CCI Small Rifle Primer Choice

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cbh560

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Here's the scenario:

I'm shooting a .223 Remington SPS Tac. My current load is using Winchester brass, 22.6gr of H335, 69gr Sierra MK's, and CCI 400 primers and seated about .020" off the lands. By all three of my books (Sierra, Hornady, Speer) and the Hodgdon website, I should be nowhere near the pressure limits of the cartridge/rifle combo. However, I continue to see flattened primers. By all accounts I don't think there should be pressure signs showing with this load, as I don't beleive this rifle to have a particularly tight chamber, although I have nothing to compare it to. There are no other apparent pressure signs.

Here's the question:

By changing the primers to either a CCI 450 or BR4 will I eliminate this primer flattening? It seems that the 450's and BR4's have thicker primer cups. My other thought was to try working up a load with Varget. It seems Varget runs a slightly lower pressures and high velocities. Has anyone had luck with Varget in their .223?
 
cbh560 said:
Here's the scenario:

I'm shooting a .223 Remington SPS Tac. My current load is using Winchester brass, 22.6gr of H335, 69gr Sierra MK's, and CCI 400 primers and seated about .020" off the lands. By all three of my books (Sierra, Hornady, Speer) and the Hodgdon website, I should be nowhere near the pressure limits of the cartridge/rifle combo. However, I continue to see flattened primers. By all accounts I don't think there should be pressure signs showing with this load, as I don't beleive this rifle to have a particularly tight chamber, although I have nothing to compare it to. There are no other apparent pressure signs.

Here's the question:

By changing the primers to either a CCI 450 or BR4 will I eliminate this primer flattening? It seems that the 450's and BR4's have thicker primer cups. My other thought was to try working up a load with Varget. It seems Varget runs a slightly lower pressures and high velocities. Has anyone had luck with Varget in their .223?
Click to expand...

Before we could make an informative comment, we would have to see a picure of your fired primers.
Your version of flattened primers from excess pressure may not be our version of flattened primers from excess pressure.
 
I use BR4 primers in Lake City brass and have not seen any issues. I have not used varget only due to the fact it does not meter consistant though my Dillon powder measure which i have on my progressive loader. Read that alot of people have found the same issue - its always plus or minus. Reloader 15 works well for .223 but i am only loading 55gr fmjbt for my Tikka T3 and AR15.
 
Varget and 69smks work very well. I use the mag primers. BTW I had similar indications with the standard 400s with cratering with early pressure signs in my savage 223. Switched to the mag for winter shooting and problem was solved. I suspect the BR4s will act similarily. I now use the 400s more for fire forming and lower pressure loads with light bullets.

If you see a burr on the fired primers when they are removed from the casing then those primers are flattening and flowing into the chamfer of the primer pocket (= serious indication of pressure issues). If you are not seeing the burr then "flattening" may be not the right term. Yes a picture is worth a thousand words. My two cents.
 
Perfect timing for this thread. I just bought a 1000 CCI 450 primers by accident. They were the only small rifle primers I saw and I grabbed them.
I came here to ask if they would be alright in my .223 with H335, CFEE223 and Varget.

Would these same primers be alright in a .222 or should I save the rest of my Winchester primers for that?
 
Tazzy,

I am very new to reloading, but my Speer reloading manual recommends the use of CCI 450 Mag primers for any spherical powder (H335, Win748, BLC-2, etc). I purchased them intentionally, for the purpose of reliably shooting H335 in particular.

Bradley
 
Not all primers are created equal, the primers you are using have a .020 cup thickness and will "flatten" more than the primers with .025 cup thickness. I'm loading for three AR15s and a .223 bolt action rifle and only use the .025 thick cups. I have been told the thinner cups .019, .020 are for lower pressure cartridges than the .223/5.56.

calhoonprimers02.png


CHOOSING THE RIGHT PRIMER - A PRIMER ON PRIMERS
http://www.sksboards.com/smf/index.php?topic=56422.0

Primers and Pressure Analysis
http://www.accurateshooter.com/technical-articles/primers-and-pressure-analysis/
 
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