What did you do in the reloading room today?
- Thread starter Kisssofdeath
- Start date
I have used most of the brands available for 223 brass. There are a couple that didn't work well for my routine, odly most people would consider them high quality.
The most consistent rounds I have produced came from brass that I wouldn't buy (factory loaded) to blast pumpkins with. Go figure.
The most consistent rounds I have produced came from brass that I wouldn't buy (factory loaded) to blast pumpkins with. Go figure.
I have used most brands, I like LC and Fed , but found that the Lapua rim is smoother entering the shell holder the best. My groups are just as good with LC but as I said its just a choice.
LC brass fired through a quality barrel will produce excellent groups.
Sometimes 5 shots in 1/4". But 1/2 moa is not unusual.
No weight sorting, just buy a lot of one thousand, load and shoot,...get the free primers too.
I use the same busing die on both Lapua and LC.
LC has a little less volume, so drop the charge a bit on max loads.
Even the 50BMG is capable of 1/2 MOA with LC brass and 620 gr APITs for 5 shots. With a bullet that's over 1/2" wide...
Sometimes 5 shots in 1/4". But 1/2 moa is not unusual.
No weight sorting, just buy a lot of one thousand, load and shoot,...get the free primers too.
I use the same busing die on both Lapua and LC.
LC has a little less volume, so drop the charge a bit on max loads.
Even the 50BMG is capable of 1/2 MOA with LC brass and 620 gr APITs for 5 shots. With a bullet that's over 1/2" wide...
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Highly doubtful Lapua is sending ANY brass into Ukraine ,for WHAT purpose ??. Iron Block Countries use Steel cases ,NOBODY is reloading war fodder . War is War and it simply has to go BANG and hit it's intended target .
Red Army Brown Bear
Every ex-Warsaw Pact country, ex-Soviet Republics, China, Vietnam, Egypt, Iraq, Burma, India, and many others produce 7.62x39mm ammo (though the quality varies from country to country). Even Finland produces the ammo for its AK series of weapons in case of war with Russia. Highly unlikely Finland is supplying anyone let alone Ukraine .
Germany, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Czechoslovakia, as well as non-Warsaw nations such as China and Yugoslavia, also produce tens of millions of rounds for military use. Nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America receive a large share of it for the various proxy wars !.
MY Guess would be Taiwan South Korea would be cranking out 5.56X45mm for the M4 ,FN Scar and Bren Rifles .
The Bren is another short-stroke gas-piston gun similar to the SCAR, so much so it’s often joked that the Bren is the Czech SCAR. The Czech Republic donated the weapons to Ukraine and they’ve been popular with the Foreign Legion. The Bren is a modern, modular rifle that’s accessory-ready, fairly light, and quite reliable. The gun comes in either 5.56 or 7.62, but we’ve only seen a 5.56 variation in use in Ukraine.
Another unsurprising sight is the PKM belt-fed machine gun. This medium machine gun fires the 7.62x54R and has been seen in the hands of American volunteers fighting in Ukraine. This belt-fed support weapon is one of the better medium machine guns out there. It operates on the same principle as the Kalashnikov and is perfectly suited for the Ukrainian winter. It’s also light for its design and quite effective.
Red Army Brown Bear
Every ex-Warsaw Pact country, ex-Soviet Republics, China, Vietnam, Egypt, Iraq, Burma, India, and many others produce 7.62x39mm ammo (though the quality varies from country to country). Even Finland produces the ammo for its AK series of weapons in case of war with Russia. Highly unlikely Finland is supplying anyone let alone Ukraine .
Germany, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Czechoslovakia, as well as non-Warsaw nations such as China and Yugoslavia, also produce tens of millions of rounds for military use. Nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America receive a large share of it for the various proxy wars !.
Numerous AK variants
Unsurprisingly there are a ton of AK-types in Ukraine, including the Russian-made AKM and AK 74 series alongside the RPK light machine gun. These rifles either fire the 7.62×39 or the 5.45×39 and can be either fixed- and or folding-stock types. Countries like Serbia have donated their AK variants to Ukraine, and we’ve even seen Chinese Type 56 rifles used by the Ukrainian forces. It’s somewhat difficult to tell which AKs have gone to the Ukraine Foreign Legion, but they most certainly have been seen wielding them.MY Guess would be Taiwan South Korea would be cranking out 5.56X45mm for the M4 ,FN Scar and Bren Rifles .
The Bren is another short-stroke gas-piston gun similar to the SCAR, so much so it’s often joked that the Bren is the Czech SCAR. The Czech Republic donated the weapons to Ukraine and they’ve been popular with the Foreign Legion. The Bren is a modern, modular rifle that’s accessory-ready, fairly light, and quite reliable. The gun comes in either 5.56 or 7.62, but we’ve only seen a 5.56 variation in use in Ukraine.
