Loading .223

Yes. It will be fine.
On a rare occasion, people need a Small Base Die for reliable functioning in AR's.

Ruddog13 said:

I have a question for the .223 guys. If I load .223 or 5.56 with a FL .223 die set, can I shoot them through a AR rifle. If not, why?

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Yes. Just ran around 200 standard reloads through a Palmetto State Armory AR-15 last weekend.
The only time you need 'small base' dies is if you have a gun built with a target style chamber that is extra tight. With some of these, you may have issue with standard dies. If you have a standard AR15, zero issue with standard dies... at least none that I've ever run across.

Small Base resizes the cartridge smaller all the way down to the base.

Of course, others are free to chime in with their experiences.

I have loaded for a half dozen ARs and so far none of them have had issue with a basic set of Lee dies. I’m considering selling those dies on Gunbroker now... because I don’t need them anymore. But I hate to lose that capability as a bunch of my friends still shoot 223rem.... Anyways, there are some ARs that require small base dies. My belief without any supporting evidence whatsoever is that the die makers have tightened up the standard dies and the problems that people were having with tight chambers has largely disappeared. The “small base die” discussions are few and far between now which has driven that belief.

I use standard Lee dies with no problems.

.223 Remington and 5.56 are the same at SAAMI Spec's.

"The.223 Remington cartridge is specified at a SAAMI max pressure of 55,000psi compared to its “twin” the 5.56 mm cartridge which is specified by NATO-EPVAT at 62,366 psi."

5.56 NATO cases may be thicker in the head/web area.

Properly adjusted standard dies will work on nearly all SAAMI spec chambers and not require small base dies.
If you have issues with reloads that aren't chambering turn the sizing die another quarter turn downward. Even one thousandth may prevent proper chambering. Ask me how I know this?

When reloading for the .223 consider case preparation completely separate from the reloading steps. Discussing case preparation and reloading the .223 here would create a complete thread drift!

Smiles,

You can. Enjoy your reloads.

Ruddog13 said:

I see, what is the difference in the small base die

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99.999% of rounds you load with an FL die with chamber and fire just fine. Probably even 100%.
That said, I still use Small Base dies.

The cases are the same dimension though there is noted case volume differences between the two. Then in the Hornady #10 Manual there are 3 sections; 223Remington, 223 Remington Service Rifle and 5.56mm NATO. The 223 Rem only has data for bullets up to 60gr.. Service Rifle has data for bullets up to 80gr.. NATO has data up to 80gr.. The load data for the 55gr bullet is not the same in this manual for the 223 and the 5.56NATO. The NATO load is lower and with some powders by a lot!

As long as the shoulder is pushed back to SAAMI spec they should chamber and fire. Now with that said, who's primers did you use? I don't recommend Std Federal due to slam fires. That you will have to test in your AR. Some are more violent than others depending on mfg. The most severe test is drop one in the chamber, point in a save direction, then release the bolt. Then load 2 in a mag and test for function, bolt lock back on last round. If all good you should be fine.

So I did have some feeding issues with my rounds resized with the lee resizing die in the three die .223 set. I bought a RCBS small base resizing die and have probably reloaded and shot 2500 rounds through my ARs and Mossberg bolt action with out any issues. I am sure there are plenty of people who have never experience issues with the regular FL dies but I did. It is different for every rifle.

I have loaded thousands of rounds of 223 and 556 with the same set of dies for 20 years and never had a round not chamber. I have loaded for machine guns, semi autos, and bolt guns and picked up brass at the shoots with no clue as to the history of it and maybe a few over the years didn’t seem to want to size right and got scrapped. Every other piece of brass has been run through my dies with success. Proper lubing and die setup solves more problems that buying more expensive dies.

Most 223/556 FL dies are defacto SB. I've never had a problem useing several different makes of FL sizer in any of several 556 chambers. No signs of case streach either. Take a caliper to a factory round @ .200" and measure again once you fire it. Then size it and measure again. You will see what I mean.

I have loaded for multiple AR's using Hornady, RCBS, and Redding full length sizing dies with no issues with dies or rifles. A small based die is very rarely ever needed for AR rifles. A small based die sizes the body of the case a thousandth or two more than a FL. I do recommend a headspace gauge to measure how much you push shoulders back. Usually it's recommended to push shoulders back .002" for a bolt rifle and .003-.004" for a semi-auto. That means pushed back from a measured case fired in your rifle. I like both the RCBS Precision Mic in .223 Rem. or Hornady's Headspace Gauge Set that works with your calipers.

I've never had an issue with fl dies either, in fact I also have a neck sizer that consistently loads rounds that work in both my AR and bolt action. I also anneal each case after 3 firings to keep brass softer, easier to resize, but that is another process that will divert your thread.