I was reading an article in a Shooting Times magazine dated 1969/February, about primers and how they affect accuracy.
The article was written by Ken Waters, the author of "Pet Loads" Vol I and Vol II.
He was quite careful to note how primers at the time could make a difference with "older" powders available at the time and especially with smaller cases.
One interesting thing he mentioned was the coatings on powders available right up to the early sixties were not consistent from lot to lot and neither were primer compounds.
Back in the day, "over priming" was a real issue of concern.
He mentioned that by the mid sixties, powder coatings were much more consistent, making concerns of "over priming" much less of an issue for the average hand loader.
I started handloading, mostly with surplus powders around 1965.
Because of the issues with powders, primers and loading manuals, such issues were a very real concern.
Today, such issues are mostly forgotten, but there are still a few old timers around who pass on the concerns they experienced 25-50 years ago.
They were right to be concerned, because many of the powders available to them previously and some of which they still have or had on their shelves were still being used.
For today's hand loaders, using commercial "cannister grade" powders there is very little if any concerns, until maximum loads are approached or exceeded.
The coatings, which control the burn rate of the powder, are very good and do their job extremely well.
Even primers are not a concern most need to worry about, unless they're shooting extreme conditions of cold or heat and the new powders with very good temperature tolerances mostly eliminate that worry.
I'm bring this up because primers can and do have an effect on accuracy, under extreme circumstances, such as "squib loads and maximum loads."
I used to worry about primers being all from the same lot, when working up accuracy loads for Hunter Bench Rest and making sure there were enough to complete the loadings for the season. That really hasn't been an issue up until the recent dearth of good quality North American and European primers.
A fellow shooter, whom I've known for decades came to me at the Chilliwack two day gun show last weekend and lamented his issues with the presently available Ginex primers. I don't have much experience with them other than to try some which were given to me.
They worked OK, they were slightly hotter than Standard primers and they were hard enough that I was getting inconsistent ignition/velocities in my Tikka T3X, chambered for the 223 Remington. The rifle has a light, match spring behind the firing pin, which wasn't quite strong enough for good indentation and some of the strike dimples were very shallow.
I didn't have any issues with the Large Rifle Ginex primes, because the rifles I used them in have robust firing pin springs. The extreme spreads opened up a bit, but not enough that would concern me for field use.
The other reason I'm bringing this up is the appearance of 65+ year old primers/powders on gunshow tables.
Things have changed a lot, mostly for the better when it comes to reloading components over that time and most hand loaders are unaware of the issues we had back then.
If for some reason, you come across these components, use a bit of discretion with your hand loads, if you decide to use them.
The article was written by Ken Waters, the author of "Pet Loads" Vol I and Vol II.
He was quite careful to note how primers at the time could make a difference with "older" powders available at the time and especially with smaller cases.
One interesting thing he mentioned was the coatings on powders available right up to the early sixties were not consistent from lot to lot and neither were primer compounds.
Back in the day, "over priming" was a real issue of concern.
He mentioned that by the mid sixties, powder coatings were much more consistent, making concerns of "over priming" much less of an issue for the average hand loader.
I started handloading, mostly with surplus powders around 1965.
Because of the issues with powders, primers and loading manuals, such issues were a very real concern.
Today, such issues are mostly forgotten, but there are still a few old timers around who pass on the concerns they experienced 25-50 years ago.
They were right to be concerned, because many of the powders available to them previously and some of which they still have or had on their shelves were still being used.
For today's hand loaders, using commercial "cannister grade" powders there is very little if any concerns, until maximum loads are approached or exceeded.
The coatings, which control the burn rate of the powder, are very good and do their job extremely well.
Even primers are not a concern most need to worry about, unless they're shooting extreme conditions of cold or heat and the new powders with very good temperature tolerances mostly eliminate that worry.
I'm bring this up because primers can and do have an effect on accuracy, under extreme circumstances, such as "squib loads and maximum loads."
I used to worry about primers being all from the same lot, when working up accuracy loads for Hunter Bench Rest and making sure there were enough to complete the loadings for the season. That really hasn't been an issue up until the recent dearth of good quality North American and European primers.
A fellow shooter, whom I've known for decades came to me at the Chilliwack two day gun show last weekend and lamented his issues with the presently available Ginex primers. I don't have much experience with them other than to try some which were given to me.
They worked OK, they were slightly hotter than Standard primers and they were hard enough that I was getting inconsistent ignition/velocities in my Tikka T3X, chambered for the 223 Remington. The rifle has a light, match spring behind the firing pin, which wasn't quite strong enough for good indentation and some of the strike dimples were very shallow.
I didn't have any issues with the Large Rifle Ginex primes, because the rifles I used them in have robust firing pin springs. The extreme spreads opened up a bit, but not enough that would concern me for field use.
The other reason I'm bringing this up is the appearance of 65+ year old primers/powders on gunshow tables.
Things have changed a lot, mostly for the better when it comes to reloading components over that time and most hand loaders are unaware of the issues we had back then.
If for some reason, you come across these components, use a bit of discretion with your hand loads, if you decide to use them.
