I think we need to consider reloading rimfires

[Carl N. Brown]

Reloading .22 Short rimfire strikes me as more a job for precise machinery, not a hand loading proposition.
Reloading rimfire cases for a Civil War Spencer rifle would be tempting to me.
The .56-56 Spencer cartridge (.56" at the base before the rim & .56" at the case mouth, .55" bullet about 350 gr over 42 gr black powder) sounds big enough for my clumsy hands.

 

[mdi]

You say it's labor intensive to reload rimfires, yet you could only reload 20 primers in 3 hours. In that time you could have probably primed 100 rimfire cases, left them out for the primer compound to dry, and finished them in an hour the next day.

There's no way around doing the labor when you have to prime a rimfire or a primer yourself.

Jes wonderin'. Are the times you quoted from personal experience? ("labor intensive" means it takes a lot of labor, a lot of work and time to perform a task. reloading rimfires and primers are both labor intensive). I found some large primers in my scrap bucket (98% of my large primers are pistol primers), sloshed them in acetone, dried and pried out anvils, flattened firing pin dents, mixed compound, primed cups, after dry, inserted anvils. As a first attempt I went slow and careful. I've seen videos and read about reloading rimfire cartridges and the process did seem a bit simpler, but 5 times faster? But it's a moot point anyway as I have enough ammo to last me until I go see Jesus, plus a few years for my shooting buddies...

 

[TTv2]

Jes wonderin'. Are the times you quoted from personal experience? ("labor intensive" means it takes a lot of labor, a lot of work and time to perform a task. reloading rimfires and primers are both labor intensive). I found some large primers in my scrap bucket (98% of my large primers are pistol primers), sloshed them in acetone, dried and pried out anvils, flattened firing pin dents, mixed compound, primed cups, after dry, inserted anvils. As a first attempt I went slow and careful. I've seen videos and read about reloading rimfire cartridges and the process did seem a bit simpler, but 5 times faster? But it's a moot point anyway as I have enough ammo to last me until I go see Jesus, plus a few years for my shooting buddies...

I don't care if you own the Lake City plant, that's irrelevant to the topic.

No, I've no experience re-priming rimfires, it's a gut feeling. How much time would it take to do 100 rds worth? IDK, but it would take much longer to make that amount of primers vs just priming rimfires.

The only issue I see is will DIY rimfire ammo be reliable?

Someone said that for .22's, it would be a chore, and yeah, it would be. I would only do it to make black powder ammo ammo for antiques. For stuff like .44 Henry or .56 Spencer (I'd add .32 and .38 Rimfire), they would be something worth considering.

I just don't see reloading primers as more worthwhile.

 

[Demi-human]

Refilling something that is easier and something one could see into and use for any cartridge wanted would probably be more valuable. Probably the reason humans moved from rimfire to button primed cases. (That’s some history I’ll have to reread.)

This doesn’t say that the rimfires aren’t worthwhile, just more finesse is called for.

I don’t think anyone is trying to talk you out of it. And I would honestly like to read about the process, in action, from one of “us”.

With powder I made, a bullet I cast, and even primed with my own explosives. That’s real handloading!

 

[LOLBELL]

In the grand scheme of things rebuilding and recharging spent primers is really a better option. Much easier to deal with all around and not needing to monitor clock position would be a plus. YMMV

Not only clock position of the original pin dent but also primer compound position which you cannot see. If you don’t clean the rim really well you are going to have areas void of compound, probably going to have void areas regardless . From my experience recharging a reliable center fire primer is much faster and easier than a reliable rimfire.

I would devote all of my shooting to air guns or archery before I took up reloading rimfire. But like “mdi” said, me and mine don’t have to worry about it. I don’t own Lake City but I got enough I don’t have to try to reload rimfire.

 

[mdi]

No, I've no experience re-priming rimfires, it's a gut feeling. How much time would it take to do 100 rds worth? IDK, but it would take much longer to make that amount of primers vs just priming rimfires

So, your reply is just an inexperienced "opinion"? And "irrelevant to the topic"?. In all my shooting, casting, and reloading the last thing I rely on is "gut feelings".

One problem with many forum members is they automatically think someone is attacking them because there is no inflection with the written word. I merely ask if you had any experience and got a snarky reply. No I don't own Lake City arsenal but I do own "Mike's Shootin' Stuff" which has several thousands of 22 lr ammo and a few thousand more of centerfire reloads and 1.75 metric tons of components.

P.S. Don't really care if I get a reply, I won't read it...

 

[TTv2]

The point of the topic was to discuss validity of reloading rimfires, not fall back on "I have enough ammo or primers to last a lifetime, so it's a really dumb waste of time IMO" or "I'll shoot a cannon before reloading rimfire."

Forgive me if I don't think they're valuable input.

If we want to compare making our own percussion caps to reloading rimfire or reloading primers, that's an apples to apples comparison and a good one considering the ease of it.

 

[brewer12345]

One of the issues is that I might go through 30 or 40 caps in an afternoon of rifle shooting. That is less that a single box of 22

 

[splattergun]

how 'bout reloading caps?
How To Make Thunder Caps - YouTube