Thoughts on Reloading for 223/556

[bersaguy]

I've been reloading for pistol calibers, 9mm 45acp, 380, 38spl and 357 for the past few years now. But I have not done any work with bottleneck rifle cartridges. I have components and dies for 30 carbine and have prepped and trimmed some of the brass, but thats not quite the same kettle of fish. Thinking about getting a set of dies and projectiles to feed my S&W Sport II. I have a fair amount of brass, as I can't seem to toss brass away even if I don't currently reload for the caliber...a practice which has saved my bacon this year with 9mm. In any event, a few questions before I set out in this endeavor. My current set up is a Lee Value turret press and a Lee Breechlock (not challenger) single stage press. Are either of these suitable for 223/556? Apart from a die set, and the correct trimming arbor, is there any other equipment I need to consider before getting started? Is annealing necessary?, and if so, I know it can be done with a lead pot, but should it be? I know these would be more labor intensive than pistol rounds, just trying to wrap my head around how much more so.
These rounds would be for general plinking, staying proficient with the platform, not so much for match or hunting use. Mainly to conserve the factory rounds that I have in stock. As it looks like we're going to be short on supply for quite a while, thought it would be wise to have an alternative source of ammo for that rifle.
As far as components, I'm good on brass and primers, I have a source for some CFE223 and a limited source for jacketed 55gn but I'm not opposed to casting bullets if need be. Love to hear your thoughts and if there's anything I just haven't considered yet. Thanks!

 

[cfullgraf]

Your presses should work fine. 223 Remington is not a large case and it does not need alot of effort to size.

If you are picking up cases at the range, I'd suggest getting a small base sizing die set since you do not already have dies. Cases fired in your rifle are not a problem, but cases fired in somebody else's rifle may not chamber in yours. They do not cost any different, or much different and it is cheap insurance against chambering issues.

You will need lubricant for sizing. I'd start with Imperial Sizing Wax, Hornady's equivalent, or RCBS Case lube and pad. Stay away from spray on alcohol/lanolin lubricants until you get the feel for the sizing effort. Cases stuck in the sizing die is a royal pain.

You will need some way to remove the lubricant sometime after sizing.

I do not anneal my 223 Remington cases. In an AR-15, I find the primer pockets get loose before anything else on the case fails.

Cases do need to be trimmed, maybe not every firing but after a few firings and sizing. Measure and trim after sizing. I made a go-no-go case length gauge and check every case after each sizing and trim only the ones that are too long. Some folks automatically run every case through their trimmer and let the trimmer decide if the case needs to be trimmed.

You can set your calipers to the max length and lock the blades in place. It then works well as a go-no-go gauge if you want to try that route.

Except for trimming and dealing with the lubricant, I do not find most bottle neck cases more difficult to load than handgun. While I use a progressive press for handgun cartridges, most of my rifle cartridges are loaded on a single stage press. But they could be if you ever move to a progressive press.

Hope this helps.

 

[peels]

I say go for it. I load 223 on a single stage. It will be slow, but if you have the free time and supplies, adding 223 to the mix isn't that bad.

Make sure you have the appropriate case lube. I have been, along with a lot of others, been using 10:1 99% alcohol to liquid lanolin mix. It's been flawless

 

[Insignificant bill]

It's not hard at all

 

[Charlie98]

To me, it boils down to a time issue. It takes a fair amount of time to prep 1000 5.56mm cases, particularly if you are having to trim... time I would rather spend on other cartridges that are not as cheap as 5.56mm. That is not to say I can't do it, or don't do it... and I have the components... and this is even considering I assemble my cartridges on a progressive, saving me even further time.

One other thing... you may have brass that has crimped in primers. You will have to swage or cut out the crimp the first time you decap those... or you won't be able to get a new primer to seat. It is usually present in military surplus or overruns... Lake City (LC) for example, but I have also seen regular Federal brass with crimped primers, too, so you never know. As Chuck mentioned, I don't anneal... .223/5.56mm brass is too plentiful to worry about an extra firing or two.

If you are firing these in an AR, you need to make sure the primer is seated flush at a minimum, and... better... a little lower than flush, to avoid the potential of a slam-fire.

 

[cfullgraf]

I forgot to mention crimped primers. You have to remove the crimp so that the new primer will seat properly. But removing the crimp is a one time thing for each case.

Not all 223 Remington/5.56 NATO ammunition has crimped primers, but lots of it is. Primarily military ammunition has crimped primers but there are some commercial offerings with crimped primers.

 

[readyeddy]

Three things to keep in mind: 1) crimp removal, 2) trimming, and 3) lube.

Don’t try to use hand tools to remove primer crimps and trimming brass. Find tools you can attach to a power drill. But be aware of loose primer pockets after reaming out the crimp. A blown primer can get stuck in your action and jam your gun. If a primer goes in loose, mark the case head with a sharpie so you can throw away the case after firing.

