Federal Primers

RT

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I accidently bought 2 type of federal primers. Federal 100 and 200 magnum, small pistol primers. Whats the difference and can I use them both to load .38spl.
 
I use the Federal 100 primers in .38 Special all the time. They are a soft primer and I find them very reliable.

I believe thay you can use the 200s but they are really meant for high velocity and magnum loads, usually in full power .357 Magnum rather than .38 Special.
 
You can use the magnum primers in your .38spl there won't be a problem as long as you are loading within guidelines of manuals. If you are over the edge with your loads then I wouldn't.

I have used them in 9MM with no problems and no significant change in velocities over the chrono I might add.

Take Care

Bob
 
I have actually substituted small rifle primers for small pistol primers when working up my deer load for my Marlin 1894 in 357 Magnum. Sure ignition, no pressure signs, even with max loads, and keeps from buying another type of primer.....
 
I was actually planning on loading 2.6 or 2.7 gr of bullseye and 148gr wadcutters, any one have experience wth this .

Thanx for the heads up Bob.
 
Hey Guys...anyone else with any experience with this ???

I loaded up a few with the FED 200s and didnt really notice any difference from the 100s .
 
Just a question. How does a primer affect anything? Isn't it the thing that just goes BANG and sets off the bullet?
 
NO it is the primer that sets off the powder that sets off the bullet.

I have found no difference in performance between magnum and standard Small Pistol Primers in the loads I use. I am told the magnum primers provide a hotter flame to ignite the powder and assume that to be correct. Some folks that shoot a lot and whose opinion I value shoot SP Magnum Primers exclusively. While I have shot the magnum primers in my 9MM loads I prefer to stick to regular primers as they are what is called for.

Take Care

Bob
 
No, the fact that you appear to think the primer is the primary source of power to the projectile....unless of course, "sets off the bullet" was just a poor choice of wording....
 
I would not use Magnum primers unless the reloading manual actually states to use it. Magnum primers burn hotter than standard and when using max recipes, this can put you over the maximum allowable Maximum pressure. The data that uses Magnum primers have been measure with pressure equipment. Without this equipment you are only guessing at Maximum pressure.

Cereal83, when reloading, every component has an effect on the reloaded round. Whether its primer, powder, bullet, or casing. Some things are not interchangable according to data published. For eg. You cannot substitue IMR powder for Hodgon powder even though the have the same numbers. Eg. H4350 and IMR4350. IMR burns hotter than Hodgdon in this case.

I ran across some test data a while back testing primers and pressures. Magnums primers produce a higher pressure and Winchester actually burns at the highest pressure, not Federal as a lot of people thought.

When reloading following the data exactly and don't start at maximum loads and you won't have a problem. Ensure you measure your cases with calipers and trim if necessary and measure finished rounds to ensure its within specs.
 
Last edited:
mylesrom said:
I would not use Magnum primers unless the reloading manual actually states to use it. Magnum primers burn hotter than standard and when using max recipes, this can put you over the maximum allowable Maximum pressure. The data that uses Magnum primers have been measure with pressure equipment. Without this equipment you are only guessing at Maximum pressure.

Cereal83, when reloading, every component has an effect on the reloaded round. Whether its primer, powder, bullet, or casing. Some things are not interchangable according to data published. For eg. You cannot substitue IMR powder for Hodgon powder even though the have the same numbers. Eg. H4350 and IMR4350. IMR burns hotter than Hodgdon in this case.

I ran across some test data a while back testing primers and pressures. Magnums primers produce a higher pressure and Winchester actually burns at the highest pressure, not Federal as a lot of people thought.

When reloading following the data exactly and don't start at maximum loads and you won't have a problem. Ensure you measure your cases with calipers and trim if necessary and measure finished rounds to ensure its within specs.


Thanks for the tip, I will ensure I follow directions as safely as possible as we are talking about bullets here.
 
RT said:
I was actually planning on loading 2.6 or 2.7 gr of bullseye and 148gr wadcutters, any one have experience wth this .

Thanx for the heads up Bob.

My PPC load is 2.8gr Bullseye w/ the 148gr HBWC.

No magnum primers.

Mylesrom:

The exception to the Fed primers not being the hottest are the shotgun primers, which are.
 
I just went and checked my Hornady reloading manual to verify the info. It states in there NOT to use magnum primers where loads were developed using standard primers. They can cause excessive pressures. Magnum primers were designed to burn hotter to completely burn large amounts of powders in large cartridges. A good example is the 30-06 still uses standard primers while the 300 win mag uses Magnum primers.
 
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