Primer Sensitivity

[lizziedog1]

My son as an Asrtra Model 400. It is an old semi-auto chambered in .380ACP. We were out trying some reloads and here is what happened.

The gun would ignite rounds that had Federal primers without a problem. Non-Federal primed rounds took two trigger pulls to set off. The first would put a dent in the primer, the second would fire the round. The gun cycled just fine with either primer, but with the Federals you could just keep pulling the trigger until the gun was empty. The non-Federal primers were CCI's.

Are Federal Pistol Primers more sensitive? I am out of those, but I do have some Winchester small pistol primers. How do the Winchester primers compare to the Federal and CCI?

Thanks!

 

[cfullgraf]

I have never heard of an Astra 400 chambered for 380 ACP. As far as I know, they were chambered for 9mm Largo, but I could be wrong.

If it is indeed chambered for 9mm Largo, 380 ACP cartridges will sit too deep in the chamber and give unreliable discharge.

 

[Walkalong]

Federals are the most sensitive. I forget how it goes after that, but everyone with "light sprung" pistols use Federals.

Either the primers are not being seated fully, or that gun will need Federals, unless a stronger spring is used. It could be the old FPS is just tired, and a replacement would fix it, assuming one is available.

If it is indeed chambered for 9mm Largo, 380 ACP cartridges will sit too deep in the chamber and give unreliable discharge.

Very true. I am not familiar with those pistols, but that is worth checking.

 

[redneck2]

It's pretty well documented that Federals light off easier than others, with CCIs being the hardest. Federals also seat easier, which means you're also more likely to get ignition since the anvil is more likely to be very slightly crushed (as it needs to be).

I have a Contender in .357 Herrett with a super light trigger and therefore light hammer strike. Maybe 1/2 of CCIs will light off. All Federals light off.

Now, since CCI's are tougher, they should be more resistant to slam fires in auto guns, so being harder is not necessarily bad.

 

[lizziedog1]

oops

I have never heard of an Astra 400 chambered for 380 ACP.

You are right, it is a model 300.

Anyway, were do Winchester primers fit on the sensitivity scale?

 

[rfwobbly]

On a scale of 1 to 10, with Federal being 1, Winchester might be 6.

 

[chbrow10]

On a scale of 1 to 10, with Federal being 1, Wolf would be a 1000

 

[TonyT]

Fedral primers have the softest primer cup ad are therefore the most sensitive. CCI primers have the hardest primer cups. In order of increasing hardness - Federal-Winchester-Remington-CCI.

 

[1SOW]

Federal uses an older primer mix formula that is more sensitive to impact.

 

[medalguy]

Check your firing pin and see if it's protruding all the way, could be held back by dirt or old grease. If you're getting a light primer strike, the Federals will fire first. As suggested, could be a weak firing pin spring although I'm not familiar with the 300.

 

[FROGO207]

Yep--A lot of primer strike problems in various firearms that are owned by a mix of friends were cured buy my thorough cleaning of the firing pin/bolt/slide area of crud. I have purchased a new spring for replacement and it has not worked as well as the original one after cleaning the crud out of the affected area a time or two. IMHO a LOT malfunctions in firearms are due to lack of keeping them clean.

 

[SleazyRider]

I'm following this thread with interest, as i have what I think is a "light sprung" .30-06 bolt rifle. Missed a nice buck a few weeks back because a Remington Core-Lokt round did not fire. Does anybody know which, if any, ammunition manufacturers use Federal primers other than, of course, Federal?

 

[Walkalong]

Replace your FPS in your .06. No need to be sprung lightly/worn out. It needs to go bang with any reasonable ammo.

 

[SleazyRider]

It's brand-new, Walkalong, and installed by the factory (S&W i-bolt). It's a 60-degree bolt lift that I understand uses a lighter firing pin spring because of the steep cam angle.

 

[Walkalong]

I would be quite displeased with a factory set up that had trouble setting off primers. Oh well. Buy Fed ammo, or reload with Fed primers.

If I remember correctly from when Reloader Fred posted the order of primer sensitivity, Mag-Tech was the next most sensitive after Federal.

Perhaps Fred will come along and post it again.

 

[lizziedog1]

Confiramtion

I reloaded a dozen more rounds for my son's gun. I used Federal Primers and this time I used cast bullets. Each round ignited with the first trigger pull and the gun cycled perfectly. He'll either have to get the gun fixed or keep using Federal primers.