Primers didn't seat flush

[murf]

yup, squish em flat. better than not bottomed out.

murf

 

[Ccctennis]

Thansk dmurdach for that idea. I will double check that before pullng them. My RCBS hand primer I squeezed till I couldn't squeeze anymore. This is the first time I have ever hand any issues. Almost every primer was pretty hard to seat.

 

[Walkalong]

Are you sure it is the not flush primer causing the bolt to not close fully? I might mark/smoke a round and gently try to chamber it and see that there isnt a long seated bullet or shoulder not set back enough just to make sure before I pulled all of them.

I would check this. I would think the bolt would seat the primers enough to chamber. It has a lot of leverage.

 

[Walkalong]

yup, squish em flat. better than not bottomed out.

murf

I agree, it's hard to "crush" a primer enough so it doesn't work, but folks have trouble all the time with primers not seated deeply enough.

 

[murf]

i use a lee hand priming tool. i also rotate the case 90 degrees and squeeze em (twice). have to use a glove on the squeezing hand to prevent blisters!

murf

 

[macgrumpy]

Buy a primer pocket uniformer.

It's a tool that is designed to ensure that the primer pocket is the proper depth. Primer pockets have a small radius where the pocket wall meets the bottom, the uniformer tool will remove this radius and it ensures that the pocket is the proper depth. The uniformer will also remove hard carbon that can build up in the bottom of the pocket.

By the way, compressing a primer too much is bad thing too. The idea is that you want to seat the primer just deep enough to slightly compress the anvil but you don't want to jam the anvil in to solid contact with the primer cup, there needs to be a slight clearance between the two. If you compress the anvil in to contact with the cup you can crack the priming compound and cause a misfire.

 

[Reeferman]

Rcbs hand priming tray

I also have and use a RCBS hand primer. It has always worked very well and never a problem.

 

[Swampman]

I would check this. I would think the bolt would seat the primers enough to chamber. It has a lot of leverage.

True, but the bolt is applying that leverage BEFORE it's fully closed and locked. If a primer went off while using the bolt to seat it, the rifle could blow up, with serious injury or even death a distinct possibility.

The Op has already stated that his intent is to pull the bullets and charges before he fully seats the primers. That's the safest and most sensible thing to do.


To avoid proud primers I like to run my forefinger over the case head after I've seated a primer, it lets me know instantly if I've got one that hasn't been seated deeply enough.

 

[Malamute]

From reading this, I take it that not everybody(OP?) feels and looks at every single primer in good light to see if its below flush?

Im surprised about that.

 

[murf]

macgrumpy,

i've heard about that "too much" compression. problem is nobody seems to know how much is too much. same deal with "just deep enough".

i've never had a problem with "smash em flat" with my hand primer tool. been doing that for a long time.

luck,

murf

 

[alientrainwreck]

Reloading is a serious and possibly lethal hobby, read your manuals not just the load data. In my 30 years of reloading I have done some very stupid things in my early years and have even had a rifle blow up in my face , I am very blessed to still be alive. But I can tell you what I've learned and it's pretty simple follow the Manual and Inspect, Inspect, and Inspect.

 

[Walkalong]

True, but the bolt is applying that leverage BEFORE it's fully closed and locked. If a primer went off while using the bolt to seat it, the rifle could blow up, with serious injury or even death a distinct possibility.

But he already did this (Was my point), and the primers are still sticking out, so I may be completely wrong on that thought. Either way, he needs to check case fit to the chamber. And d checking his priming before loading cases. If done on a progressive he needs to solve it on the press, or hand prime first. If already hand priming, he needs to adjust his style or fix the tool.

 

[GBExpat]

Ccctennis, sounds like it is time for you to modify your process.

I developed the habit of simply dragging a finger pad across the newly-primed cartridge case base as I was removing it.

Actually this is one minor aspect of my LCT+Inline setup that is not an improvement since checking primers has become an additional, separate step.

 

[Blue68f100]

A bolt gun should have no problem in seating a primer that is a hair high. I'm thinking he may have some brass that did not get the shoulder pushed back far enough, like already suggested. If this is the case he can use a Body Die, like the Redding S or RCBS's and sized the fully loaded round.

I would suggest a good case gauge to check your rounds.

 

[jmorris]

Are you sure it is the not flush primer causing the bolt to not close fully? I might mark/smoke a round and gently try to chamber it and see that there isnt a long seated bullet or shoulder not set back enough just to make sure before I pulled all of them.

I despise pulling bullets enough that if I don't own a case gauge I will chamber sized brass alone before loading but I have never been a "crank the die down until it touches" guy. More of a, size them enough to fit and stop fellow.

 

[Ccctennis]

Thanks guys for all the input. it is a good life lesson. I got lazy and obviously didnt take the time to double check the primers. I cheated and normally let my reloading trays do that for me. They sit flat in the tray and they are good. Well going back and i see that this particular case is held up off its bottom by a lip in the tray. I have been reloading for a while now, and this serves as a reminder to pay closer attention. I will double check the shoulder but i took a handful of cases after resizing them and i chamber them. I always do this for my rifles,

 

[macgrumpy]

macgrumpy,
i've heard about that "too much" compression. problem is nobody seems to know how much is too much. same deal with "just deep enough".

i've never had a problem with "smash em flat" with my hand primer tool. been doing that for a long time.

luck,

murf

Actually there are two ways to seat a primer more consistently than just smashing them in to the pocket.

