Newbie question: Pulling factory bullets to reload?

[Fissel]

I have a little over 100 rounds of 8x57 Sellior & Bellot 196 SPCE ammo I bought two years ago that's a little too hot & not very accurate out of my old Husqvarna 640 (it's an early thumb-cut model & I'm a little weary of hot loads anyway.)

Is there any reason I can't use a bullet puller (mine's the RCBS 9412 hammer unit) to pull the bullets/powder, then reload with a different powder (probably varget) & lighter/higher BC bullets (looking at 160g TTSX)

Ideally I'd leave the primers? Or would it be in my best interest to swap them out too?

I'm likely never going to use this factory ammo as it is now, so I figure this is a good way to make use of it?

I'm pretty new to reloading, any help is much appreciated.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

No reason why you shouldn't.
Welcome to THR.

 

[thomas15]

I guess it depends on how much free time you have. As far as the primers go leave them in. You may or may not be able to figure out what bullet is used so after you shoot your 100 rounds then you will start all over again developing a load. Question: are you handloading ammo to get top performance or strictly to save money? Personally I would just go plinking, save the brass. 100 rounds isn't that much ammo and/or brass to get that worked up over in my opinion. Have fun shoot well!

 

[Starter52]

Go for it. Pull the bullets, change the powder, save the primers. A good plan.

 

[badkarmamib]

I did the same with 3 boxes of factory Federal that my .30/06 didn't like. Pulled the bullets, dumped the powder, resized the cases without decapping (you will want to resize the necks, beating the bullets out will woller out the necks, destroying the tension), and reloading with my powder and Hornady SST bullets. I saved the pulled bullets for making keyrings out of worn-out brass.

 

[GooseGestapo]

I’ve pulled thousands.
Years ago, it was common to pull the FMJ bullet from milsurp ammo and replace with either a Sierra MatchKing bullet for competition or a soft point for hunting.
I’ve also pulled many for the reason you specify as powder charge acceptable for one gun might be too much for another.
An example is some of the military surplus.30/06 loaded for machine guns in the late60’s. It was loaded with a heavy charge of slow burning powder that would with continued use bend the op rod on a M1 Garand.

I prefer to pull rifle ammo using a wire terminal crimper/insulation stripper. The kind that sell for $3-4. I place the loaded round in proper shell holder in my single stage press with a fender washer over the die hole. Gripping the bullet with the wire stripper over the washer, and then lowering the press ram. It’s nearly effortless and far less messy than an inertial puller. No need for expensive dies and collets.

 

[Fissel]

Wow. Lots of replies. Thanks all for the insight. Glad this plan seems like a winner.

Out of curiosity..... how much difference do primers really make? I've only ever used CCI 200s and am curious if I get a nice load figured out with the Sellier & Bellot leftover primers will I notice anything different when they're all shot & I reprime with the CCI?

Thanks again-

 

[badkarmamib]

how much difference do primers really make?

While primer changes do make a difference, it is a difference that 99% of shooters would never notice. As long as you are well below max loads, you should be safe swapping between primers. If your top concern is accuracy, you may need to tweak the load a little for different primers.

 

[Fissel]

While primer changes do make a difference, it is a difference that 99% of shooters would never notice. As long as you are well below max loads, you should be safe swapping between primers. If your top concern is accuracy, you may need to tweak the load a little for different primers.

This is a hunting rifle, not a target piece. This is about what I figured, glad for the confirmation.

 

[mdi]

BTDT several times. Tthe last time I "re-manufactured" some HXP 30-06, pulled stock bullet, used same powder, replaced with same weight Hornady bullet. Since you noted you want to reuse the primed brass, you're going to work up a load anyway so just use the stock, already installed primers. Yes primers can make a difference in a load but since you are not comparing loads (same powder charges with different primers), just use what's already there and work up your load...

 

[1KPerDay]

BTDT several times. Tthe last time I "re-manufactured" some HXP 30-06, pulled stock bullet, used same powder, replaced with same weight Hornady bullet. Since you noted you want to reuse the primed brass, you're going to work up a load anyway so just use the stock, already installed primers. Yes primers can make a difference in a load but since you are not comparing loads (same powder charges with different primers), just use what's already there and work up your load...

Did you note any significant improvement over HXP with your "Mexican match" loads?

