[reloading for 5.56 NATO vs. 223 Wylde]

I'm curious to read the replies to your question. I built one in 2015. I just went with a Bravo Company std. 16" mid length 5.56 barrel. I've read where there could be a slight difference, but I'm thinking good precision reloads would compensate if there is a difference in the two barrel types. I reload my 5.56 for plinking and target shooting. All of my brass is from factory 5.56 ammo, but I also have some 223 brass from factory stuff.

 

I reloaded for 40 S&W, and 45 ACP since 2013. I just added 9mm. I didn't start reloading for my AR until 2017.

[Winchester small pistol primer issue]

I bought the Presto digital food dehydrator. Works really well completely drying the cases!

[what am I missing about .40 S&W reloading]

I use the EGW case gauges, and they have always passed the plunk test too.

[what am I missing about .40 S&W reloading]

7 minutes ago, Sarge said:

Case length is not really a concern with pistol cases in my experience. I certainly don't ever measure them. Your measurements prove there is indeed a difference between your base and neck measurements. The 40 is straight walled so whatever the number, they should be very close to the same. So, your cases are not getting full length sized. Hope that makes sense. BUT, what matters is if they pass the plunk test in your barrel. If they are falling all the way in and spin freely then they are sized good enough provided they are not loaded too long for the bullet to hit lands.

  What I meant about the Dillon dies being the worst is, they have a larger radius at the bottom of the sizer ring so they don't size as low as most other dies. The large radius is there to supposedly assist with cases feeding into it but they feed fine into my LEE and EGW Udies too.

Thanks for that info Sarge. I've read though the neck is a bit tighter number, and if using the Redding die or any push through, you still need to run them through your sizing die to get the neck in tolerance.

[what am I missing about .40 S&W reloading]

On ‎11‎/‎26‎/‎2018 at 7:26 AM, Sarge said:

Not even close. The GRX is a push through die that sizes the entire case. Standard dies only size so low and Dillon is the worst.

 

Well, not sure what the deal is with my Dillon dies then. I have about 500 nickel once fired that I was going to scrap, but decided to reload them and not worry about picking up the spent cases. I just run them through my sizing die on my 550B and I get .422 to .424 around the head. The neck is .415 to .418. The case length is almost consistent .842.

I think I'm OK with these.

What you think?

[Least expensive 223 powder]

I also agree that H335 is a very good choice!

[Best 40 S&W brass]

When I got my Gen 4 G23, I opted for once fired. I bought Win nickel and brass. Rem RP nickel and brass. Speer nickel and brass, Fed nickel. Blazer brass, and even some CCI brass. All in all I probably purchased a total of 1,500 once fired of the brands mentioned. That was back in 2013, and I still have and load over half of the lot. The only change is the nickel. I do not pick it up anymore.

 

Starting around 2015, I started buying Starline. I can't be happier with that brass. For sure, one of the best on the market. Flawless reloads, and that goes for all my once fired I purchased. I have never had any types of issues with any of them.

[223 brass has crimp/indents on mouth of case]

On ‎7‎/‎20‎/‎2017 at 10:16 AM, mbabin said:

The brass that tested was acceptable in length according to my case gauge.

I do trim when they get to long but these seem to be in range.  But I will continue to keep a lookout for the length.

I didn't see this thread until today.

I also bought (1,000) once fired cases with a collet crimp. I didn't know they were collet crimped until I received them. Personally, I don't care for that type of crimp for reloading but I had to deal with it. Cases are Winchester 5.56. I'm assuming your acceptable length is longer than 1.750? I'm asking because every single case needed trimmed. Yes, the collet crimp isn't fun to deal with, but it is doable. As posted, most of the crimp will get trimmed away from the longer cases. But there are ones that don't need a lot of material removed, so pretty much all of the crimp is still there. The finished rounds do not look or "feel" as nice as taper crimped rounds, but they are perfectly fine. My seating/crimp die is just a standard Redding steel die. You really can't tell from the pic, but they feel fairly smooth at the cannelure.

 

 

[Seat and crimp in one step for FMJ]

I just started reloading my 223 ammo, and didn't find it difficult at all. I just use the steel Redding dies in an old Lee single stage press. Got the seat depth set and thought if I could get the crimp pretty much like factory, I'd do it. Started fooling with the crimp. Seat and crimp in one operation. I think it turned out fairly decent. 

[Which press mounted bullet puller for 40?]

21 hours ago, Edge40 said:

Hornady website says it's intended for rifle cartridges only. Not sure why. 

It's not as easy to pull a pistol bullet with it because there isn't much to grab. Just take your time and get the depth right so you're not grabbing the case.

As others have posted, a Lee single stage with this puller works great. IMHO, of course.

[Trim question when to trim]

52 minutes ago, loaded605 said:

After resizing. I trim everything to 1.750.

Same here.

[Primer Marks]

Sorry, it's an RL550B. Yes, I loosen/tighten the set screw. The machine is still relatively new, being only 8 months old. I don't understand why after disassembly, and basically cleaning nothing it's completely smooth for a while.

