BHogan Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 Hello, I'm brand new to reloading...I've been reading constantly for over a month, and have a Dillon 650 that's ready to go for the 9mm and 45 ACP I plan to run. I've got myself all worked up over primer safety though, and I'm particularly concerned about crimped primers and could use some expert help. I know I'm looking for that secondary circle around the primer, but I'm not sure my eyes would recognize it and some brass, like blazer and S&B seems to have a bit more space around the primer (maybe just a bigger chamfer?) that I'm not sure about. I bought 1000 Starline 45 cases, but got range brass for the 9mm and I'm kicking myself. I know WCC are supposed to be a concern so I'll start there... Are any of the cases in these two photos crimped? I'm thinking the ones with the dots maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nevadazielmeister Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 1 minute ago, BHogan said: Hello, I'm brand new to reloading...I've been reading constantly for over a month, and have a Dillon 650 that's ready to go for the 9mm and 45 ACP I plan to run. I've got myself all worked up over primer safety though, and I'm particularly concerned about crimped primers and could use some expert help. I know I'm looking for that secondary circle around the primer, but I'm not sure my eyes would recognize it and some brass, like blazer and S&B seems to have a bit more space around the primer (maybe just a bigger chamfer?) that I'm not sure about. I bought 1000 Starline 45 cases, but got range brass for the 9mm and I'm kicking myself. I know WCC are supposed to be a concern so I'll start there... Are any of the cases in these two photos crimped? I'm thinking the ones with the dots maybe? Pretty much every single one of those cases have crimped primer pockets. Enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m700 Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 Just go about business as usual. I have loaded about 100000 9&45 rounds and have never come across a pocket that i couldn't prime. rifle crimp is a different story Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BHogan Posted February 6, 2020 Author Share Posted February 6, 2020 What a pain...this one too right? I feel like the only way to bet sure as a noob is to either order new stuff, or decap and swage it all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BHogan Posted February 6, 2020 Author Share Posted February 6, 2020 6 minutes ago, m700 said: Just go about business as usual. I have loaded about 100000 9&45 rounds and have never come across a pocket that i couldn't prime. rifle crimp is a different story Read this after my last post...that's definitely reassuring, especially after I've polished all 1000 of these damn things in my fancy new Frankford rotary tumbler. I don't want to start over, lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m700 Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 As long as the press feels smooth as the primer is seating you are fine. Don't force anything. If you meet resistance just pull that case out. but you wont Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BHogan Posted February 6, 2020 Author Share Posted February 6, 2020 Thanks M700, made my day. I spent about two hours reading about primer tube explosions late last night and have myself proper worried now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bowenbuilt Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 (edited) It sort of works like this, you should not have any problem with commercial cases, the military cases with the WCC stamp pictured will most likely be crimped. Hornady, Speer, CCI, Federal, Winchester ect, ect, should not be crimped and should run fine. The crimped in primers are NOT going to run fine and will be either difficult or impossible to prime without swaging or reaming out the crimp. The primer tube explosions happen most often with Federal primers, least often with CCI primers. If you are not using Federal primers you should be OK. It happened to me once but i still prefer Federal or Winchester to most anything else so i continue to use them and try to be more cautious and always wear safety glasses when reloading. Edited February 6, 2020 by bowenbuilt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 49 minutes ago, BHogan said: Thanks M700, made my day. I spent about two hours reading about primer tube explosions late last night and have myself proper worried now Primer tube detonations are pretty rare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m700 Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 It sort of works like this, you should not have any problem with commercial cases, the military cases with the WCC stamp pictured will most likely be crimped. Hornady, Speer, CCI, Federal, Winchester ect, ect, should not be crimped and should run fine. The crimped in primers are NOT going to run fine and will be either difficult or impossible to prime without swaging or reaming out the crimp.The primer tube explosions happen most often with Federal primers, least often with CCI primers. If you are not using Federal primers you should be OK. It happened to me once but i still prefer Federal or Winchester to most anything else so i continue to use them and try to be more cautious and always wear safety glasses when reloading. I have loaded a decent amount and have never come across a case that wouldn't prime(in pistol) I may be insanely lucky but I load only range pickup. I just assumed the crimp was softer than rifle so it worked without swaging. Still my advice is try it just don't force anythingSent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haiedras Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 Most 45 isn't crimped...tight primer pockets yes with S&B headstamps. This headstamp and IMI headstamp brass are the only ones I've found a noticeable crimp ring, even with swaging I've still crushed the occasional cci primer during seating on a 1050. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave33 Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 Do yourself a favor and pitch any 9mm brass with a nato headstamp in the recycle bucket and anything marked Federal NT. Most everything else should load fine. Pay attention to your press, unusual resistance during priming (or pretty much any unusual resistance) is your press trying to tell you something. Listen to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeCee Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 Expect WMA, WCC, RA XX, FC XX, IMI XX, TZZ XX, and pretty much anything with that format to be crimped. XX represents a two year date code like 20 for 2020 or 89 for 1989. