223 FL sizing and other brass questions.

[9w1911]

A few questions for you guys about 223 loading and brass.

1 I have about 200 once fired nickel 223 Federal cases from an LEO friend, are there any issues sizing the nickel?

2 I have traded guys on here for some brass as well, some of it is range pick up, others are sized and primed, some are just cleaned, etc. All are brass accept the 200 nickel I mentioned. How would you guys sort and catalog this? would you toss all unsized brass into one group, keep the nickel in a separate group, and the same with the sized and primed brass?

3 would you organize by head-stamp?

[wallenba]

Organize by headstamp, and year if military 5.56. Measure case neck thicknesses. Biggest unknown is how many times they have already been reloaded. If they are military 5.56, and have crimped primers, that's good. You might need a small base sizing die and reduced load data if you are using the 5.56 in a regular civilian rifle. Use a dental pick inside the case, down near the case head web, to feel for stretching signs. Little 'dips' where it is pulled thinner. Can't advise on the nickel stuff as I've never used any.
A little info on your intended usage, rifle and purpose can help.

[9w1911]

Oh sorry this will be for ARs and for target, protection and plinking the barrel I have is a PSA, it has a 1:9 twist in a 5.56

[W.R.Buchanan]

Separate the nickel cases and use them for your hunting loads with appropriate bullets.

The rest of them get processed as a group. If they are mostly Military cases then separate them from the commercial. You can tell if the Mil stuff is once fired by looking for a primer crimp and or sealant (red or green). If its there they've only been fired once.

Then process them, and load them.

For your intended usage there is little reason to go beyond normal loading procedures. With the Mil cases you will have to deal with the primer crimps but that is easy and can be done with a cordless drill and a countersink. After that they can be loaded just like the others.

Obviously you must inspect each case for cracks or bulges or other serious deformation. 5.56 brass is everywhere so if you loose a few it isn't the end of the world. You will probably loose a few everytime you shoot anyway.

Keep in mind, it is NOT prudent to load to maximum velocities or pressures with cases of unknown origin. Nice Midrange loads are the best way to go for what you want to do. :mrgreen:

Randy

[CastingFool]

I got some fired .223 cases from my nephew, I thought they were once fired, but they were remanufactured ammo. All the cases, including military had crimped primer pockets. Maybe the remanufacturers routinely crimp the primers in. I sort my brass by headstamp. If military, I lump them all together, otherwise I would have a bunch of small lots of brass. Most of my .223 will be for plinking, so top notch accuracy is not required. I will be putting together some hunting loads, but that brass will be segregated. I do have some nickel cases, and they seem to size ok. Haven't loaded any of them yet. My rifle is chambered for 5.56/.223 and I do make sure all resized cases are trimmed to 1.750" before loading. I have a batch that came in at 1.740", those will be segregated as well.

[jonas302]

I think Randy is spot on for your purposes For my bolt gun I sort by headstamp then once fired then by weight put in a bag until I have enough to work up a load with that batch
The Nickle will size fine if there are any loose plating spots toss it it could scratch your die keeping those as a easy id of a load is a good idea

[9w1911]

I rarely, if ever, load full house. I mostly stick with medium loads. I believe the majority of what I have is military, once fired.
What do you guys make out of a brass case with silver primer and red sealant? factory reload?