Do you guys case gauge check EVERY case?

[armyguy209]

I am mass prepping my .223 LC and Winchester brass. I think I have about 5k cases to prep. I am prepping on my Dillon 1050 with a RT1200 trimmer. Even with this setup, it still is pretty time consuming doing this many cases. Most of it is due to the cleaning in a wet tumbler, then having to dry it, then lube, then into the 1050, then tumble for the final time.

I have ALOT of brass. Do you guys throw each piece of brass into a case gauge? I went ahead and ended up doing it and it took forever. I still have a ton of brass to process but out of the maybe 2k that I have done so far, probably 15-20 didn't make the case gauge check. The rest were good. I had a bunch too that wouldnt pass by a small amount, but I would give them a good wipe for dust and blow out the case gauge, and then they would fit. The others just didnt want to. Now I am pretty picky and will pull the ones that dont drop in easily and slide back out easily.

I dont need super duper accurate shots, but I do want them all to go bang without ANY hiccups.

I am also curious what you guys do with the brass with live primers that got messed up? How do you dispose of those? I am guessing you dont want to deprime a live primer which is pretty much common sense..lol

[LRShooter]

I've reloaded thousands of rounds and don't even own a case cage.

[Colt562]

i usually check all my rifle rounds and every tenth for pistol.

[snowdog650]

I've reloaded thousands of rounds and don't even own a case cage.

^^^^This^^^^

[C.G.]

I check all of mine, that way I know it will feed properly. Better to find out beforehand.

[joelogic]

I case gauge and inspect each rifle round that I will fire during a match.

The rest, no

[armyguy209]

Thanks for the responses. I am probably going to make 2k of these for a SHTF type deal since I don't have any .223. For that reason, it is VERY important that they work..lol

For plinking, I guess I wouldn't care as much but I think I am too anal not to do it.

[TacticalPlinker]

Just do it.

I'm not saying it's absolutely required, but I don't understand why people try to rush the process and take short cuts. If it works for you, then more luck to you, but I pay attention to every single detail of the process, case prep being no less important than anything other, more even more so.

But that is just me. I am a little OCD when it comes to subjects such as this.

[GeoffLinder]

joelogic has nailed the best way IMHO. I extend this practice to pistol ammo also.

It is basically a waste of time to gauge cases before loading. Also generally a waste of time to gauge ammo that will be used for plinking and general practice. Your firearm will find the funky ones when you try to use them

But for important use, such as competition, hunting or SD, you should gauge AND visually QC inspect EVERY SINGLE ROUND. You should also range test enough of each batch of your good stuff to make sure it really is good stuff before you try to rely on it.

Anything from the good stuff that doesn't pass gauge QC just get's tossed into practice/plinking stock unless it has an obvious defect that would preclude wanting to fire it (split case mouths, etc...).

[damndave]

Like others have said.

For my general shooting rounds (plinking, target shooting etc) I might check a couple at random.

For my HD ammo, they all get checked.

[Malthusian]

I check every round on a case gauge
I put those that don't pass in a box for target practice

All my rounds never fail to chamber

Those in the box sometimes have issues, but at target practice, who cares

[Inkman]

Only pistol and only ammo made for big matches.

Local matches, i never case gauge. Target and practice stuff never gets gauged.

Al

[J-cat]

If you load on a good single stage press using Redding competition shell holders bottoming out against the die, you know that the case has been properly sized cuz you can feel the shoulder being bumped. Therefore there's no need to gauge the case.

[Ahhnother8]

I've reloaded thousands of rounds and don't even own a case cage.

This!! Tens and tens and tens of thousands...

[Asmodai]

I do gauge each round, takes a second to do, then, lastly, I weigh them to make sure there's not a double charge or zero powder in the round.

It really doesn't take that long to do and it's worth every safety check to avoid becoming another internet kaboom story.

Remember, you're working with gunpowder, it explodes sh*t. FTF's are the least of your worries. It's an ammunition reloader, not a slot machine - don't gamble with your safety.

Just my 2 cents.