Ok, I know you cant help with my old eyes and I can handle any tormenting about them. (In a sick way I kinda like it...know what I mean?) I just flippen sorted out 10K 223 cases into five different manufacturers from range brass. NO I WILL NOT SORT BY WEIGHT, YEAR, ETC,.....NO NO NO. I am open to any suggestions on how to speed this process up. I still need to size, maybe trim, and swage 80% of it....and I get frustrated with the time consumed. Saving 10hrs will help. I will probably have another 10-20K to sort by next summer. I also don't sell it I use it, hoard it, or give it to buddies who use/need it.
Any Help Sorting Brass?
- Thread starter Reelamin
- Start date
Help Support Long Range Hunting Forum
QuietTexan
Well-Known Member
Buy a Dillon with a casefeeder. It'll size and trim to a max length, and since swaging is a one time deal, buy their bench mount swager and suck it up one time. Or run a Swage It and risk the press frame.
Fast, cheap, and easy - pick two. Fast and easy costs money. Dillon is the solution in that case. It's pretty slick, you run a small base die with decapper up front, a Swage It, then the trimmer and the brass pops out ready to run through a loading cycle. You can get a carbide mandrel to roll out the trim and maybe even get away with not chamfer/deburring if this really is blaster bulk brass.
Their top end 1100 can be automated, but that's $$$$$. A 750 you can probably get everything you need to process brass and then reload it for $3k, maybe you could skip the loading kit and save some money if you don't want to load. Or buy a used 650 or 1050.
If I was looking at sizing 30k+ 223s, you betcha I'd be running a progressive and automating that. I'd also have a concrete mixer to tumble them a thousand+ at a time. Bulk work you need big tools to do it.
Fast, cheap, and easy - pick two. Fast and easy costs money. Dillon is the solution in that case. It's pretty slick, you run a small base die with decapper up front, a Swage It, then the trimmer and the brass pops out ready to run through a loading cycle. You can get a carbide mandrel to roll out the trim and maybe even get away with not chamfer/deburring if this really is blaster bulk brass.
Their top end 1100 can be automated, but that's $$$$$. A 750 you can probably get everything you need to process brass and then reload it for $3k, maybe you could skip the loading kit and save some money if you don't want to load. Or buy a used 650 or 1050.
If I was looking at sizing 30k+ 223s, you betcha I'd be running a progressive and automating that. I'd also have a concrete mixer to tumble them a thousand+ at a time. Bulk work you need big tools to do it.
Last edited:
QuietTexan
Well-Known Member
Wait, if you're asking about sorting it...there's nothing in the processing steps that needs the brass to be sorted first, so don't. Make that the back end task. Offer your buddies mixed lots, or let them sort out the stamps they want. If this is bulk AR 3-gun kind of loading, I wouldn't even sort them out.
I am a freaking idiot.....and you just pointed it out. I swear to the lord above I am a freaking inefficient fool. Worst, is I get upset when others are not more efficient. I sort it because I like having specific brass for my bolt 223's, and have my "mix" buckets for burning up in semi autos. Im embarrassed to openly admit how far my head has been up my arse.
jjmp
Well-Known Member
Your being way to hard on yourself,and it sounds like you're making a job out of a hobby, I separate All my brass after I tumble it , your doing fine ,know when to stop and take breaks. Cheers and keep your Chin up !,
Hard rock
Well-Known Member
Hey bud you got the right attitude
Hard rock
Well-Known Member
That's meant in a good way
QuietTexan
Well-Known Member
Aw heck man, that thought hit me and I got out in front of my boots before my brain caught up there. Wasn't meant to be tactless and make you beat yourself up.
So what you going to size and trim it all on?
So what you going to size and trim it all on?
BAHHAHAHAHAHA. No worry brother I can take a beating when I deserve it. It actually helps me focus on cleaning the corn out of my ears after my head is pulled out. I used to every stinking last piece. I already annealed it, then FL size, vibratory clean it, trim, and swag the crimped (probably 80 percent). For the first time in probably 20 years....I think I will just take what I want and let it sit. When a buddy asks I will size it......and they can trim and swag it. They cant hurt my power trimmer or swager......I bet they wont bat an eye I just always grabbed and gave them some all ready to go.
I think you have answered your own question. People wear glasses to help with deteriorating eyesight, as we get older (and I am well into that category) Since you will not sort by weight, year, etc. Since you don't sell it, use it, hoard it or give it to buddies who use/need it there is probably not going to be much if any help forthcoming. You have eliminated all of the normal methods of sorting making it virtually impossible to do any further useful sorting. As for saving time, why? It gives you something to do. With 20k of 223 cases surrounding you it brings back memories from my childhood, Uncle Scrooge McDuck sitting in his vault filled with gold coins. Instead of gold coins you are sitting in a vault of old useless .223 cases just as useless as the gold coins since they are not being used as designed. I am sorry if you find this possibly offensive. The two of us are probably old enough to remember when every word that came out of your mouth was not offensive to someone. I am also old enough to not especially care.
I'm going to suggest that you do sort by weight, so that you may separate military brass from commercial. Whether 7.62X51 or 5.56, you must not inadvertently mix military brass with commercial .308 or .223. I realize most re-loaders are familiar with this issue but this cannot be emphasized enough. Military brass has thicker walls so that it may stand up to the beating incurred while being utilized in automatic weapons; thus, you cannot load the same amount of powder from a NATO load into a commercial piece of brass. It will result in over pressure issues setting up a catastrophic failure. Other than .50 cal, I don't believe any other calibers other than the 5.56/.223 or the 7.62X51/.308 have these issues. Perhaps the Brits .303?
