.223 To Be My First Rifle Reload

[ranger7]

I've been reloading .45 ACP and .38 Special on a Lee Turret press for about 2 years now. I've done 3-4 thousand rounds of each caliber without any significant problems. I'm happy with my setup and my reloads. I've kept thing pretty simple using Bullseye for both. I've reloaded w/ cast, jacketed and plated bullets.

I just bought a Bushmaster .223 and think I would like try reloading for it. I've asked one or two people if they had problems reloading .223 and they weren't very specific and said, just to make sure I lube the cases.

Is there anything else special/different about reloading for .223 than what I've encountered reloading pistol ammo? Any special equipment I need other than the dies? What are some suggested loads to start with?

I hope to use range pickup cases. I have a few hundred pounds of unsorted brass of all calibers in my basement. I'll be sorting through that for .223 soon. Any preference on brands of cases to reload?

Alan

 

[Clark]

.223 is the easiest to get good groups.

I load at the range with 5 presses and 5 shell holders.

Press #1 [Lee reloader]:
I de cap with a decapping die.

I clean the brass and primer pocket only if I feel like it.
I clean the brass with fine steel wool and a twist of the wrist.
I use a Lyman Pocket Uniformer to clean the primer pocket.

Press #2 [RCBS Rockchucker]:
I take the expander ball / decapping pin stem out of the sizing die.

I apply Imperial sizing wax to the outside of the case.

I full partial full length re size as far as I can without setting the shoulder back.

Press #3 [Lee reloader]:
I prime with a Lee Auto Prime II

I put the powder in the case with an RCBS uniflow powder meter.

Press #4 [RCBS Partner]:
I seat the bullet.
The seating depth is checked with a Sinclair bullet comparitor [large nut with holes in it] and dial calipers. What ever seating depth the rifle wants to shoot accurately with, I will oblige.

I write things on the target like, " 3-20-04 Ruger #1 .223, LC brass, CCI 400, 60 gr. SP moly bullet seated to 2.89" measured with Sinclair nut, 25 gr. IMR4895, 3309, 3260, 3229, 3284 fps, .7" 5 shot group at 100m"
When I get home I type up a range report email to a pen pal who scrutinizes me for good lab write up technique.

Then despite my senile memory, my email record of range reports will educate me before my next trip to the range.

 

[Coltdriver]

I have only been reloading since last January so I am no expert at it.

But the first cartridge I reloaded was .223.

Its good for me because with the powders you use there is no danger of a double charge since it just wont fit in the case. 25 grains pretty much fills the case. The most I have ever packed in one is 28 grains of Varget.

All I have reloaded for is a 1 in 12 twist Ruger so my bullets are 40 and 50 grain size. You can load with a heavier bullet with a 1 in 9 twist which your bushmaster probably has.

I have a Bushmaster too. It may be worth while to take a look at the barrel and see if the chambering on yours is .223 or 5.56. There is a little difference in the throat length. The .223 is a little tighter chambering.

With my Ruger there is no way I can seat the bullet even remotely close to the lands. With a .223 chamber in a bushmaster you may find that you can seat the bullet out there within a few thousanths of the lands. I don't think that is possible with the 5.56 chambering.

If it is the case that you have a .223 chamber then you may want to pay a little attention to crimping your rounds. I have no experience loading for my AR but I understand that the 5.56 spec calls for crimping the rounds so that the bullets can withstand the vigorous environment they can experience from a 30 round mag and all of the attendant jostling. I don't know if the problem is them un seating or getting packed further in. If they unseat your AR may jam or not feed right.

If you are into varmint shooting you can get some serious speed out of a well loaded light .223 round. 3300 to 3600 fps makes for an impressive arrival with a Sierra Blitz or a Hornady VMAX.

 

[theCZ]

Well, my experience with .223 Rem has been very satisfying. Usuing a Sierra manual, I started with 40 grain bullets and IMR 4198. Now I'm experimenting with 50 grain noslers and H335, which is a great powder. I'd also try Winchester 748 (I think, it's something like that).

Gee how funny, another change to post my favorite picture from my .223 that I shot last week.

 

[atek3]

223 was my first cartridge for reloading too. I started with once fired and processed lake city brass, bulk sierra moly coated SMK's, WW WSR primers, varget powder... My first group was sub MOA, my 'accuracy' load grouped into about 0.26 inch at 100 yd. I called it "worked up"

atek3

 

[Sam Adams]

atek3

OK, so what exactly is your accuracy load (and in what rifle)?

 

[atek3]

23.4 gr varget, OAL 2.25 inch, tikka M595 rebarreled w/ 26" trueflight 1-8 twist barrel. The scope on top was a B&L 4200.
See what I mean? Light load.

