30-06 Cartridge M1 Garand - Primer pocket

[ping]

I have just deprimed my LC brass that I shot in my M1. They were original -never fired thus crimped primers. I bought an RCBS pocket swager combo and used it on some of the brass. I seated some primers and they went in fine. They are defintely below flush so that is good.

Just for the heck of it I tried seating a primer without using the swager. It went in also but it took a little more pressure to seat the primer.

I guess my question is "Is the swager really doing its job". It seems to be working just wondering if anyone else uses the RCBS tool. When I look at the primer hole I cant really see a crimp. This is my first time trying to reload military rounds. Just want to make sure I am doing it right.

 

[ReloaderFred]

You'll find different degrees of crimp on military brass. That's because it depends on how the punch was set on the individual ammunition line that piece of brass came out of at the factory. The crimping punches are like any other piece of machinery, in that they wear and sometimes get out of spec. It's possible to have a piece of brass go through the line when the punch was new and properly adjusted and have a heavy crimp, but a second piece of brass that may be many thousands behind the first will have a very light crimp, because the punch has worn or become out of adjustment.

I use the RCBS primer punch set and have for about as long as they've been available. It's a good practice to run all your military brass through a crimp removing process for proper primer seating. If you don't, you will end up shearing the side off a primer, or seating one sideways at some point. You may also end up crushing a primer that won't fit in a crimped primer pocket.

You only have to remove the crimp once, so it's no big thing. Removing the crimp also allows easier cleaning of the primer pockets prior to repriming them.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[ping]

Thanks ReloaderFred. Do you really have to clean the primer pocket - it looks fine. Guess I need to buy a pocket primer brush or something......

 

[The Bushmaster]

Get an old choke or throttle cable from a lawnmower and cut just short of the (about 1") guide shaft. Whaa-laaa...Pocket and flash hole cleaner...

 

[ReloaderFred]

Like the Bushmaster, I make all my own primer pocket brushes, only I use that plastic coated cable they sell in the hardware stores. I get the 1/8 inch size and cut them to about an inch or so long and skin back the plastic about 1/4". Then I dress the ragged end on a grinding wheel to make it smooth, so it will clean and not dig the primer pocket deeper. I cut the cable with a Dremel Tool, with a cutoff blade. Goes through it really quick. You can buy a foot of the cable for about .20 cents and have enough brushes to last the rest of your life.

I clean all my primer pockets. The black debris you see in there is similar to glass when you look at it under a microscope. It's pretty abrasive, and I figure I get enough of it down the barrel the first time they're fired, so there's no sense in dragging even more of it down there. Clean primer pockets also make for better and more accurate primer seating.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[USSR]

It's a good idea to uniform your primer pockets when shooting an M1, as I have found LC brass to have primer pockets of varying depth. Uniformers aren't expensive (<$15) and will ensure that all primers are seated well below flush.

Don

 

[ping]

Thanks for the info guys. Man you all are creative for sure. Never thought about some of the ways to clean the primer pocket etc. Thanks again.

 

[YellowLab]

I just run a case deburring tool through a crimped primer. Comes right out.

quick, easy and cost $3.

 

[TooTaxed]

Modern military primers intended for semi and full automatic weapons are slightly shorter than the commercial LR primers. You can buy them...CCI #34.