Thanks for the responses. I think getting the headspace checked on the rifle will be in my future. As I said, it was a kit, and my armorer checked it out, but I suppose it is worth a second look! Shouldn't factory loads push the primer out a little too if it was a rifle headspace issue? I'm pretty sure it was a surplus barrel and upper, therefore would have to be 5.56, right? I could be wrong, and there are no markings that I can find on the barrel. To be safe I'm only shooting and reloading .223 at this point. Rifle set up may all be moot because I'm going to buy a mid length upper next month....Hopefully.
I will also check out resized cases with my headspace gauge. I do have the hornady gauge. I have been using it on every round just to be sure. They were seating fine in the gauge, and might have been a little on the "low" side. I did adjust it a little because the cases weren't seating easily in the gauge- and understand that can be a problem in autoloaders. Maybe I adjusted it too much. Maybe adjusting the die is the answer to everything.
As far as the load is concerned... With the bullet powder combination (Hogdon 4895, 55g jacket bullet) Lee suggested 25g as the starting load and 26g as max. What I realized after the fact was that 25g was the
MAXIMUM STARTING load according to Lee. My book didn't have any H4895 recipes that matched my bullet exactly, I didn't see any H4895 on the Sierra sheets I found on line. The closest I found on Hogdon's site was a 55g Speer SP (I have sierra 55g spbt). 25 grains was the starting load, and 26 was the max. Lee's data sheets, as stated above, suggested basically the same thing. From what I read I thought 25 grains was a legitimate starting point. What should I have done? After I read the whole "maximum starting load" blurb I subtracted 10% and worked it up from there. I learned you have to read the fine print! Lee's data said maximum starting load, while sierra advises against using charges less than shown on their sheets. It's confusing... So, anyway, I started using varget because finding loads seems easier. Should I start lower than the starting load all the time? I get it from a safety standpoint. I also get that primers are different, cases are different, and rifles are different. But, logically, it confuses me. Is it not a starting load?
I have been reading and reading about reloading AR's & .223. I undoubtedly will read more. Are there any resources anyone can suggest specifically for loading AR's? Or, resources on mimicking a factory load? I know thats probably a no-no to bring it up in this group
. But, from my perspective ...I'm happy enough with a factory remington .223 load. If I knew the recipe I'd make it and call it a day...after working it up, and addressing head spacing of course.
Sean