Converting 223/5.56 to
300 AAC Blackout Brass

Information on this page is for entertainment purposes! Processing brass can be dangerous if you don't follow safety protocols. Only experienced individuals, educated about the subject should attempt to perform this process. Kluster Reloading Supply is not responsible for any injury or harm that might occur by attempting to replicate this at home. With that being said, let's go over the steps we follow to convert 300 Blackout Brass.

Quality Brass

We only use once fired 5.56 Military Brass to make our 300 AAC Blackout. There are several brands you can use, we usually stick with Lake City Ammunition or Winchester Military Ammunition. The main thing you have to watch out for is wall thickness. You never want to use brass who's wall thickness exceeds .014", it might lead to rounds jamming on your rifle's chamber or, will cause failure to feed. You can find a very useful thread in 300blktalk forum that explains this subject, in addition to providing a "good" and "thick neck wall" comparison by brand.

Clean your dirty brASS

Just like many of us, I'm sure you spent a pretty penny on your resizing/loading equipment. Make sure you never work with dirty brass, it will ruin your press, dies and everything it touches. We wash our brass prior to processing with our patented cleaning solution. Just kidding, we use a combination of Dawn Soap, Armor All Wash & Wax Liquid and Lemi Shine, tumble for about an hour, rinse throughly and let it dry. After that, you're ready to process!

Process your Brass

Trimming your once fired brass:
- Before starting my business and going into large volume processing, I used to trim my brass using a Harbor Freight Cut-Off Saw with a jig adapter that you can purchase in E-bay. Once again; safety first - watch your fingers and wear safety glasses!
- You want to trim right below the neck, at the shoulder section.
Resizing trimmed brass
- There are many sizing dies to choose from, I stick with Hornady Full Length Dies, use them on my Hornady LNL manual reloading press. It's my personal preference but, whatever works for you.
- You can't go wrong with RCBS case lube. Provides good case coverage, consistent sizing dimensions and dies go through cases like butter.
Final Trim
- You've put in hard work getting to this step, now that you've resized brass it's time to trim to length. Most reloaders stick to 1.358" (+/- .005").
- Little Crow Gunwork's finest trimmer is another personal go to. Attach it to your drill, set it to the desired length and you will get nice clean and consistent trimmed brass.
Check your final product!!!!
- Many case/chamber gauges available that you can use to ensure manufactured parts will work perfectly in your rifle.
- L.E. Wilson Case Gauge, ECW Chamber Gauges, etc
- Use calibrated and quality calipers to verify length.
Final Clean
- To remove the lube, dirt, grime, fouling on primer pockets and burrs, I use same cleaning solution mentioned before, with the addition of Stainless Steel Pins. I wet tumble between 2 to 2-1/2 hours. Rinse throughly, remove all SS media and let the brass dry. Results will be immaculate and shiny brass.
- Shiny brass does not increase performence but it sure as hell looks good!
Now you're ready to prime your brass, use your favorite powder and bullet combination. Go to the range and have fun!!!