[dtalley]

I got in a hurry and primed a bunch (50 or so) .38 Special brass last night that have split mouths. :eek: I had them seperate from the good brass and grabbed the wrong can when I sat down with my Lee Auto Prime :banghead: .

Can I Deprime them and salvage the primers or do I need to shoot them out????

I know it is only pennies but I don't want live primers in my junk brass bucket.

Thanks for the help.

Sorry not cases, Brass

[P95Carry]

Others may not agree here but - I have quite safely deprimed many cases over time when doing what you did. I hate waste!

I run them thru sizer/decapper again - very slowly and catch the primer. It takes impact to set of the primer - so a gentle push is no problem. Wear eye protection - that goes without saying.

If you are uncomfortable with this - just load them (primer only cases) in revo and pop em off!!

[Wilburs Horse]

I think it is a violation of good safety practises to decap live primers. Soak them in solvent or oil and bury them in the garden.

[Jake in TX]

+1 for P95. I also have done what you did, and safely pushed out a bunch of primers, and seated them in good cartridge cases.

Jake in TX

[Waffen]

I would agree with P95 as well. I have deprimed many live primers and reused them without any ill effects, While I wouldn't recomend doing it, it does work just fine

[The Bushmaster]

Wilbers horse...It has been proven that there is no such oil, fuel or chemical that will null a modern primer. There are threads on this site where people have experimented and posted the results. Modern primers are coated to water, oil and other contaminate proof them...

Like P95, Jake and many others on here...By being careful and wearing leather gloves and safety glasses you can safely punch out the primers slowly...I have been doing it for years and have never had one go off. Not saying that it couldn't happen, hence the safety gear...:)

[redneck2]

Is it really worth it for 50 cents??? Primers are a penny apiece.

If you're that hard up, PM me you're address and I'll send you $1 and you can buy an extra 50 primers. Just promise you'll throw away those cases (primer and all).

[USSR]

Absolutely no problem decapping live primers. Have done hundreds. Wear your safety glasses, and just "ease" them out.

Don

[pcf]

Wilburs horse,
Soaking primers in solvent might temporarily deactivate them, once the oil or solvent evaporates you have functioning primers again, and short of removing the priming compound you cannot reliably deactivate a primer. You can look up some of the non scientific test that I've done, you can't count on oil or solvents to deactivate primers, but don't count on a protective coating to protect them either.

[Doug b]

Dtalley I've decapped live primers no problem except for the pucker factor.As posted use safety glasses,heavy gloves,and procede slowly.I know of one loader who blew a primer decapping it live.This fellow used the Lee handloader system that incorporates a mallet:what: .He lost a small chunk of the fleshy side of his left hand.

[waterhouse]

I was actually shocked the first time I did this and the primer didn't go off (guess I should have asked here first). I moved my portable bench outside, put on gloves and eye and ear protection, and slowly pressed the primer out. When it didn't go off I intentionally tried it several more time, and it was always fine. I haven't been reloading all that long but you should be fine if you are careful.

[dtalley]

Thanks to all.

I as I stated earlier it isn't the money, Redneck2, I just didn't want to dispose of the brass with the live primers. BUT I will still take the dollar.

I did successfully ease them out and yes I did have a pucker factor and wore all the appropriate safety equipment.

Again thanks for your replies.

[Sistema1927]

Primers are cheap. Get rid of them.

[Lennyjoe]

Push them out with the decapper die. I'm a cheap arse so saving a primer is worth the tenth of a second it takes to remove it.

[wolf_from_wv]

I've pushed correctly seated primers out with a decapping die. So far, none has gone off.

If they were seated backwards, where the pin might push on the primer like a firing pin, that would warrant more caution.

I watched someone beat 100 .45 ACP cases into a Lee Loader with a mallet... I was going to decap them all, but he just beat them in and out and not one went off. I don't reccommend it, but I guess they go off better when hit by a firing pin than a rubber/plastic tipped hammer.

[RyanM]

I've pushed out live primers too. Worked fine. I've even whacked a half dozen out using a Lee Loader and a rubber mallet. No blow ups.

[Sport45]

I know you've already deprimed these, so it's a little late for me to be agreeing with the others who say it's okay. I've done many (even the ones seated upside-down or crushed in sideways. Never had one go off. Of course, I never slammed a decapping pin into one either. I do keep my "re-used primer" cartridges seperate from the others use them strictly for plinking. I don't consider them to be as reliable as new primers since the explosive pellet in them might be broken. I don't think I've ever had one not go off.

I disagree with the following:
If you are uncomfortable with this - just load them (primer only cases) in revo and pop em off!!

