aedavis

I think that BrassMan is referring only to the brass he has for sale, if I'm reading that correctly. Here's a pic of some brass I just pulled out of my miscellaneous 223 bucket - the group on the left is commercial 1F (no crimp), while the FC on the right has a crimped primer. I haven't purchased factory ammo in many years, but my friends do (and give me the brass!) and I know you can buy Federal Gold Medal Match 223 (with a 69gr Sierra MK) without a primer crimp. I am pretty sure that Winchester White Box 223 is uncrimped also, as is their Power Point and other hunting loads.

Actually, I have Federal, Winchester, and PMC cases that don't have crimped pockets. Most commercial brass doesn't have crimped primers while virtually all military brass does. Look at this page for a picture of a crimped primer pocket. 3rd picture down shows a crimped pocket on the right and a reamed out pocket on the left. http://carteach0.blogspot.com/2007/11/crimped-primer-pocket-fix-alternate-fix.html Once you remove the crimp, you won't have to crimp the primer again. I've used my deburr tool (like in the link above) to remove crimps before and I currently use a countersink drill bit. Most people seem to agree that the Dillon swage tool is great, but you can also use a swage die from CH4D or RCBS. Here's a good link that discusses using a swage die from CH4D: http://www.surplusrifle.com/shooting2005/squeezeplay2/index.asp Regarding powder, I've had good luck with BLC-2 in my 223. It probably isn't the cheapest, but it is as cheap as anything else I can buy locally ($120 for an 8lb canister).

Here's what I've found in my 16" Colt 1/9 HBAR. I can get 3 shot MOA groups with the following combination: Rem or LC case Rem small rifle primer (6 1/2) 27.0 grains W748 Hornady 55gr SP My velocities are about the same as yours in your 16" barrel. I didn't see any improvement in accuracy when shooting 69gr SMKs in this same rifle, but with a 1/7 or 1/8 twist you might. I've never used the Hornady 55gr FMJs, but I've heard of others getting good accuracy out of them, so I think with your choices in components you should be able to find something that shoots well. Your extreme spread seems about the same as what I got, but I don't record that information so I can't be certain. I'm not sure I answered your questions - if you have something specific let me know. Allan

Clark: Is there anything to watch out for when loading 45 ACP with Power Pistol? I use Power Pistol for my 9mm and 38 Special loads now and have been pleased with it. I am planning on picking up a 1911 in the next few months and would like to load standard velocity 230gr FMJs for it using Power Pistol. I plan to work up to Alliant's published maximum load of 7.2 grains. Just wondering, Allan

My weights for brass match almost exactly those of 'jmorris'. The only thing I can add is that 1000 38 Super cases weigh 9.30 lbs - this is with the primer. I don't know how many fit in a gallon Zip Lock - sorry.

I should add that I use corn cob instead of walnut. The corn cob seems to last longer than the walnut and doesn't get dusty like the walnut does.

I usually toss my polishing media when it seems to take too long to get a nice shine on the cases. I don't know how many cases this equates too, but I generally get 20 or so tumbling runs out of my polishing media. I use cut up dryer sheets in every load and this seems to extend the life of the media.

I'm echoing what other people have already said in this thread, but . . . I have experimented a lot this year with different tumbling options. What I've settled on is using 2 batches of corn cob. I tumble brass in untreated corn cob for one hour and then I tumble the brass in corncob with either NuFinish or Frankford Arsenal polish for 4-6 hours for a high shine. I've used walnut (Kaytee Lizard Bedding) and found it too dusty, even with polishing liquid added. I've used dryer sheets to collect and pull out the dust; this helped, but I still got a lot of dust. I've also poured the walnut back and forth between buckets on a windy day to get rid of some dust; this didn't help a whole lot. I haven't really seen that the walnut cleans better than corncob so I'm abandoning the walnut altogether. As far as buying economical corn cob media: I have a Grainger store locally. I can buy 50# of fine corn cob (20/40 grit) for $30 and I don't have to pay for shipping when I pick it up at the store. I haven't purchased any yet because I am still working through my existing supply, but when I'm ready for more corn cob that's what I'll be using. I haven't called around to sandblasting places and probably won't as the Grainger stuff is a pretty good price. I've used the WalMart corn cob (sold as pet bedding) but it is too large for rifle cases and gets stuck easily. It works okay for pistol only. I've used Mini Cob pet bedding from Petco with good success, but they don't stock it regularly and I don't want to have to stop in every week looking for it. Hope this helps.

I shoot Hornady 55gr SPs over BLC2 powder, with a Rem 6.5 primer in my 16" Colt HBAR - I get consistent MOA groups when benching this load. I use either LC or Rem brass. It isn't the cheapest option (you can get FMJ for slightly cheaper), but I like the performance. I buy the bullets at www.grafs.com and buy the powder (in 8 lb jugs) and primers locally at Sportsmans Warehouse. The cost to load 1000 of them is $163 (not including brass - I have a lot).

I buy bullets from wherever I can get the best price online. Rifle bullets I usually get from: Midway Grafs Pistol bullets I have been getting from: TJ Conevera's I buy primers and powder locally from Sportsmans Warehouse, in bulk quantities.

I reload for 9mm Glocks on my SDB. The 9mm sizing die will size down a bulged (Glocked) 9mm case enough that it will chamber correctly. If it doesn't, call Dillon and they'll send you another one. I bought my SDB used - the original sizing die wouldn't size the 9mm case enough but the replacement die works fine.

