I couldn't believe it, I was going through some 243 rounds I loaded 6 months ago and 4 of them had the primers missing. They fell out. Powder was still inside the case. I had them stored in those plastic shell strips that come with Federal factory ammo. Anyone else had this problem? I used federal brass. What do I do to prevent this in the future?
primer problem
- Thread starter mveniot
- Start date
Fell out?
One of two things:
If the brass had been previously fired, the primers pockets were way too enlarged and the brass shouldn't've loaded in the first place.
If the brass was new, you simply forgot to prime those 4 cases 6 months ago.
One of two things:
If the brass had been previously fired, the primers pockets were way too enlarged and the brass shouldn't've loaded in the first place.
If the brass was new, you simply forgot to prime those 4 cases 6 months ago.
you should feel some resistance when priming, if you do not then the primer pocket is stretched If they go in tight they will not fall out. I have not read a manual in a long time, but I seem to recall something about giving your loads a good visual inspection. If your previous loads were stretching the primer pockets they were a bit hot for your rifle. If you did not prime a case or two, welcome to the club, but your visual inspection will catch that.
I've primed some loose pockets in my time but never to the point of primers falling out. That's just
blacksmithden
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Like 22to45 said. If you feel little or no resistance when you're priming, the brass is worn out. I had a couple fall out when I first started reloading, but quickly learned to toss worn out brass. Haven't had the problem since. I typically use a mish mash of brass.....Federal, Winchester, Remington, etc. I don't own one Lapua.
There will always be something better than you have......for a price of course. You don't have to have the most expensive and best of everything to enjoy our hobby and be very successful at it.
There will always be something better than you have......for a price of course. You don't have to have the most expensive and best of everything to enjoy our hobby and be very successful at it.
I started reloading to save money. It is easy to loose site of this when you have found a hobby that you enjoy. I don't plan on throwing out all my old brass and will still be picking up brass at the club but I think I will pickup a bag of Win brass next time I am in the store.
vagrantviking
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- High River, Alberta
If the primers are falling out of your brass THROW IT AWAY!
You really don't want to have blow-outs throwing molten brass in your face. If you have more Federal brass that still has good pockets you could save them for lighter loads as long as the pockets still feel tight when seating the primers.
You really don't want to have blow-outs throwing molten brass in your face. If you have more Federal brass that still has good pockets you could save them for lighter loads as long as the pockets still feel tight when seating the primers.
Hmmmmmm, read the post.
I have had problems with Federal brass in a few calibers, they can develop loose primer pockets with one firing, try Winchester or Remington, they will give you good case life without outrageous cost like Lapua brass.
