Brass OAL Question

[Tactical30]

im new to reloading and have a question.
The speer book i got with my RCBS set said to load .223 casings the max brass case length was 1.760 and trim to 1.750. The question is can you go under that length by a little without making a difference, does it have to be exact 1.750? Like 1.745 or 1.740 make a difference. It would take awhile to caliper check every case for EXACT length. What is the lowest you can go before it to short to use? Im using a AR-15 for target shooting and would like to be as accurate as possible. I got the RCBS automatic trimmer with the moter on it, damn it beats having to crank it! Im am having a little trouble getting it set right. It seems to differ from 1.750 to 1.745. Does it matter?

Thanks

 

[Halfnutz]

Re: Brass OAL Question

If you are a little shorter than minimum it will not hurt anything. You may want to work on your technique or make sure the stop is tight to get them more consistant. I wouldn't want to go much beyond 1.745. Be easy (and consistant) on your calipers too.

Consistancy equals Accuracy.

 

[ChadTRG42]

Re: Brass OAL Question

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Halfnutz</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Consistancy equals Accuracy. </div></div>
Best statement yet. If you go .010" too deep, it's alright. The bright side is you won't have to trim cases for a while. I always trim to minimum length so you can get more reloads on a case before you have to trim again. But try to keep all the cases the same length (within .001-.002").

 

[AQC440]

Re: Brass OAL Question

I accidentally trimmed .010 too much off of my Lapua 6 br cases once and they actually ended up shooting tighter groups.
<span style="font-style: italic">Caution your experience may vary.</span>

 

[FNuser]

Re: Brass OAL Question

usually leaving a >.250 dia. place for bullet, gas, etc, hurts accuracy but as far as safety goes I don't see a problem however too long is a different story so if you feel like you need some room somewhere because your stuff ain't as tight as it could be I'd say you're error on the short side is to be preferred.

 

[FNuser]

Re: Brass OAL Question

maybe a cerro-safe chamber cast or a crayon would tell you the actual length of your chamber's neck. After you find this you would then have a real world max for that rifle. miss the max by .01 or so and you should be good.

 

[BLAWTON]

Re: Brass OAL Question

The shorter the neck the less of a seal you get during ignition. Just to let you know. i usually makes sure i clean all of them up when new and recheck every 3-4 loads.