223 brass

[Jniedbalski]

Iam loading ,for me a large batch of brass. Prepping around 1000 rounds of mixed brass. How many times are you firing them? Using two different ar’s With below max loads With 55 gr fmj’s. And 69 gr sierras.I know the primer pockets will usually get loose First. Iam going to try h 322 and h 335 this time instead of the Other loads I have tried. So what is the round count of how many times fired when you throw away your brass?

[1Papalote]

Your case neck/shoulder will likely split before the pockets enlarge shooting ARs.
Save your brass and sell it to the recycler.
Seems I've seen my brass fail after reloading 3-4 times when used in ARs. I do not anneal.

[M-Tecs]

That is dependent on the size of your chambers and how much you set the shoulders back and what type of dies you use. Bushing dies without the expander ball eliminate most of the neck cracking issues. Same for annealing. With basic reloading technique 7 or 8 loadings is a realist goal.

If the Chamber is large at the back primer pocket loosing becomes an issue sooner. Same for over pressure.

While I tend to run mine loads on the warmer side I use .002" to 003" shoulder/chamber clearance. I get 10 to 12 loadings before I start getting case failure most due to loose primer pockets. Recently helped out a buddie that was getting case head separation after 2 or 3 firings. He was way oversizing his brass.

[garandsrus]

With 1000 pieces of brass, you will wear out your barrel before you need to scrap your brass.

[charlie b]

I only get 4 or 5 reloads using surplus brass (primer pockets expand). I do run warmer loads. 77gn bullets at 2700fps. Lapua brass gets me at least 12 reloads.

[Winger Ed.]

Loading on the milder side myself, I quit counting how long they last.
They just go and go.

When I finally feel a primer seat kind of loose, I mark those with a sharpie.
I save them to shoot at places I can't easily recover the brass.
The few I do get back, I toss in the scrap yard bucket.

[Eddie Southgate]

4 to 5 with neck splits rather than primer pocket issues . Last big batch I loaded I checked after they sat for a year and found a cracked neck cartridge on most of the strippers in the batch . Each loaded cartridge was checked as it was loaded on the stripper so they were actually cracking as they sat . Haven't checked them lately but would not be surprised to find more cracked necks and expect many will crack when fired . Those cases have 4 loadings on them .

[LinotypeIngot]

I've gotten loose primer pockets from some really hot loads, but aside from that I concur that cracked necks will be your primary issue. 4-5 loads seems about right. I suppose you can anneal if you really need the brass to last.

[Tripplebeards]

I anneal every four or five loadings. I Normally loose my brass before it wears out. I bought a 1000 5.56 LC virgin brass two years ago and put it away. I have a load that shoots .3” at 200 yards out of my POF with LC brass when I do my part so I don’t want to run out. I think I paid $119 for a 1000 ready to go casings at the time. I also have about 500 loaded up i bought previously and shot once. I have them stored in vacuum sealed bags.

[gnostic]

I must be loading my jacketed bullets too hot because they get loose primer pockets in about five reloads, that's with all my rifle brass. All semi autos are hard on brass and small base dies exaggerate the problem. I don't worry about .223 brass, I picked up a five gallon bucket of them free at the range and don't like the looks of them after they're loaded a couple times...

[Tripplebeards]

I've had 300 RUM I've loaded a good 15 times and the brass is still good. I rarely ever get loose primer pockets

[Larry Gibson]

If you size with an RCBS X-die [standard die not the SB or "AR" X-die] you will lose the cases or the necks will split before they "wear out". I've one batch of LC 5.56 I've loaded 20+ times and they are still going strong minus the few split necks and losses......

Bonus is I've never had to trim the cases when using the X-Die.....

[Hossfly]

When the neck splits and primer pocket is ok, I just saw it off and it becomes a 300 black out round.