sorting 5.56 Nato from 223?

[Rem06]

what is what preferred method to sort?

Length?

223 head stamp?

my buddy has been reloading and i gave him some brass to help him. he said most of i what i gave him was 5.56 and he don't have a trimmer. aka too long?

oops, corrected: not so much too long but crimped pockets

so sorted off @250 head stamped 223. needless to say. that wasn't fun with aging eyes!

looking for an easier way.....what do you do or use?

 

[nicholst55]

Headstamp and whether or not the primer is crimped. IMHO he should be checking case length after sizing anyway, so trimming shouldn't be a big deal. Perhaps he was referring to removing primer pocket crimps. Not at all difficult, just tedious.

 

[Bill K]

Head stamp i.e. LC and date and a crimp, military. 223 Rem--commercial, for the most part.

 

[jpx2rk]

I sort by headstamp only, then process as needed. Some guns prefer LC over FC, or PMC, etc. Some don't care.

 

[Rem06]

makes sense to me .thank you all.

 

[Rem06]

makes sense to me .thank you all.

follow up question..

these are 223 FC sorted with different head stamp markings, can they be loaded together or do they have to be sorted farther because of possible internal dimensions?

remember , not for matches....single shot kid safe, go bang on deer and groundhogs. but that little sucker has a GH at 360yds and a near miss at 600 lol.

 

[Homerange]

follow up question..

these are 223 FC sorted with different head stamp markings, can they be loaded together or do they have to be sorted farther because of possible internal dimensions?

remember , not for matches....single shot kid safe, go bang on deer and groundhogs. but that little sucker has a GH at 360yds and a near miss at 600 lol.

If the kid can shoot then give him a load that can shoot well too. They will learn nothing when a miss could be the ammo or them.
Different headstamp brass will never give the top results that the great little 223 is capable of.

In saying that I use exclusively range pickup Hornady brass in mine so they will certainly be different lot #'s but still shoot ~0.5 MOA or better once prepped and FF'ed to my rifle.
Occasionally I get a 50 box once fired from chaps that come here but don't reload and these are highly prized.

 

[mikld]

I sorted my 223/5.56 mainly because of my OCD. The cases are virtually the same and guns are slightly different (longer throat in 5.56). Military 5.56 loads are normally "hotter" than civilian .223, but unless reloaded for extreme accuracy, loads are fairly interchangeable. Perhaps your friend was being nice giving an excuse for not accepting the gift?

Google Search

 

[Rem06]

If the kid can shoot then give him a load that can shoot well too. They will learn nothing when a miss could be the ammo or them.
Different headstamp brass will never give the top results that the great little 223 is capable of.

In saying that I use exclusively range pickup Hornady brass in mine so they will certainly be different lot #'s but still shoot ~0.5 MOA or better once prepped and FF'ed to my rifle.
Occasionally I get a 50 box once fired from chaps that come here but don't reload and these are highly prized.

I am aware of 5.56/223 differences, lust don't want to have to deal with (processing), sizing, sorting possible crimped primers. i sorted head stamped 223 I knew that was eliminated.

all the cases i have left are F C 223 with different head stamp markings ( ALL say 223 FC) with different markings) and definitely NOT the same lot.

i have different 223 marked WW-Nosler-R P etc sorted by brand in a different pile (much smaller)

With that hopefully clearing up my terrible computer talking?

would you load all the F C pile the same and not worry and yes i will trim to length. I'm guessing @200

plenty for the single shot rifles

I have the NON 223 marked cases for sale here for someone with a 5.56 or wants to deal with the ones that may be crimped

 

[Rem06]

sorry edited the first post to mean crimped pockets? so he says. he wanted 223 brass so I am giving him the sorted WW-R-P- etc...he uses min loads and don't care about brand, just wants 223 marked

I gave him a Forster trimmer for his trim issue.

I have a Wilson

If it does not say 223 on head , does that mean it is 5.56 Nato? and has a crimped pocket

 

[Red Khon]

I sort head stamps on all the brass I use. Rifle or pistol, it makes no difference it still gets sorted. Some say sorting pistol brass is a waste of time, maybe so but it still gets sorted. As far as the crimp on nato brass, a Dillon super swager makes short work of that job.

 

[SecondsCount]

I have had really good results with LC and FC brass. They both have crimped pockets but I remove it with the swager on my Dillon 1050. The little Hornady tool can be chucked in a drill and used to cut the crimp out.

Improvements can be made by sorting by weight, annealing, and trimming to the same length.

