.223 reloads problem

[Tom523]

My self and a buddy of mine have started to reload .223 for our Ar 15's. We bought the once fired 5.56 brass and projectiles from an ad in Shot Gun News. We both have the same problem. The brass after resizing will not go into the chamber far enough for the bolt to lock in. I've trimmed the cases with a Lee trimmer and pilot. I've sized mine with hornady full length die and tried the RCBS small based die set. Factory .223 rounds will cycle through all four of our guns but the reloads will sometimes lock in with forward assist but most will not at all. This problem is driving us crazy. My buddy says that the bolt face needs to be shaved a couple thousandth of an inch or the locking lugs shaved . Has anyone else had this problem? What can we do?

[Graham Smith]

Is the chamber on the rifle a .223 or 5.56?

Have you checked the cases with a case gauge?

Have you checked the chamber with a Go/NoGo gauge?

What's the COAL of the bullets?

Edited January 17, 2011 by Graham Smith

[jmurch]

If you dont have a case guage you can keep turning down the sizing die a little bit at a time until the case will fit into the chamber far enough for the bolt to lock. The way to do this is to removes the upper and strip the bolt to remove the ejector and ejector spring so the the bolt will insert into the locking lugs and turn easily.

Jeff

[MrClean]

I ran into this when I first started back reloading for my 5.56/.223. Look a the shoulder area real close. Mine were bulging/squashed out some and therefore preventing chambering or if they did chamber, sometimes they were extremely tight. I pulled my die, cleaned and then went through the setup procedure again. And also made SURE I was adequately lubing the cases.

I just reloaded a couple hundred and had 3 do it, but I account it to me not having any/enough lube on the casing. This is what I experienced but there are many more here more experienced and will have plenty of info for you I am sure.

Here is a pic of two cartridges.... one of right is good... .one on left is one of my earlier ones that is OBVIOUSLY messed up. It's extreme but that gives you one idea of what to check. Sorry it's a bit blurry.

Edited January 17, 2011 by MrClean

[Tom523]

Is the chamber on the rifle a .223 or 5.56?

Have you checked the cases with a case gauge?

Have you checked the chamber with a Go/NoGo gauge?

What's the COAL of the bullets?

I haven't checked the cases with a case gage. I don't have one. The all 4 uppers are 5.56 uppers. The COAL is 1.746 in.

[Tom523]

Is the chamber on the rifle a .223 or 5.56?

Have you checked the cases with a case gauge?

Have you checked the chamber with a Go/NoGo gauge?

What's the COAL of the bullets?

I haven't checked the cases with a case gage. I don't have one. The all 4 uppers are 5.56 uppers. The COAL is 1.746 in.

[Tom523]

If you dont have a case guage you can keep turning down the sizing die a little bit at a time until the case will fit into the chamber far enough for the bolt to lock. The way to do this is to removes the upper and strip the bolt to remove the ejector and ejector spring so the the bolt will insert into the locking lugs and turn easily.

Jeff

I have turned down the sizing die until I can barely slide a piece of paper between the bottom of the die and the shell holder.

[Tom523]

I ran into this when I first started back reloading for my 5.56/.223. Look a the shoulder area real close. Mine were bulging/squashed out some and therefore preventing chambering or if they did chamber, sometimes they were extremely tight. I pulled my die, cleaned and then went through the setup procedure again. And also made SURE I was adequately lubing the cases.

I just reloaded a couple hundred and had 3 do it, but I account it to me not having any/enough lube on the casing. This is what I experienced but there are many more here more experienced and will have plenty of info for you I am sure.

Here is a pic of two cartridges.... one of right is good... .one on left is one of my earlier ones that is OBVIOUSLY messed up. It's extreme but that gives you one idea of what to check. Sorry it's a bit blurry.

Thanks, for the photos. I ran into that problem too. I think I have it corrected though.

[DougCarden]

Been there, done that.

First, buy a Dillon case Gauge.

You need to adjust the sizing die down against the shellplate until the brass will go into the case gauge. That will usually be down tight, and then a 1/4 turn more, give or take......

Go no further until you get the case sizing down.

You will be wasting time, components, and pulling your hair out too.....

Good luck, and go to the Reloading sub forum, look up .223 and reloading it, and take a couple days to digest it all.....The info is all there!

Have fun, go slow.....

DougC

[holist]

Tom, I have never used a Dillon die but it looks like it will do the job. I use a Remmington Precision Mic set. They a bit more but you get two measuring devices in it, vs one for the Dillon. One will measure the shoulder set back of the case and the other will measure how far your bullet is set out of the case and into the lands of the barrel. (great for bulleye and LD shooting but not of much use to the casual plinker).

First thing we want to do is measure the shoulder setback of one of your fired cases. Every barrel is diff based on the cut of the chamber and the size of the bolt. This is the headspace that we are measuring. For example, if you get a size of +4 on a fired case. I would if I was only loading the shells for that one rifle adjust my sizing die down till a sized case came out at +2. This is a .002 setback of the shoulder and will provide the longest case life because we are working the brass as little as possible and still providing reliable feeding of the round. Do this to 10 shells and make sure they fit in your chamber before you go on. If they don't fit take them down another .001 and try again. .002 is usually plenty so you should be ok.

Now if you are loading for many diff rifles I would suggest taking the shoulders back down to the 0 (zero) setting on the mic. This should take the cases back to a point they will fit in any commercial chamber. Only issue with this is your going to be working the brass a bit more so you might get a few less firing out of it before you see cracking in the case mouths. Not a crisis but if you care its still something to think about.

At that point then you trim the cases to length. It you take them down to min you will prob get 3 firings before you have to retrim them depending on how hot of loads you are running.

Watch how much lube you use. Find out how much in enough for your dies and be consistent about it. Too much will will change the measurements you will get on the finished product. And too little will give you stuck cases.

Good Luck

Ray

[Tom523]

My self and a buddy of mine have started to reload .223 for our Ar 15's. We bought the once fired 5.56 brass and projectiles from an ad in Shot Gun News. We both have the same problem. The brass after resizing will not go into the chamber far enough for the bolt to lock in. I've trimmed the cases with a Lee trimmer and pilot. I've sized mine with hornady full length die and tried the RCBS small based die set. Factory .223 rounds will cycle through all four of our guns but the reloads will sometimes lock in with forward assist but most will not at all. This problem is driving us crazy. My buddy says that the bolt face needs to be shaved a couple thousandth of an inch or the locking lugs shaved . Has anyone else had this problem? What can we do?

I solved the problem! I shaved off 2 thousandths off the bottom of the die and reloaded 20. Every one of them cycled through all 4 AR 15's. Thanks guys I appreciate the knowledge that you imparted on me. I see I'm gonna have to invest in some more equipment.