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Posted: 11/15/2009 6:46:28 PM EDT
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I have been saving .223 and 5.56 brass for several years but just today decided to start reloading it. None has been previously reloaded. Needless to say the bucket was full of all sorts of mixed headstamps. I am crosseyed from looking at primers to sort out crimped and noncrimped brass. Is all Lake City crimped? Some I have appears to not be. Others have an obvious crimp. Same with WCC and some Federal. Also some looks like a lip in the pocket that only goes 1/3 the depth, while others look like the pocket has a bushing in it. Anyone have some up close pics of the different types of crimps, both with the primer in place and with it removed. Thanks |
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Read step 8 here http://www.ar15.com/content/page.html?id=452 I use a RCBS swager bit as a primer pocket go/no go gauge |
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Sorting is just part of the brass TLC that you have to do.
I would suggest sorting by headstamp and date. Commercial (.223) will not have a date stamp. The date stamp is required by the military. Commercial brass (.223) will not have a crimp. Starting about 2006, ATK/LC/FC starting some marketing highjinks to the point that no one knows exactly what they have. So, anything with a date before 2006 [06] has a high probability of being crimped. Ref. Logic 101. I have only seen two primer crimp designs. One is the full circumference. The other is the three point crimp (stakes at 120 degrees). The full ring may look different from case to case because it is off center of of the primer pocket, or it is struck to a different depth. Might as well go ahead and get a loope or magnifier of some sort now if you are going to work with the .223 stuff. |
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It's simple: treat any brass with a military headstamp as if it were crimped (unless you get some that has already been visibly processed). If you can't tell if the crimp is still there it simply cannot hurt to swage it.
Cutting/reaming is another matter. If you're experienced enough to be able to tell if there's a crimp or not, you probably won't have any trouble with a reamer, but since you're asking and complaining about going crosseyed examining the brass, stick with a swage. |
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Primer crimp pictures............
http://www.frfrogspad.com/miscelln.htm#crimped Aloha, Mark PS............IF you don't want to sort cases (military vs. commercial), you could just use a reamer to process ALL of your brass. Why? 1) IF it has a crimp it'll fix it. 2) IF it doesn't, well it'll uniform the pocket diameter and IF it has a sharp edge, it will give a slight chamfer to the opening. 3) Plus.............when it's in there, it acts as a gauge. This is what I use (it's about $10 each)........ Large Primer Pocket Size #7777785 www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=682934 Small Primer Pocket Size #7777784 www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=643126 Or.........just swage um' like you planned. That'll work too. |
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Quoted:
thanks. I guess I can check them all on the swager but I was hoping someone had a few pics of crimps so I could reduce my time spent. 
Crimp removed on left, crimp still on case on right. Decap some cases, you will be able to tell the ones that were crimped. Once you know which cases you have that are crimped, go back to a case with a primer, you will see the crimp. Think there's another pic up in the FAQ's. Good reading up there. 
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