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mveto Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 2 hours ago, GrumpyOne said: Primer tube detonations are pretty rare. This, I’ve straight up flattened a few primer and never had a detonation, they’ve gone in upside down a few times as well, just don’t over force it if you feel any resistance. I do know someone who did however have a detonation, but he believes that he sheared the anvil in the primer during the indexing and when went in to seat the primer it detonated, only person that I’ve ever talked to that’s had ha detonation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 7 minutes ago, mveto said: This, I’ve straight up flattened a few primer and never had a detonation, they’ve gone in upside down a few times as well, just don’t over force it if you feel any resistance. I do know someone who did however have a detonation, but he believes that he sheared the anvil in the primer during the indexing and when went in to seat the primer it detonated, only person that I’ve ever talked to that’s had ha detonation. I have crushed them in the pocket sideways and not had them detonate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m700 Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 I had 1 detonation. It was cci in 223 on a 550. something ended up in primer cup and primer went up on a 45 degree angle and pop. It scared me but no damage done. I was moving too fast and didn't feel itSent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nhyrum Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 i dont think any of those are crimped tight enough to cause seating issues. none really look crimped to me, but could be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nhyrum Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 3 minutes ago, GrumpyOne said: I have crushed them in the pocket sideways and not had them detonate. same here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BHogan Posted February 7, 2020 Author Share Posted February 7, 2020 (edited) 27 minutes ago, DeeCee said: Expect WMA, WCC, RA XX, FC XX, IMI XX, TZZ XX, and pretty much anything with that format to be crimped. XX represents a two year date code like 20 for 2020 or 89 for 1989. Bummer, I went through and sorted the first 500, and definitely saw most, if not all, of those headstamps in there at least once. Thanks everyone for all the great input. I'm tempted to just order new brass and not deal with it, or maybe I'll give it a go nice and slow and see. One good thing, I'm 52 years old with two young kids...when I get quiet time I'm in no rush to be done with whatever I'm doing! Edited February 7, 2020 by BHogan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Abram Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 I’ve loaded literally tens of thousands of 9mm range pick up brass on a 650, and crimped pockets are just not an issue. Sometimes you might feel a little extra resistance on the prime stroke, if it’s excessive, don’t force it. Don’t over think it, it’s just not an issue. Now when you move to rifle rounds it’s a different story. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BHogan Posted February 7, 2020 Author Share Posted February 7, 2020 I'll update and let you all know how I make out, have a box from Powder Valley coming tonight, hope to get started Saturday. Thanks again for all the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
looking4reloadingdeals Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 So I just kinda skimmed this thread to be honest, but I agree with pretty much everything that I saw. Yes you can prime crimped 9mm, yes it’s a little harder and you get a little crunching noise. Because of this I separate the crimped brass and use a reamer or a swager so the reloading process goes a little smoother. I have not had any more trouble with the WCC brass than my other brass. However, since I separate it to get rid of the crimp, it does end up getting loaded separate from the rest of my brass. I did find CBC headstamp to be terrible and it all gets tossed along with anything with a “step” inside the case. If you’re worried about priming the crimped stuff you can take a larger sized drill bit and just lightly touch the pocket which should take off most of the crimp fairly easily. It’s not the most fun process, and if you have other brass coming in I would set the old stuff aside until you have some free time to process it. I usually do that sitting in front of the tv. Again, as others said, not necessary, but I hate the crunch noise so I just take care of it anyways. Good luck! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 Some reloaders get fooled by how easy supposedly crimped brass is to reload. Truth is, unless you shoot brand new WCC or whatever the crimp has most likely already been removed by the first person that reloaded it. It can lull you into thinking it’s no big deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wide45 Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 You can put a lot of force on the handle if you do it slowly. Never try to slam the primer home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BHogan Posted February 9, 2020 Author Share Posted February 9, 2020 (edited) Thanks for the additional input guys, I really do appreciate the help as I get started. Ran a few tonight as a maiden voyage, plated 124 Xtreme round nose over Vihtavuori's recommended starting load of 3n37, 5.4gn. A couple things I learned (like just how bad that ski jump really is, and why there's so many things on the market to smooth out the shell plate indexing, WTH!). A couple new questions too: 1) how much variability should I be seeing in the powder throws, is like .1 (full tenth) pretty normal? 2). Is this too much crimp? I'm trying to just take out the bell like I've read but it seems so go from bell to taper all at once. (Edited to put my decimal in the right place) Edited February 9, 2020 by BHogan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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