Anyone had a primer tube detonation?

[paul788]

Has anyone ever had a primer detonate, and did it set off the others if your press has a magazine?

I started out with a Rockchucker in '76 and a Lee Loadall in '77. Moved thru a Mec 600, a Lee Turret press, a Lyman turret press, and now use a Hornady LnL-AP with casefeeder. Never had a primer go "BOOM" while loading.

What's your experience?

Not looking for "BLANK is a piece of crap" stories.

Thanks

Paul

[Mattog22]

I had my primer slide get stuck trying to feed a primer from the tube. I wiggled it to try to free it and the primer finally unbound itself but when it did it allowed the primer slide to come back too far (because I was still pulling trying to free it) and another primer dropped in front of the slide so when the slide slipped from my fingers it slid back into position and smashed the primer in front of the slide. This happened out under the shell plate so it just scared me and made my ears ring and a little black on my fingers. No primer tube detonation.

Edited March 21, 2011 by Mattog22

[BallisticianX]

I have had a primer tube detonation. I had a jammed up primer in my LnL's slider. It jammed up the slider in it's rearward position, directly underneath the tube. I had it happen before because the primer's would roll in the slide as it drops from the tube because the primer system would not hold adjustment. So when some wiggling failed I had no choice but to remove the primer feed housing to clear the jam. I was removing the bolt and holding the primer slide back with my other hand to prevent it from slamming forward when the housing was loosened. As the bolt broke loose the housing moved a little and pow.......about 75 small pistol primers all went. It blew half of the primer slide out the back of the press (cutting my hand open and slamming into my beam scale, ruining it) and the other half blew out the front wedging itself under the shellplate ruining it. The primer level rod shot straight up into the drywall of my ceiling. I was stunned by the blast, covered in black soot, and was just in a state of disbelief. I am aware of the power of the little but mighty primer. But it is incomprehensible until you have this happen. I will say that Hornady's blast tube that the primer tube sits in did it's job and did not rupture. If it had it would have sent shrapnel everywhere, including into my chest. When I called Hornady, they replaced my press, supplied a new scale, and were very gracious about taking care of me. The replacement press holds all adjustments and it works flawlessly when compared to the blown up unit. I had called them previously about the priming adjustment issue and had just replaced the cam rod they had sent me. It was running good and then started acting up. The problem I suspect was the milled slot that the cam rod mounts to on the type of the frame was incorrect. Well anyway it was an experience, but some stitches, a new press, and some time and it's just another "lucky" chapter in life. I commend Hornady for how they treated me and handled the whole thing. I still don't recommend experiencing it yourself, lol.

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[paul788]

Wow. Just Wow.

Glad you were not injured any worse.

I'll have more respect for the priming system.

Paul

[Kyle O]

Yes, 650 with small pistol primers last week went off.

No damage to me at all (was wearing hearing protection too, by chance), new stuff from Dillon to replace blown stuff, 2 DAYS LATER!

[BallisticianX]

thank you paul788, I'm glad I was not hurt worse either. I'm only 30 years old but I have been reloading regularly for 20 years. In that time I've never had a primer detonate ever at all. Yeah 20 years, my Dad started me reloading when I was about 10(under his supervision of course). By the time I was 12 I was loading without any tutelage,and without any supervision by 15. My Dad drilled into me to be safe, and I have been for 2 decades! That's why this experience injured my pride worse than than it injured me, and I'm very thankful that it didn't. Reloading is a process that demands respect in every way. Paying attention, removing all distractions(no TV or radio etc.), and being overly precise. There should be no compromise in anything you do at the reloading bench. In my case it was an equipment malfunction that was to blame but it is an impending situation for those who neglect paying attention and taking precautions when reloading. Though, as I said, it was not my neglect that caused it but this incident really bothered me because it ruined my safety record aside from equipment.

[Warhammer4k]

Late last year, I had a Federal #155 (Large Pistol Magnum) primer explode while seating on my Hornady LNL AP press. Here's a thread I posted about it on another forum: Tale of unwanted excitement in reloading

Capsule summary: The press design worked. Because the primer that went off was nowhere near the primer tube, and thanks to the sturdy primer tube shield, there was no way for it to set the others off.

[Chris Keen]

Have not ever had one go boom, loading on a Dillon 650.

[RH45]

I had a Lee, Loadmaster and lit off a full tray of primers. Luckily, I'm right handed, and the primer tray is on the right side. Otherwise, it could have been bad! I called Lee the next day, and they told me they were aware of the problem, and said I could BUYa blast shield.

I sold the Lee, and bought a Dillon 550. It's one of the best moves I've ever made!

[Warhammer4k]

I had a Lee, Loadmaster and lit off a full tray of primers. Luckily, I'm right handed, and the primer tray is on the right side. Otherwise, it could have been bad! I called Lee the next day, and they told me they were aware of the problem, and said I could BUYa blast shield.

I sold the Lee, and bought a Dillon 550. It's one of the best moves I've ever made!

Coincidentally, earlier today I re-read the rant against tube-type primer feeders in the Lee reloading manual.

I'm not convinced that either tube or tray design is inherently any safer. The warning comes off as a rather transparent hard-sell on Lee products. With the tube design, at least as executed on the Hornady Lock-n-Load AP, it's pretty much impossible to have a mass detonation. The one time I had an on-press detonation, it was the primer being pushed into a case, so it was well away (by design) and could not possibly have set off the tube full of primers (and indeed did not). I can't see any way that the primer at the bottom of the feed tube could be set off, either by accident or by design.

I've accidentally spilled an entire tube's worth of primers before, most often while temporarily removing the primer feed assembly to change cartridges (e.g. .45 ACP to 10mm Auto, both use a Large Pistol primer). All I got was a bunch of primers all over my floor, not a mass detonation. I have neither the evil concrete floor, nor the penchant for walking across the room with the primer tube in its housing, that would be required for Lee's nightmare scenario to occur.

On balance, I'd rather have a mass primer detonation contained, and directed vertically, by a tube. It might punch a hole in my roof, but that's better than a horizontal fan unpredictable, roughly hemispherical pattern of shrapnel from a tray of primers.

It's a little unsettling that a metal "blast shield" is an optional extra for the Lee primer feeder. A sturdy metal tube is integral to the primer storage/feed system on both Hornady Lock-n-Load AP and Dillon presses.

Edited April 9, 2011 by Warhammer4k

[3gunfun]

Glad your OK BallisticianX. Those pictures say it all. Respect that primer system. WOW

[drysideshooter]

That is a gnarly looking accident, so glad that you weren't more seriously injured.

With my LNL I've found that it helps a lot to remove the primer slide and clean and lube things on a pretty regular basis.

After reading this, I think the next time I have some sort of a jam before I fiddle with it I will remove the spring from the primer slide so that it can't spring back with any force and possibly set something off.