Bullet pulling crimped rounds

[Jason_W]

I have a bunch of crimped .357 loads I need to pull. My kinetic puller isn't working on them.

Does anyone know of a trick to facilitate pulling with the kinetic puller, or will I have to buy a Cam-Lock puller.

 

[LotI]

If you have a seating die, give the bullet a smidge of a push to break the bond between bullet and case.

Just 0.1 should do it. You should feel it give. Then the kinetic puller should work.

Any bullet in .357" should be heavy enough for the puller to work.

 

[highlander 5]

What are you useing to bang the puller on? I use a piece of 4x4 post and rarely do I have to strike the Puller more than 4 times. With the exception of mil surp ammo I've pulled every type of crimped bullet be it roll or taper crimp without a problem.

 

[Jason_W]

I'm smacking it on a concrete floor covered by a thin layer of carpet. I'll try a 2x4 and see if that works.

 

[Ian Sean]

If you have a seating die, give the bullet a smidge of a push to break the bond between bullet and case.

Just 0.1 should do it. You should feel it give. Then the kinetic puller should work.

This is what I had to do when taking down some "squibby" Indian .308 (OFV), it had the tar type sealant.....just run it through the seater enough to move the projectile a hair to break the seal and they came apart easily after that. I imagine your .357's should behave the same.

I'm smacking it on a concrete floor covered by a thin layer of carpet.

That is all I have used..a 12x12 carpet square with a rubber back on concrete. I have taken apart 100's of rounds.

 

[Fishslayer]

Make sure the cap on your kinetic puller is tight. After a few whacks, tighten it again.

Use a solid surface. The bench won't cut it. I use my concrete garage floor.

Easy does it. I've found a number of moderate whacks is better than one big one. I actually broke my first kinetic puller that way.

Pulling bullets from handloads of dubious origin I found that some SJHP will leave their jacket in the case. If I caught it quick enough I put a good crimp in the bullet with a pair of diagonal cutters. Ruined the bullet but would usually (not always) get the jacket to come out with the core. I suspect some sort of sealer had been used because even with the core gone I simply could not get the jacket to come out without ruining the case.
And yes, the idea of shooting the jacket out did occur to me. I didn't have the cajones.

If you have a seating die, give the bullet a smidge of a push to break the bond between bullet and case.

:facepalm: That is freaking brilliant! That never even occurred to me. Dollars to donuts that would have solved the problem outlined above. Ah well. Learn something every day. Thanks for the tip.

 

[kingmt]

Move the carpet out of the way or even better replace it with a piece of steel.

 

[gamestalker]

I crimp the heck out of my .357 loads to the extreme, because I use H110 or 296 and have found it necessary. But pulling them isn't difficult if you smack the kinetic puller on a very solid surface, either concrete or solid steel. It takes 2-3 good soild hits and out it will come. Smacking the puller on a even the hardest of wood surfaces will not deliver enough kinetic energy to do the job.

 

[gamestalker]

Take a moment to read the instructions on yur kinetic puller ot look them up online. I bought the cheapest RCBS one and it clearly states to smack hard on concrete or steel, and also informs you of not using wood surfaces.

 

[Lost Sheep]

Take a moment to read the instructions on yur kinetic puller ot look them up online. I bought the cheapest RCBS one and it clearly states to smack hard on concrete or steel, and also informs you of not using wood surfaces.

I think RCBS does that to sell more replacements

(That's a joke in case anyone didn't get it.)

I feel that using the end grain of a short 4x4 gives me a better inertial pull because of the rebound effect that the wood has. I lost my instruction sheet for my RCBS bullet puller decades ago.

I did find that if I try to give it a hard whack, the aluminum handle would bend, so I developed this technique:

1 Hold the handle loosely

2 Get the head moving VERY fast

3 Just at the instant of impact, loosen my grip even more, so that I am holding the handle by thumb and forefinger only (this allows the rebound to be unimpeded and cured the handle-bending for me).

I admit to a lack of experience pulling bullets. Aside from one "marathon" session wherein I pulled about 30 bullets, I have only had to pull a dozen others (including several 500 S&W with a heavy crimp loaded by a friend. But I think myself an expert because of the ease of those experiences. I am a legend in my own mind, I guess.

