Are these primer pockets swaged?

Status
Not open for further replies.
A

AKMac

Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2005
Messages
44
Hey guys,

I have 1000 pieces of .223 brass that I'm having some trouble with. I ordered these through Diamond K brass. On the phone they said that all their brass is indeed swaged and that they recommend reaming all their swaged brass also. About 25% of the brass looks like this and it's causing the primers to collapse when priming.

On the first photo I included two pieces of brass that to me, look un-swaged, and on the right one peice of brass that primes just fine and looks swaged.

So did I get a bad batch or am I being dumb here?



 
In my experience, the ring around the opening of the primer pocket says crimped. I swag/uniform all of my brass at least once upon getting it. I use the Hornady primer pocket uni-former either by hand or in my "tired" cordless drill and go slow. I haven't messed up any primer pockets yet.
 
Those are crimped pockets. I prefer to remove them by swaging vs reaming. I use the press mounted unit for the LNL-AP which is very fast. The Dillon Super Swager 600 is another good one. The RCBS swager for the press works too.
 
The two on the left look crimped and unswaged or unreamed.

What you are seeing looks exactly like I get when a crimped 9mm case slips through -- I generally catch it by the increased force on the Dillon handle when I go to seat the primer, I remove the case and primer, ream the case and then put it and the primer back and finish the seating process.
 
looks like you bought unprocessed brass you need to remove the crimp if needed/size/trim before you load them !!
not all brass is crimped treat the unprocessed as range pick ups and start from square one of brass prep !!
 
Thanks guys.

I actually did pay to have these swaged. I just wanted to make sure I'm not crazy. Hopefully they will make it right.
 
Crimped on the right, swaged on the left.

swage.jpg


If your cases were swaged they were not swaged correctly. Maybe they used one of the aftermarket swagers for the 550 or 650, that has no backup rod?

If they left a mistake like that uncorrected I would make sure they were sized and trimmed correctly too before proceeding.
 
Last edited:
are you sure the web link above says may need to be swaged and the processing says deprimed,sized ,trimmed BUT NOT SWAGED ??
These are NOT Processed casings, but Processing option is available.

Processing Option: Casings will be resized, deprimed, trimmed (1.740 - 1.760 length), and tumble polished. Casing primer pockets may need to be swaged or reamed prior to reloading.

your not confusing deprimed with swaged ?
 
AKMac said:
Thanks guys.

I actually did pay to have these swaged. I just wanted to make sure I'm not crazy. Hopefully they will make it right.
Click to expand...
What method of prime seating are you using and brand of primer? Are primers being started straight into the pocket?

The 2 left ones , in the first photo, sure look like they missed the swaging process
 
JO JO said:
are you sure the web link above says may need to be swaged and the processing says deprimed,sized ,trimmed BUT NOT SWAGED ??
These are NOT Processed casings, but Processing option is available.

Processing Option: Casings will be resized, deprimed, trimmed (1.740 - 1.760 length), and tumble polished. Casing primer pockets may need to be swaged or reamed prior to reloading.

your not confusing deprimed with swaged ?
Click to expand...

Well dog my cats, I think you right. I thought the processing included swaging. I guess I was wrong. Thanks for pointing that out!
 
I have to say I can't hardly tell the difference when I first pull it out of my swaging compared to one I haven't. When I'm in doubt it goes to my "new to me" pile to be swaged with the next batch.
 
I bought a couple thousand. 223 from Diamond K Brass and order to be sized,trimmed and swaged and they sent me unworked brass so i called them and told them what was going on and they looked my order up and said ok we will send you 2k more pieces of worked brass for free.and while I had them on the phone I asked to buy 1k pieces of worked 300blkout and I payed for them but when I got them in the mail they gave me an extra 1k of 300blkout brass for my time. Great Customer Service at Diamond K Brass. I believe I spoke to Dave the owner. I find it alot easier to pay a few more dollars to get brass that is ready to load. I hate trimming and swaging.
 
Thanks a cool little gauge. I just ordered one! Along with one of these:

http://swageit.com/
Click to expand...

That was one of the aftermarket swagers I was referring to in post #8 that has mixed reviews and voids Dillon's warranty due to not having a backup rod while swaging.
 
jmorris said:
That was one of the aftermarket swagers I was referring to in post #8 that has mixed reviews and voids Dillon's warranty due to not having a backup rod while swaging.
Click to expand...


Any links to the "mixed reviews"? I'm heavily leaning towards getting an entire Dillon 650 setup just to be able to run one of those.
 
On the first photo I included two pieces of brass that to me, look un-swaged, and on the right one peice of brass that primes just fine and looks swaged..
Click to expand...

I concur.
This is why I use a Hornady primer pocket reamer (not a primer pocket uniformer) to eliminate the primer pocket crimp
 
Last edited:
I swage with an RCBS...
When prepping a batch, If I have brass that I doubt has been swaged previously, I just use the swage fitting as a gauge. If it fits within the pocket, she's good. If not, it gets set aside for that extra step.
 
I bought a couple thousand. 223 from Diamond K Brass and order to be sized,trimmed and swaged and they sent me unworked brass so i [sic] called them and told them what was going on and they looked my order up and said ok we will send you 2k more pieces of worked brass for free.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry tht you didn't get what you ordered, but I don't consider someone sending you what you originally ordered after they initially sent you "junk" to be "customer service" (great or otherwise). If anything, I consider it to be a very contemptuous attitude of Diamond K towards their customers (i.e. as it the "rubes" will take whatever I send them and if they complain, I'll do the least I have to do to fix it).

I have nor ordered from Diamond K, but after your post, I have no intention of ordering from them or even visiting their website.
 
I've ordered from diamond K quite a few times, and have been fully satisfied every time.

Mistakes do happen. And to offer 2000 pieces of processed brass for free? Next time, I hope they get my order wrong.
 
I would still process the primer pockets and resize the brass even if they say it has been. Some of the military cases require a little extra work. I always work the brass 2x the first time around.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

S
  • Locked
Issue with Lee Ram Swage
Replies
3
Views
680
Shooter14854
S
C
  • Locked
Proper primer pocket swage
Replies
23
Views
2K
GW Staar
GW Staar
E
  • Locked
Primer pocket swaging -- how much to swage?
Replies
16
Views
3K
FROGO207
FROGO207
G
  • Locked
To swage or not to swage?
Replies
5
Views
661
MtnCreek
MtnCreek
coloradokevin
  • Locked
Swaged Primer Pocket Problems
Replies
24
Views
3K
Sport45
S
Back
Top