Sort (Head Stamp)
De-prime
Decrimp/Clean Primer pocket (optional)
Anneal (Every 3rd loading) (optional)
Clean
Size (Full length)
Trim Case Length
Deburr
Chamfer
Prime
Load
Above is my step-by-step process of the brass preparation process. Assuming I am starting with range brass (meaning I did not shoot it, I picked it up at the range), and depending on how dirty it is, I may clean it first for about 10 minutes. This is only just to get the dirt and grime off to be able to do a quick inspection of the brass and it makes reading the head stamp easier when sorting.
Sorting
I personally do not weigh my cases. I will only be sorting my cases by head stamp. I do this to get the most consistency with little effort. I like to keep all my brass in lots by head-stamp in the cases, and after shooting, put them back in the case. This keeps all the same brass together so I only have to sort brass one time. This lot of brass will be cleaned, prepped and loaded by itself, and will remain in its case so it does get mixed up. I have a case or multiple cases for each brand of brass I shoot. There is one exception; my mixed brass bucket. All “other” head stamped brass goes in this bucket and is used if I don’t need as accurate rounds or if I may not pick the brass back up.
Deprime
For any brass that is used for precision shooting, I will deprime first. This is done because I use a wet tumbler with Stainless Steel pins. During the cleaning process, the primer pocket will also be cleaned, saving the tedious process of hand cleaning each primer pocket. Having the primer pocket cleaned is a critical part of reloading. It helps keep the primer seating depth consistent and will ensure consistency when the primer is igniting the powder. When reloading precision ammunition, consistency is key!
Decrimp/Clean Primer Pocket
With certain brass, like military brass, LC, and others, the primer pocket will be crimped. It is necessary to remove this crimp before seating the primer, or the primer will likely be crushed or severely deformed during the seating process. You can easily tell a crimped primer pocket a few ways. When removing the primer, it will be harder for it to pop out, or it may have a red ring around the primer. This is because some manufacturers will crimp the primer pocket and will seal the pocket to try to keep water out of the inside of the case. I use an inexpensive hand tool for this. While it does take a bit of time, it only needs to be done once. I choose the hand tool over other options because it is the least expensive option and, again, only needs to be done once, so I hardly ever have to do this step. I’d rather spend money on primers and powder than a tool I rarely use.
If you don’t use a wet tumbler, now is a good time to get all the carbon, dirt, and gunk out of the primer pocket. Lyman makes a really good inexpensive multitool that has all the tools for
decrimping, primer pocket cleaning, chamfer and deburring. I think it is about $30 and will last a life time.
Anneal
Annealing is a process of softening the neck and shoulder of the brass by heating it up. This is done to maximize the life of the case, and helps with constant neck tension. As brass is sized, the case mouth and shoulder are being moved, and over time, the brass will harden. This is referred to as “work hardened”. If you're like me, for your precision rifles, you will use precision brass like Lapua. Lapua brass, in my onion, is the best, and comes at a hight price. So anything I can do to maximize my case life and increases consistency, I try my best to do. I will anneal every 3 loadings. Some people will anneal every load but, for me personally, I feel every 3 is good, and has worked very well for me so far. You can buy expensive machines to do this but, again, I find doing it by hand is easy enough. Because I’m only annealing every 3 loadings, I can’t justify the cost of a machine. I use a hand torch and a wet glove and hold the flame to the case shoulder at an angle so the flame is pointed at the case mouth. I slowly turn the case back and forth to evenly heat it up for about 6 to 8 seconds. This has worked very well and only cost about $6 for a torch.
Cleaning
Cleaning the brass will protect our dies, our chambers, and makes the brass look new. I spend a lot of time and money on shooting, and I like to take pride in my art work of reloading. I want it to look new. This obviously isn’t the most important aspect of cleaning, but the end result is worth it. I use a wet tumbler with stainless steel pins. This cleans the inside, outside, and primer pockets. I use hot water, Dawn dish soap, a little bit of Simple Green, and a dash of Limi-shine. I let it run for two hours and then rinse with cold water several times to get all the bubbles out. The end result is brass that looks better than most new manufacturers’ ammo.
Along with the cleaning process is the drying process. I use a dehydrator, as it’s inexpensive and works perfect.
MAKE SURE YOUR BRASS IS COMPLETELY DRY!!!!!
