223 and CC#41 primers

Back awhile ago I started a post on FTF with my Axis 223 which didn't get much response. At the time I was using CCI#41 primers in my hand loads because that was all I could get. I have since acquired some regular CCI #400 primers to load with and so far every one has fired just as it should and this has really increased my enjoyment with this rifle.

This is also my first center fire rifle and the first time I have loaded for bottleneck cases. I really thought I was doing something wrong but s few loads I've worked up have been extremely accurate in my limited estimation. Had one round that all 3 shots were touching one another and two other rounds that two of the three were touching one another.

So I have also since I started this adventure been able to pick up 1100 Remington 7 1/2 primers, some CCI 450 and 40 Federal small rifle from my boss that he says he will never use and 600 Winchester SRP. Hopefully this will prove itself that the #41 primers were the cause of my displeasure.

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Originally Posted by KMW1954

Back awhile ago I started a post on FTF with my Axis 223 which didn't get much response. At the time I was using CCI#41 primers in my hand loads because that was all I could get. I have since acquired some regular CCI #400 primers to load with and so far every one has fired just as it should and this has really increased my enjoyment with this rifle.

This is also my first center fire rifle and the first time I have loaded for bottleneck cases. I really thought I was doing something wrong but s few loads I've worked up have been extremely accurate in my limited estimation. Had one round that all 3 shots were touching one another and two other rounds that two of the three were touching one another.

So I have also since I started this adventure been able to pick up 1100 Remington 7 1/2 primers, some CCI 450 and 40 Federal small rifle from my boss that he says he will never use and 600 Winchester SRP. Hopefully this will prove itself that the #41 primers were the cause of my displeasure.

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I don’t reload maybe when I retire . Between work , hobbies and grandbaby I am too busy . Sounds interesting though


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That's great. When I loaded for 223 it was for a Thompson Contender handgun with a 14" barrel. I always used CCI BR primers and settled on H322 for that short barrel because it all got burned and it was Surplus Military at about $5 a pound. I believe most loads were about 24-26 grains and had very similar group results as the ones you got.

CCI #41s have a hard cup and are really meant for ARs. My Axis action with a .223 Wylde barrel does not like setting off 5.56 ammo, but all factory .223 and reloads with CCI #400 work fine.

Nice shooting! And the primers are a nice score. Did you get them at a decent price? I bought 500 Federal SPP's and 300 CCI 400's from a friend on another site for pre shortage prices a couple weeks ago. Then yesterday I got a call from a LGS asking if I still wanted my SRP reserve for $41 a brick, of course I do a brick of Federal 205's. I am completely set now.

Congrats on the rifle, and the source of your problem. And getting the primers is a great accomplishment these days. The 7 1/2 primers have been my favorite for a long time and give excellent accuracy.

The .223 has been one of the easiest rounds for me to reload over the years. Just about any decent bullet and powder have given me 1" groups at 100yd.

There is a thread by CFJunkie in here that has a pretty good range of rounds that he has tested. And there is this website as well.
https://www.6mmbr.com/223Rem.html

Have fun with it!

Since this is your 1st time reloading bottleneck case I will say that you will need to trim back the case length about every third time you resize so get a dial caliper and measure them. Working the brass during the resizing process creates case stretch and that brass has to come from somewhere, (think of stretching a bar of taffy) which in the 223 the thinning of the case is right about 1/2" from the base. A ring will develop here many times after 8 or 10 resizes and the case will separate. just an FYI.

First thing that comes to mind when you get FTF AND, "you're rolling your own" ? Shoulder set back to far and the firing pin ends up pushing the case forward in the chamber. = soft strike!! Once the round is fired and the case formed to the chamber, the FTF goes away IF you don't push the shoulder back when resizing and cause the same problem all over again. Don't blame the primers till you can prove it.
Been thru 1000s of CCI #41s and never had any issues. Bolt gun, ARs and Mini 14. No problems ever.

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Originally Posted by Nor Cal Mikie

First thing that comes to mind when you get FTF AND, "you're rolling your own" ? Shoulder set back to far and the firing pin ends up pushing the case forward in the chamber. = soft strike!! Once the round is fired and the case formed to the chamber, the FTF goes away IF you don't push the shoulder back when resizing and cause the same problem all over again. Don't blame the primers till you can prove it.
Been thru 1000s of CCI #41s and never had any issues. Bolt gun, ARs and Mini 14. No problems ever.

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That possibility was mentioned and investigated. Proven that wasn't the issue. Unfired rounds did not have light strikes, I have dealt with that before with a pistol that has a soft spring and those are easy to see. These all looked as though they should have fired. It was also insisted that these were improperly seated, Also checked.

Next to last session 9 out of 29 rounds failed to fire and they were tracked as they were fired. Each time the very first round loaded from the magazine failed to fire, that happened 10 consecutive times with one magazine having back to back failures. If there was a fault with the brass or the primer seating this would have been more random, would not have been every first round. Also Next session the gun was fired 40 times consecutively w/o a failure with ammunition loaded on the same machine, primed the exact same way with brass that was all sized in the same machine at the same time as the failures with the only difference being the brand of primers used. Sorry but in my mind that Does Prove something about the primers.

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Originally Posted by prdatr

Since this is your 1st time reloading bottleneck case I will say that you will need to trim back the case length about every third time you resize so get a dial caliper and measure them. Working the brass during the resizing process creates case stretch and that brass has to come from somewhere, (think of stretching a bar of taffy) which in the 223 the thinning of the case is right about 1/2" from the base. A ring will develop here many times after 8 or 10 resizes and the case will separate. just an FYI.

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Actually I have a Mitutoyo dial caliper that I have owned since around 1980 along with a Lyman headspace/length gauge that was purchased when I started this venture. All cases were measured and then sized with a Lee Quick Trim, which I really like even though I understand many don't. So far all have been loaded to about mid range so I still have a few steps to go before I get near max levels and pressures. But I am aware that this is something to keep a watch fore.

really meant for MILITARY M16/M4 BASED RIFLES..not ar's.

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Originally Posted by celltech

CCI #41s have a hard cup and are really meant for ARs. My Axis action with a .223 Wylde barrel does not like setting off 5.56 ammo, but all factory .223 and reloads with CCI #400 work fine.

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I have to use them in my axis. or mine will blank the primer. Regular cci srp will blank on every shot. Sent it in to Savage and it came back only popping them every other. So I stopped using the regular cci and went to Win or the 41 primers.

Mine is whatever these were called before they changed the name to axis.

What do you mean by 'blank the primer'?

My .223 Axis produces craters on the primers, no matter what load or factory ammo I have used in it. Never pierced a primer or had one blown out.

I guess I thought everyone knew common terms in reloading.

https://saami.org/glossary/blanked-primer/

I thought that was a pierced primer. Learn something new every day.