Just to help people out with some info so they can decide if they need to get the Berdan primer available from Canam.
I had hoped that these primers were going to be good for reloading my Swiss 7.5x55 ex-mil ammo Berdan cases (have lots left over from shooting my K31), so before I bought some I checked them out on their website and noticed that the product code id's them as -
DAKV24NPRIME primers.
Now from previous research on these Russian Murom Primers I have found this info from a well known reloader on the web -
"I've reloaded a lot of Berdan primed cases, and they can give spectacularly good results, but there are a lot of caveats. I could afford to shoot all factory ammo, but I like working with my hands, I'm rather tight with a buck and Berdan primers let me lower my brass cost effectively to zero. For the same .217" diameter, you will find many different heights, hardnesses and explosive strengths. DAG has brought in TulAmmo
KV-24N and
KV-762N, both made by Murom in Russia. The former is intended for the 7.62x39, is shorter, harder and has less explosive strength than the latter. The latter is intended for 7.62x51-class calibers, is taller, seems softer to me, and has greater explosive strength.
Batches of these two primers have been brought in before. Both are made by Murom in Russia. PMC brought in a lot of the
KV-762N about 12 years ago, and I have shot them in 7.5 Swiss, FN and SA .303 brass, Albanian and early Bulgarian 7.62x54R and other calibers. They worked great in every bolt-action caliber I tried them in. Swiss 7.5x55 brass loaded with them has been used by me in 4 of the 5 Vintage Military matches I've shot in at Camp Perry, and I got a Gold medal every time. They seemed to get really flat as I approached book maximum loads and velocities, indicating to me they were pretty soft, so I was afraid of using them in loads for semi-autos without firing pin retraction springs.
Several years ago a batch of TulAmmo
KV-24N primers were brought in, and I bought a lot of them. I tried them in Lapua Berdan 7.62x39, Yugo 7.62x39, and Swiss 7.5x55. I used 680 powder in the 7.62x39 loads, and with US jacketed bullets the Lapua shot better than the Yugo in an SKS. With the 7.5x55,
I got mostly hangfires and duds even with easy to ignite 4064. Others have told me that if they opened up the flash holes on 7.5x55 brass, these primers worked fine.
As an experiment, I primed 7.5x55 cases with both primers and snapped them in a K31 rifle. The
KV-762N gave two violet colored, 3 inch tongues of flame out the muzzle. The
KV-24N showed just a little orange flame out the muzzle."
So as it appears the ones Canada Ammo are offering are the
KV-24N primer meant for 7.62x39mm ammo judging by their product code which is "da
KV24Nprime"
Maybe CanadaAmmo can get the
KV-762N version in as well, and if so this would be the best one for fullbore Berdan reloading.
Originally Posted by mkrnel
