Noob primer question(s)

[kc9aop]

Hello, I'm new to reloading and new to the hand gun target shooting sport as well so I have some basic questions. I'm planning to make my first batch of reloads soon.

I managed to find some Winchester small pistol primers and was intending to use them to load some 40 S&W cartridges. My question is: do all small primers work for all propellants? I am going to use WST and IMR SR7625 for the first few batches of reloads.

Also, is it safe or recommended to store primed brass or is it better to prime it when you charge it?

I welcome any feedback, suggestions, instruction or experiences you can share.

Jim

 

[Arkansas Paul]

I managed to find some Winchester small pistol primers and was intending to use them to load some 40 S&W cartridges. My question is: do all small primers work for all propellants?

For the .40 yes. If you start reloading something like .357 mag with a powder like H110, you'll need to step up to magnum primers, but for most applications standard primers will do the job perfectly.

Also, is it safe or recommended to store primed brass or is it better to prime it when you charge it?

That's a preference thing. I like to prime mine as I need it, but that's just me. I really don't even know why, that's just the way I've always done it.

 

[medalguy]

I resize and prime cases during the winter when it's too cold to go out and shoot, then in the spring & summer I load most of my brass. I just pout it in gallon baggies, throw it in a 20mm ammo can, and let it sit. Doesn't hurt a thing to let primed brass sit for years if necessary.

 

[beatledog7]

I prime and store lots of brass from .380ACP to 45-70. I know what sort of primer these will take regardless of the eventual load details. Even then, I annotate a label indicating exactly what primer these pieces have (and other pertinent data).

The only ones I don't usually prime and store are .44MAg and .357Mag, and that's because until I decide what load they'll get I can't know what primer they'll need.

 

[gamestalker]

It's all been pretty much covered in the other replies, but what the heck I'll add my two cents worth.

I've pretty much always primed my brass when I need it, but I have pre primed a few times over the years. And even though I've yet to experience a mis fire in more than 30 yrs. of reloading, priming in advance means I'm going to be removing the primers from their controlled environment I store them in.

And also because brass will start to lose it's luster, or start to discolor some after an extended period of time, even if it's stored in a sealed container or baggy. So in this respect, I personally wouldn't tumble primed brass, but that's just me.

And I also don't know which primer I'm going to use, I'm referring to magnum or standard, until I've decided on the powder choice, so priming in advance wouldn't work well for me.

GS

 

[kc9aop]

Thanks for all of the great replies. I guess this is strictly a preference thing. I can see that either way makes sense.

The point of taking the primers from their controlled environment rings as important to me. It makes sense to store them in the packaging the manufacturer delivers them in. I'm sure the air tight storage is a big help. I suspect it will help to reduce oxidation.

 

[mdi]

I'm with the "pre-prime crowd". The environment for my primed brass is identical (except the packaging) to my stored primers. I don't believe primers are a delicate as many think and in nearly 30 years haven't experienced a failure to fire that wasn't my fault. Lately I've been reloading with primers that I purchased in S. CA in '88...

 

[Schwing]

I actually tend to lean the other way and only prime when I am ready to reload. A big part of that though is that, at least in some calibers, I am too cheap to buy a huge amount of brass and I like to have my options open as to what primers I am going to use. I also reload a lot of .38 and .357 and like to have them nice and shiny... I am just OCD that way.

Having said that, I hear people almost shout in terror when they see someone handle a primer with anything but sterile gloves or store primed brass in anything but an airtight container. In theory, the oil in your hands and air on the backside of a primer can "Break down the primer" but, as others have already said, I have never had a failure to fire that wasn't my own fault (primers not seated all of the way and such). I know other loaders who have kept primed cases sitting around for decades without any issues.

 

[Comrade Mike]

Thanks for all of the great replies. I guess this is strictly a preference thing. I can see that either way makes sense.

The point of taking the primers from their controlled environment rings as important to me. It makes sense to store them in the packaging the manufacturer delivers them in. I'm sure the air tight storage is a big help. I suspect it will help to reduce oxidation.

Lead styphnate doesn't oxidize readily in air. Don't worry about primers going bad, I know guys shooting primers from the seventies.

 

[BYJO4]

Interchanging the brand of primers is fine as long as you stay with the same size. When you prime the case is up to you. I prefer to prime when actually loading the the case especially when using a progressive press.

 

[BunnMan]

I've had primers fail on me...probably a half dozen over the last year or so. I think if you store them well you're fine though whether they're in their own packaging until you load or you prime and seal the primed brass in bags, ammo cans, etc. I think my failures were likely due to my leaving them in the press between loading sessions. Just laziness not to pull them out and store them better on my part. In my press the one about to be loaded sits out in the shuttle guts up, I'm thinking maybe they absorbed moisture out of the air somehow, I dunno. They were all new this year purchased at Bass Pro. I don't want to say what manufacture they were because I think it was my fault and I don't want to cause undue bad press.

 

[rcmodel]

probably a half dozen over the last year or so.

I have not had that many primers fail in my reloads in the last 50 years of reloading.
In fact, I can't recall even one.

And I doubt I store them any better then you do.

The main reason for miss-fires is improper primer seating.

They have to be seated to the bottom of the primer cup in order to pre-load the anvil in the primer compound pellet.
Or firing pin impact is used up seating them further.

Primers are made wet, and humidity from leaving them out on the bench will not keep them from working as designed if they are seated properly.

rc

 

[witchhunter]

Back in the 70's a guy gave me a thousand W/W primers(stayneless) from the 40's still in the package, being young and poor, I loaded em and they worked just fine. They had been stored in a barn for 30 years....

