OK while we're on primers...I was checking loaded rounds yesterday and noticed a primer that wasn't quite fully seated and figured I had 2 choices: either put the loaded round in the press and try to seat it deeper or pull the bullet first then seat the primer deeper in the empty case. I did the latter. Would it be dumb to squeeze a primer in loaded rounds? Not meaning to jack your thread, slowr1der.
Primer seated upside down. What to do?
- Thread starter slowr1der
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I would not recommend it. Chances are slim to none it will go off, but I don't do it. Break it down. This is from someone who will knock a live primer out of an unloaded piece of brass with a Lee depriming stem and a light brass hammer. 
Never set one off that way. Not recommending it, just sayin'.
Never set one off that way. Not recommending it, just sayin'.
jcwit
member
Plus 1 on what Walkalong says. Chances of it going off? Very, very low to not at all, but there is that funny 3 letter word.
Somewhat the same as unloaded guns never go off, OOPS!
Somewhat the same as unloaded guns never go off, OOPS!
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Jesse Heywood
Member
jcwit said:
Must not be a good morning. You not only can't count, but your spelling is off target, too!
Primer fumes must be getting to you. :banghead:jcwit
member
Jesse, The morning was just fine and now has turned into afternoon. The 3 letter word is "but", not butt, it consists of 3 letters.
There I fixed all the spelling errors, just to let you know, I'm human, imperfect in many ways, not a God, nor do I pretend to be.
BeerSleeper
Member
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deprime it. Even if it goes off, it will just be a pop. I've only deprimed a few hot primers. I went on to reuse them, in non-critical loads (plinking). Every one still went off, despite the primer cup being dented outward during depriming, and pressed back flush during the priming operation.
As a matter of caution, I reprimed the deprimed primer on the press instead of the hand tool...just in case. Nothing eventful has happened. I've always kept those rounds separate, and they've always gone off, same as normal.
As a matter of caution, I reprimed the deprimed primer on the press instead of the hand tool...just in case. Nothing eventful has happened. I've always kept those rounds separate, and they've always gone off, same as normal.
Cosmoline
Member
Why risk injury? I've never set one off with a decapper die, but I HAVE seen the decapper pin pop loose on my Lees. They're designed to do so instead of bending if you're pushing against something that doesn't give. I could see a small explosion fire the pin out of the die. Anyway unless we're talking about ultra rare 6.5 Mannlicher Schoenauer brass or elephant gun brass that costs $25 a pop, it's not a major loss.
Folks here are a bit confused. Primers aren't a major hazard if they go off inside something designed to seat them. Any priming press or tool should be able to cope with a KB without taking your hands off. But no decapper die to my knowledge is designed to poke out inverted live primers. Nor has it been designed to vent the force of that primer safely. Unless you have confirmed the safety with the manufacturer or do some remote testing and intentionally set several off with your decapper rig after seating them upside-down, you cannot know what will happen. It isn't worth the risk, not even close.
Think of it this way. With a hand press, the brass is away from you. If the primer is set off, the case itself plus the shape of the primer will vent the force out through the case. Likewise a bench primer will have the brass pointing up, with you presumably not staring down into it. With the primer inverted, and in a decapper die, you have the directional force venting in the other direction. I have no idea what that will do. I don't know if it's harmless, and as far as I know nobody has ever actually tested it.
Can anyone find a single manufacturer who OK's the use of a decapper on live, let alone live inverted primers?
Just throw the stupid thing away.
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dickttx
Member
" Ask anyone that's loaded with the original Lee loader hand tool. Most that have used them have popped a primer a time or two while getting used to them. No big deal, but eye protection is good."
Malamute, you beat me to that. I popped several of them using my plastic mallet while watching TV. It did tend to wake me up.
Malamute, you beat me to that. I popped several of them using my plastic mallet while watching TV. It did tend to wake me up.
jcwit
member
Just wondering here. Did the priming rod go flying out of your hand and imbed itself into the ceiling?
Tom609
Member
I just toss the case and grab one of the thousands of empty cases I have in reserve and drop it into the empty "100th slot" in the plastic ammo case. It's a place saver for the next time those 100 are reloaded.
jcwit
member
Ya, I know but it still doesn't hurt to be frugal, and we don't know if the op has that many cases. I've finally started selling some of my brass at gun shows. Got tired of all the kitty litter buckets stacked around.
bbuddtec
Member
okay, here's mine... I've done this a number of times, (as needed) no errors. Just push it out with decapper. As far as the primer going off, throw a primer'ed shell in your gun *(when wifey's not home!!!) and fire it off, it's really not much different than a cap or good air rifle report... (perhaps bringing on the CAP in decapping) then you know what you can expect.
***NEVER RE-SEAT A CHARGED SHELL!!!***
tear it down and do-over, don't be lazy, put it aside in the clinic stack if you must, or just single fire it, it will most likely take 2 strikes...
I'd just quarantine that sucker till I got more pulls, or more likely, JUST TAKE IT DOWN.
***NEVER RE-SEAT A CHARGED SHELL!!!***
tear it down and do-over, don't be lazy, put it aside in the clinic stack if you must, or just single fire it, it will most likely take 2 strikes...
I'd just quarantine that sucker till I got more pulls, or more likely, JUST TAKE IT DOWN.
I've done it a couple of times the last time was just last week. Some how the primer manages to flip over after I insert it into the little cup on the priming tool. I usually catch this before priming but didn't see it a couple of times.
No big problem, use your resizing decapping die very slowly and it will just fall right out. Whether you want to still use it or not is up to you. I always throw it away just for safety's sake. A primer is too little and inexpensive for me to take a chance on.
No big problem, use your resizing decapping die very slowly and it will just fall right out. Whether you want to still use it or not is up to you. I always throw it away just for safety's sake. A primer is too little and inexpensive for me to take a chance on.
medalguy
Member
Can't believe we have over 40 posts on how to save a three cent piece of brass!
jcwit
member
Yup, you're right. There was sarcasm dripping all over my post!
billybob44
Contributing Member
You're right medal. I save the "recycled" primers, re-seat them+mark with nail polish. My chuckle is with the second post on this thread. Seems like a lot of work to do on a primer, especially when they will push out just fine..Bill.Can't believe we have over 40 posts on how to save a three cent piece of brass!
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jcwit
member
Hope this is ment in jest! Seriously, its not a common occurrence, and even if or when it does happen everythings enclosed. A person would REALLY have to work at it to make something bad to happen.
If this was dangerous Lee would have been put out of business years ago.
snuffy
Member
It happens only with the whack-a-mole lee hand tool when using a hammer to seat a primer. The rookie tries to seat it with 2-3 strong blows with the plastic hammer, eventually BANG!
You learn after the first one to seat the primers with maybe ten soft swings of the hammer.
howlnmad
Member
I'm glad the OP solved his problem but let us see if we can get three pages on this one . If the OP was using a bench mounted press, and the primer somehow freakishly went off, where would the flash have gone? Through the shellholder and into the ram and out the spent primer discharge hole or straight through the ram. But as was mentioned earlier, the anvil needs to seat on something to make the primer strike effective.
. If the OP was using a bench mounted press, and the primer somehow freakishly went off, where would the flash have gone? Through the shellholder and into the ram and out the spent primer discharge hole or straight through the ram. But as was mentioned earlier, the anvil needs to seat on something to make the primer strike effective.RustyFN
Member
I take it you have never seen the pictures of the Dillon primer tubes sticking out of the ceiling from a detonation and then setting off what ever is in the tube.
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