Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: this_feature_currently_requires_accessing_site_using_safari
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.All you need to do is to get a set of RCBS case Form Dies .223 to .222.
Nothing is in stock at the moment!!! I'm a fair reloader but haven't been at the game long!!!Hi JM2. Lapua and Winchester for sure make 222 Rem brass. Both are very accurate in my 222 Sako's
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!!!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
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???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,!#@$!!
One of the reasons I never shoot ammo reloaded by others! Risky business.Just be sure you keep that reformed brass separate from regular 223 cases! You don't want to fire that in a 223 by mistake. I once bought a box of 222 ammo at a gun show and the second or third round wouldn't chamber. Turned out half the box was 222 and the other half was 223. I hadn't bothered to look at the headstamp before I loaded the rifle. I think what happened is that somebody was clearing out an estate and took a bunch of loose ammo that all looked the same and stuck it in the nearest box. I personally prefer not to re-form brass unless I absolutely have to (as in .35 Newton). It makes me nervous having ammo around that the headstamp doesn't match what the round actually is.
I agree, but just to clarify - the ammo in that batch was factory ammo in a factory box - it just wasn't all the same ammo that left the factory in the box.One of the reasons I never shoot ammo reloaded by others! Risky business.
Don't put TOO much lube on or you'll get dents from excessive lubricant on the shoulders -- but if you do get minor dents don't discard the case since they will iron out without consequence on the first shot. And yes, multiple short strokes help keep cases from sticking. It's not a bad idea to remove the decapper/expander rod and do the neck expansion in a separate operation as this will make it much easier to get an inadvertently stuck case out of the resizing die (Schlitz happens).Love the Imperial Sizing Wax to neck down .223 brass to form .17/223. Liberally apply to each case and use multiple short strokes on the ram. A single long stroke will likely cause a stuck case,!#@$!!
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.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???
Thanks for all the advice. I'll pay heed!!!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.