Thanks,
atek3

 

[g56]

If you don't already have them, you will need a dial caliper and a case trimmer, pistol cartridges don't really stretch, rifle cases stretch and need to be trimmed often. Be sure you check case length before reloading any rifle cartridge, if you don't check case length before loading you will end up with some cases that won't chamber, trust me on this!

It's far easier to trim brass before you load it, than have to break loaded cartridges down, and then trim them!!!

 

[Bullet]

I'm not sure I would use brass picked up at a range. I used to do that until I had a case seprate leaving the front 3/4 stuck in the chamber. Sometimes this is why the brass was left at the range. It might have been shot alot already. Also if you use military brass you should use 1/2 grain less to start than non military brass (because it's thicker). It's been awhile since I loaded 223 so would someone verify that 1/2 grain less for military brass is correct?

 

[ftierson]

I have loaded a bunch of 5.56mm over the years, both for semis and bolt guns (although most has been for semis). It is an easy cartridge to load.

First, many will tell you that small base dies are necessary for the .223 if it is to be fired in a semi... I have not found this to be the case. I use a standard Full Length resizing die (usually RCBS, but sometimes a Lee), and bottom it out against the shellholder when resizing the case.

As mentioned above by g56, you will need to get a cheap (or expensive, if you like) dial caliper and a case trimmer. I save up a bunch of cases, and then load a sizeable batch at once. I trim the cases every time that I load them (which usually means that little neck material is removed on the ones that I previously reloaded).

Actually, let me run you through my process.

First, I remove the fired primer with a Lee Decapping Die. I then run the batch of cases through a RCBS Primer Pocket Swaging Die to remove any primer pocket crimp on new military cases that haven't previously been reloaded. After removing the crimp, I clean the primer pocket with a tool made by Herter's (mentioned to show my age, I guess. But the tool still works well after 38 years of use).

I then wash the cases in a mild Palmolive Dish Washing solution with hot water. I then dry the cases on a sheet out on my back deck in the sun.

I then run the cases through the RCBS FL sizing die, using the RCBS Case Lube II (which is water soluable). Any water soluable case lube will work. Do not use too much. It doesn't take much after the first case, and you will end up with dents in the case neck if you over lube.

Then, I wash the cases again as above, since I do not remove the lube after sizing the cases. If you try to rub the lube off each case individually after resizing, 100 cases will take you forever...

I then trim the cases to length, with a powered Forester trimmer (that is cobbed up to a sewing machine motor). I then, as a separate step, debur the case neck, inside and out.

Then, I throw the cases into a Midway Vibe Polisher and make them shiny...

Next, I seat the new primer using a Lee Auto Prime (the handheld one with the primer tray), which works great... I almost always use CCI400 primers, even for the semis, although some prefer the harder CCI 41 for AR15 type rifles. I have put several thousand rounds through AR-15s, and have never had problems with the CCI400. Lee also recommends the CCI primers for their tool, citing potential problems with other primers if an accidental detonation of primers in the tool occurs... Every once in a while, I use some Win primers.

Most of what I load is M193 ball spec ammo. I use IMI M193 bullets or Win M193 bullets. The IMI ones are better.

I use a Lee Perfect Powder Measure to throw powder charges (of H335, or AA 2230C, or WC846, or WC844, or Win 748, or, sometimes a little of the newer Finnish stick powders or Varget). I have blocks made that hold 300 cases, and I drop powder charges into all cases before the next step, which allows me to check every individual case visually for the same powder level.

I then seat the bullet to the cannelure, using a RCBS or Lee bullet seating die. Then, as a separate step, I crimp the bullet using a Lee Factory Crimp Die. I believe that this last step is important for cartridges used in semis...

I then shoot them...

I use every boxer primed case that I can find anywhere... However, I do inspect them carefully before using them. If you have difficulty identifying a case displaying signs of an impending head separation, you will be wise to use newer cases... And such signs can be particularly difficult to spot in the .223. Fortunately, head separations are quite rare in this cartridge if it has been correctly reloaded.

I do not differentiate between military and commercial cases in terms of the powder charge. I have found that there is usually not enough of a difference to worry about. This is true only for the .223, however, for you must be much more careful about military versus commercial with the 7.62mm NATO/.308 Win and the .30-06. In other words, in the usage of scores of different 5.56/.223 cases, I have not found military 5.56 cases to be significantly thicker in the web than .223 commercial cases. However, this is not to say that such a problem is impossible to encounter. Be careful.

I also chronograph every powder charge/bullet combo that I load before loading in bulk.

Have fun. It's a great cartridge to load for, and it makes shooting your Bushmaster really cheap. I can shoot the .223 much cheaper than a .22WMR.

