Does anyone have any experience in loading the 5.7x28 cartridge . I am an experienced reloader of 175 different cartridges along with a lot of wildcats . I have not loaded any of these yet but have been absorbing info about all the horror stories involved . I am loading these for an MGM custom encore barrel . I love single shot & bolt guns . Not a fan of auto loaders . Any tricks that you have used because of recurring problems would be greatly appreciated . Also if you have a favorite powder bullet primer combo & would like to share it I’m all ears . Thanks for any & all suggestions .
Loading 5.7x28
- Thread starter ttrailz
- Start date
I had a customer that used to buy this brass.
I know that you don't clean it like normal brass so that you don't remove the coating (this is a semi-auto issue which may not apply to your specific application).
He specifically told me the failure rate on sizing was high, like up to 20%. The necks are fragile and tend to crack on sizing according to him. He also indicated there was a learned feel to managing the handle pull for best results. I am not sure if he used the traditional lanolin oil mix to size or something else.
I think there may be specific Facebook groups or subforums on other sites for this caliber, but the number of people reloading it is small due to the challenges.
I know that you don't clean it like normal brass so that you don't remove the coating (this is a semi-auto issue which may not apply to your specific application).
He specifically told me the failure rate on sizing was high, like up to 20%. The necks are fragile and tend to crack on sizing according to him. He also indicated there was a learned feel to managing the handle pull for best results. I am not sure if he used the traditional lanolin oil mix to size or something else.
I think there may be specific Facebook groups or subforums on other sites for this caliber, but the number of people reloading it is small due to the challenges.
First off, the factory lacquer coating applied to the brass is supposedly to assist in the ejection phase. Handloader TV also had cycling success tumbling in corn media for like 6 hours. Though his testing using a Simple Green and water at a 1:4 ratio hand agitated in a plastic tub produced a 100% cycling results.
https://www.handloadermagazine.com/handloading-the-5-7x28mm
I just tested cleaning my first batch of brass today using an ultrasonic cleaner and a 1:5 ratio of SG & water heated to 104* for 15 minutes and had good results, all that was required was wiping the necks with a damp towel. I appeared there was no impact to the lacquer coating at all. I'll be, shooting semi-auto pistol and rifle, PSA 5.7 Rock and Ruger 5.7 LC Carbine. For single shot and bolt guns removing the lacquer coating and tumbling will probably work. I'm guessing the 100% functioning of the FN P90 and PS90 in LE and military applications is the primary concern, though civilian semi-auto platforms need it as well.
As for sizing, I've read that polishing your sizing die is advised and using Imperial Case wax works well, though I've seen some have success just using One Shot. I've found that Imperial works (feels) better on my .17 Fireball than One Shot using an RCBS FL die that they polished for me.
I'm leaning toward Accurate No 5 & No 7, and True Blue for powder, small pistol primers for loads under 1900fps and small rifle primers for above 1900fps.
My RCBS 5.7x28 dies are in transit and I'll probably polish the sizer with JB Bore Cleaning Compound and Bore Brite.
It also sounds like cases need to be trimmed to length every firing.
Once I have hands on reloading and field-testing experience, I'll update the above info if needed.
The round appears to have good accuracy potential, especially in your platform!
https://www.handloadermagazine.com/handloading-the-5-7x28mm
I just tested cleaning my first batch of brass today using an ultrasonic cleaner and a 1:5 ratio of SG & water heated to 104* for 15 minutes and had good results, all that was required was wiping the necks with a damp towel. I appeared there was no impact to the lacquer coating at all. I'll be, shooting semi-auto pistol and rifle, PSA 5.7 Rock and Ruger 5.7 LC Carbine. For single shot and bolt guns removing the lacquer coating and tumbling will probably work. I'm guessing the 100% functioning of the FN P90 and PS90 in LE and military applications is the primary concern, though civilian semi-auto platforms need it as well.
As for sizing, I've read that polishing your sizing die is advised and using Imperial Case wax works well, though I've seen some have success just using One Shot. I've found that Imperial works (feels) better on my .17 Fireball than One Shot using an RCBS FL die that they polished for me.
I'm leaning toward Accurate No 5 & No 7, and True Blue for powder, small pistol primers for loads under 1900fps and small rifle primers for above 1900fps.
My RCBS 5.7x28 dies are in transit and I'll probably polish the sizer with JB Bore Cleaning Compound and Bore Brite.
It also sounds like cases need to be trimmed to length every firing.
Once I have hands on reloading and field-testing experience, I'll update the above info if needed.
The round appears to have good accuracy potential, especially in your platform!
I should add that having a powder scale that's honestly accurate to a hundredth of a grain is beneficial considering the diminutive case volume with the 5.7x28. My .17 Fireball ladder tests are in 1/10th grain increments with 18-19 grain charge weights. The 5.7 is in the 5 to 8 grain range, the percentage difference is a big variable.
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