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New old 222 rifle!!!

Sako Collectors Club Discussion Forum

JM2

Active Member
Just bought a SAKO 222!!! Light with a crisp trigger. Ammo is expensive but seems the only way to get brass for reloading!!! I don't want to resize 223 brass as I'm not sure I can do it safely!!!
John M2
 
Hi JM2. Lapua and Winchester for sure make 222 Rem brass. Both are very accurate in my 222 Sako's
 
All you need to do is to get a set of RCBS case Form Dies .223 to .222. The set consists of a Form Die that pushes the shoulder back and a trim die. With the set you can make tons of .222 brass that will work fine.

If you snap up once fired military brass you will need a primer pocket swager. They are pretty inexpensive or you can just use the de-burring tool to ream out the crimp.

rick
 
All you need to do is to get a set of RCBS case Form Dies .223 to .222.
I've never experienced the need for a "forming die set". Just run the .223 cases into a .222 FL sizing die, trim to proper length, then chamfer the neck opening. I've made .280 from .30-06, .25-06 from .30-06, .243 from .308, .300 BLK from .223, .222 from .223, .20 Vartarg from .221 FB, 8x57 from .30-06, .257 from 7x57, 7x64 from .30-06, 7x33 from .350 Legend, .256 Win from .357, and probably some more I can't remember with nothing but a FL die for the cartridge being converted to. There are a few tricks with lubrication, whether to remove the decapping/expander button, and how you handle the press during resizing, but those simply have to be learned and aren't quickly taught.
 
Stone Creek, thanks for the reply!!! Reforming seems like a good option but I've heard a story of a guy who caused damage to their gun but fortunately not themselves using reformed brass. I love to shoot but am not the sharpest pencil in the box. A few extra dollars for brass seems cheap vs. A damaged gun, the hospital or the morgue!!! Unfortunatly now it's impossible to get brass or bullets (my order just went from in stock to backordered) so I may have to reform anyway!!! I'll let you know what happens!!!
 
The forming die does a better job of relocating the shoulder than a FL die. The form set comes with a trim die so all of the brass comes out uniform.

rick
 
Thanks Rick. I'm going to try to reform some 223 into 222. Right now I'm still waiting for my die set to come in the mail.
 
Excellent. My advice is to go lite on the case lube. I have a rolling pad that I've been using for years and it's all in the touch. If you overdo the lube you will get dents in the shoulder so take it easy.

BTW, my pad is an old stamp pad. The thing works great and has served me well for over 50 years.

rick
 
Excellent. My advice is to go lite on the case lube. I have a rolling pad that I've been using for years and it's all in the touch. If you overdo the lube you will get dents in the shoulder so take it easy.

BTW, my pad is an old stamp pad. The thing works great and has served me well for over 50 years.

rick
Will be using imperial sizing die wax. Easier to control the amount of lube. I use this in my normal case prep and sizing for my 223!!!
 
Love the Imperial Sizing Wax to neck down .223 brass to form .17/223. Liberally apply to each case and use multiple short strokes on the ram. A single long stroke will likely cause a stuck case,!#@$!!
 
Love the Imperial Sizing Wax to neck down .223 brass to form .17/223. Liberally apply to each case and use multiple short strokes on the ram. A single long stroke will likely cause a stuck case,!#@$!!
So I should keep the sizing die in the fully sized position then stroke a little at a time??? Do I trim the brass before hand so it doesn't get to long in the sizing die or does that not matter???
 
Just be sure you keep that reformed brass separate from regular 223 cases! You don't want to fire that in a 223 by mistake. I once bought a box of 222 ammo at a gun show and the second or third round wouldn't chamber. Turned out half the box was 222 and the other half was 223. I hadn't bothered to look at the headstamp before I loaded the rifle. I think what happened is that somebody was clearing out an estate and took a bunch of loose ammo that all looked the same and stuck it in the nearest box. I personally prefer not to re-form brass unless I absolutely have to (as in .35 Newton). It makes me nervous having ammo around that the headstamp doesn't match what the round actually is.
 
Just be sure you keep that reformed brass separate from regular 223 cases! You don't want to fire that in a 223 by mistake. I once bought a box of 222 ammo at a gun show and the second or third round wouldn't chamber. Turned out half the box was 222 and the other half was 223. I hadn't bothered to look at the headstamp before I loaded the rifle. I think what happened is that somebody was clearing out an estate and took a bunch of loose ammo that all looked the same and stuck it in the nearest box. I personally prefer not to re-form brass unless I absolutely have to (as in .35 Newton). It makes me nervous having ammo around that the headstamp doesn't match what the round actually is.
One of the reasons I never shoot ammo reloaded by others! Risky business.
 
