.223 Reloading Brass: New Lapua or Once Fired Lake City

[M4Carbine503]

Long time reader, first time poster. But here's my question fellas. I am getting into reloading 223. I have heard and read many good things about Lapua brass. I know it comes at a premium price though. The cheapest I can find it new is for $45 per 100 rounds. I hear you can get many reloads out of it, I'm just not sure how many. I realize there are several factors that go into an answer for that, ie pressure loads, and how well you treat the brass.

Or should I go with once fired brass, which is mixed 223/5.56 and mainly Lake City for a far greater savings. Granted I probably won't get anywhere near the amount of reloads per cartridge like I would with the Lapua. But is it worth the price and in the long run come out to be a better deal?

I will be primarily bench rest shooting and will be using Sierra Matchking 69gr BTHP bullets and CCI 450 primers. I do not shoot competition, so exact precision isn't necessary. But it would be nice to get sub MOA groups at 100 yards. Does casing weight variances make much of a difference when it comes to tight groupings? Is this something else to consider?

 

[Longhorn 76]

I am so confused!
You shoot bench rest, but not for precision.

For a bench rest bolt action rifle shooting bug holes, I would buy 100 Lapua, work on the brass (trim, neck, flash hole, primer pockets), then keep the 50 - 75 that are the same weight. I will either not size at all, or neck size only, and these cases will last the lifetime of my barrel.

If you are shooting an AR, where you will be resizing, shooting in a rifle incapable of shooting bug hole groups, losing brass, and subjecting them to the indignities of being shot in a semi, I would buy the cheaper brass.

 

[Walkalong]

For precision, buy Lapua.

For very good accuracy that will easily be under MOA with the right load, buy whatever brass you want, sort by weight, prep it etc, etc.

Under MOA isn't that demanding with a precision rifle. How good is the rifle?

 

[M4Carbine503]

The rifle should be great. Its completely custom and I just finished building it. The barrel is a 16 inch Noveske stainless 1 in 7 twist

 

[JimKirk]

If I were shooting for precision ... I would "invest" in some Lapua for the times when it really counted ... otherwise you can get really good accuracy out of any brass that is fairly consistent in weight and volume. I get some really good accuracy out of LC brass and other brands by sorting by weight ...

 

[LeonCarr]

So you are shooting a 16 inch 1/7 twist AR with Noveske barrel. With the right load combination you should be able to get MOA or under depending on the rifle (Quality Optics, Free Float Handguard, and a Crisp Trigger will shoot smaller groups than straight M4 configuration).

I would not spend the money on Lapua brass to shoot in an AR. Processed LC will work fine for a LOT less money, and still provide around MOA accuracy or better depending on the rifle. You can weight sort if you like, but in my experience weight sorting brass is a lot less critical in an AR than shooting good bullets like the mentioned Sierra Matchkings. Weight sorting brass will shrink groups, but you might want to purchase a digital scale to make it much easier and faster.

If shooting a bolt action rifle Lapua brass, prepped properly, would last just about forever with neck sizing or partial full length resizing.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[Sniper66]

Hey M4,

You sound like me, you do some bench rest shooting for fun and don't care much about the precision required for competing. That about right? If it is, you might try some cheaper new brass like Winchester or Remington, which cost about half as much as Lapua. New brass in general is easier to work with than once-fired. I've used a lot of both and find that i have grown weary of the work required to make beat up brass work. My groups are respectable, usually around a half inch at 100. Occasionally I shoot better or worse. Like I say, I won't win any competitions with that, but I rarely miss a prairie dog or coyote. And I routinely ring 4 inch gongs at 300+ yards and explode gallon jugs of water at 400-500 yards. Lots of fun, which is what is most important. New brass for me is simply more fun.

 

[M4Carbine503]

Other brands is something I need to look into. And yes, that's about how I am. I built a quality rifle, (Noveske stainless barrel, Seekins Precision free float rail, Geissele SD-E trigger, all on a Mega Arms matching billet set) and would like to get MOA groupings, for fun and the satisfaction of it only. I am running an Aimpoint Pro with the new Vortex 3x magnifier. The range I go to has 100 yards as its longest, so this optic should be fine.

 

[Offfhand]

Excerpted from above post:

"My groups are respectable, usually around a half inch at 100."

Wow! I wish my groups were that respectable. If that is only "respectable"
what qualifies as better than respectable?

 

[blue32]

I haven't shot Lapua 223 but I've used range pickup LC from '98 through '11 and its been a great value. I would say primer crimp removal would be the biggest chore but its only once. All cases will need to be annealed so you may not see the savings with Lapua up front. Go past 10 loadings and that may be a different story. For sub MOA at 100 yards, like previous posters mentioned, I don't think LC will be a determining factor in that regard.

If you can get once fired LC for free as a range pickup I say use that first. I'd save the Lapua for more challenging shots. On the plus side, processing the LC will give you a lot of practice making a presumably lesser case go further.

If you decide to go with a sample of each I'd love to know what kind of results you have with case life.

 

[iShoot17]

From what it sounds like to me, you're looking for brass that gives accuracy and consistency.

I would hesitate greatly to buy Lapua to shoot through an AR. The chances of losing brass are very great, especially if you are trying to keep a positive cheek weld and trying to stay on target. The sneaky brass will disappear very quickly, unless you're using a brass catcher on the side of your rifle. I don't like using them and even then, they don't always work.

What I would say, is to buy once fired mixed brass and go to town. Sort through it and pull out cases by the same headstamp and start that route if you want the variables of headstamps brass a thing of the past.

As far as, "not getting as many firings as Lapua," I think this to be false. Lapua is great brass and I enjoy using it in some bolt guns (i.e. It is cheaper for me to buy Lapua 221 Fireball brass than it is Remington, so I'm obviously going with Lapua). As far as other calibers, I have noted no significant difference. I have some Winchester brand 308 brass that is on its 14th firing. Just because their is a different headstamp on the brass doesn't necessarily mean it will last longer. If you get behind some LC brass, that was well kept, not beat to heck and back, and you (as the reloader) take care of it including no over sizing, annealing, not hot ridding loads, etc, that brass could potentially last 20+ firings.

Mixed brass can be had for around $60/1000.

If you get 20 firings from your Lapua brass, you'll have shot 2,000 rounds.
Let's say you get 5 firings from your mixed brass, you'll have 5,000 rounds.

If it were up to me, I would be buying the mixed brass!

If you need some, let me know, I'm sure I could get rid of some of mine.

 

[readyeddy]

I shoot Lapua .223 out of a 20" AR and I notice no difference in accuracy compared to Lake City.

May only advice is that if choose to buy Lapua, then get a brass catcher.