte less of a chore.
 
R. Cobb said:
RCBS makes a "Swager Tool-2" that opens up the primer pocket, without removing any brass.
Used on a single stage or turret press. It processes both large and small primer pockets.
After processing a lot of brass you will know what needs to be processed.
I've reemed thousands pieces by hand over the years, the RCBS Swager made it alitte less of a chore.
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I was looking into that but it won't fit my lee turret press. I have a Lyman case prep center so it's a little easier on the hands. I have never dealt with crimped so didn't want to destroy good brass.
 
Walkalong said:
https://ads.midwayusa.com/product/5...CBS-_-594559&gclid=CI7SlryjwtQCFdgKgQodposFHA

Fast and easy. You should be able to look at a decapped case and see if they need it. As posted, all cases are annealed, they just don't tumble the case clean for military/military look alike brass.
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Thanks Walkalong. I am going to tumble them over the weekend and then de prime some of them. I wasn't sure if them being LC but sold to the public if they would be crimped. If they are i will buy the tool you recommended as that looks a lot better then my lyman reamer.
 
Like said, they don't waste the time making military ammo look pretty like they do for Retail sale ammo. All cases are annealed buy the manufacturer, it's a necessary part of the process.

You are very lucky to get 500 quality cases, don't worry about them.
 
ArchAngelCD said:
Like said, they don't waste the time making military ammo look pretty like they do for Retail sale ammo. All cases are annealed buy the manufacturer, it's a necessary part of the process.

You are very lucky to get 500 quality cases, don't worry about them.
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Yep i definitely scored last night. about 30 Remington 38spl cases, a hundred or so 9mm cases, about 400-500 LC 5.56 cases. I filled a plastic shopping bbag almost half full with brass last night. I have about 500 LC, a few hundred Hornady cases and 200 federal AE ill probably just scrap.
 
ArchAngelCD said:
There is nothing wrong with the American Eagle cases at all. If anything they are good for practice but it reality they are the same as the commercial Federal cases. Both are made on the same line.
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I've heard the primer pockets get loose after 2 reloads but just hearsay.

My best friend has a 223rem bolt gun that doesn't seem to like any factory ammo we run through it so ill probably just give him the brass and he can load up some rounds on my gear with me watching. He shoots enough to site in, shoots coyotes and woodchucks so they should last him 10yrs.
 
You should be able to tell if they are crimped just by looking at them.
I've used the rcbs swedging die for years. Works just fine. Atleast you only have to do it once. If I had to do a lot of them all the time I would get a Dillon tool or the knockoff.
 
My experience is that LC brass that comes out of a Federal brand commercial box is crimped. But you would do no harm putting uncrimped brass into a primer pocket reamer.

I usually buy mixed range brass and since I don't know if some of the exotic headstamps are crimped, I just treat them all as it they were crimped. Takes a little extra time, but I really hate to have a primer hang up on the lip of the primer pocket and this assures me I won't.
 
I use the RCBS bench mounted swager and it works well. That crimped primer pocket is a problem that we have to deal with. Reloading has pros and cons. Crimped primer is just one of those pesky cons! I dislike the trimming more than swaging...but case prep is part of it!

Mark
 
Whatever method you choose, my suggestion is that you try seating primers in the first few cases from which you remove the crimps. There's not much you can do if you swage 500 or a 1000 cases and then discover that primers can now be seated by light thumb pressure.
 
I have used a counter sink bit to remove the crimp from a lot of brass. They cost $2 and you can use it by hand or in a drill.
th
LC brass is usually very good. I have some in 308 and it is just as good as Lapua but it takes a lot of time to sort, ream and trim.
 
My RCBS case mouth chamfer tool does a good job removing the primer pocket crimp. I don't reload a huge amount of this caliber but 50 or so cases is quickly and easily done.
 
If you have a hand pocket reamer try to put that in the pocket. If it goes in easy it doesn't have a crimp. No go and it's crimped. I sort my range brass with the hand reamer. If the crimp needs to be removed I use an RCBS bench mounted swag tool. Flys through those pretty fast without removing brass. I've been told that sometimes swagging will split the case but I've never seen it.
 
I use the case mouth chamfer tool in my drill press. A little dab will do it.
kwg
 
Dillon 600 super swage. Best 100 bucks I ever spent. Mileage may vary, dont over tighten.

Russellc
 
Another vote for the RCBS Swager tool. I use one on a Lee Model 90045 "C" type press and it works great. The press is available on Amazon for about $40. The die set comes with both a small and large primer pocket swager. I usually swage each cartridge (both 5.56 and .308) after removing the primers. Doesn't damage the cartridge if it doesn't need it (just easier to remove the case from the swager).

The advantage of this type of pocket prep is that it doesn't remove any brass like reamers do.
 
I have the RCBS die set, but it is very work intensive. Even lubing up the pocket makes for a hard removal. Now I just purchase commercial brass that is not crimped. With six hundred prepped Perfecta brass I won't be needing any in the near future though. Lapua is excellent for my bolt actions, a little short, but worth the pennies.
 
Demi-human said:
I have the RCBS die set, but it is very work intensive. Even lubing up the pocket makes for a hard removal. Now I just purchase commercial brass that is not crimped. With six hundred prepped Perfecta brass I won't be needing any in the near future though. Lapua is excellent for my bolt actions, a little short, but worth the pennies.
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can you clarify how its work intensive? just wondering how much of a pain in the rear it is. I was given 500 lc 12 once fired brass so I think its worth trying to get crimps out.
 
First off I think that moving the brass back into place helps the primer pocket last longer before enlarging rather than cutting some of it out. I now use the CH4D crimp removal kit. I got the combo kit that has the Ram Prime as well. I also have the RCBS kit and you have to adjust for the web thickness and that necessitates sorting by head stamp first and adjusting each change which is a pain IMHO. I no longer use that POS. Look on you tube for the CH4D it is simple to use it works on the top of your press with no need for head stamp sorting, sliding the brass onto a pin, or whatever. I do not know why more people do not use it.:confused: It does take a bit of trial and error to set it up the first time to get the sweet spot between not enough and ripping the rim off but in 5 minutes I was off and swaging. I think it was under $45 shipped to me.
 
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