Lube generously to avoid stuck cases. If you do get a stuck case while resizing find a YouTube video for instruction and have a punch handy.

Other than those considerations it’s similar to loading pistol cartridges.

See if you can find Hornady 55 gr FMJBT in bulk. They give decent accuracy.

 

[edwardware]

For plinking ammo, you're already setup. You'll want a good lube (good = thoughtful application), a small pocket reamer for crimps, and a trim/chamfer set.

For your AR, I wouldn't trim anything that isn't over max; you don't know the difference.

Get to it, and learn.

 

[Typetwelve]

To me, it boils down to a time issue. It takes a fair amount of time to prep 1000 5.56mm cases, particularly if you are having to trim... time I would rather spend on other cartridges that are not as cheap as 5.56mm. That is not to say I can't do it, or don't do it... and I have the components... and this is even considering I assemble my cartridges on a progressive, saving me even further time.

Exactly.

223 is just too cheap in bulk to reload it...and yes, I know the current situation. Like anything else, this will eventually cool off and bulk 223 will hit the market again. I shoot a ton of garbage Wolf or Silver Bear when I can get cases for under $200.

With that said, I do load match grade 223 and am very thankful that I do that, it saves me a ton of $$...but the cost in time prepping everything is large. I was just prepping some 223 brass yesterday and was thinking to myself how much of a labor of love it is. I'll tumble, full length resize, trim, de-bur, then primer pocket clean each one...and that takes some serious time, let me tell you.

All of that work to rat-tat-tat bulk 223 at the range is not something I'd want to do.

 

[2ndtimer]

Exactly.

223 is just too cheap in bulk to reload it...and yes, I know the current situation. Like anything else, this will eventually cool off and bulk 223 will hit the market again. I shoot a ton of garbage Wolf or Silver Bear when I can get cases for under $200.

With that said, I do load match grade 223 and am very thankful that I do that, it saves me a ton of $$...but the cost in time prepping everything is large. I was just prepping some 223 brass yesterday and was thinking to myself how much of a labor of love it is. I'll tumble, full length resize, trim, de-bur, then primer pocket clean each one...and that takes some serious time, let me tell you.

All of that work to rat-tat-tat bulk 223 at the range is not something I'd want to do.

Have you priced AVAILABLE 223/5.56 ammo lately? It looks like brass cased generic 55 gr FMJ is approaching $600 per thousand (basically double what it was 6 months ago), and might well go even higher as the election approaches. God only knows what it will cost if the Democrats sweep in November. Even steel case .223 ammo that I would never shoot in my firearms is $500 per thousand. Too cheap in bulk to reload it? You must have a lot more money than I do or you aren’t married!

 

[packetloss]

Exactly.

223 is just too cheap in bulk to reload it...and yes, I know the current situation. Like anything else, this will eventually cool off and bulk 223 will hit the market again. I shoot a ton of garbage Wolf or Silver Bear when I can get cases for under $200.

Right now it's essentially unavailable. So no it's not too cheap to reload. It's kind of do you want some ammo or do you want to wait x months/years for ammo to be available. Although I will add, bullets are now starting to take a hit on availability. Yes it will pass, but it might be a long time.

 

[Charlie98]

Right now it's essentially unavailable. So no it's not too cheap to reload.

To quote meself...

That is not to say I can't do it, or don't do it... and I have the components...

Everything is a balance. For those of us who made it through the Obama-era Dark Ages, having a factory ammo stash to go along with a component and powder stash only makes sense... because here we are, again. I got caught back then with about half a pound of H335 to load 2K 5.56mm bullets... which didn't work so well. For people who have time on their hands, loading blasting 5.56mm probably works...

 

[jmorris]

Are either of these suitable for 223/556? Apart from a die set, and the correct trimming arbor, is there any other equipment I need to consider before getting started? Is annealing necessary?

Yes the presses will work.

I’d consider a case gauge for setting up the die but one is not a “must have”.

No, most 223 is reloaded without being annealed. There are far more reloaders out there that never have annealed than there are ones that do. Of the ones that do, there are a number of them that would be better off if they didn’t, because of their method.

 

[Typetwelve]

Have you priced AVAILABLE 223/5.56 ammo lately? It looks like brass cased generic 55 gr FMJ is approaching $600 per thousand (basically double what it was 6 months ago), and might well go even higher as the election approaches. God only knows what it will cost if the Democrats sweep in November. Even steel case .223 ammo that I would never shoot in my firearms is $500 per thousand. Too cheap in bulk to reload it? You must have a lot more money than I do or you aren’t married!

I'll be honest, I don't really care about "lately"...I don't buy during panics. If someone is just now getting into it, it's a lose-lose no matter what, even reloading components are hard to come by.

I bought cheap and will do it again when the prices eventually drop. The upcoming presidential election will decide when that is, if Trump is re-elected, thing will settle.

