Drawing down cases...

[guywitha3006]

I have the dies from RCE to draw 9mm brass down to ~.355 and started thinking about running 223 cases through it and working them down to .306/307 for .308 long and heavy bullets. Do I need two more draw dies or just one. I know I have to anneal multiple times (not a big deal for me). The prospect of swaged .308 200+ grains for cheap or close to free is awesome. Besides I think this is going to turn into a good winter hobby.

[goblism]

email RCE and he will tell you how many passes you will need.

One thing to highly consider is the cost of 1-2 draw dies. 30 cal jackets are normally ~80 per 1000. Your 223 brass is worth ~ $35 or so a 1000. So you would save $45 a thousand with likely 2-3 draws total (37x->355, 355->320 maybe?, ~320-305) You should get some decent jackets from that process but 2 more draw dies will run a guy about $180. $180/45=~4000 jackets. Not sure how much you shoot but might just be cheaper, and a better end product to just buy the jackets. I understand that there is a little more future proofing with the draw dies (Which will likely result in myself owning several draw dies) but the real jackets should yield a superior product.

Time wise you would also need to anneal the brass, cut it to length, draw 2-3x, anneal again from the work hardening. I know swaging isn't a time saver but that is a lot of unnecessary handling for me.