I got a .223 Lee Deluxe set from the EE exchange a few months ago. I have loaded about 200 55 gr SP rounds and well I am addicted to reloading now. lol
I just loaded 20 30-30 with a lee two die set and they look good. I will shoot them this weekend.
Everyone has their own favorite but if you just want plinking ammo get a die set. Keep them clean inside and out and you should be good. I have only been reloading for about a year now so i am fairly new and learning along the way.

No squibs yet, but a few hot loads.

They are all good, pick one.

I have three different sets of .223 dies, Lee, RCBS and Forster and they are in order of their cost.

It is the person using the dies that makes accurate ammunition and not the dies themselves, meaning its the reloader who can and will makes the mistakes.

More inaccurate ammunition is reloaded due to the simple mistake of locking the decapping pin-expander button down off center and pulling the necks of the case off center creating case neck run-out.



On dies with a simple lock nut on the decapping rod, a small rubber o-ring can be placed under the lock nut then hand tightened only which allows the decapping rod to float and be self centering with less bullet run-out.

My more costly Forster neck and shoulder bump die does not have a expander button and has a floating bushing that only touches the outside of the case neck to reduce case runout.

For your type of reloading any of the cheaper dies will work, it will be up to you on how accurate your reloaded ammunition is made by attention to detail.

Any brand of 223 FL dies will load good ammo, I perfer Hornady dies.

Keep your decapping stem in place, as you are not loading bench rest ammo.

I use the dies in the pic to load sub moa ammo.

Go to the top of the page, read the FAQ's and Tutorials.

In Tutorials look for the 4 part "loading 223" threads, good instruction on how to reload 223 with pics.

For what it's worth,

Since money is not a problem, look at the Redding NM die set. I know that you said you are not loading match ammo, and that is ok. The dies still work for plinking ammo...

The biggest advantage to this set is the seating die supports the case completely as it rides up to seat the bullet, and the seater depth is controlled with a micrometer dial.

I recently worked up loads on 52gr SMK, 53gr SMK, and 55gr Hornady FMJ-BT. All the bullets were loaded with TAC, so when I had the PM set I just loaded a batch of bullet, adjusted the depth quickly with the mic, loaded a batch of another bullet, made another quick adjustment, and loaded the third batch.

Then I adjusted the PM to the next charge, loaded the batch that I finished on, made a quick adjustment, loaded a second batch, made a quick adjustment, and loaded the third batch.

Many people will say to only have one powder, one bullet, one primer, etc on the bench, and they are right. It is easy to mix up. I kept them well separated and paid attention to which bullet I was loading. The main point of telling this is to point out how awesome a good seating die with a micrometer is.

FYI, the flat base of the 53gr SMK makes it harder to load than the boat tails (similar issue with V-max). I balance the bullet on the top of the case and run the press up. Once the bullet is supported in the die, I can let go and run it up. The inside of the die aligns and straightens the bullet as it goes to the seat. They all came out looking pretty good in terms of run-out. I don't have a dial indicator to check specifics, but the old "roll on the bench test" and "shoot them in the gun test" worked great.

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I'm planning on using a lee universal decapping die before a tumble in stainless media. I am then going to remove the decapping rod from my resizing die. Will this eliminate the issue that your talking about?[/quote]

You should not remove the expander ball which is usually on the decapping rod. I have seen dies that it is possible to remove the decapping pin only and leave the rod and expander in place but if you are decapping with a universal decapper just leave you die alone the pin will just be passing through an open hole.

When I got my VTR-15 (my first .223) I borrowed my brothers Lee die set and have never looked back. I get MOA or less without even working too hard. I don't "factory crimp" any of my .223 ammo either but I do use the FC die in other calibers and like it a lot.

This is for the guy who posted about loading 30-30 with a 2 die set. If that ammo is for a rifle that has a tube magazine you should be crimping that ammo.

As stated above, removing the decapping stem will also remove the expander button. This will cause the necks to be undersize. If you do this, then you will need to open the necks back up another way. That would mean another step using a die "with" and expander like the Lyman "M" die.

lots of good reviews i have seen for the RCBS X die never trim again

Do not remove the expander button because it is used to expand the necks up to the correct inside diameter. Only more expensive die set have no expander and they come with mutable bushings that size the neck of the case to the required diameter.




The expander button should never be locked down until a lubed case is placed in the shell holder, and on the down stroke when the case neck contacts the expander button it centers the expander button and then you tighten the lock nut. Another method is to place a rubber o-ring under the lock nut and allow the expander button to float and self center when it enters the neck.

I prefer the o-ring method because the case rims can be dinged and dented inside the extractor groove and can end up slightly tilted on the down stroke with the raised ding or dent touching the upper part of the shell holder. This can cause case misalignment and the floating expander compensates for this.

I use RCBS 223 dies, no complaints.

I have dies from pretty much every manufacturer on my bench.
I will support the "get the Lee Factory Crimp Die" folks... It is 10$ well spent in almost every caliber, I generally just buy the Lee set that include the FCD... Give me spare dies if any of my other branded dies decide to break.... And I figure I get a die set for like 15-20$after paying the 10$ for the FCD.

I currently use the Dillon Carbide set for 5.56/.223. They are great dies and have produced wonderful ammo. My Hornady and Lee 5.56/.223 die sets also make great ammo... I just prefer the "feel" of the carbide die with good lube. I wish Dillon would make more rifle caliber dies in carbide.
Oddly... I prefer Hornady for all the .45 cal rounds... ACP/LC/-70 etc.. RCBS dies have been the best .375h&h dies I've tried. Redding has been my 7mm die of choice. Dillon carbide is my choice for "plinking" 7.62/.308, Hornady gets the nod for my bolt guns.

In the end... Any of the name brand dies will do a good job if you spend the time to learn how to load properly with them. Every brand has its own quirks... So read the instructions when you first get em.

I'm looking at the redding sets. Any advantage to the 3 die set vs the 2 die?

Yes, this is for an AR. It's not a precision set up so I'm not worried about wringing every fraction of accuracy out of it. I have a Daniel Defense CHF 1/7 barrel and and aimpoint 2moa PRO as my optic.

I do have a precision rifle in .308 that I want to work up loads for, but I'm just getting my feet wet with some .45 and .223 first.