dillon 650 blowouts

[Carlos]

Ask Forum member Mike McAleer; his 650 priming system blew with Federal large pistol primers within his first 5000 rounds (650 was brand new). I saw the damage to his basement ceiling. Why would I care? Because I set up his press & taught him how to use a 650; needless to say I felt responsible; as if it were my fault. Dillon replaced priming system for free though their 1st question was: "Using Federal Primers?" Yup.

I only use Winchester or Remington (though I have some Federals tucked away somewhere).

3quartertime wrote: "I've smashed some WSP primers pretty bad on my 650 and never had a boom" Me too. Smashed the crap outta dozens of WLP WSP & WSR primers & never had one go off.

Anyone recall the Frontsight article on Primers that stated something to the effect that 3 companies use the same chemical priming compound. They are: Winchester, Remington, CCI. One company uses a DIFFERENT chemical compound (basic??): Federal. Coincidence? I dunno.

[shred]

FWIW, Dillon did not ask me what brand of primers when I called them about mine popping..

[L9X25]

I think that the main reason I have not had a primer pop is that (with the 550) I "push" the primers into the pocket and can "feel" if anything is stuck or wrong and stop before I pop anything. I have seen people "slam" the primers into place and, if everything is ok, slamming works fine. However, if anything is not lined up, you have the opportunity for a pop.

The part that I do not understand is how a 650 can set off an entire tube of primers. I do not think that a primer can get sideways in the tube and that is about the only way that I can think of a primer being detonated by the rotary feeder. Same could be said og the 550/1050. Any ideas how this happens?

Leo

[Jim Norman]

Has anyone else noticed that the Ka-Boom is always a friend or "someone I know"?

What are you suggesting Jim?

I saw the hole in his ceiling.

I am not suggesting or implying anything. It seems that quite often in life things happen to "Someone else"

I have had as I indicated 2-3 popped primers, all Federal, does that prove anything? No. I think I know why it happened in my case. Military brass, crimp still in place and I pushed too hard.

I think, and it is only a thought which may or may not die of loneliness, that if there is no poweder "dust" in the primer system and the sustem is tight it should be pretty much impossible to detonate the magazine, that is probably why Dillon puts 7 spaces between the seater and the tube.

I think that runing a little slower is probably not a bad idea. Trying set a rounds per hour record is not a real good idea. I have slowed down to about 700 or maybe fewer, My SD closed up significantly. THe number of crushed cases, torn cases, bent primers all went down.

I think that part of my speed reduction also comes from the undersize die vs the Dillon die. The mount is a bit tighter so you have to wait till the case settles a bit, basically a more deliberate movement.

Jim

[pcschwenke]

I've had the Federals also go off in my 650 on two occasions. Dillon recommends not using them in the 650 do to a much higher mechanical advantage than on the 550 or sqdl B. I have all 3 and not had a Federal go off in any other press. Scares the heck out of you!

What happens is that the flash from the seating station must ingite one of the primers in the rotory priming system, which ignites the entire tube. In both my cases, it lit off over 30 primers. Loud as hell.

I do know of a person using a Lee press with had the same thing happen. Difference is that he was picking plastic out of his neck!

Paul.

[Flexmoney]

I have had one Federal primer go off. Like Jim, it was me that pushed too hard...and the brass was wrong.

I was using once-fired S&B (must have been in 9mm). The S&B brass is tight in the primer pocket...feels like crimped (but, I don't think it really is).

I felt it going in badly...but I just pushed harder. (Bigger hammer theory). Only one primer went off..not the tube. I can only guess at how a whole tube could go off?

My single primer went off because I "skinned" it up the side as I pushed it into the primer pocket.

Duh.

That has been the only one. I have felt plenty since (just had a bunch of that damned "NT" brass), but I decided that pushing harder wasn't so smart.

- Keep you press clean.

- Keep the shell-plate loose enough that it snicks into position...and properly aligns. I fear that most people's shell-plates are tighten up as they load...and the primer push ends up doing the final bit of aligning of the shell plate.

[Gun Geek]

Flex:

I think your analysis is right on - the shell plate doesn't line up correctly - then the hammer is applied and boom.

I have found 2 reasons for this - tight primer plate and bent actuator arm thingy. Taking an idea from another part of the press, I have cut a coil off of the spring on the detent ball. This smooths things out just like it does for the shell plate. The arm gets bent if you get a primer in wrong or other gunk and pull hard on the handle. Once bent, the arm does not displace the plate far enough to have the detent work properly. You can replace the arm, but I have found that a little bending work with a vise and it is as good as new.

Also, as I said in my earlier post, it is critical to keep the primer mechanism clean, and lubed with a dry lubricant - silicone or graphite. Grease and oil attract all sorts of particles (brass, powder, tumbling media, etc) and that will bind the primer mechainism leading to the above problems.

I clean and re-lube the primer system about every 5000 rounds.

[Jim Norman]

Clean?

Lube?

Next thing you'll do is practice!

Jim

[Gun Geek]

And maybe take out the trash, too!

[OpnBlstr]

It's probably a good idea to keep the primer mag tube clean as well. I have noticed that there is a greenish film that comes out as I run a small patch through the tube when cleaning it out. I feel it may be primer compound dust but haven't tried to light the patch to find out. Maybe next time I clean up I will see if the stuff burns or not.

If there is loose priming compound covering the tube and transfer plate then a primer going off could ignite a small explosion all around the primers similar to detcord. I can't see a primer being able to set others off directly when there are several 'chambers' that would have to individually go off to transfer the flame to the primer magazine tube.

I clean my tube every few months and there is always a goo that comes out.

[.40AET]

Thanks opnblstr, I just cleaned and greased my press. Next time I will run a patch through the primer tube and give it a cleaning too.

[jcmios]

I must be very lucky, I have loaded well ove 50,000 rounds on my 550 and about 20,000 rounds on my 650 and have never had a primmer ignight. On the 550 I have mashed a lot of primmers and even had the primmer delivery bar stick and thow more primmers into the wild blue. I do like the 650 primmer setup much better, as I donot have to make sure it doed not stick. I load 223, 45acp, 40, 10mm, 357 Sig, 357 Mag, 38 spl, 44 Mag, 30-06, 30-30 and used to load 9mm but it is so cheap I just buy a case of it now.

Jim

[P-bar]

It happened to me!

I had bought a used 650 from a friend that was moving. I've been reloading for a couple of years with a Lee 1000. I was reloading 45 win mag with winchester mag primers When "BOOM" the side of my face was cut , my smoke alarm in the room was going off. I went into damage control once the smoke settled heres what happened. All the primers in the disc were exploded and about 20 primers (what was left in the tube) exploded. the primer housing tube blew off from the primer housing and found it lying on the ground. I was pretty shaken up by it. I called Dillon the next day and they sent me out the neccesary parts to get up and running again "no charge". I noticed the tube on the new one is now pinned so it doesn't take off like a rocket.

Don

[kspeer]

I had one primer exlplode while trying to prime military (crimped primer pockets) .223 and damn near had a cow, I cant imagine what that was like.

Glad you got away as well as you did.

[Greg Jones]

I just had it happen last week to me also, on a new XL650. I have loaded on a RL550 for many years and never had a primer pop. I was using Federal LP and here is what the primer check rod did to my overhead florescent light. Not a bad group, excluding the flyer at the edge!