223 dies?

[tjdreams]

Can someone explain the difference between these two Die sets to me?
Is one better than the other?

RCBS X-Die Full Length 2-Die Set 223 Remington

RCBS X-Die Full Length 2-Die Set 223 Remington Small Base

 

[kalister1]

"Small base sizer dies are usually required for reloading ammunition to be used in automatic, semi-automatic, pump, slide and some lever-action rifles.

These dies size the case somewhat smaller in diamter and also set the shoulder back slightly more than a Full-Length sizer die to ensure poper functioning in the actions of these rifles.

Not recommended for use in bolt action rifles."

This is copy and paste from Midways Website.

 

[E.Shell]

The main purpose of the small base die is to provide more reduction to the lower portion of the cartridge case to facilitate easier chambering in self-loaders. The problem is that this area swells slightly with repeated loading/firing cycles and a standard die may not restore it to minimum dimension. Unless the ammunition chambers freely, it is possible to get an out-of-battery ignition under certain circumstances in certain rifle models. The small base die may or may not be necessary in any given circumstance. I have never needed one for the several AR-15s I load for, or my SA M1A.

Midway's verbiage is a little misleading regarding setting the shoulder back. The small-base die can be set to provide correct headspace, even though it may allow slightly greater latitude in the adjustment. A standard full-length resize die can usually be set to provide excessive headspace anyway, so we need to be careful in our adjustment, regardless of what firearm we might fire the ammo in. Again, as with the situation where a slightly enlarged body might prevent good lockup, the shoulder must also allow the reloaded cartridge to fully chamber. In all cases, we should not size the cartridge to the extent of creating excess headspace.

 

[Half-cocked]

If I can piggyback onto tjdreams' thread here for a moment, what .223 die set would you seasoned verterans recommend buying, for someone just starting out? This would be for the AR-15 platform.

I have an RCBS die set that I borrowed from a friend, which I'm using currently and seems to be working great, but I will probably take the plunge and buy my own sometime soon so I don't need to keep borrowing his.

 

[Fustercluck]

I use Redding dies for .223 in the AR platform. The resizing die is a competition carbide bushing die (-0.002), the seating die is also the competition micrometer style. I only crimp .223 ammuntion if I am loading it milspec length to fit in a magazine (2.255"OAL). For long-range shooting (i.e. single-loaded ammo with OAL ~0.005" off the barrel leade), I don't crimp and rely on the tension from the bushing die. Would not recommend omitting the crimp stage if you are planning to load put the ammuntion into a magazine, as this can cause bullets to creep if there isn't enough tension on them. I use a Redding taper crimp die for this purpose. I have had the Redding dies for over 10 years and thousands of rounds of loaded ammuntion. They work just as well today as the day I bought them.
Top notch accuracy can be expected with this setup.

 

[Rhino]

i have been using the RCBS full length die and have reloaded some of my winchester brass 4 times. It still runs flawlessly through my RRA.