Small pistol primers for 223

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Not a good idea IMO, SR primers are designed to handle higher pressure.
Also the pistol primers have thinner cups and would be more prone to slam fires in rifles with floating firing pins. (AR15)

If you have SPs see if you can find someone who has SRs to trade with.
 
Dudedog said:
Not a good idea IMO, SR primers are designed to handle higher pressure.
Also the pistol primers have thinner cups and would be more prone to slam fires in rifles with floating firing pins. (AR15)

If you have SPs see if you can find someone who has SRs to trade with.
Click to expand...

I concur.

Hopefully finding a trade is easy -- small pistol primers, at least in my opinion, are far more scarce and thus a hotter commodity.
 
nickn10 said:
Due to scarcity of small rifle primers can small pistol be used to reload the .223?
Click to expand...

Supposedly, CCI 400s and 550s are the same primer. I wouldn't run them interchangeably, but many have.

In today's environment, you should have no trouble trading those SPP for SRP. If you were close to me, I'd make that trade.
 
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Supposedly, CCI 400s and 550s are the same primer
Click to expand...

This has been rumored but CCI has said no they are not.
If I remember correctly somewhere here in the Reloading forum someone posted CCIs reply to the question of are the the same.
When I have time I will try to search it out and link it. (if any one else wants to I would appreciate it)
 
OP, I forget the number of posts required to use buy sell trade here since I have more than enough, but it you can post there
you might want to put the trade request here
upload_2021-5-22_13-17-46.png
Note: there is no way for non hazmat shipper to ship primers legally, short of putting the primers in cases.
So a trade would need to be face to face, so someone near you.
You might check and see if any ranges near you might let you but up a sign offering the trade.
 
Dudedog said:
This has been rumored but CCI has said no they are not.
Click to expand...

I've heard the exact opposite response from CCI.

Here is one of the many examples of people who have posted their conversations with CCI:

According to Speer/CCI Technical Services - "Both the CCI 550 Small Pistol Magnum and CCI 400 Small Rifle primers are identical in size. Both primers use the same cup metal and share the same cup thickness. Both primers use the same primer compound formula and same amount of primer compound. They can be used interchangeably."

I wouldn't do it, but many take this as an opportunity to swap them. I sure hope they're working up their loads properly if they do.
 
Walkalong said:
Absolutely not, period, can be dangerous. Be patient until you can find some SR primers. If you were close I would help you out before I let you use SP primers in .223.

Oh, and you should be qualified to use the B,S,T area.
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Yeah, I know a lot of people have been using CCI 400s for their pistol loads. No way I'd do it, and sure as heck wouldn't try it the other way.
 
I have loaded and fired thousands of CCI 550's through mulitple AR15 rifles and not once had a single issue. I'm not saying you should do it. That's just my experience with them.

I load my 5.56 blasting ammo right on the verge of recommended max loads with BL-C2. I've always found much better accuracy toward the top end with this powder.
 
nickn10 said:
Due to scarcity of small rifle primers can small pistol be used to reload the .223?
Click to expand...
Walkalong said:
Absolutely not, period, can be dangerous. Be patient until you can find some SR primers. If you were close I would help you out before I let you use SP primers in .223.

Oh, and you should be qualified to use the B,S,T area.
Click to expand...

^^^ What he said. SRP's have a thicker cup also, there is a possibility that you could slam fire a SPP in an AR (I assume that's your platform).
 
Does someone have something from CCI saying 400s and 550s aren't the same primer? The only information I can find is that they are the same.
 
They could be used, would be a bad idea but a reason to not buy or shoot others reloads. One couldn’t tell by looking that the round in question was potentially dangerous due to the use of incorrect components.

That said, I have used small rifle primers in pistols before, just not the other way around.
 
I have not had any direct contact with CCI regarding whether 400's and 550's are identical, but my experience tells me the primer cup thickness is thicker in the 400's compared to the 550's. My Colt will consistently set off 550's all day long, but will fail to set off 400's about 1 in 20 (IIRC). My other pistols will set off the 400's, but the Colt will not. That tells me they are NOT the same primer. They may have the same amount of compound, but the primer thickness appears to be thinner on the 550's. YMMV.
 
SRP are thicker and designed to handle more pressure. As long as the firing pin spring is strong enough, you can use SRP in pistols, but not the other way around.

I watched a video on YouTube where a guy was testing SPP in a .223, and they ruptured with anything over a VERY mild load.

SRP in a pistol... Okay
SPP in a rifle caliber... NOT okay
 
I am very likely to try them in 300 BO subsonic ammo, IF I run out of SRP before I can find more. I am not sure I would do it with full pressure 223 or 300 BO. My biggest fear in 300 BO subsonic was not pressure but was slam firing so I primed a few 300 BO cases with Winchester and Federal (the softest by most estimates) small pistol primers and put them in my 300 BO and dropped the bolt on them, repeatedly. I could not get them to fire in this test.

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/small-pistol-primers-in-300-blackout-subsonic.883132/

This thread is of tangential relevance.
 
mcb said:
I am very likely to try them in 300 BO subsonic ammo, IF I run out of SRP before I can find more. I am not sure I would do it with full pressure 223 or 300 BO. My biggest fear in 300 BO subsonic was not pressure but was slam firing so I primed a few 300 BO cases with Winchester and Federal (the softest by most estimates) small pistol primers and put them in my 300 BO and dropped the bolt on them, repeatedly. I could not get them to fire in this test.

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/small-pistol-primers-in-300-blackout-subsonic.883132/

This thread is of tangential relevance.
Click to expand...
I havent checked the pressure charts but in subs in a 300 I would immagine they are running in magnum pistol territory. Testing is normally the bottom line in this sport/hobby and if all you load and shoot is subs I would try magnum pistol. I shoot cci so being the hardest brand it narrows the gap a bit.
 
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