.223 reloading issues

[Rhys898]

I have been reloading other calibers for a while with no real difficulties. I finally ordered my WOA varmint upper so I figured I should get all the stuff to reload for .223. I got the RCBS small base 2 die set and got it all set up. I full length resized the brass that I had put through a friends upper while waiting for mine to come in and everything looked good. I made a dummy round to help set up the seater and it looked good. I checked in the Sierra reloading manual and cross checked in the Lee handbook and picked out a good starter load for 68-69gr hpbt match bullets. I have sierra 69gr. MK hpbt, nosler custom comp. 69gr. hpbt, and hornady 68gr. hpbt. The load I picked is 25.3gr of Varget and is well below max pressure but when I go to seat the bullets the RCBS seater die is pressing a ring into the bullets about an 8th inch behind the tip. Also the load is not listed as compressed but it deffinately is.



Anyone know whats going on here???

[kurac]

I was having that same problem with the Hornady 68gr HPBTM's but not with the Nosler 69gr HPBTM's

I know the Hornady's have a lot more empty space up front which results in little support for the jacket during seating. It looks like you have plenty of champfer so thats not the problem

[Pthfndr]

Some bullets are more prone to do that than others. Or you could have a seating stem that wasn't ground quite enough. If it only does it with one brand of bullet there's your answer.

If that bullet performs best in your rifle you can work on the stem yourself to make it fit better (several here have done it), or you can give RCBS a call and send them a couple bullets and your seater die and they will do it for you. Their customer service is outstanding that way.

[Sheldon]

I think that's just from the shape of the seater plug. It doesn't match the oglive of the bullet so the sharp edge engraves itself on the bullet. I think you would be able to take the seater plug out and break the sharp edge off it with some emery cloth or sandpaper, you'de be ok.

[rksimple]

As has been said, pull the seater plug out and break the edge on it.

What kind of brass are you using? Do you know how much neck tension you have?

[jandmtv]

Like rksimple said, pull out the seating stem, take a bullet, dip it in lapping compound, and lap the sharp edge off of the stem with the bullet, the ring will go away.

[ar15barrels]

Like rksimple said, pull out the seating stem, take a bullet, dip it in lapping compound, and lap the sharp edge off of the stem with the bullet, the ring will go away.

The best way to do this is to spin the seating stem in a drill and hold the bullet.
That way, you keep the seater round.
If you spin the bullet, you might have a crooked stem afterwards.

[rayra]

HEY!

You goofs are all busy worrying about cosmetics and missed the far more important and even DANGEROUS aspect. He's reporting a compressed load. That's a helluva lot more important than the ring.
The OP needs to STOP and troubleshoot that powder issue first and foremost, before he winds up with real trouble.

/and that chamfer is WAY overboard too. You shouldn't be removing anywhere near that much metal. Totally unnecessary and hastening a case mouth split. Unless you're only going to use that brass a couple times.

[bohoki]

/and that chamfer is WAY overboard too. You shouldn't be removing anywhere near that much metal. Totally unnecessary and hastening a case mouth split. Unless you're only going to use that brass a couple times.

yea it does look a bit extreme with boat tail bullets i dont so much chamfer as just do a debur

[ar15barrels]

You goofs are all busy worrying about cosmetics and missed the far more important and even DANGEROUS aspect.
He's reporting a compressed load.
That's a helluva lot more important than the ring.

Not really.
Compressed loads are completely safe if slower powders are being used.
With slow powders, you run out of case capacity before you are in dangerous pressure territory.
It's SOP to compress slow powders.

One could argue that the AR is not designed for slow powders though and you would be right.

[Rhys898]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I got my hands on a copy of quickload and ran the numbers. The velocity I was looking for is achievable without using as much powder since I have a longer barrel than was used in the load listed in the sierra manual. I backed the load off to 22.2, 22.4. and 22.6. There is a little compression but not nearly as much as the 25.3 load. As it turns out the other reason for the compression was that the hornady 68gr. is almost .10" longer than the 69gr. sierra MK. I'll be doing the stem reprofiling with valve grinding compound on my drill press with the bullets mounted in a vice and the stem in the chuck.

Jer

ETA: the brass is once fired Remington from the 55gr fmj load at walmart. And I use the rcbs vld inside neck chamfering tool. I tried using the regular inside neck chamfering tool that comes on the RCBS trim mate but I was still getting some copper shaved off the bullet jackets.

[rksimple]

HEY!

You goofs are all busy worrying about cosmetics and missed the far more important and even DANGEROUS aspect. He's reporting a compressed load. That's a helluva lot more important than the ring.
The OP needs to STOP and troubleshoot that powder issue first and foremost, before he winds up with real trouble.

He's using Varget. A little crunch is no big deal...goof! (j/k)

[Toten Kopf]

I always send the seater stem to the die manufacturer along with the bullet/s (one seater stem per bullet) I use and they cut the stem so as not to damage the bullet.

The turn-around time is very quick and well worth the time. As I don't use Varget, I can't answer about a compression load.

[Gator Monroe]

What have I gotten myself into (Reloading)

[ar15barrels]

What have I gotten myself into (Reloading)

Reloading.