 

[Toprudder]

I did the same with 3 boxes of factory Federal that my .30/06 didn't like. Pulled the bullets, dumped the powder, resized the cases without decapping (you will want to resize the necks, beating the bullets out will woller out the necks, destroying the tension), and reloading with my powder and Hornady SST bullets. I saved the pulled bullets for making keyrings out of worn-out brass.

My thoughts exactly.

 

[gwpercle]

Before pulling the bullets , seat the bullet about 1/16th inch deeper into the case, this breaks the crimp and allows much easier pulling. Strike the hammer on a solid surface...concrete floor , 3 medium whacks will pull the bullet. Do Not try one or two big hard whack , 3 medium are better than 1...trust me on this.
You may have to resize just the neck to get proper seating with the new bullet. After pulling the necks are a bit large . Just use the existing primers .
We would do this with military surplus 30-06 ammo , had full metal jacket and tracers that you couln't use for hunting , pulled the bullets, saved the powder reseated a new Hornady soft point hunting bullet and we were ready for deer season .
Gary

 

[Dudedog]

Welcome to THR lots of great people here.
Yes you can pull them and reuse the cases and bullets.

You could pull a couple and carefully measure the amount of powder.
Maybe sacrifice one or two and pull the bullet with pliers to make sure no powder is spilled.
You could then reload them with say maybe 1 or 2 gr less powder.
However as a beginner I would recommend getting a powder with listed loads for that caliber and start using new powder at the listed start charge.
So you waste 100 rounds worth of powder, maybe $20 worth, but safer that way.
I don't load that round but I sure some members can chime in on what would be a good powder.

 

[badkarmamib]

Before pulling the bullets , seat the bullet about 1/16th inch deeper into the case, this breaks the crimp and allows much easier pulling.

THIS!!! I can't believe I forgot to mention this when relaying my experience. Yes, it makes it MUCH easier.

 

[mdi]

Did you note any significant improvement over HXP with your "Mexican match" loads?

yes. I weighed some HXP bullets and they varied about 2-4 grains. I weighed stock powder charges and they too varied by as much as 1-2 grains. I averaged the weights and recharged a few but also went with IMP 4064. I'm not a great shot but the groups did shrink and the Hornady loads (150 A-MAX) seemed more consistent. All this was mostly just an experiment for my own info. as bullets and brass for 30-06 are easy to find and I was just curious about the process...

The HXP bullet didn't appear to be crimped, but there was a sealant...

 

[Fissel]

Thanks for the further replies. I have no intention of reusing the powder; I already have a pound of varget which is what Barnes suggests.
I'll give the 'seat before pulling' method a go.
It may be a few weeks before I get these pulled, reloaded & fired. I'll touch back in with results.

 

[1KPerDay]

I know this isn't what you were asking but S&B is one of the few factory loads that is as powerful as the original 8mm cartridge is supposed to be. Some might be interested inf buying or trading you for some softer stuff like PPU. Ideally locally so you don't have to worry about shipping. Either way good luck!

 

[Fissel]

I know this isn't what you were asking but S&B is one of the few factory loads that is as powerful as the original 8mm cartridge is supposed to be. Some might be interested inf buying or trading you for some softer stuff like PPU. Ideally locally so you don't have to worry about shipping. Either way good luck!

Appreciate the thought, but probably not worth the hassle. The load is readily available (Grafs, Sportsman's guide & elsewhere) for only a little over $20 a box.
And for that kind of money, it's the only full power load. Offerings from Norma, Lapua, RWS, etc are all full power as well; but for more than TWICE the price.

 

[FROGO207]

First welcome to The High Road OP.
I have done this before myself. I did use the propellant over though. I just weighed the contents of 20 random cases and used an average, less .5 grain to reload mine with. Using the canister grade propellant you need to work up the load so some of those will be used to get your load figured out. Reusing the propellant and reducing the charge 1 or 2 grains along with making the fill the same will produce consistent ammo without need to "work up". You can reduce the load by 10% safely as well if you want to go that low. Yes remove the decapping pin and make sure you resize the case necks so the neck tension will be restored. I have a press mounted bullet puller (Hornady Cam Loc) and like it. If you plan on doing this with rifle ammo often I would urge you to invest in some type of press mounted puller rather than the hammer style. The loaded bullets you have will most likely be different than what you can buy so working up a load with those will not help much with any bullets you purchase in the future as mentioned above. Let us know how things turn out on target after you make them over.