what all do i need to load 223

[dumpo60]

I have a 550b Dillion and want to start loading 223's. I know i have to have die's, but what else do i need?

[Hi-Power Jack]

Don, if you start with brass that is prepared to reload, all you need

is brass, primers, bullets & powder.

If you start with range brass, you'll need to take out the crimp and

probably trim the cases.

Otherwise, it should be similar to loading whatever else you're reloading.

[dumpo60]

I have some brass i bought from a friend that use to reload, and he gave me a case trimmer. I will order a tool to remove the primmer crimp and die's from Brian soon. How many times can u reload a 223 case? I am guessing that the 223 uses a small rifle primmer, which looks like it is hard to fine. What kind of powder is used to load a 223. I only load .45's and .40's now.

[Steve RA]

Powder Valley for primers and powder, they also sell bullets.

Try Hodgdon CFE powder, Tula .223 small rifle primers and Hornady 53 grain V-Max bullets.

[dumpo60]

Thanks for the information I will order soon.

[Chucker]

How about a .223 case gage?

[warpspeed]

Dumpo60,

I suggest picking up the Sierra Reloading Manual. It has a great section on the reloading of rifle cartridges.

The one thing I have that I cannot do without is a universal decaping die.

After full length resizing, trimming and swaging the primer pockets, you will want to tumble the brass to remove all shavings & case lube. Some tumbling media always gets stuck in the flash hole and the universal decaping die does a perfect job of clearing the hole out.

[SteveT-NV]

I have a 550b Dillion and want to start loading 223's. I know i have to have die's, but what else do i need?

For the reloading process, in addition to your 550 and your dies you will need:

• Small primer pick up tubes
  
• 223 Case guage - the dillon one is ok, though I would recommend the JP case guage. It has tighter tolerances, making your loads less likely to jam.
  
• Case lube - I use the Dillon lube on the cases, but there are many options for this
  
• Small rifle primers
  
• Brass - Brass prep is much more involved with rifle than pistol. There are many threads covering this topic.
  
• Bullets - Many opinions on what is the best bullet. For 3 Gun you have several options. 1) Use a 55 g FMJ for the shorter ranges and then something like a 69 g SMK for the longer ranges 2) Use a better bullet for everything (ie a 53 or 55 grain VMax) There are many threads covering this topic as well
  
• Powder - the 223 is very forgiving and there are many options for powder. I like the Ramshot Exterminator.
  
• Always good to have a chronograph to check your loads
  
• If you have the DVD that came with your Dillon 550, I would highly recommend watching it. They also have these vidoes on You Tube
  

Steve

[RiggerJJ]

The only thing I would add is a crono is a MUST! (Not just nice to have) when doing any load development/reloading for rifle as well as pistol.

jj

[Dirty Rod]

I have some brass i bought from a friend that use to reload, and he gave me a case trimmer. I will order a tool to remove the primmer crimp and die's from Brian soon. How many times can u reload a 223 case? I am guessing that the 223 uses a small rifle primmer, which looks like it is hard to fine. What kind of powder is used to load a 223. I only load .45's and .40's now.

I'd suggest the Dillon Super Swage 600. Solid product and fastest decrimper I've used. You will also need something to chamfer and deburr the case mouth unless your trimmer has those features. Varget, TAC, CFE, etc all work pretty well although Varget may not meter well through your 550.

Warning rifle brass prep is a PITA!

The one thing I have that I cannot do without is a universal decaping die.

After full length resizing, trimming and swaging the primer pockets, you will want to tumble the brass to remove all shavings & case lube. Some tumbling media always gets stuck in the flash hole and the universal decaping die does a perfect job of clearing the hole out.

Exactly how I do it.

Try Hodgdon CFE powder

Tried some this past weekend and CFE grouped very well out of both of my rifles. More accurate than the TAC and Varget groups I was already using.

Edited November 15, 2012 by Dirty Rod

[davestarbuck]

I,d setup one toolhead with just the sizing die in it, so you can size and deprime. Get a Dillon .223 case gauge to set up the head space on the sizing die. Once you setup the die once you'll never have to worry about it again.

So first pass would be tumble, lube, size/deprime.

Tumble off lube. Trim,chambfer, deburr. If you are processing alot of brass with crimped primer pockets, get a Super Swage.

Setup a second toolhead with a decapper in station 1, powder measure in 2, bullet seater in station 3, crimp in station 4. I highly recomend the Lee Factory Crimp Die.

Load your ammo with toolhead 2, enjoy shooting it, and repeat. With good,mild practice loads, you can get 5 reloads out of your brass before chucking it.

I recommend using ball powders for progressive reloading. I've used TAC and WC844 surplus powder with great success. If I were to pick one of the two I'd use TAC only because it's better with heavier bullets.

I load 2 basic loads, a practice/training/action match load, and a self defence load.

My practice/training/action match loads are a 55 FMJ 24.5 gr TAC with Tula .223 primers or 25 gr WC844

My Zombie/Self Defence rounds are 77g Sierra Match Kings and 24 gr TAC with the Tula .223 primer. This approximates the MK262 load and is HOT, so don't try it without working up to it!

Hope this helps!

Edited November 17, 2012 by davestarbuck