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Old March 23, 2009, 08:48 PM   #1
mini14.223
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.223 rem overall length question

I just started reloading my .223's and my lee book says the length should be 1.76 and the card in my die set says max trim length 1.76. I have once fired brass. After I full length size the brass the caliper is showing lengths in the range from 1.41 to 1.6 is this normal. Somethings seems strange. Thanks
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Old March 23, 2009, 09:11 PM   #2
dlb435
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You need to check your micrometer. Those readings are totaly out of the norm.
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Old March 23, 2009, 09:16 PM   #3
BobCat45
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From the case head to the case mouth should be 1.750"-1.760" - I think 1.670" is the max and 1.750" is the trim-to length.

If your caliper is reading 1.41" there is a problem. It could be the caliper - I do not know if you have a dial caliper or a digital one, but the dial does not depend on batteries or LCD displays.

Put a case, mouth facing downward, on the table. The case head should be pointing straight up. Using a plain ol' fashioned ruler, see if the case head is about 1-3/4" from the table top. If it is really closer to 1-1/2", there is something seriously wrong with the case and I have no clue. If it looks to be 1-3/4" the problem is with the caliper.

I bet by the time I finish pecking this out on the keyboard, you have posted again with news about what is wrong with the caliper...

Regards,
Andrew
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Old March 24, 2009, 09:13 PM   #4
mini14.223
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it was the caliper i bought a new one today and it was much better
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Old March 25, 2009, 01:17 PM   #5
Alleykat
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The good news is, if you're actually loading for a Mini 14, you won't have to worry about precision reloading.
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Old March 26, 2009, 10:04 AM   #6
BobCat45
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mini14.223,

Glad it was the caliper and not the cases or dies.

Alleykat,

Please don't bust his chops about the mini 14. I had one and sold it because it was not particularly accurate, but it is a reliable, well-made rifle that is good for lots of things - just not precision accuracy. And cases that are grossly off dimension can be dangerous, so it is good he is checking.
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Old March 26, 2009, 10:20 AM   #7
DiscoRacing
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dont have to be very good shooting.... ammo is cheap... use the bigger clip
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Old March 26, 2009, 05:18 PM   #8
Alleykat
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Bobcat: You did notice the ???
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Old March 26, 2009, 05:25 PM   #9
Unclenick
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A couple of friends of mine went through Gunsite's carbine class with Mini-14's. They said that at lunch every day all the guys with M4's were skipping their food to field strip and do fast and furious semi-detail cleaning of their chambers and bolts so their guns would keep running reliably. Same thing in the evening. My friends just left their mini's alone other than a normal bore cleaning before bed time. No problems all week long. They are fun guns. Just not for long range varminting.
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Old March 27, 2009, 09:17 PM   #10
BobCat45
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Alleykat,

Now I do

I was real serious and all because the numbers mini14.223 posted were so far out, I went into "serious thought" mode to figure what could be wrong - and decided it had to be the calipers, since I do not know how you can shrink a .223 case to 1.4 or 1.6 inches without cutting off a bunch of brass. I suppose that someone could go crazy with a case trimmer but that's pretty hard to imagine.

Regards,
Andrew

PS in re-reading the thread I see I transposed two numbers in my original post (and cannot edit it now). Should have said 1.760 is max - I typed 1.670 in error.

Last edited by BobCat45; March 27, 2009 at 09:23 PM.
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