Greg

[Primer Marks]

Thanks. That is what I was hoping to hear. The rough cycling is what's doing it then, but not on my part. For some reason after a while, the shellplate will not rotate freely. It starts to act as though it's scraping on something and it's difficult to be gentle. Very random when it happens. Annoying as all heck. I'll take the plate off clean everything (but really nothing there) put it back together and it's smooth as glass for a while then the same thing again. I even have the little needle bearing under the bolt head, and I make sure it's not too tight. Still the same results.

Greg

[Primer Marks]

Hey guys. I just finished loading 600 rounds of .40 S&W. All came out fine, until I did the final 100.

Could flakes of powder on top of the primer plunger cause this? I did see a few here and there, but didn't think anything of it.

If it is caused by powder, is it something I should take extra care in making sure the plunger is clean.

I do blow everything off after every 100 rounds.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

I re-read your original post and noted that you are shooting a Glock 23, with a 4" barrel. That may be where you are missing velocity. Most semi auto tables list .40 as being test fired from a 5" barrel. Also, I have a shooting buddy with the same CED as mine, and his is consistently like 50 fps slower than mine, even when set up end to end.

Yes,after reading a lot of the posts,I see why published fps,and actual fps will most likely always be different. I'm not expecting to get anything near the Hodgdon average,but I'm happy that my most recent numbers are far more consistent than the first ones. From now on I'll always chrono on sunless days.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

I was able to check my numbers again with an overcast day.

Happy to say,they were much more consistent. 806,811,814,814,834,823,847,817,822,836,831,834,844.

One other thing. Are factory loads usually pretty hot?

I wanted to see how different the factory stuff was. I put six rounds of American Eagle 165 gr. FMJ in a mag just to see.

Holy cow!! 1109,1111,1119,1105,1137,1112.

Greg

[Lead Plant Closure]

I found this from a post on another forum.

The smelter closing is a 'primary' smelter. In this case, that refers to the type of work they do and not their position in the market. Primary smelters convert ore into metal ingots. I believe the next largest is in Canada.

There are lots of secondary smelters still operating in the US that recycle lead and cast it. They recover lead of all types from batteries, etc and smelt it down before sending it to the people that actually make products out of it

Too bad they didn't put any money into upgrading their facility. This problem didn't happen overnight,and I'm sure they would have seen this coming. Could be they didn't really care about continuing their business.

Greg

[Factory crimp or taper crimp in .40]

Crimp a pistol bullet, really?

You know that pistol rounds fit in the chamber at the case mouth, yes?

I will never crimp a pistol round, because this can lead to malfunctions and on the worsest scenario, the case mouth stucks into the barrel and the bullet gets pressed in the brass.

A KABOOM! is possible.

Do a friction crimp, what means, you use a taper crimp die and just lay the brass close to the bullet, not more.

The diameter at the case mouth should be the same as where the bullets sits in the brass.

Very continue too.

I'm new at reloading and I even know that is all the more you should do to a straight wall cartridge.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

Thanks guys.

I still have quite a few rounds from this batch.

I'm going to see if the readings are more consistent on a cloudy day.

jnr88 thanks for that link.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

Coming out of a 23 your barrel is likely an inch or so shorter than their test barrel.

Thanks guys. Learning as I go.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

There are so many variables it's not even funny. Different barrels from two identical guns may chrono a little differently. Add in other factors like slightly different barrels lengths, slightly different bullets, temp, etc., and you have some big swings. The figures in the books are only accurate that exact load in the exact firearm that was used to test it.

Thanks! I didn't know that.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

Are Hodgdon's numbers for a 180 grain plated bullet, or a jacketed bullet?

Plated bullets.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

Hi Greg,

Assuming the bullets and cases were essentialy the same the only variable is the amount of powder your equipment throws. I have a Dillon 550 and 650 and do not find the powder throws very consistant on occasion. You might want to weigh some individual loads and chrono again. The other possibility is chrono error. The problems with sunlight and chronograpgraph accracy are well known. Here is a link to an article you may find useful. frfrogspad.com/chrono.htm. Good luck.

I also have a 550B. Being they were my first reloads, I did infact check about every fifth charge,and it was always on the money. From what you stated about the sun,and from what I've been reading,that may have been the problem. Maybe I'll wait for a cloudy day and check again.

Thanks for the reply.

Greg

[CHRONO NUMBERS]

Could someone shed some light on this for me. This is all new to me.

I chrono'ed my first reloads and the numbers are not very consistent. I might add these are the first rounds shot out of my G23 G4. The chronograph is a brand new CE ProChrono.

1st mag: 789,814,826,794,796,848,825 849,811,785,822,835,822.

For some reason only nine recorded on the second mag: 827,797,820,787,829,807,785,783,819.

I used Hodgdon's numbers. I'm assuming if they're number is avg.velocity,which is 872,I'm way off that,or do you take those numbers lightly.

778 avg.

66 Ex. spread

20.32 Std Dev. (MS Excel)

Resized Win nickel .40 S&W cases

Berry 180 gr plated flat point

4.4 gr Win 231

OAL 1.125 (all measure right on the money)

Win SPP

Very light crimp. Just enough to get rid of bell.

Very sunny day.

Thanks for any replies

Greg

[Montana Gold 180gr CMJ, FMJ]

Not sure how many they have when listed in stock,but I've seen them in stock for at least a full day. I guess you have to hit the site at the right time.

Greg