Reclaiming Live Primers.

[stchman]

Hello all. I bought some Tula .357 Magnum about 6 years ago. I am hesitant to shoot it as the spent cases get stuck in the cylinder. I am now reloading and .38 Special / .357 Magnum are calibers I reload. I did a test and was able to pull the bullet and powder with my kinetic bullet puller from the case, and SLOWLY popped the live primer out of the steel case. Since Tula uses boxer primers, I can use my universal decapping die for this.

I then put the recovered powder in a brass .357 Magnum case with a fresh primer and re-use the Tula bullet.

My question is, I was able to recover the Tula primer easily, am I just tempting fate by doing this or is this a safe practice. Should I only use the primer that came out of the Tula case with that powder and bullet?

Thanks

 

[Spare Parts]

Depriming live primers - ear-pro is your friend. Never had one go off, but there's always a first time. Once tried to prime an already-primed case. Loud noise, surprise, hilarity ensued ... also ringing of the ears.

Is Tula .357 a steel case? Steel tends to friction weld to a steel cylinder. If your intent is to replace the steel case with brass, then you're on the right track.

After wearing out my wrist and elbow with a kinetic puller, I bought the Hornady collet puller ... and a bunch of collets. Best add-on purchase ever.

 

[chamokaneman]

Reuse the bullets for sure. I also generally reuse primers. Eye protection and ear protection in the unlikely event you make one go pop. FWIW, I probably wouldn't re-use powder into different cases as I don't truly know what the powder actually is.

 

[edwardware]

. . . I was able to recover the Tula primer easily, am I just tempting fate by doing this or is this a safe practice.

As usual: Yes.

You will want ear and eye pro. Your recycling of the powder and bullet are also correct; keeping them together, while not absolutely necessary, is better.

And while you're there, might I suggest you don gloves, glasses, and earpro, and do your best to detonate a primer by seating or unseating it on the press. Really give it the beans, the old college try, slap it hard to see if it yelps!

They are dangerous (explosives after all), but they are not nearly so sensitive to ignition as you might think. It's far more likely that you'll ruin a primer by fracturing the charge (rendering it useless), than that you'll detonate one

 

[gwpercle]

When de-priming a live primer just go very ... s - l - o - w - l - y ... and none should pop ... but ...
keep your fingers & eyes away from the die openings . I've done hundreds , even re-using the primers with no incidents ... but it would be wise to wear ear & eye protection .

The steel cases don't have quite as much spring-back as brass , that's where the extraction problem comes in with steel .
Assembling all the components into brass cases should be safe , check the case capacity of the steel case and if it is the same or less than the brass case capacity ... you will be good to go .
Gary

 

[Blue68f100]

I always use a universal depriming die when I'm removing live primers. This is just a safety precaution just encase one decides to go boom. The universal die is more open to release the gases if it should ever happen. Like said, just go slow, and yes you can reuse them. I always set them aside for foulers, not what I would consider critical use.

 

[lightman]

My question is, I was able to recover the Tula primer easily, am I just tempting fate by doing this or is this a safe practice. Should I only use the primer that came out of the Tula case with that powder and bullet?

Thanks

I've removed quite a few live primers with no problem. Like the others have said, go slow and gentle and wear safety glasses and maybe a glove. I've also reused removed primers with no problem but I do not use them in a match or in hunting ammo.

 

[Hugger-4641]

I've successfully removed live primers with universal decapp and a slow steady pull on the press.
I've also been able to use Tula steel case ammo on my 357 and 38sp without hanging in the cylinder. Vibrate tumble the live rounds for 30min, then place in a zip lock bag and spray a generous dose of hornady one-shot. Push most of the air out of the bag and shake it all around for a few min like shake&bake chicken. Let them dry a few min before shooting them and let the cylinder cool for a min before trying to eject. This has worked well for me, at least good enough to keep me from pulling them. Of, course, I wouldn't leave them stored in the gun or depend on them for anything other than target shooting.

 

[FROGO207]

I also have removed and reused many hundreds of primers over the years. I strip down ammo turned into the local PD/FD. The usual precautions of eye and ear protection are needed. One should always run the press handle slowly to prevent a multitude of problems and when removing primers especially so. I also use a universal decapper due to it allowing the gasses to vent down safely should one go off. You could use say a 45 ACP sizer to decap 9MM for the same reason. They can be reused and I never had one fail yet.
If you put the componants in a brass case of the same caliber (9MM for 9MM) then it is OK to use the propellant. I will weigh a sampling of the charges and average out what I put back in for consistantcy when I do this. Otherwise I treat it as fertilizer. Not worth the risk otherwise. I also treat reused primers in ammo as range ammo. Not for use in anything critical just because of possible misfire.

 

[Random 8]

When I was young and dumb, I set off a shotgun .209 with a hammer. I still have the scar. Turned the battery cup into a 3 petal flower and drove it into the bone in my finger. There is some power there.

I have and would again deprime live primers. When I do this, I use my "range press." It's an old Lyman lever press (not O ring) attached to a piece of plywood that is temporarily screwed to my work bench in the garage. I am careful to remove any flammable materials from the area. A leather welding apron covers the entire press to guard against shrapnel while I am depriming. I would not do this in an enclosed room inside my house. I have never had one detonate, but take no chances.

As for your reclaimed primers, I would use them for a mild practice load with plenty of safety margin. Save the full power loads for known quantities. You can probably re-use the other Tula components, but do so strictly at your own risk. It is your decision to make.

 

[Rule3]

Did you give the cylinders a really good cleaning? If you had shot a lot of 38 specials they may have ring around the collar, which could make the 357 cases stick.
Put a oversize chamber brush on a drill and polish them out.

Another way is to take an empty 357 mag brass case. Flair the mouth so it is just able to go into each cylinder,Put some oil or solvent in,Then tap it in. It will scrape the walls.

https://www.amazon.com/Hoppes-Torna...ords=tornado+bore+brush&qid=1649951969&sr=8-6

 

[mdi]

Think and proceed slowly and removing live primers is safe. I've done it many times and never a primer pop. I would weigh the powder charge and save the powder for an emergency (record powder charge and keep it with the powder). And use my favorite 357 powders and the Tula primers in new brass. Depending on the type/weight of the bullets I might reseat them too. In the last shortage I purchased a bunch of Wolf primer in SP, LP, SR, and LRr (IIRC same as Tula primers). All have performed flawlessly...

 

[stchman]

Did you give the cylinders a really good cleaning? If you had shot a lot of 38 specials they may have ring around the collar, which could make the 357 cases stick.
Put a oversize chamber brush on a drill and polish them out.

Another way is to take an empty 357 mag brass case. Flair the mouth so it is just able to go into each cylinder,Put some oil or solvent in,Then tap it in. It will scrape the walls.

https://www.amazon.com/Hoppes-Torna...ords=tornado+bore+brush&qid=1649951969&sr=8-6

I clean the cylinder after each use. I use a .45 caliber bore brush and give each chamber a good scrubbing. The brass cased .357 Magnum ejects beautifully while the steel cased Tula sticks after firing.