Let it dry longer than you think it needs. Water gets trapped in the flash hole, and when you seat a primer, it will be ruined and will not fire. After the brass has been drying for a bit, I will shake it around to get any water in the case or flash hole to move around, and then let it dry more. I usually let my brass dry for about two hours, which is the same amount of time I clean my brass. This allows me to change my lot of brass at the same time. Some people will use their oven as an alternative to a dehydrator. I picked up a dehydrator for about $25 at the grocery store.
Sizing
I like to full-length size every time. My favorite dies are Redding bushing dies. Redding dies can be set up to only move the shoulder and case mouth the exact amount you need. This lessens the amount of stress on the brass and helps maximize case life. Sizing is an easy step; just follow the instruction manual, and you should be good to go. Make sure to lube your cases and case mouth. With the Redding bushing die, I will remove the sizing ball. I use the bushing to size the case mouth to .002 neck tension and bump the shoulder .002 - .003. I’m using Hornady’s Unique case lube for most long range loading. A lot of people will do a second cleaning to remove the case lube. This is a good idea if you are using a lanolin based lube. But because I use Unique case lube, I will leave the lube on. Most will come off on your hands while handling the brass, leaving a slight, almost unnoticeable, film. This helps protect the brass from oxidizing in storage and helps for smoother chambering of the round. So, I just leave it on the case.
Case Length Trim
I recommend sizing the case first so it will be in the exact shape that it needs to be in. Sizing and firing will lengthen the case after just a few times, so it will need to be trimmed. I find that after my third firing, some cases are still good, but some will require trimming. This falls right in line with the timing to anneal. So I will anneal and trim my lot of brass every third loading. Trimming brass sucks no matter how you go about it. I would recommend using a better method than I use. I use hand tools, but I use a drill to make it easier. I use the LEE case trimmer. It’s inexpensive, exact and just works. It’s a slow process, but I don’t mind too much as I do it while watching a movie or two.
Deburr/Chamfer
During the case trimming process, the case mouth is cut down and will have a very square edge. It will also have a slight overhang of brass on the inside and outside of the case mouth.
Deburring the outside of the case mouth will get rid of this burr of brass and round the edge slightly. Chamfering will remove this bur from the inside of the case mouth. The other benefit of chamfering is that it allows the bullet to easily slide into the case mouth and without damaging the jacket. This will also reduce the amount of force needed to seat the bullet.
Load
I consider priming the case as part of loading. So as of now, the case is finished and ready to begin loading. I will typically get all of my lots of brass to this point, and store them in their cases until I’m ready to prime and load the bullet. I like to work in such a way that I have one lot cleaning, one lot drying, and the one I’m currently prepping. I will do this through the day, or may do it a little bit over a few days. I like to do all of one step on a lot of brass so that, if I need to stop, I can easily tell what step I’m on. I’ll also store the brass in the cases with the mouth up to remind me that they are not ready, or I’ll just leave a note of what step I’m on. This is important because I may have 3 lots of brass going at the same time.
I will leave the brass in specific positioning in the cases as a reminder of which step I am on:
Primer up - I can see that the brass has been fired. These have not been started, and need to be deprimed.
Primer Pocket Up - These have been de-primed. I can tell by looking to see if cases have been cleaned or have only been deprimed.
Case mouth up - I need to trim the case, deburr/chamfer. If I have trimmed the case, the case mouth will be very shiny and square, and I will know I need to deburr/chamfer.
Primer pocket up - If primer pocket is clean, everything has been done and ready to load.
It all sounds complicated, and may seem like a lot of steps. Don’t get overwhelmed. You can break down the steps as much as you need. If a lot of 100 is too much, try doing 10 at a time. Do one step to all 10, then move to the next step, until all 10 are ready to load. If 10 is easy, try 20 or 50 at a time.
Seating The Bullet
Seating the bullet seams straight forward, but this is a very important step. I have a specific way to seat the bullet, and a few extra steps to ensure perfect seating. I use Unique case lube to lube the bottom half of the bullet. This is to reduce friction to a minimum. I bring the ram down to just kiss the bullet (no downward pressure). This is done to get the bullet straight and as concentric to the case mouth as possible. I’ll do this three times with a 1/3 turn of the case between each stroke of the ram. Next, I’ll bring the ram down with just enough pressure to seat the bullet just past the boat tail or just inside the case mouth. From this point, I will seat the bullet with around 4 pulls of the ram seating it slowly and a little at a time with a 1/4 turn of the case after every pull to maximize concentricity.
The final step is to check the completed ammunition in my rifle’s chamber for fit.
In the end, I have very beautiful looking ammunition that is developed for my rifle by me that typically shoots 1/2 to sub 1/2 MOA.
The Overwatch
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