Lake City reload problem?????

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Not sure anyone is still around but this is an update to my brass sizing problem.

Well I ordered all the stuff I thought I needed. I picked up a Lee universal decapper, an RCBS small base die, sizing case for the whyle (sp) chamber, Hornby bullet puller with the collet I think that's it?? Also decided to wet tumble the brass with stainless steel pins so I had to revamp my home made tumbler to allow for the change. I have done 200 cases using one container but I think I can get three containers on the unit at one time. I will probably never need that many but being able to do 3 different size cases in three different containers and being able to do 200 or so cases each at a time will be way more than I need.
Anyway here is the deal. I first tried to use the Lee .223 decapper resized that I used to size the brass the first time to make sure it wasn't me as someone mentioned maybe I didn't go the full stroke with the sizer and that may have been the problem. Well that didn't work. I checked a half dozen or so of the loaded round in the case sizer and everyone was over spec. The rim of the casing was to high on the gauge. I then took a dozen or so rounds apart and resized using the small base die then back into the case gauge. After a little fiddling to get the sizer set right they fit like a glove. They are now head spaced right and the lengths are correct. I probably should load a few and then cycle them thought the rifle but considering they were off and now fit the gauge properly I am confident at least that problem is solved. I have taken a few hundred apart and tumbled them but still have a bunch to go. That Hornaby bullet puller is a life saver. Man can that thing pull bullets. The inertia puller will be fine for doing one or two but that Hornaby is the greatest thing since sliced bread.

The wet tumbler with the ss pins is great. It took a couple of runs till I got the soap and lemon stuff right but now they are cleaner than new. I vibratoried the military brass I am taking apart when I first loaded them but you should see the water after the same brass is tumbled. WOW it's black. The brass is clean inside out and the primer pocket is clean as a whistle.

Well learned a bunch from this mistake. Never gave it a thought that the brass after being sized with the Lee .223 sizer would not fit the chamber on my ar.

Thanks for all the help guys. Without your help I would have never gotten this figured out and no way would I have known what I needed to get this problem solved. Ok haven't fired any round yet but it should work fine. thanks

 

[556]

This is a nice post. I learned something myself. I have a question about the American Eagle ammunition. Did you load any of that brass? I have some AE 223 and every piece of brass has the primer hole off center and is a pain to de-prime. Have you ran into this problem?

 

[thumbs]

This is a nice post. I learned something myself. I have a question about the American Eagle ammunition. Did you load any of that brass? I have some AE 223 and every piece of brass has the primer hole off center and is a pain to de-prime. Have you ran into this problem?

556

Well the answer is yes I have done the AE brass and no I didn't have any problems with it just the Lake City. Now it wasn't the Lake City's fault the problem was it was probably shot in a machine gun and the chamber is much larger than that one the AR so the brass was expanded more than if it were shot in an AR. I had no problems with de priming of the AE. Of course the military stuff was a bit harder but not out of the ordinary. When and where did you get the AR ammo?

 

[556]

I bought the ammo at Academy in Tulsa last year when you were lucky to find any loaded ammo. I haven't loaded any it once I discovered the off centered flash holes. I de-primed and cleaned the brass and haven't touched it since. Not sure if I want to mess with it or toss it. is it even worth loading....

 

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I guess it depends on how much you have. If it were me I think I would give it a try but if it were a pain I would probably toss it. I think I would only use it as plinking ammo though.

 

[556]

Good point. Would be useful for plinking ammo.

 

[Idaho5r]

Gentlemen: I just saw this thread, & thought I'd add my $0.02 worth. I recently bought some once fired Lake City 5.56 brass, myself. I thought it was properly sized. But, after getting it, it wouldn't chamber in my bolt guns. I ended up purchasing a case gauge, made by L.E. Wilson. The best part about this tool is, all you do is drop a sized case into the gauge, & if it isn't sized correctly, you can see it right away! They are not all that expensive, & I feel they are worth their weight in gold , these days, with unsized, or improperly sized brass out there in the world! If the OP had one of these gauges in the beginning, he would have realized he wasn't properly sizing his brass. Hope this helps! Idaho-5R

 

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Yep your right. I am the OP. Education is a great thing. I just didn't know the problem existed. The only thing I knew about once fired military brass was the cases are said to be heavier and the primer pockets have to be swaged. This was my first attempt at loading rifle. Have done quite a bit of pistol but there is a world of difference I have found out, the hard way. I never gave it a thought that after resizing in the .223 die that the brass would not be sized correctly. I was also under a time limitation. I really had little time to check it out but what I did seemed to work properly. The only time I found I had a sizing problem was in the fall of last year when I was dialing in a scope and quit with a round in the chamber and tried to clear it.
Yep I picked quite a bit of stuff to correct the problem. I still haven't shot the new loads as of yet but only loaded a few to work up a load for the rifle. I hope to get out this week to check everything out. I took everyone apart with the Hornaby bullet puller. (fantastic tool)I used a RCBS small base die on each casing to resize them and checked them with a JR .223 wylde/ 5.56 case gauge. Before the small base die every one was out of spec. Checked before I sized and after. They would cycle but they were being forced into the chamber. Again only knew it when I tried to clear the chamber by hand.

This was a case of checking every detail except the one that bit me. Like I tell my wife all the time you can cheek 999 things out of 10000 and the last one will kick your butt. It wasn't that I didn't size the rounds just that I had no idea I needed a small base die for my rifle.

Not only can you see using the case gauge but you can hear it when you drop the round in. It makes a distinctive sound when it's right.

 

[556]

Education is a great! I will need to invest in a case gauge myself. It sounds like it will save some frustration. Thanks for the great tip.