I am new to reloading .223/5.56 cases and I came upon a few pieces of once fired brass that measure an average total length of 1.740 inches after full-length resizing. I know the published case length is 1.760 inches, and almost all the cases I have seen have needed various amounts of length trimming.
I had 17 cases (stamped .223 REM) that measured anywhere from 1.738 inches to 1.743 inches in length (standard deviation of 2.029 inches).
My question is should I toss these? They seem very short to me and I am suspicious. These will be fired in an AR chambered for .223 Wylde so I am not looking for benchrest performance. But if precision is affected by the relatively short cases, I will not use them. Opinions? Advice?
Lou
I had 17 cases (stamped .223 REM) that measured anywhere from 1.738 inches to 1.743 inches in length (standard deviation of 2.029 inches).
My question is should I toss these? They seem very short to me and I am suspicious. These will be fired in an AR chambered for .223 Wylde so I am not looking for benchrest performance. But if precision is affected by the relatively short cases, I will not use them. Opinions? Advice?
Lou