Lost Sheep

 

[Jason_W]

Turns out I just wasn't applying enough force. I have several hundred rounds to pull, so I'm not sure how the puller is going to hold up. after 50 rounds, the metal shaft is already starting to bend.

 

[cberge8]

I had the same problem as you. The carpet was absorbing most of the energy.

I now have a 2' long 4x4 that I keep by my reloading bench for bullet pulling. You will want to hit on the end of the block, as the wood grain will not give as much as if you were hitting on a side.

 

[Clark]

I can get a kinetic puller to pull a crimped round.

I smack really hard onto the frame of the rock crusher press, once a second, for a minute.

60 really hard smacks.

That is less time than it takes to set up a collet puller.

 

[highlander 5]

I use a piece of 4x4 so I don't end up shattering the puller. The plastic is tough,but it's no indestuctible. As someone said ealier strike the puller on the end grain you'll have a slight deformation of the post but that's all that will happen. I've had the same puller for 25+years and have only replaced the O ring that holds the jaws together. The last time they broke I ordered a set of jaws from Quinetics. No replaceing the O ring on these jaws as they are designed not to split.The ring is already split but held in place by a crimp. Hard to describe,go to their website and it'll make sense.

 

[ranger335v]

"..50 rounds, the metal shaft is already starting to bend."

Then you're doing it wrong, when used correctly you can't possibly exert enough force to bend that handle. Grasp the back of the handle lightly, flick your wrist and snap it down at a high velocity. Like driving nails, driving/pushing the hammer down with arm force only stresses you and the handle and actually reduces the impact speed; it's impact speed what does the job, not force!

 

[Jason_W]

Thanks. As you can tell, I've never had to disassemble metallic rounds before.

 

[Lost Sheep]

Turns out I just wasn't applying enough force. I have several hundred rounds to pull, so I'm not sure how the puller is going to hold up. after 50 rounds, the metal shaft is already starting to bend.

Please read my post #10 and Ranger335v's post #15.

It is the REBOUND that doubles the pulling force (but only if your hand does not absorb the rebound, bending the handle in the process).

Lost Sheep

 

[Oathkeeper1775]

dead blow

I took advice from THR and expanded on it a little:

I brought in a 8"W X 16"L piece of green maple, I hold the puller lightly (thumb and index finger). It yanked out my .45 LCs after two whacks.

 

[Josh45]

I hate pulling rounds.

When I had to pull some rounds with a slight or a medium crimp, I hit it against a 2x4 about 3-7 times and out the bullet came.

Of course, Depending on the crimp, It sometimes feel like it will never give but it will. I tried the reloading bench and after one hit, I knew it wasn't going to work.

Also, You don't need to apply that kind of force. Especially if your bending it.
Just get yourself a 2x4, Nail / bolt it down and give it a good few whacks.

 

[oldreloader]

I whack straight on the bare concrete floor.My RCBS puller is all plastic so I don't have the handle bending problem. I've heard some people use the shell holder from the press instead of the one in the puller to give it more snap.

 

[trixter]

I have a medium size vise in my bench, it has a small anvil shaped back on it, I use my kinetic puller on that. Several medium hits seem to work well.

 

[Sunray]

"...trick to facilitate pulling with the kinetic puller..." Use a rock to whack it on. Wood is too soft and I've found concrete isn't that great either. Carpet is just useless. Got myself a rock, no idea what kind, but it was about the size of a cantaloupe with one flattish side and had no further problems with any ammo.

 

[rondog]

I use an 8" piece of railroad track. The puller and bullet doesn't stand a chance against getting whacked on that thing. Makes a good anvil too. And doorstop.

 

[gamestalker]

I use a piece of 1/2" steel plate, or I use the flat surface of my Rock Chucker, or if I have to I'll go outside and use the concrete. I've tried the wood thing and it is nearly impossible to get a crimped rond to dislodge. 3 snappy whacks on the steel and it's a done deal.

 

[Funshooter45]

I often use a pair of wire cutter pliers and just use my press without a die in it. Raise the bullet up through the top of thee press and grab the bullet with the pliers. Wit a little bit of practice it only makes a small divot in the bullet. I had to go that rout becase my WSM rounds are too fat to fit in the kinetic puller andn some of my crimped rounds were just too much effort.