 

[packetloss]

Are you saying you have full control over when cheap will be?

What if it's not for 8 years, do you truly have enough cheaply bought ammo/components to make it 8 years? I don't and to be honest, I don't want to stockpile that much stuff.

 

[Typetwelve]

Are you saying you have full control over when cheap will be?

What if it's not for 8 years, do you truly have enough cheaply bought ammo/components to make it 8 years? I don't and to be honest, I don't want to stockpile that much stuff.

No and well...kinda, I guess.

I'll just do like I've done in the past, slow down shooting or stop it all together.

I keep my "emergency stash" of ammo and it's never touched. It's there just in case and will be. Looking at it that way, I can go way longer than 8 years if need-be.

For my everyday shooting ammo? If I run down to low levels, I'll just stop shooting it. Sucks, but it's that easy. I did it in 2009, 2013...I can do it again. My AR sat untouched for nearly 2 years because of my not being able to find affordable 223.

I'll say it won't go 8 years. Post Obama election in 2008 was only about a year. Post Newtown in late 2012 was about the same except for the 22LR situation. I doubt it will run that long.

...and if I'm wrong, so be it. I do have a poop-ton of 22LR, I can always switch to that to scratch that itch.

 

[irishlad]

No and well...kinda, I guess.

I'll just do like I've done in the past, slow down shooting or stop it all together.

I keep my "emergency stash" of ammo and it's never touched. It's there just in case and will be. Looking at it that way, I can go way longer than 8 years if need-be.

For my everyday shooting ammo? If I run down to low levels, I'll just stop shooting it. Sucks, but it's that easy. I did it in 2009, 2013...I can do it again. My AR sat untouched for nearly 2 years because of my not being able to find affordable 223.

I'll say it won't go 8 years. Post Obama election in 2008 was only about a year. Post Newtown in late 2012 was about the same except for the 22LR situation. I doubt it will run that long.

...and if I'm wrong, so be it. I do have a poop-ton of 22LR, I can always switch to that to scratch that itch.

+1. I am well stocked also. Archery and fishing are enjoyable too.

 

[Offfhand]

No, most 223 is reloaded without being annealed. There are far more reloaders out there that never have annealed than there are ones that do. Of the ones that do, there are a number of them that would be better off if they didn’t, because of their method.

Mr. Morris hits the target with his comments about annealing. The there is an old and honored truism in the reloading hobby that "more brass cases have been ruined by amateur annealing than have been saved." I expect this is more true now than ever.

 

[Typetwelve]

Mr. Morris hits the target with his comments about annealing. The there is an old and honored truism in the reloading hobby that "more brass cases have been ruined by amateur annealing than have been saved." I expect this is more true now than ever.

I'm no expert on reloading 223, but I've done my share and they've all worked as designed. I've never done and annealing.

 

[azrocks]

Just started loading for bottleneck rifle cartridges as well, bersaguy, after a lot of straight-wall pistol, so I know where you're coming from. So far I'm using new brass for load development, but the brass itself is not finish sized nor trimmed, so the process is pretty much the same as it would be from fired & cleaned brass. I purchased the Frankford Arsenal universal case trimmer, as well as a Lyman Case Prep Multi Tool. The former works with a large range

 

[Insignificant bill]

Annealing brass is not that hard to do.

 

[Dudedog]

Trimming .223 brass can be a pain. A couple of easy ways to do it.
I use the Worlds Finest Trimmer (WFT) chuck it up in a drill stick case in trimmed. (needs 1/2" chuck)
I don't even measure .223 brass any more other than to make sure the trimmer is set right.
Poke it in, if it needs to be trimmed it gets trimmed if not it doesn't. Just as fast as measuring and making a trim and don't trim pile.

 

[rdnktrkr]

I like to process brass in stages so it doesn't seem like a burden.

 

[Charlie98]

Trimming .223 brass can be a pain. A couple of easy ways to do it.
I use the Worlds Finest Trimmer (WFT) chcuk it up in a drill stick case in trimmed. (needs 1.2" chuck)
I don't even measure .223 brass any more other than to make sure the trimmer is set right.
Poke it in, if it needs to be trimmed it gets trimmed if not it doesn't. Just as fast as measuring and making a trim and don't trim pile.

A Giraud Tri-way in 5.56mm and 7.62mm is on the Christmas List...

 

[cfullgraf]

Lube generously to avoid stuck cases. If you do get a stuck case while resizing find a YouTube video for instruction and have a punch handy.

Lubricating generously is not a bad idea but too much lubricant around the shoulder will result in dented cases in the shoulder area.

A dented shoulder is not the end of the world, you can load the case and it will fire form to the chamber the next time it is chambered.

Time and experience will tell you when you have enough lubricant applied to each case. But, err on the heavy side until you get the "feel". Stuck cases in sizing dies are no fun.