By the way, when your friend said to lube the cases, I'm sure that I don't have to mention that he meant lubing them before resizing, and didn't mean lubing the cartridges before firing them. It is also important to remove the lube after resizing the cases, which I accomplish by washing the cases. You can accomplish the same thing by using a paper towel to wipe each case off. It just takes a long time to wipe every one.

By the way again, my guess is that your Bushmaster has a 1/9 twist barrel. Most of the AR-15 type rifles produced by others than Colt over the past 15 years have a 1/9, compared to 1/7 in newer Colts. The original Colt AR-15 SP1 (and M16 and M16A1) had a 1/12 twist, which was developed to stabalize the M193 55gr FMJBT bullet. A 1/12 barrel will shoot 55gr bullets perfectly, since the twist was designed for them. Personally, I prefer 1/12 for what I shoot. It's just not very easy to get rifles with 1/12 anymore. Having said that, the 1/9 (and even 1/7) is fine for everything except the lightest .224 bullets...

 

[Okiecruffler]

Over the past year I've loaded thousands of .223 rounds for my Contender. A little over 100 loads with 7 different powders and 6 different bullets. Finally settled on one full power load with Hornady V-max 40gr bullets and IMR 4198 and one reduced velocity load of Blue Dot powder and Sierra 50gr SP. Both are 1/2MOA loads.

 

[Blackcloud6]

I have a Bushmaster too. It may be worth while to take a look at the barrel and see if the chambering on yours is .223 or 5.56. There is a little difference in the throat length. The .223 is a little tighter chambering.

Clotdriver:

When you talk about the difference in chamber are you refeerring to a chamber done to SAMMI Specs and one to Milspecs? In my mind there is no difference in ".223" and "5.56." The former is the inch measurement and the latter the metric. SAMMI spec chambers are usuall made to a tighhter tolerance than milspec which are desgined to ensure the ability to use ammuntion from various manufactueres.

Ranger7: are you going to use a progressive press? If so, make sure you chack case length after sizing it. You may have to trim it after it goes up inot the sizing die.

 

[Coltdriver]

Blackcloud,

It turns out that there is a slight difference in the dimensions of the chamering between .223 and what is referred to as 5.56.

The throat is a little longer in 5.56.

You can order an AR with either a .223 chambering or a 5.56 chambering.

A regular NATO spec 5.56 round is crimped in anticipation of being bounced around in the magazine under full auto fire. The crimping by itself increases chamber pressure a bit. If you combine that with a very short jump to the lands then you can increase pressure a lot. This would be the hazard of using NATO 5.56 in a regular .223 chamber. Regular .223 ammo is not crimped. I have also read (but have never confirmed) that some NATO 5.56 ammo has a slightly heavier web around the base of the case. The theory is that there is less space in the mil spec cartridge to put powder in, so once again you may want to pay attention to higher pressures. Many of the .223 loads are a compressed load, ie 28 grains of Varget fills up the case.

I have never heard of anyone blowing up a .223 by shooting a 5.56 round in it but I have been cautioned by others more knowledgeable than I to pay attention to this.

All that being said I have excellent accuracy out of my 16" 5.56 chambering on my Bushmaster. I don't target shoot and my interest is in 55 grain and under bullets for varmints. For the fellows wishing to shoot heavier target rounds the .223 chambering is usually the way they go.

 

[Turk]

RANGE BRASS

Use caution. I reload over 25 calibers and on the only time I leave brass is when I don't want to reload it due times fired. I never pick up 9mm Para it's so cheap already sized it not worth the hassle.

BE SURE you check the inside of the case on range brass you won't believe what you find dead and alive.

I shot at a small three position range and the first thing I check is the Trash barrel for empty boxes of rounds then once at the fireling line you can check what's on the ground. Most people save the boxes if they reload. I save the box even if I leave the brass on the ground. If I have 4 empty boxes of 45 ACP in the trash and find an equal amount on the ground then I'll save them. If you look close especally at the rim you can tell if it's once fired brass.

If there's any doubt about the safety of Range Brass DO NOT use it.

Turk

Remember to pray for our troops.

 

[ranger7]

Thanks for all the great information. I was cleaning and hording all the .223 barss I could find and expected all the commercial headstamps to not have primer crimps. (The obvious military headstamps had staked primers.) Then someone pointed out the crimps that went all the way around the primers, which seem to be on most of the brass I have. My FFL says he uses an RCBS primer pocket swager on his .223 brass,

The added complication with the crimped primer pockets and activities (including sighting in and playing with two new Bushmasters) has put my reloading on hold for a while. Both rifles have 1 in 9 twist. the chambering is 5.56. Case trimming is also a new area to me and I don't have a trimmer yet.

I have the Lee Dies, Vargent powder, CCI primers and Winchester 55 gr FMJBT bullets (all still unopened) waiting to get used when I find the time and the initiative to get started.

Alan