For those who have been doing this for some time, can you comment on using new vs. fired brass with regard to accuracy. Should I expect the same performance with same loads? Anything special I need to be concerned with?
BTW, I'm shooting 223.

Thanks
MDH

I think most people will say 1x fired match prepped is best---but I've heard some people swear that brand new works best for them.

If you have a custom rifle in which the chamber and action have been trued, the firing of a cartridge in the rifle will "true" the case. It is theoretically better than a case that has never been fired.

I prep new cases by deburring the primer hole, running the case into the sizing die to "round" out the hole, and chamfering the neck. After firing once, I resize, check the length, and trim if necessary. Generally, I find cases that have been fired produce more accurate rounds that those that have not yet been fired. Lapau cases are just about perfect from the factory; however, even they are better after one trip through one of my custom rifles.

If your rifle is not a custom rifle, when shooting for accuracy, mark how it goes into the chamber. For example, always load it with the manufacturer's name at 12:00 o'clock in the chamber. This theoretically puts the "formed" case back into the chamber the same way every time. Ku-dude

MDH1053,
IMHO, The best place to start working for accuracy is the rifle. Confirm that the rifle is correctly bedded as well as the scope has been correctly mounted and all screws are tight. Without the rifle being right, it's almost impossible for even good ammo to do its job.

To reply too your question, I have always gotten better accuracy with cases that have been fire formed and neck sized only. Ku-dude hit it right on the head when he advised prepping the cases. It does make a difference. Good luck.

[ 04-17-2003, 16:17: Message edited by: BigBob ]

I shoot 223 and I am on my 5th reload with the same brass(Lake City). I shoot hot loads out of my AR and have lately noticed primers that slide right in that I discard. And when I chamfer and deburr the necks I also see some splitting. I only use new brass for my long range load but I still roll with the used stuff for everything else. I am waiting on 3k pieces from RVOW. HTHs.

Jon

I full length resize 99% of all my handloads. Where accuracy is really critical I check the neck wall thickness before I fire new brass and correct it if necessary.

My old brass is just as accurate as the new. Of course necks can work harden so don't mix lots if you can help it.

Johnny D,
How hot is your load, what is it and at what velocity?