Midway USA has a good selection of 222 brass, Lapua, Nosler, Norma, Rem, Hornady, Starline. Unfortunately because of ammo shortages, all are out of stock. I have only tried to resize 222 from 223 a few times and was not pleased with results. Will need to practice more. Good luck, be safe.
 
I have never had a bad experience forming brass from a parent case. I say that because I use the right tools to do the job. I have never had a stuck case probably because I use RCBS Case Lube and the correct form and trim die set. I have well over 50 form die sets in the shop and form everything from 17 caliber and up. In fact many of the rifles I own have never had commercial rounds manufactured for them so without forming the brass they might as well be used for fence posts.

With over 50 years experience I think I know what I am talking about.

rick
 
Love the Imperial Sizing Wax to neck down .223 brass to form .17/223. Liberally apply to each case and use multiple short strokes on the ram. A single long stroke will likely cause a stuck case,!#@$!!
Don't put TOO much lube on or you'll get dents from excessive lubricant on the shoulders -- but if you do get minor dents don't discard the case since they will iron out without consequence on the first shot. And yes, multiple short strokes help keep cases from sticking. It's not a bad idea to remove the decapper/expander rod and do the neck expansion in a separate operation as this will make it much easier to get an inadvertently stuck case out of the resizing die (Schlitz happens).

So I should keep the sizing die in the fully sized position then stroke a little at a time??? Do I trim the brass before hand so it doesn't get to long in the sizing die or does that not matter???
Very often if a FL die is set down fully against the shell holder you'll end up with the shoulder set back a bit further than necessary, making the headspace for your particular rifle a bit long. Instead, resize a single case with the die backed off about .025" or so, then try the case in your chamber. Assuming it won't fully chamber, screw the die down in small increments until the case chambers with minimal resistance. This will ensure that your cases will be a snug fit for your chamber and won't need to stretch upon the first firing, which will usually provide better accuracy and longer case life.

The ultimate depth of your die may or may not be all the way down against the shell holder, and I've even had occasions in which the die's base-shoulder dimension was longer than that of the rifle's chamber, so I had to thin a few thousands off of the shell holder's lip to move the shoulder sufficiently rearward. But it is usually the opposite since chambers tend to be cut toward the maximum and dies toward the minimum.

Most .222 FL dies will accept a full length .223 case without trimming it. You can't accurately trim to final length before resizing, so you'll have to trim twice if you do a preliminary trim. Of course, you'll need to pre-trim the case with which you set the depth of the die by trying it in the actual rifle chamber (as I described in the first paragraph), but I'd say wait to trim all of the others after resizing.

I loaded my first metallic round in 1964 and have loaded for about five dozen different cartridges in the succeeding half-century-plus, but I learn something nearly every time I sit down at the bench to do some handloading.
 
Don't put TOO much lube on or you'll get dents from excessive lubricant on the shoulders -- but if you do get minor dents don't discard the case since they will iron out without consequence on the first shot. And yes, multiple short strokes help keep cases from sticking. It's not a bad idea to remove the decapper/expander rod and do the neck expansion in a separate operation as this will make it much easier to get an inadvertently stuck case out of the resizing die (Schlitz happens).


Very often if a FL die is set down fully against the shell holder you'll end up with the shoulder set back a bit further than necessary, making the headspace for your particular rifle a bit long. Instead, resize a single case with the die backed off about .025" or so, then try the case in your chamber. Assuming it won't fully chamber, screw the die down in small increments until the case chambers with minimal resistance. This will ensure that your cases will be a snug fit for your chamber and won't need to stretch upon the first firing, which will usually provide better accuracy and longer case life.

The ultimate depth of your die may or may not be all the way down against the shell holder, and I've even had occasions in which the die's base-shoulder dimension was longer than that of the rifle's chamber, so I had to thin a few thousands off of the shell holder's lip to move the shoulder sufficiently rearward. But it is usually the opposite since chambers tend to be cut toward the maximum and dies toward the minimum.

Most .222 FL dies will accept a full length .223 case without trimming it. You can't accurately trim to final length before resizing, so you'll have to trim twice if you do a preliminary trim. Of course, you'll need to pre-trim the case with which you set the depth of the die by trying it in the actual rifle chamber (as I described in the first paragraph), but I'd say wait to trim all of the others after resizing.

I loaded my first metallic round in 1964 and have loaded for about five dozen different cartridges in the succeeding half-century-plus, but I learn something nearly every time I sit down at the bench to do some handloading.
Thanks for all the advice. I'll pay heed!!!
 
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