new to reloading. need advise

[robbyd0313]

I am very new to reloading. Infact i havent even loaded my first round yet. i have everything to do it except my dies and compenents. I am very excited and nervous as heck to start this new adventure but I am the type of person who will not put lead to paper unless i have done a ton of research first. I will only be reloading for my ar-15 chambered in .223 wylde. It is an 18" 1/8 twist integrity arms melonite coated, socom barrel. My intensions with this rifle are to hunt on rare occasions out to about 300 yrds, and develope the ultimate, accurate round specifically for my rifle. I do not have proper glass on it as of yet but i intend to do so. My question to you experienced reloaders who reload for ur AR-15 is: do i need anything imparticular to reload for an ar, and does anyone have a load they think i should start with so that i may be able to start learning this new skill. Also, powder suggestions, bullet brands and weights for my barrel and twist rate. Im not trying to be rude but plz dont post a comment unless it is helpful and from someone with years of experience or unless u reload for ar's yourself. I have been on several forums and i feel im getting opinions rather than experience and facts. Thank u all for any help and/or suggestions that u can give me. Btw my reload manuel is a lymans 49th addition and i have read it cover to cover. It had the highest recomendation so thats what i got. If there are other manuels or videos that are helpful plz feel free to suggest them and i will get them. I have listed all my tools down below in another comment. Just for those asking urself why i went with a single stage press: i did it so i reduce my chances of messing somthing up and because i dont plan to run tons of ammo. My goal is to learn a new skill and to create a load for hunting and also a load for longer range target shooting. I feel (and im probably wrong) that with a single stage and hand tools i can and will take time my with each round and pay more attention to detail rather than focusing on cranking out rnds. I thank u all again for taking the time out of your day to help me.

 

[YOTESHOOTER]

Suggest full length small base dies, our choice is the RCBS GOLD METAL DIES, expensive yes, but worth it, powders
BLC-2, VARGET, that is only two of many available. Bullets consider 62 grain, only suggestions, you must make your
own decisions.

The guys on here will offer you very good ideas and they are very good also, a lot of information, more than you will be able to process in many years.

Good luck with your new found passion in reloading.

 

[woodstock]

AR is not the best round to start reloading with. Ask me how I know....

If you have a straight wall round such as 9 or 49 or 45, I strongly urge you to start with that.

Essential components are being able to follow published reloading info such as case length, overall case length when loaded, correct grains for the correct powder and projectile and weight, primer selection, proper way to lube the cases and so on.

It isn't hard once you learn the basics.

I have a lee turret machine that is very handy, but when I do 223, I use it as a single stage. Deprime and size all I'm going to do at that sitting.
Then charge(pay attention!), then finally the projectile and crimp.Then a check for overall case length.
Crimping is an art more than a science. I generally use a light to moderate crimp on rounds.

Don't go crazy and make a thousand rounds until you've tested. Starting at the lowest published charge for the projectile, make 10 or 20 of it and go slightly higher charge make another 10 or 20. See how they function in your firearm and accuracy.
If you have a chronometer, that's even better.

 

[guns4samfie]

I reload for my AR's so I thought I'd chime in. I'm sure the pros will be along soon to give you great advice.

It might be helpful to describe your intended process for reloading (case prep included) so that we have an idea of where you stand.

As for manuals, the more the merrier. I like to cross-reference as much as possible. The Hornady manual is a pretty good pickup.

Your barrel should be able to stabilize bullets up to about 80gr, so you have a lot of good options. I'm sure we can provide you with some pet loads, but you'll have to find the perfect combo for your gun. Are you wanting to develop two types of rounds, one for plinking and one for hunting? If so, this will likely mean two different bullets. A little more information about your intended goals would probably help out.

Welcome to reloading and I hope that you benefit from the years of experience on here!

 

[JBKnifeworks]

If you are going to use military brass, get a primer crimp remover. Use a harder primer. ARs have a floating firing pin. Test fire one round at a time, to make sure the bolt locks. Learn what pressure signs are, and look for them. Read the basic reloading section in your manual several times. Be safe.

