Head stamp sorting of 223 brass

[goat68]

I've recently began reloading 223 and started by head stamp sorting the rifle brass and only reloading and shooting one head stamp (LC and then WCC)at a time becasue that is what I was told to do. I have a bunch of miscelaneous brass that I keep putting in the pile labeled "mixed" and so far it seems to be a waste to me and I feel I should use it to reload.

Should this mixed brass just be for practice or go to the recycler?

Are there any pitfalls to use mixed brass for a match?

I'm mainly shooting it at 3gun matches so the accuracy I need isn't that High.

Gerald

[D.Hayden]

I sort mine by crimped primers and non. Then prep the brass by those batches.

It just makes the loading process more uniform. After that I shoot it all the same.

[mscott]

If you have 300+ yard shots it can matter, but for closer stuff you'll never notice. I would stick to one headstamp when working up a load and then try that load in the other brass to make sure it's going to be O.K.. Some cases have different volumes, so a safe load in one case may blow primers in another.

[Croomrider]

It is something done by precision reloaders to group cases by headstamp, including year on LC, to get more uniformity of case volumes. If you are not trying to get sub MOA groups or shooting long range > 300 yards, it's probably not necessary.

Mike

[David.Hylton]

Many times military brass has reduced volume because of heavier brass. Usually military brass uses less powder to achieve the same pressure and velocity.

[goat68]

It is something done by precision reloaders to group cases by headstamp, including year on LC, to get more uniformity of case volumes. If you are not trying to get sub MOA groups or shooting long range > 300 yards, it's probably not necessary.

Mike

I don't think I need to be that anal as to include sorting per year. At least so far this is good news as the worst case is that I can use this for short range practice ammo. The bad news is that I now have a bunch of work to do in brass prep to get there.

[John Z Sr]

I use all the same headstamps for a batch of ammo (at least 500 or so) and will use that 'till it's done, then go to the next batch. I keep a closer track on trimming intervals, so keeping the headstamps the same makes it easier for me. When I have a pile of mixed stuff, I load that for 3-gun where you normally don't recover much brass anyway. As said already, some military brass is thicker, so higher pressure with same load.

[Tom D.]

Brass prep is a PITA!! After that, I trim every third loading. And I don't sort cases but do use moderate powder charges.