My experience is that this is very time consuming since the revolver's cylinder will lock up after each shot due to primer back out. (This is the reason I started decapping live primers in the first place.)

[P95Carry]

Well - I must admit to not firing off many primer-only cases but maybe when I did the primers were tight - they didn't back out - apart from which there is no back pressure anyways, as there might be with wax bullets.

Re mallets etc - unless there is impact - ie enough energy put in, to area where anvil impinges on compound - it is unlikely they will ''go'' - but of course we must never assume and so - weigh up risks and pro's and con's.

[Brian Williams]

Get some candles and melt them to a depth of 3/8" in a flat pan, let cool until it starts to setup, take the bad cases and cookie cutter that wax to fill the mouth of the case and then let setup all the way, instant indoor practice rounds. Also great for chasing away local tom cats....

[countertop]

Get some candles and melt them to a depth of 3/8" in a flat pan, let cool until it starts to setup, take the bad cases and cookie cutter that wax to fill the mouth of the case and then let setup all the way, instant indoor practice rounds. Also great for chasing away local tom cats...

Bad cases???

I just might do this with some good cases. It sounds like it could actually be fun.

[The Bushmaster]

Wolf from wv...I have punched out many a primer set in upside down carefully and no bang...

Countertop...You better believe it...It is fun. I've loaded primer only and wax slugs many a time. Up to 15 to 20 yards they tend to be quite accurate. I buy canning parifin in those 1/2 inch thick rectangles. Warm it until it is plyable and push the .38 Special cases through it like a cookie cutter then using a match warm the mouth of the case to seal the wax...Look out neighbor's cat...Stray dog...Or whatever. This above loading process was originally for those who wanted to practice fast draw without blowing their foot or toes off...:D Mind you now...If you blow it and hit your foot or toe it still hurts like the devil, but you can still count to ten down there...Don't ask me how I know...O K??:rolleyes:

[caz223]

It won't work.
You have to drill out the primer pockets or the primer will pop out quite a bit.
In a revolver it will tie it up in one shot if you don't.
Also, it's easier to just buy the canning wax blocks and soften them in a cheap electric cook pot.
Once they soften, then push the brass into the blocks THEN hand prime.
Otherwise the air trapped behind the wax pushes it out of the case before it has a chance to harden.
Once all the wax blocks are full of holes and you're done loading 'em, throw all the wax you got into the pot (Leave water in the bottom.) and let it melt.
Once it's all melted, unplug the pot and let it cool.
Before it's cooled all the way you can press brass into it again.
Make sure you do something to your drilled out brass you're going to use with wax bullets so you can identify them at a glance to prevent accidents.
I cold blued mine.
It turned them black. I'm sure they're unuseable for loading ammo, but wax bullets don't really stress the brass.

[The Bushmaster]

Cas223...No you don't...Don't make it complicated. Just use Magnum primers on stock unmodified cases either in .38 Special or .357 mag or any other pistol case...Enlarge the primer pocket? Indeed...:banghead: I've been doing this for 20 years for backyard target shooting...:rolleyes:

[Crosshair]

Just take them out to the range and shoot them off. Save them for a new shooter to let them get a feel for the gun without touching off live rounds so they don't get scared the first time out.

/Just my $.02

[caz223]

Not talking about drilling out the primer pocket for 209s, that's a cowboy trick.
I'm talking about drilling out flash holes or using brass with pre-enlarged flash holes.
Otherwise, calibers like .357 mag will back out the primers on firing.

[The Bushmaster]

When firing Wax slugs?...My Colt SAA .357 mag and S&W mod 10 .38 Special have no primer back out...What you got there? Cases that you can install the primers with your fingers?...Ain't this fun caz223??? I've been shooting these (.357 mag/.38 Spec) with primer only and canning parifin for years. Love seeing the neighbors full size poodle screem for home just before he can leave me a present on my lawn. No louder that someone spittin' into the wind..:D .

[caz223]

I just love shooting wax slugs. I shoot at empty 55 gallon steel drums across the yard, rings them like a gong. But when I do it on cases that haven't had their flash holes enlarged, the primers back out.
I'm sure other people have had this happen before.
Anyone else had that happen?

[tbeb]

"Others may not agree here but - I have quite safely deprimed many cases over time when doing what you did. I hate waste!

I run them thru sizer/decapper again - very slowly and catch the primer. It takes impact to set of the primer - so a gentle push is no problem. Wear eye protection - that goes without saying.

If you are uncomfortable with this - just load them (primer only cases) in revo and pop em off!!"

I agree. Also, I do not reuse the primers.