New to .223

[Eargasm]

My Lyman (49th Edition) manual says that the overall length for a 223 round using a 55 gr projectile should be 2.260". The loading data that came with my Lee dies has varying minimum OALs (depending on bullet mass and powder) from 2.200"-2.244".

I set the seating die so it will give me a round with an OAL of 2.260" but the cannelure sits almost 0.04" above the brass' rim (see photo).

Am I doing something wrong (brass length of 1.750" has been verified)?

Should I just seat the bullet so the rim sits in/around the cannelure and then crimp?

Edit: I just checked the overall lengths of rounds I've shot and got:
PMC Bronze:2.2475"
Wolf:2.2385"
Remington SP:2.1565"

[Marks on bullet are from pliers used to pull bullet during bullet-seating die adjustment. Round is inert (no primer or powder)]

[bjl333]

Check and see if the round will fit into the magazine? If it does then shoot it ... If it doesn't then shorten it. Get yourself a good bullet puller also.

[joelogic]

If you are crimping seat to cannalure.

[Abenaki]

First, there is no reason to crimp, unless these rounds are to be fired in a semi-auto rifle.
If that is the case, then you need to crimp in the the cannelure.

If you are not going to fire these rounds in a semi-auto, you can seat them as long as your chamber, and/or your magazine will let you.

The picture that you show is how I seat them for use in my Savage bolt action rifle.

Abenaki

[killshot44]

Generally speaking, most handloads go 2.250 to 2.260. I can get proper magazine function to 2.263.

Provided that the cannelured bullets are 62gr and lighter, you should be okay adjusting your seating depth to put the casemouth at the center of the cannelure so your crimp is in the proper location.

Not all semi-autos need crimped ammo. With bushing dies, you can adjust the neck tension to your liking by using different size bushings.
I never crimp handloads for my Target AR.

[RaymondMillbrae]

I have my rounds set to 2.225". This is 30/1000" off my barrels rifling, and I am shooting it out of my semi-auto carbine.

Like everyone says, experiment, and make sure it feeds off your magazine properly. You can suffer a touch in your accuracy...but it must feed from your magazine 100% of the time.

In Christ: Raymond

[17+1]

First, there is no reason to crimp, unless these rounds are to be fired in a semi-auto rifle.
If that is the case, then you need to crimp in the the cannelure.

If you are not going to fire these rounds in a semi-auto, you can seat them as long as your chamber, and/or your magazine will let you.

The picture that you show is how I seat them for use in my Savage bolt action rifle.

Abenaki

Not true on two pieces of information:

223 fired from an AR does not require a crimp. None of the many reloaders I know do and we never have set-back issues. I'd be more concerned with crimping if I were firing them from a fully automatic M4, but not in a semi.

Also, bullets shouldn't always be seated to max chamber length. You want the bullet to have a little room to 'wiggle' before it hits the rifling. When you chamber a round, the bullet is being driven into the rifling, it can enter slightly off center and affect accuracy in a negative way. Different rifles like different seating depths, you have to experiment with your ammunition and rifle setup. If your Savage likes to be right at the rifling then shoot it like that but it may not shoot best in other rifles.

[uscbigdawg]

If it's got a cannelure, seat to that. If it doesn't, seat to the ogive. Have the appropriate neck tension.

That said, soft seating the round into the lands is a completely valid technique on a bolt rifle used for benchrest/precision shooting. If you're round "wiggles" entering the lands, I would wager your chamber is not centered on the bore. Pretty common for folks that don't know how to cut a chamber.

Rich

[ar15barrels]

Should I just seat the bullet so the rim sits in/around the cannelure and then crimp?

Yes.

[Abenaki]

17+1
Thanks for the heads up on loading for a AR style of rifle. I have never loaded a round for one, but am planing to get one in the near future.

As far as OAL of the loaded round, I may have confused you when I said...

"you are not going to fire these rounds in a semi-auto, you can seat them as long as your chamber, and/or your magazine will let you"

Maybe a better way of putting it would be to say that a OAL in a reloading book for a bold action rifle, is what they used. Since not all chambers are the same. Use what works for you and is safe in your rifle.

As far as my Savage, I load the bullets .020 off of the lands.

Safe shooting
Abenaki

[SixPointEight]

I have some bullets similar to that. I seat to the cannelure on them. For me that's 2.200-2.215 max. I have no problems. If you work up the load then you should be fine.

I have my rounds set to 2.225". This is 30/1000" off my barrels rifling, and I am shooting it out of my semi-auto carbine.

Your lands are at 2.255? That seems super short to me. Mine are at 2.330, meaning to seat 30/1000 off the lands I'd be well over max mag length.

[RaymondMillbrae]

JT1989,

you have your boolit COL set at 2.330"?

Wow...that's pretty long, brother! (My COL is 2.225").

Everywhere I look, 2.260" is just about max.

I have only seen a few rounds that have a longer COL than that. (SRA 80 HPBT = 2.450", BRG 80 VLD = 2.340", etc..).

But I guess if you have miked your chamber properly, and the rounds are feeding from your magazine OK, then you should be fine.

When I miked my chamber, I removed the extractor from the bolt. This gave me a much better (and easier to find) reading.

In Christ: Raymond

[SixPointEight]

JT1989,

you have your boolit COL set at 2.330"?

Wow...that's pretty long, brother! (My COL is 2.225").

Everywhere I look, 2.260" is just about max.

I have only seen a few rounds that have a longer COL than that. (SRA 80 HPBT = 2.450", BRG 80 VLD = 2.340", etc..).

But I guess if you have miked your chamber properly, and the rounds are feeding from your magazine OK, then you should be fine.

When I miked my chamber, I removed the extractor from the bolt. This gave me a much better (and easier to find) reading.

In Christ: Raymond

No no, if I was single feeding I could load to 2.330". Mag length is right around 2.260" so that's what I load at to feed from the mag. I was asking about the COL to the lands, you indicated that 2.225 is 30/1000th off you land, which would say that your bullets are touching your lands at 2.255". I just thought that was a little weird since max mag length is longer than the length to your lands.

Were a bit off topic lol

[RaymondMillbrae]

JT1989,

when using the RCBS Precision Mic, it has something called the "FREEBORE TOOL". This Freebore Tool screws onto a special boolit, and will read at what point the boolit has made contact with the lands, after the boolit has been chambered and the bolt locked in battery.

Only the part of the boolit that makes contact with the lands gets measured. (Ogive)?

Once that is done, every shooter will get a different COL depending on the boolits they are using - because the Freebore Tool will only measure to the point where the boolit meets the barrels lands...and not the total COL. (Some boolits may be longer and pontier, others not, etc...).

In Christ: Raymond