I just bought a Pact Club Timer 3 and it meets your criteria except for the headphone jack. I did a bit of research before purchasing but I didn't see a lot of difference between the CED 7000, Pocket Pro, and PACT so I went with what I was familiar with (my shooting partners use the PACT Club Timer 3).

I have a RockChucker and SDB mounted on a 4' long bench. I put the SDB on the right side of the bench and sit in front of it to load. It is a bit crowded but that's the space I have to work with. I have my components stored in cabinets above the bench and only have out what I'm using at the time, so the desktop is not cluttered.

I am right eye dominant but left handed. I shoot long guns off my left shoulder, with or without optics. I shoot handguns left handed but using my right eye, if that makes sense. I don't see a problem with this and if I do my part, I put rounds on target. Being a lefty as a shooter is a hassle, and if you teach your son to shoot long guns left handed, you subject him to a very limited availability of lefty guns. The situation is improving, but I'd let him shoot both ways and see which feels more comfortable or natural to him but I wouldn't recommend pushing him to lefty long gun. Allan

I've used NuFinish, Turtle Wax, Lyman polish, and Midway/Frankford Arsenal polish. NuFinish seems to work as well as any of them, and it's easier for me to get locally. I use it with corn cob or walnut, whatever I can get cheaper.

For my AR (223), I used to size first, then trim. I have since changed over to an Xdie for this caliber and now trim first, then size. Allan

My Pact Model 1's skyscreens have been shot 3 times, twice by me and once by a friend. Fortunately they're cheap, and Pact has gotten replacements out right away. First time, my friend shot the screens with my Ruger 44 Mag Redhawk. I'm not sure how that happened. Second time, I shot the screens with my Smith 44 Mag. I was chronographing 300 grain hard cast loads and it turned me into a flinching idiot - oops. Third time, my MAK90 doubled when I was doing some load testing. Allan

I use the large ice cream buckets too. I also use margarine dishes and 1 gallon Sheetrock Mud buckets, since I had some extras after a project. I don't keep enough brass on hand to justify using 5 gallon buckets, but the day will soon come. Allan

I've been handloading for 15 years and have had a chronograph nearly that whole time. I can't imagine loading without it, but someone I work with asked me why I had a chrono and I had a hard time answering him. For me, I like to know exactly what my loads are doing and what effect temperature has on them. You can make perfectly functional ammo without one, though. If you are competing and must make PF, I think you'd have to have one, but for a non-competitive shooter it is a luxury. I like the suggestions above to find a buddy with one. My shooting partner has some tools (Glock sight tool, etc) that I don't want to buy but like to have available; my chronograph is always available to him. It works out. Allan

I've never had a problem breaking decapping pins either - I use a Rockchucker and don't notice crimped vs. noncrimped primers when decapping/resizing with RCBS dies. You should investigate the RCBS X Die if you want to minimize time trimming cases. I loaded 223 on a standard set of RCBS 223 dies for years and got sick of the trimming too. The X Die works as advertised. See here: http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/...&t=11082005 Allan

I don't crimp my 223 loads (AR rifle) or my bolt rifle loads. I just recently started loaded for my MAK 90 and am realizing that I'll have to crimp the 7.62x39 loads because of setback issues, probably brought on by the violent chambering of the Kalishnakov action. Hope this helps, Allan

Forgive me if this has been covered in the past - I searched but couldn't find any specifics. I bought an SDB a year or so ago for loading 9mm. I have worked up my loads with CCI 500 primers so this is what I loaded in the primer tubes. In the 5-600 rounds I've loaded on the SDB I've gotten about 2 out of every 100 primers seated sideways in the primer pocket. I thought I had read on here and elsewhere that Dillon advises against CCI primers in their presses but like I said, I couldn't find specifics when searching. When I measure the diameter of a CCI 500 primer and compare it to other small pistol or small rifle primers, I found the dimension to be identical. Is this just something I should expect with a progressive press or should I make the effort to work up loads with other primer brands? If I should try other brands, what do you recommend? I see a lot of folks using Winchester Small Rifle for Major 9; is there something special about the Winchester primers that allow them to feed more smoothly in the Dillons? What about Rem Small Rifle (6 1/2)? I use these in other calibers and it would be nice to just use these - has anyone run these through a Dillon and if so, did they work well? If it matters, I am loading a 124gr FMJ over a maximum book load of Power Pistol, to duplicate my carry load. Thanks for any help, Allan

I have no experience loading for a 308, but I've used W748 and BLC-2 in both my 223 AR and my 22-250 Rem 700. Both work well, but I've settled on BLC-2 because I can buy it in bulk for a little bit less than W748. Both powders are reported to work well for 308. I use Remington 6.5 primers in the AR (223) and Remington 9.5 primers in the 22-250. Allan

I have used W748 and BLC-2 extensively in my .223 AR. I like both but found that W748 is very temperature sensitive - loads that I worked up in winter would show pressure signs in the summer. If you've settled on 25 grains of W748 you will probably be fine regardless of temperature as that load is a fair amount below maximum. I personally have settled on BLC-2 as my .223 load but only because I can buy it in bulk slightly cheaper than W748. Both powders seem to group Hornady 55gr SPs about the same. Allan

I've been running Hornady 55gr SP in my Colt AR for over 10 years and 10,000 rounds and have not had 1 malfunction. They are quite accurate to boot (MOA out of 16" barrel). You can buy this 55gr SPs in bulk from Midway or Grafs. They seem to run about $10/1000 more than the FMJ options. I think the price has crept up to $70/1000 now. On the X die, I'll have to let you know - I just bought one for .223 but have yet to use it. Allan