 

[BunnMan]

Rcmodel,

Not to hijack the thread but if the problem were seating depth I would figure they should pop on the second attempt right? Every one of my FTFs went back in the chamber for another try, I guess that's a leftover from my rimfire practices, lol. Every one of them remained a dud. I'm not disagreeing with you, just would like to figure whether its my bad or not. If they should live through sitting open for a few weeks, I need to get on the horn with the manufacturer.

 

[Walkalong]

While it would be impossible to manufacture trillions of primers without having a bad one sooner or later, duds are rare, and rcmodel is right, 99.99% (No, I did not do a study) of misfires are improperly seated primers.

I have had one in all my years that would not go off with a second hit. Not only that, but it also refused to go bang after depriming and smacking with a hammer.

 

[mdi]

I have not had that many primers fail in my reloads in the last 50 years of reloading.
In fact, I can't recall even one.

And I doubt I store them any better then you do.

The main reason for miss-fires is improper primer seating.

They have to be seated to the bottom of the primer cup in order to pre-load the anvil in the primer compound pellet.
Or firing pin impact is used up seating them further.

Primers are made wet, and humidity from leaving them out on the bench will not keep them from working as designed if they are seated properly.

rc

+1. In my reloading career, using only 4 different primer manufacturers, the only failures to fire were my fault; primers not seated properly. The last time was with a new gun, a 9mm striker fired semi-auto. I wound up "pre-loading" the primers a bit (seating the primers all the way then a bit more pressure on the primer). All primers (Winchester and CCI) have fired in this gun since...

 

[greyling22]

Depends on my press. For a single stage, I batch my priming. For a turret or progressive, priming happens during reloading

 

[gamestalker]

If I experienced a half dozen failures in a year, I would have difficulty trusting my reloads, especially for self defense.

GS

 

[medalguy]

I probably loaded 40,000 rounds last year alone. I too have never had a dud round that I loaded in over 45 years of reloading. On the other hand, I have had at least two factory rounds that I can remember fail to fire in that time. And I've had a couple of duds in a few boxes of ammo that a buddy gave me a few years ago and in a weak moment I actually tried to shoot them.

 

[greyling22]

never? wow. seems like get a bad primer every few thousand. You must have super primers. congrats.

 

[1SOW]

I use Fed SPPs and in approx. 50K 9mm reloads, I've had "ONE" that wouldn't fire.
I broke it down and the normally green compound was a kaka brown color. It wouldn't go bang.

I have seated a few too shallow early on in reloading. A second strike fired them.

 

[mtrmn]

never? wow. seems like get a bad primer every few thousand. You must have super primers. congrats.

I can remember MAYbe 2 dud primers in over 30 yrs reloading. I'm talking probably tens of thousands of rounds. 80% of my primers have been CCI with scattered Federals and Winchesters. For at least the first 20 yrs of that, all my loading was done on a single stage press in a NON CLIMATE CONTROLLED shop outside in the Louisiana heat and humidity. A normal day is at least 80% humidity.

I work the opposite of the folks that say it's too cold in the winter to do any shooting/testing. It's by far too hot/humid here in the summer to even attempt to get any enjoyment out of my hobby. I now work in an air conditioned shop, so I load during the summer and shoot in fall/winter.

 

[kc9aop]

Mtrmn I'm with you. I'm in Chicago land and the heat and humidity push me to indoor ranges and other activities during the summer. Fall and earky winter are outdoors for me.

 

[mrcylinder]

Hello, I'm new to reloading and new to the hand gun target shooting sport as well so I have some basic questions. I'm planning to make my first batch of reloads soon.

I managed to find some Winchester small pistol primers and was intending to use them to load some 40 S&W cartridges. My question is: do all small primers work for all propellants? I am going to use WST and IMR SR7625 for the first few batches of reloads.

Also, is it safe or recommended to store primed brass or is it better to prime it when you charge it?

I welcome any feedback, suggestions, instruction or experiences you can share.

Jim

Take a breath and for goodness sake as a someone new to reloading, please err on the SAFE side! Different powder manufacturers will list all the components they used to test their loads, ALWAYS follow the powder manufactures recommendations for said loads and work them up slowly to the maximum load if need be. Some will recommend magnum primers others will not as that as what was used for the tested loads listed. There is no problem with storing primed brass, just keep them in a dry environment and make sure you mark them as to what primers you used, date primed, use the oldest ones first when you load them, just in case you find and use another brand of primer! If you change brands of powder and or primers re-work the loads up from scratch. This does not mean you cant use other primers with other powders it's just what the powder manufacturer recommends and tested. For SAFETY sake get some reloading manuals, at least three and use them, use them, use them!
Welcome to the reloading world, you will enjoy it as there is a lot to learn!

 

[BunnMan]

Since the overwhelming opinion here seems to be that it was not poor seating that caused my failures I'll go ahead and conceded that these were Winchester primers loaded in both 9mm and 40. I say it wasn't poor seating because they didn't go off the second time either. These were all from the same batch of 1000 I picked up at Bass Pro one day. I had been using Federal primers but Winchester is all they've had for awhile. Never had a failure with the Feds on the same press, same practice, same hand on the lever. I figured maybe I got a bad batch, or leaving them exposed in the shuttle was a bad idea, or maybe Winchester primers just suck...I dunno. As far as the last point, I shot 1000's of rounds of Winchester bulk 115gr Wally World ammo before I started loading myself and never had a misfire like that and I'm pretty sure they use their own primers in those as well...lol.