 

[Delfuego]

Headstamp and whether or not the primer is crimped.

+1 hate the crimped primers

 

[Rem06]

i am in on a Dillon 650 for 9mm-.40-38/357-44mag-223 but it don't sort my brass

I'm with Delfuego! I hate crimped primers!

I assume 308 and 30-06 military brass is the same?

 

[Homerange]

would you load all the F C pile the same and not worry and yes i will trim to length.

For plinking maybe but for reliable accuracy no.
Slightly different headstamps indicate different production runs or different tooling in manufacture and therefore questionable repeatability so not something I'd give to a youngster for long range shots.
Confidence in their ability is something that needs fostering not ammo that's near enough.
223 can be loaded to good repeatable accuracy with a minimum of fuss and bother with consistent brass.
If you can't offer that I suggest you shell out and get some and teach the kid to not lose any....another skill they should learn.

 

[Bill K]

follow up question..

these are 223 FC sorted with different head stamp markings, can they be loaded together or do they have to be sorted farther because of possible internal dimensions?

remember , not for matches....single shot kid safe, go bang on deer and groundhogs. but that little sucker has a GH at 360yds and a near miss at 600 lol.

I still prefer to match the brass for the best attempt at accuracy. It looks like you have plenty to do so and give the little fellow every chance to shoot his best.
Now if you are just plinking at cans and such, the don't worry about mixing them up. But if you want the best chance to have accuracy, then match the cases for hunting and target groups.

 

[EOD Rob]

If the kid can shoot then give him a load that can shoot well too. They will learn nothing when a miss could be the ammo or them.
Different headstamp brass will never give the top results that the great little 223 is capable of.

In saying that I use exclusively range pickup Hornady brass in mine so they will certainly be different lot #'s but still shoot ~0.5 MOA or better once prepped and FF'ed to my rifle.
Occasionally I get a 50 box once fired from chaps that come here but don't reload and these are highly prized.

Homerange,
Does not seem to me that he is at that level or need. Just looking for something to for a youngster to sling at a groundhog.

 

[EOD Rob]

what is what preferred method to sort?

Length?

223 head stamp?

my buddy has been reloading and i gave him some brass to help him. he said most of i what i gave him was 5.56 and he don't have a trimmer. aka too long?

oops, corrected: not so much too long but crimped pockets

so sorted off @250 head stamped 223. needless to say. that wasn't fun with aging eyes!

looking for an easier way.....what do you do or use?

Rem06,
If I'm guessing right, Id say you are just looking for something that works, shoots good enough, and is safe?
If that is correct, head stamp is not that big of a deal for what you are looking for. I reload for super accurate rifles and plinkers as well. they are not the same. Yes, the military Lake City does have a crimped in primer, but thatdoes not mean that you friend can not reload that brass. He already has a tool that can remove the crimp. The deburing tool that he uses after trimming will do the job. I use this even with my accuracy loads and it works just fine. Yes, is it a pain in the finger, you bet ya, but I have done thousands of pieces of LC brass this way and guess what, you only have to do it once! Then you can fire away with just as good of accuracy as FC, Win, PMC, Starline, ect.
Happy shooting for you and the youngsters!!!!!
Rob

 

[Homerange]

Homerange,
Does not seem to me that he is at that level or need. Just looking for something to for a youngster to sling at a groundhog.

The OP has already stated the youngster has had kills at 300+ which indicates he is and therefore has earnt the right to good ammo to further improve his skill.
Paper is one thing and game is another. Every living thing is deserved of a clean kill from a properly placed shot where IMHO if the ammo is not up to an adequate accuracy standard then don't shoot at game.

 

[Rem06]

I found a good page to bookmark

Reloading: Handloading the 5.56 NATO— or is it the .223 Remington? - TheGunMag - The Official Gun Magazine of the Second Amendment FoundationTheGunMag – The Official Gun Magazine of the Second Amendment Foundation

This would be a great link to post under the 223 info page.

we are also talking about $100-@200 Handi-rifles, 3x9x40 Buckmaster and equivalent optics also.
45-50-55gr SP not long match BT mostly FB

Safety is #1 concern and I have had a few blown primers in my Handi-rifle and wasn't really sure why?

I am looking to fix that before i load more. so i sorted off all my mixed brass to 223 Marked , F C 223 marked cases that is, and definitely different lots ,to FL size to SAAMI bump and trim to Length. 200 plus pieced are plenty till next loading . safe for all
I will deal with load development after i get the brass issue resolved so i don't blow more primers.