.223 case life with cast loads

[MeestaSparkle]

For those of you who cast for .223 or 5.56, I was curious what kind of brass life one could expect from loads in the ~1900-2200 fps range with a ~55gr cast bullet. The brass would probably be lake city. The rifle would be an ar15 with a 5.56 chamber, probably neck size only.

Thanks for any help :)

[andrew375]

Virtually indefinite, I've found. I neck size with a Lee collet die. About once every ten reloads the cases will be neck annealed and full length resized to bump the shoulders back, but that's it. The two reasons for case lose with .223 have been split necks and worn rims.:drinks:

[JeffinNZ]

Yeap. "Everlasting" just like the old cartridges.

[mstarling]

I had thought it would be a bad idea to shoot cast bullets in a gas operated gun like the AR. Have folks done this successfully without a lot of crap getting blown into the gas system and bolt?