 

[robbyd0313]

Thanks alot for the help so far. I have a lee 50th anniversary kit with a single stage press. I have all hand tools, ball case trimmer with 223 guide. case length head space gauge. I also have the lyman chamfer and deburring tools and the primer pocket cleaner. I have the lee deluxe 4 die set and red box 3 die set coming. I will be sending one of them back depending on my gathered information here. I will be loading mainly for the range. I dont want to stock pile ammo i want to have precision ammunition for my rifle that i can shoot at targets but first i want to make a few plinking round to get a feel for what im doing. Then maybe i will start digging deeper into the dynamics of load development. Baby steps lol

 

[robbyd0313]

Sry for the insane pic cluster. I dont know wat happened. Aside from all that i also have the full case prep kit by lyman. once i get a feel for wat im doing i will start trying to develope a load for my rifle. Is the cci .400 SRP an exceptable primer for an ar or is there a harder one i should use? I have read that ar-15's like R-15 and varget powder but it will cause alot of trash in the carrier and that i should use h-335. I am very uncertain when reading my manuel because alot of the information is for bolt guns and not a semi-auto. Ive talked to several ppl and there is some speculation about whether or not i should use the factory crimp die at all. I have also seen that if i load 70 gr or higher then i will have to shoot it single shot because it wont fit in the magazine. Is this true? It just seems odd to me that they would make an ar barrel that is designed to stablize the 70 gr plus bullets but they wont even fit the mag.

 

[woodstock]

I've used a variety of powders, nothing has fouled so far or been particularly dirty. Have not tried the r15.
If you want exceptionally clean use cfe223. Claims reduced copper fouling and in my experience it not only does that its cleaner all around.
I haven't found a bad powder for 223 yet though.
Like blc2, benchmark, aa2230, w748,h335,and a couple others.
Use one powder to start and get familiar with it, some are better with lighter bullets some with heavier.

 

[guns4samfie]

I've used CCI 400's in my AR's without issue. No slam fires. It may not be ideal for AR's, but it will likely do. I have heard rumors of slam fires with other brands of SRP.

I don't think you will have issues with bullets in the 70gr range. If you can buy them commercially (http://www.midwayusa.com/product/13...a-matchking-hollow-point?cm_vc=ProductFinding) you should be able to replicate them. Maybe you will have to find the right magazine, but this shouldn't be a problem. On this point, why don't you buy some commercial ammo and see what you gun likes? It's an expensive proposition, but I like to deconstruct a factory round before I start loading. I use a kinetic puller to gauge neck tension, weigh the powder, measure the case etc. It's not a bad idea for your first time.

I don't think there is a hard rule on crimping. If you can achieve the right neck tension, it may not be required. I usually do, however. The kinetic puller can be helpful here too. Try to determine how your neck tension is compared to the factory round. Chamber some dummy rounds (no powder or primer) and see if you have bullet setback. It'll cost you some money and hurt your price per round, but you can learn a lot from making rounds and then pulling them.

 

[robbyd0313]

I have not yet fed my gun anything and really tried to get a grp with it. But, i dont have proper glass yet so i rly cant. I have a vortex strikefire mounted on it right now and i can grp very tight with the ammo i have used but 5 inch grps at 50 yrds from my shoulder is no basis for comparison. Once i get a good scope for it i will bench rest it and see what she can do. My biggest concern right now is the fact that i am reloading ammo for an ar not a bolt gun. I just dont want to screw up. Im not the smartest man on the planet and i am teaching myself thru research and book study. Im not a very good teacher or student lol. I dont know anyone who reloads who i could apprentice under so its kind of over whelming for me. Over the past 2 months I have watched countless hours of youtube videos and read forums until my eyes cross. You guys are giving me alot of helpful advice and i am very greatful for each one of u taking the time to help me! Thank u all so much!