Federal primers in Lee auto primes
- Thread starter Onagoth
- Start date
Everyone's bashing phreddy but he does have a point. It can seem unwarranted to worry about pointing an unloaded firearm at someone ("it's harmless, I've done it hundreds of times"), but that one time you were wrong in thinking it was unloaded might lead to tragedy.
I think Lee's warning about Federal primers is most likely based on fact. Accidents can happen with any type of primer for sure, but the point he's making is that Federals are softer and have a greater risk of being set off and setting off all the others in a chain reaction. Just because some people have loaded them hundreds at a time without incident doesn't mean they don't have a higher risk potential.
...That said I really like my press-mounted Lee safety prime. The primer being seated is far away from the tray and the other primers.
I think Lee's warning about Federal primers is most likely based on fact. Accidents can happen with any type of primer for sure, but the point he's making is that Federals are softer and have a greater risk of being set off and setting off all the others in a chain reaction. Just because some people have loaded them hundreds at a time without incident doesn't mean they don't have a higher risk potential.
...That said I really like my press-mounted Lee safety prime. The primer being seated is far away from the tray and the other primers.
Good Grief!!! Here it is again! It amazes me that some persons ever reload at all, cowering in the corner, shaking in their boots because Mr Lee and Federal had a pissing match a couple of decades or so ago which resulted in a disclaimer from Lee regarding using Federal primers. I have no idea how many Federal primers of every persuasion I have used in Lee priming equipment over the years, but I'll bet it numbers in the 10's of thousands, with nary a problem. If a reloader is sensitive to what is going on, he can "feel" the primer slipping in to place. When it hits the bottom of the primer pocket, you stop pushing....that's it!! The liklihood of an "incident" is very remote, indeed. The only primer I ever set off in my life by accident was when I was seating primers with the "tap them in" method, very early in my career. You placed a primer, anvil up on a hard, flat metal surface, put a small rod inside the case, lowered the head of the case on the primer, and tapped on the rod until the primer was seated flush. I got over-enthusiastic once and set one off! I learned a valuable lesson there back in 1964. If some of you doomsayers will just scrap your petty fears and use a little sense, you will be much further ahead. It will also help you avoid being regarded as a "kook". Regards, Eagleye.
Exactly.
The real story is this: RCBS and LEE got into a big public pissing match maybe 15-20 years ago. Blount Corporation owned RCBS at that time, and they also owned Federal Cartridge Company (as well as Speer Bullets IIRC).
RCBS started the feud when they said that the Lee Factory Crimp dies were harmful to accuracy. Lee refuted the claims, and retaliated by saying Federal primers were dangerous. Both companies took out magazine ads running down the other's products. It got quite ugly for a little while.
And that's the real story. I've never heard of any actual instance of a problem using federal primers in any priming device, ever. I use 'em in my Lee autoprime all the time. If I ever blow off a hand, i'll be sure to let you all know.
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I had a Lee primer go off in my 1000 and it didn't detonate the others. Like said above if you have to force it stop. This primer going off was my bad as the top came off the fired primer and the anvil was still in the hole in the decapping process. I gave it to much pressure when the new one went in.
Scared the crap out of me and confirmed that using glasses and protective equipment is mandatory for me when I reload. It is a personal choice just like using Federal primers in Lee products.
Scared the crap out of me and confirmed that using glasses and protective equipment is mandatory for me when I reload. It is a personal choice just like using Federal primers in Lee products.
Apparently there is. Not all primer seating devices are equal. I've got the manual in front of me, it says not to load Fed primers in the Lee auto-prime, NOT the safety prime. The reason is the primer being seated is right next to the rest of the primers in the tray, and any ignition could cause a chain reaction.
He doesn't say a word about Fed primers in the safety prime because the primer being seated is far away from the rest. If it goes off, it won't set the others off. It's a question of level of risk.
That's sorta the point I was making earlier. If you do things properly, you'll never get hurt, no matter which primers you're using. Just a few months ago a poster started a thread saying he'd set off a primer 'cause he tried to "push through" a resistance. The point is if he'd done that using the Lee auto-prime and Fed primers, he'd probably be blind now.
Of course, but Feds are still softer, so the risk of accidental ignition is greater (inversely, the risk of misfires due to light pin strikes is greater with Winchester primers than with Federal). When I tried loading some IVI 9mm cases before getting a pocket swager, I smushed more than a few Fed primers in the process thinking I was seating them, whereas Winchester wouldn't smush.
Indeed. I remember thinking "If that didn't set them off, what will??"
We could argue about this all day. Like most of my fellow gunnutz and handloaders, I don't blindly believe all the manufacturer warnings I read. Most of'em are just trying to cover their asses. I evaluate each one according to what I know and come to a logical, personal conclusion.
All I'm saying in this debate is that, given the relative softness of Federal primers and the proximity of the other primers in the tray, I, personally, would hesitate to dismiss Lee's warning entirely. End of.
That may be but I've had some abut against the outer edge of the primer pocket and they withstood much more force than Federals, which buckled like aluminum foil.
Its the same thing with win primers in Fed NT cases, very tight fit, even after swaging the primer pocket.
I bought a bulk amount of Federal Primers (thanks SMacdonald!
)I am not too worried about an accidental ignition, though I will probably start using the safety glasses again (previously, I just would always prime away from my face)
Make sure you only go to a dealer to get your oil changed
.
Don't change a fuse yourself. Call an electrician. They're the only ones capible of doing it safely.
Don't rip the tags off your matress
.....and if you believe and take to heart EVERYTHING you read.................
Come on, give the guy a break. A good friend of mine, not very technical, once dumped oil in the engine without draining the old oil first. Drove about 100km like this... Half a year later he changed the oil filter with one lacking the rubber gasket. You can still see the oily trail left by his car. PM me and I'll give you the address.
My own father used to reuse burnt fuses by patching in a thin copper wire. Did they work? Sure. Did they trip? On short-circuit, yes. Were they safe? Hmmm...
saskgunowner101
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Time to go pick your lotto numbers with luck such as that. Or maybe we can start the "guys who survived Federal primers in Lee equipment" club.
The few..... the brave.....I know....cause I've been there.
I was trying to prime some military cases with very little success. So I pushed harder
It still didn't work but I had the primer about 3/4 of the way into the case. So now I had a case stuck in my lee autoprime. after considering my stupidity,I took the rest of the primers out of the tool and went outside. I put on a pair of work gloves and practically stood on the tool. It smooshed that little bugger flat enough that I could take it out of the tool. When I got it out the top of the primer fell right off . but the primer didn't go bang.
Which brings me to the next question " primer pocket swaging tool" ? I never knew there was such a thing. How do they work and where would I find one?
Kimzter
It still didn't work but I had the primer about 3/4 of the way into the case. So now I had a case stuck in my lee autoprime. after considering my stupidity,I took the rest of the primers out of the tool and went outside. I put on a pair of work gloves and practically stood on the tool. It smooshed that little bugger flat enough that I could take it out of the tool. When I got it out the top of the primer fell right off
. but the primer didn't go bang.Which brings me to the next question " primer pocket swaging tool" ? I never knew there was such a thing. How do they work and where would I find one?
Kimzter
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Time to go pick your lotto numbers with luck such as that. Or maybe we can start the "guys who survived Federal primers in Lee equipment" club.
The few..... the brave.....I know....cause I've been there.
Maybe this would make a good scene for a "Jackass III" movie. Running naked through a crocodile wallow with a pork chop up your arse while priming brass with Fed 215 and a Lee tool.
