New to 50 BMG

Reloading is like reloading smaller rifle calibers except requiring more effort. Use a good case lube such as Imperial Sizing Wax or Dillon Case Lube. Use a nylon brush to lube inside the neck, very important. Requires lots of "pull" to pull the expander ball back through the neck. Always do the inside check for signs of case stretching to avoid a case separation. APIT's can start fires in dry grass and leaves. WC 872 usually recommended to start at around 205 grains and work up. Work up in 3-5 grain increments and once you have a load, you can play with smaller increments up or down to test for better accuracy. Once fired military will require removing the primer pocket crimp. I cut the crimp rather than swaging. Present CCI 50 BMG primers with the dome cup, I talked with CCI when they first were introduced. They recommended to me to use the flat primer punch and lightly flatten the dome. Some primer punches are concave to match the dome of primers. Make sure primers are seated flush or below. Some military brass I've bought have shallow pockets and a primer pocket uniformer is a must to make sure primers are seated deep enough. I wouldn't start without a primer pocket uniformer. I use a K&M uniformer in a cordless drill-driver. I dip powder and trickle up. Have fun.

x2 on Imperial Sizing Wax. I also use the Lee Classic Cast, and have no problem resizing the cases with imperial. I use the Lyman 50 BMG Multi Tool for cleaning/reaming the primer pocket and deburring.

Have the same set up, same powder, same lack of proper directions that Lee seemed to forget. Yes I use 205 grains all the time as my 50 performs just fine with it. Had most of my problems with the primer pocket swager and GI brass. Check my pictures.

When you waste 45 cents worth of primer each time, you'll go buy the K&M pocket uniformer. Chuck it up in the drill and ream the heck out of the brass!

If you aren't set on APIT, check out ammunitionstore.com- they sell both API and tracer projectiles in bulk. I bought the can of tracers and am happy with quality- not sure about the API. My order was processed quickly and the price is reasonable.

I also use the Lee bullet sizer die to resize pulled bullets. Works very well, especially if you use Imperial wax. There seems to be some disagreement in the community as to whether this is necessary, but the die is not expensive and it doesn't take very long to run the bullets through it.

Here are pictures of the tracers from the ammunition store and some pulled FMJs that I got from Massammo. They are typical of what was sent in each order (I checked the Massammo site, and the FMJs are currently out of stock)

Unfortunately, I live in upstate New York, so I won't be able to try them until spring when the ground thaws.

I use the Lee trimmer- I chuck the shell holder in my cordless drill and use it to spin the case. I can trim 50 or so before my hands get too tired.

You do realize that tracer accuracy isn't going to be great....right? And they normally won't fly to exactly the same point as the non-tracer equivalent bullets you might shoot. Also some don't light until they're over 80yds downrange by design. If you want them lit right out of the barrel, pin-prick the sealing disk on the bottom with an automatic center punch and they'll normally be burning bright soon as they clear the muzzle.

Please don't underestimate the fire hazards present with tracers and incendiary ammo that others have mentioned. They burn bright and for a LONG time and will ignite stuff you otherwise wouldn't have dreamed would burn...don't ask me how I know.

If you really want to have fun with the 50's, find some Spotter Tracer rounds. They're in the mid 800's weight wise and must be downloaded to about 1700 fps which will be about 170 grains of 5010 or so. Trying to run full charges under the ST projos is inviting over-pressure and potential bursts in the muzzle brake which can hurt you badly. The ST's make a loud explosion when they hit with a big puff of smoke and never fail to please everyone who sees them.

Also...the Blue Tips are spectacular but also must be cautiously loaded. I've got a couple coffee cans full of them upstairs and some had enough corrosion on the lead base sealing plugs to prevent me from trusting them for loading. If the base plug leaks...you get a muzzle detonation which can damage the brake and hurl jacket back toward the firing line. Downloading them a bit is also prudent trying to prevent the inadvertent detonation before the target. And speaking of targets....the 1lb propane cylinders make a most excellent one for the Blue Tip incendiary rounds. Going larger on the propane cylinders does not make the fireball bigger and just wastes money. We've shot up to 50lb bottles which was a disappointment with about the same fireball as the 1lb'er then it sat and burned for quite a while. Again...be careful to not set fire to the world...and have fun.

Hey KINGMT-- if you need some 50 ball pulled military surplus you might check River Valley Ordnance in Missouri. They are RVOW.COM.
The late Mr. Tom Osley used to do some reloading of the 50's for me, before I even had a 50 BMG. I used to live about 1/2 mile from their factory.

Sounds like a barrel of fun. I hope to be able to afford one myself someday its on my bucket list. At the present time my Plastic Surgeon absolutely would skin me alive. lol