Another unsurprising sight is the PKM belt-fed machine gun. This medium machine gun fires the 7.62x54R and has been seen in the hands of American volunteers fighting in Ukraine. This belt-fed support weapon is one of the better medium machine guns out there. It operates on the same principle as the Kalashnikov and is perfectly suited for the Ukrainian winter. It’s also light for its design and quite effective.
M249 SAW/ FN Minime
The Belgian FN Minime became the American M249 SAW. The two weapons are largely the same and with both Belgium and the United States donating weapons to Ukraine, it’s tough to say which is which by looking at photos. This 5.56 caliber, belt-fed, light machine gun provides a squad with a designated support weapon and is much easier to use in urban areas and tight quarters than a medium machine gun. These guns offer portability for a machine gun with a reliable open-bolt design.M240/FN MAG machine guns
Like the M249 and Minime, the FN MAG and M240 are largely the same gun but with different designations. The M240 is my favorite medium machine gun. It’s insanely reliable and quite accurate and capable. It’s admittedly heavy but easy to use and quite effective. This 7.62 NATO machine gun offers a general-purpose machine gun for infantry and vehicle use and is at home in both defense and offense. It’s tough to find a more reliable machine gun out there.CZ Scorpion's are also popular
Had and interesting time today in my reloading room after receiving my order of 100 6.8x51 Hybrid cases.
First thing I took measurements to see what I'm dealing with as I prepare to size them into a .308 case. Other than the having to expand the neck, it was interesting to see the OD difference just below the shoulder-body junction was at .458 as opposed to a .308 at ~ .452". Down at the web, the OD I measured .4675". . . slightly less that some virgin .308 cases of .468". Case headspace what pretty much the same as .308 case, at least until they were sized where I had to adjust my .308 FL sizing die down to get where I needed to be. Neck wall thickness was at .015 + a little more for some of them.
Most of the cases had evidence of being annealed, but some did not. And those that did were pretty clean inside where the others still had a little bit powder with some clinging to the inside.
Here's what that powder looks like:
Since these cases come already primed, I removed the primes, measured the depth of the primers pockets as well at the height of these primers. Primer pockets were .128 deep and these primers were ~.1235 tall. Primers in the cases were seated very consistently at .004 below flush.
to be continued. . .
First thing I took measurements to see what I'm dealing with as I prepare to size them into a .308 case. Other than the having to expand the neck, it was interesting to see the OD difference just below the shoulder-body junction was at .458 as opposed to a .308 at ~ .452". Down at the web, the OD I measured .4675". . . slightly less that some virgin .308 cases of .468". Case headspace what pretty much the same as .308 case, at least until they were sized where I had to adjust my .308 FL sizing die down to get where I needed to be. Neck wall thickness was at .015 + a little more for some of them.
Most of the cases had evidence of being annealed, but some did not. And those that did were pretty clean inside where the others still had a little bit powder with some clinging to the inside.
Here's what that powder looks like:
Since these cases come already primed, I removed the primes, measured the depth of the primers pockets as well at the height of these primers. Primer pockets were .128 deep and these primers were ~.1235 tall. Primers in the cases were seated very consistently at .004 below flush.
to be continued. . .
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Since I want to fire form some cases that I can measure their case volume, I’ve annealed, sized, prepped and loaded up 10 cases that I’ll also measure velocity to get some idea for velocity with a load of IMR-4064 that I’ve used before. Primers that were removed were reseated to the same depth as before (.004 blow flush).
The rest of the cases were put through my annealing process (flame annealing to a red glow) then expanded the necks with a .305” expander mandrel. Once all the cases are fire formed, I’ll then turn the necks to .014” thick.
To make sure all the powder is out of the cases and take care of the oxidation layer after annealing, I wet tumbled them with SS pins (25 min).
Took the clean cases and FL sized them all and trimmed to length. Here the finished product:
BTW: While sizing the cases, there was one case of the batch that had a funny sound when removing it from the sizing die. That sound and the way it felt alerted me that something wasn't right. I measured the case OAL and it was way long, like .032" longer that is should be. Measuring its headspace had the same issue. Apparently the steel head fitting to the brass has pulled out as there was much more space between the steel head and the brass body on the outside surface. So, it's not a case I'm going to try to use in any way.
The rest of the cases were put through my annealing process (flame annealing to a red glow) then expanded the necks with a .305” expander mandrel. Once all the cases are fire formed, I’ll then turn the necks to .014” thick.
To make sure all the powder is out of the cases and take care of the oxidation layer after annealing, I wet tumbled them with SS pins (25 min).
Took the clean cases and FL sized them all and trimmed to length. Here the finished product:
BTW: While sizing the cases, there was one case of the batch that had a funny sound when removing it from the sizing die. That sound and the way it felt alerted me that something wasn't right. I measured the case OAL and it was way long, like .032" longer that is should be. Measuring its headspace had the same issue. Apparently the steel head fitting to the brass has pulled out as there was much more space between the steel head and the brass body on the outside surface. So, it's not a case I'm going to try to use in any way.
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