223 Rem / Federal Brass

[OkieOutlaw]

Well I finally went and purchased all the components I needed to start relaoding for my Model 11 Savage in 223 Rem. I had a couple of hundred rounds of once fired Federal brass I decided to start with. During the priming process I found several that the primer seated what seemed to me to be really easy and half a dozen or so rounds that I could not get to seat at all. Most of them I could feel the primer seat as usual. Has anyone else encountered such a problem with Federal brass. I plan on only keeping for reloading the ones that FEEL right to me. Opinions Please?

[1Shot]

...That's the norm for Fed. brs...You might get 3-5 reloadings before you start tossing it..Plinking is about all its good for...

[Sundo]

Is it possible to re-form the primer pockets to the correct dimension?

[helotaxi]

Not reliably, and why? .223 brass is dirt cheap. It would cost more in labor than the brass is worth. Recycle the FC stuff when the primer pocket gets too loose and use the $ to buy virgin or once fired LC.

[thomae]

Try this, it may be just what you need:

Brand New (uncrimped primer pockets) Lake City Brass $60.00 for 500
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/197849/lake-city-brass-556x45mm-nato-new-unfired-box-of-500?cm_vc=CyberMon2

Brand New (uncrimped primer pockets) Lake City Brass $110 for 1000.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/604650/lake-city-brass-556x45mm-nato-new-unfired-box-of-1000?cm_vc=CyberMon2

Sale ends midnight on Monday (tomorrow)
All the best,
Thomae

[earl39]

You can go to Wolf or Tula primers as they are a tad larger than US primers. That should help you get a few more firings out of them. If you go to LC brass redo your load as it is made to mil-spec and has a wee bit less capacity which could raise pressures if used with your commercial brass load.

[helotaxi]

If you go to LC brass redo your load as it is made to mil-spec and has a wee bit less capacity which could raise pressures if used with your commercial brass load.

Completely false assumption and, in fact, LC brass consistently has the highest capacity of any .223 brass.

http://www.6mmbr.com/223Rem.html Check out the case capacity chart about 2/3 of the way down the page.

Mil .308 (technically 7.62x51) brass is considerably thicker and has a reduced capacity which is part of the reason that LC 7.62x51 brass isn't nearly as popular as LC 5.56.

[earl39]

If you go to LC brass redo your load as it is made to mil-spec and has a wee bit less capacity which could raise pressures if used with your commercial brass load.

Completely false assumption and, in fact, LC brass consistently has the highest capacity of any .223 brass.

http://www.6mmbr.com/223Rem.html Check out the case capacity chart about 2/3 of the way down the page.

Mil .308 (technically 7.62x51) brass is considerably thicker and has a reduced capacity which is part of the reason that LC 7.62x51 brass isn't nearly as popular as LC 5.56.


I stand corrected. But if it has more capacity you may still need to redo your load.

[OkieOutlaw]

Thanks guys, This about what I was thinking. This brass was bought at Wally World in the 100 round value pack simply for qualifications with the sheriff dept that I work for. I just saved all the brass to as I was planning on getting into reloading for my Model 11. I love shooting this little gun as it is probably one of the most accurate of any of them. Shooting coyotes can be fun but very expensive when using factory loads. Another thing I noticed other than the inconsistancy with primer pockets was that none of the loads really seemed consistant. There was a flyer in almost all the loads tested sometimes as much as an inch away from the group. I will try one more time working up a accurate load but after that this junk hit the trash and I will buy some virgin stuff. This rifle and bullet combo usually can shoot cloverleaf 3 shot groups at 100 yards all day long.

[kslefty]

I found a great load in Win brass and bought a whole bunch of once fired LC brass and went to town duplicating my load. They shoot good but not as good as the exact same components in Win brass. I can tell you that the LC brass weighs more than my Win brass always, and is the same size on the outside so I feel that it has less capacity or at least makes higher pressures. Either way lesson learned, find a load for the brass to be reloaded.

[Tarleton_Texan]

I was in the same boat as you Okie and I just shot what Federal brass I had primed and and got some used LC brass and am happy with it. Midway and Natchez Shooter Supply have had new LC brass on sale here lately, I bought some and am going to trim and turn necks and see if that makes a difference over no trimming or turning.