Modern Primer Torture Test, Poll

How many rounds will fail to fire or squib

  • None. All will perform like normal

    Votes: 34 61.8%
  • 1 or 2 will fail

    Votes: 16 29.1%
  • 3 to 5 will fail

    Votes: 2 3.6%
  • More than 5 will fail

    Votes: 3 5.5%

  • Total voters
    55
  • Poll closed .
There was pretty nasty powder that came out of a few of them when I pulled the bullets.
Tumbling loaded rounds was myth busted in Handloading & Reloading subforum by dry tumbling for 48 hours without powder breakdown, no change in OAL and supported by comparable range test/chrono data - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/optimal-tumbling-time.910461/#post-12410844

I say 48 hours of tumbling is sufficient "torture test". :)

And primers are built military "tough" to withstand long days/weeks of rough offroad truck transport, hot/freezing/humid storage condition and even air dropped with crushing landing with barriers/moisture sealants to protect priming compound held by anvil tip - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...-and-discussions.778197/page-11#post-12417636

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G&A article covered primer construction (cup, anvil, and priming compound called "pellet") and operation (When cup is hit, indent from firing pin/striker tip ignites priming compound against the anvil tip)

Interesting thing I noticed from the article was the reliability of primers.

"Based on the SAAMI-specified drop test, statistics will tell you that our [Winchester] primers are 99.9997 percent reliable ... A lead-styphnate primer is probably one of the oldest and most reliable devices on the planet."

Article noted that Black Hills Ammunition (Which uses Winchester primers) who test fires more than 100,000 rounds per year and sells tens of millions of rounds each year, their investigations over the years identified misfires were the result of a defective primer in only a very small number of cases.

"Primers are not perfect — nothing man-made is — but they are very reliable. Statistically, you might encounter a defective primer, if you shoot enough ... 99.9997 percent reliability ... means you might hit a misfire every 300,000 rounds.

Over the years, the average is one rejected primer in about every 250,000, but most of the flaws are minor defects or damage such as slightly out-of-round primers that would have no effect on reliability."​
 
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Tumbling loaded rounds was myth busted in Handloading & Reloading subforum by dry tumbling for 48 hours without powder breakdown, no change in OAL and supported by comparable range test/chrono data - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/optimal-tumbling-time.910461/#post-12410844

I say 48 hours of tumbling is sufficient "torture test". :)

And primers are built military "tough" to withstand long days/weeks of rough offroad truck transport, hot/freezing/humid storage condition and even air dropped with crushing landing with barriers/moisture sealants to protect priming compound held by anvil tip - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...-and-discussions.778197/page-11#post-12417636

index.php


G&A article covered primer construction (cup, anvil, and priming compound called "pellet") and operation (When cup is hit, indent from firing pin/striker tip ignites priming compound against the anvil tip)

Interesting thing I noticed from the article was the reliability of primers.

"Based on the SAAMI-specified drop test, statistics will tell you that our [Winchester] primers are 99.9997 percent reliable ... A lead-styphnate primer is probably one of the oldest and most reliable devices on the planet."

Article noted that Black Hills Ammunition (Which uses Winchester primers) who test fires more than 100,000 rounds per year and sells tens of millions of rounds each year, their investigations over the years identified misfires were the result of a defective primer in only a very small number of cases.

"Primers are not perfect — nothing man-made is — but they are very reliable. Statistically, you might encounter a defective primer, if you shoot enough ... 99.9997 percent reliability ... means you might hit a misfire every 300,000 rounds.

Over the years, the average is one rejected primer in about every 250,000, but most of the flaws are minor defects or damage such as slightly out-of-round primers that would have no effect on reliability."​

So I guess we know how you voted in this poll!:) Coincidentally, one year I shot over 10k rounds of mostly Winchester white box and had exactly 3 duds.:confused: I know that was too small of a sample size and as a whole, their average failure rate is probably not that bad. Of course the companies word about failure rates might be as accurate as their velocity numbers printed on the box. ;)
 
If youre worried about failure rates, stay away from Remington, or at least the old Remington. I got what I thought was a great deal on small pistol primers a number of years back, around $19/1000, and had them all loaded and rotated into the queue before I ran into them as I cycled through. Once I did, 5-10% failures (and these were "new" primers, right out of the pack). Great for malfunction practice, not so good if you are counting on them.

Ive used Winchester small and large pistol primers for my handgun loads in the past, and they have been fine. I like them for my handguns, as they are brass colored and are easy to differentiate from the silver-colored CCI's I use for my rifle loads. Inevitably, they all get dropped here and there while priming cases, and then found later on the floor. The color lets you know what it is you found. :)

I dont use Winchester, in my rifles, as Ive had a number of slamfires with them in my AR's.
 
I often find rounds with light strikes. And they fire when i used them. The ones i find with a strong strike. I'll pull then reload them. 22 lr i find a lot of. They go bang the next time around.
 
Another none here too. Two years ago I left a loaded 1911 magazine on my pistol range, Arizona winter (night temps get into the teens) and Arizona summer (100s), rain, thunderstorms etc. The original goal was to test a 'weathered' 1911 magazine for reliability, both magazine and primers functioned flawlessly. :)
 
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