The first technique is a little slow at the beginning but after you get it down it's fairly quick.

• Uniform the pockets
  
• Use a hand tool
• Apply steady pressure until you feel the primer contact the bottom of the pocket
• Pause for a moment
• Continue to apply steady pressure until you feel a second stop, this is when the anvil contacts the cup

This technique works very well with new brass and with brass that has had the pocket uniformed and cleaned but dirty pockets wont allow you feel these stopping points.


A second and easier way is to;

• Uniform the pockets
• Use a hand tool
  
• Seat the primer 0.003" to 0.007" below the surface of the case head

You'll find that seating the primers in either of these ways will get you more consistent muzzle velocities than just smashing them in place.

 

[murf]

thanks for the tip, macgrumpy. but your last statement is bogus since you have never "smashed em flat". show me the comparison test and i'll retract the "bogus" statement.

murf

 

[macgrumpy]

thanks for the tip, macgrumpy. but your last statement is bogus since you have never "smashed em flat". show me the comparison test and i'll retract the "bogus" statement.

murf

First of all my comments are not "bogus", bogus means that something isn't true or it's fake so either you are saying that I'm a liar or simply wrong, by your attitude I can only assume that you think I'm a liar (why else would you mention retracting your comment). I may not have provided scientific evidence as part of my post but that doesn't mean that I'm lying or faking my information, it simply makes it an unsupported claim.

Secondly, I never said that I've never smashed them myself, your claiming that I never did isn't based on factual information (your information is fake because it's not true) so you are the person that has posted bogus information, not me.

I'm not looking for an argument nor am I being confrontational, you obviously are and I certainly see no reason to make any effort to prove anything to you, I simply stated what I know to be true from over 40 years of reloading experience. I've already done the work to my satisfaction and if you don't agree then I suggest you do your own work and prove me wrong rather than being a jerk and trying to start an argument for no reason.

 

[Walkalong]

A hall of fame Benchrest shooter once told me if the primer goes bang you don't have a problem.

Now that was for 100 & 200 yard Benchrest, so the long distance guys may know better. Dunno.

I do know I seated them like this. (6 PPC for matches)

I used a primer pocket uniformer after every firing.

I used a Sinclair hand primer that was adjustable so every primer was seated to the same depth. A depth I calculated to be correct for seating fully yet not jamming the cup into the anvil. I did this by measurements and feel as well, to check against each other.

Everything else? I use an RCBS hand primer and seat them as far as the tool will allow. I made my own seater stems so I am not crushing primers.

That said, it is far easier to have problems from not fully seating than "crushing" them. I have tried seating primers as hard as I could and they still went bang. I have never checked FPS numbers for each against each other though.

 

[ny32182]

I'm sure pulling them is technically safer, but, I've crunched a whole lot of primers very hard in my Dillon and have yet to set one off. No way a careful push with a hand priming tool to get them the rest of the way in is going to set them off. I'd put on my glasses like I always do, and just carefully seat them with a hand primer.

Agreed that is probably not going to fix your chambering issue however.

 

[kingmt]

I had a bunch of primer failures from crushing CCI primers in. I quit crushing them & there was no more problems.

I prefer to seat on top of the press & get pretty consistent .002" below. .006 sound extreme to me.

Now for seating a primer in a loaded round. I'd never ever suggest that someone do it that is uncomfortable with doing it. However I have done it & would again. I do it on top of the press were it's easy to seat .001" at a time. I like the soup can idea tho.

I had a loaded round stuck inside a barrel one time. I taped it out with a cleaning rod. The cleaning rod held the round against the bolt as it feel to the rear. The firing pin struck the primer & the case exploded a foot from my leg. It stung a little but mostly scared me. I've also been hit by rounds thrown in the fire. It stings but no real damage.

 

[deadeye dick]

Ummm, I'm not one for Chicken Little thinking but I don't think I'd ever try to reseat a primer on a loaded round. I'd pull the bullets, save the powder, and reseat the primers, then reload as usual.

FWIW; inspection is an integral part of reloading, inspecting the round after every operation is a very good idea. I check/inspect after picking up brass at the range through each step, to looking at the completed round as I put it in the box...

Very good advice. When I seat primers I run my finger over the case head and feel for a high primer.

 

[jmorris]

No way a careful push with a hand priming tool to get them the rest of the way in is going to set them off.

Might go back and read the thread I linked to in #15, the hours in emergency room, stitches in hands and stomach part is in the first paragraph.

I wouldn't think it would be very common occurrence at all but I bet after you do it once you'll never do it again.

 

[kerreckt]

I would pull them and then re-seat the primers. There is no way I would try to re-seat a primer on a loaded round. Just isn't worth the risk to me. I have more time than body parts.