High Primers on Square Deal B

[JeffWard]

Anyone have this issue? I've loaded 10,000+ 9mm on my Square Deal B. I switched (necessity) to Wolf Small Pistol Magnum primers a while back, but loaded 700+ without issues. The last 200-300 have had 5-7 high primers per 100 loaded, and the rest are barely flush, not seated below the level of the head stamp.

The shell plate is tight, and I can't see any damage to the handle/arm.

Jeff

[-JQ-]

I had this problem once. Don't be offended when I ask...have you double checked your packaging to verify they are "for certain" they are the right primers.

When this happened to me (high primers) I had bought sleeves of 100 that were rubber banded together - the top couple were fine then out of the blue... high primers. Sure enough - in the same font - just different words...the store had them mixed up...

Just my little tale...good luck!

Never mind...mine was a 45 set up...guess I can't read "9mm" so good.

Good luck!

Edited December 8, 2009 by hk_mtbr

[adweisbe]

How far does the primer punch protrude above the bottom of the shell plate?

[Nik Habicht]

I vaguely remember some primer adjustment on the SDB --- though it may have had to do with primer slide travel.....

[jmorris]

The primer punch on an SD comes up through the shell plate around .075” so it’s not the machine that is causing high primers. When I load on an SD I wrap my index finger around the primer tube when seating for a little extra squeeze.

[want2race]

I use the square ram portion as a guide as to how far the primer is seated. The square ram will just about be level with the teflon ram guides (at the corners). Do you have another primer slide? It's possible that the telfon 'guide' on the primer slide is worn. If you have a large primer conversion, try swapping the teflon (white) guide from one to the other.

Have any crimped brass made into your brass mix?

[Jack T]

That seems to be a problem with the Square Deals, I have/had six of them over the years since Dillon first came out with them. I never really tried to figure it out, just went to hand priming the brass and eliminated that step.

I actually started to get a little bit of tendonitits in my left elbow from holding the back of the frame to help add more pressure when I would seat the primers. So hand priming is a benefit.

Wild ass guess; fatigue/stetch throughout the machine that causes the problem from excessive pressure seating primers.

Just bought another one for doing GAP .45 brass. I use the SDBs for traveling. Mount them to a piece of plywood/starboard and then I can clamp it to a motel desk and be able to reload if necessary.

Edited December 8, 2009 by Jack T

[want2race]

One friend, who has a 650, came over one day and asked where the rest of the press was.

I take my SDB traveling too. Works great.

[azeric]

I've had high primer issues with some 9mm brass. There seems to be a big difference in primer pocket size. To remedy the problem I make sure that I give the seating stroke a good hard push on every load. That solved most of my SDB high primer issues. I still get one once in a while and I'm sure I just didn't push hard enough on that round. I've had this issue with WSP, Rem SP, CCI SP

give it a try and see if pushing hard every time you seat a primer makes a difference. Good Luck

[dillon]

High primers on the Square Deal can have a few possible causes;first, check for hairline cracks in the base of the handle between where the link arms attach. Next, remove the shellplate bolt and look for a separation directly above the threads. If your bench top is plywood, it is possible the top is flexing enough to prevent full primer seating. Is it one specific headstamp where you see high primers?

[Jim Watson]

I never had any 9mm high primer trouble on a SDB, but the .45 drove me nuts. It took a tough nutcracker grip on handle and frame to seat LP primers. All Dillons except the 1050 seat the primer at the top of the upstroke where the leverage is low. The 550 is better than the SDB but still takes a heavy hand on the handle. It is a design characteristic that I see no way around.

So I bought a S1050 instead of a new gun one year. Primers seat to a positive stop on the downstroke and I just grin every time a round falls in the basket. It does all my .45s and I load the smallbores on a 550. Even .44-40 primers seat easier than .45 ACP. My SDBs went to 9mm shooters.

[Jack T]

High primers on the Square Deal can have a few possible causes;first, check for hairline cracks in the base of the handle between where the link arms attach. Next, remove the shellplate bolt and look for a separation directly above the threads. If your bench top is plywood, it is possible the top is flexing enough to prevent full primer seating. Is it one specific headstamp where you see high primers?

I have a SDB I gave to a girlfriend, when I still liked her, built a really solid bench, bolted to the floor/wall and welded construction. It started having this problem.

I will go take it apart when I head back to Florida next week and see whats wrong with it and get back to you.

It's a fantastic machine, and for the cost I never really woried about it, just bought another one!

One thing I discovered with the Dillons, if there is a problem, it is generally an oversight on my part.

Jack

[goneracin]

i had some when i first started. I assumed it was opperator error. I started doing a "double tap" on the seating stage. I push the handle forward, let it come to neutral, then push it forward again, both times firmly. Since ive started doing this, Ive had no issues in at least 10k rounds.

[ormondopen]

I have the same problem, mine seems to be mostly with winchester SP but I do get them with all headstamps and primer brands, I would say 5-10% typically. I have broken 2 link arms applying pressure for primer seating. I now do a double pump during primer seating which helped. I still get them just not as much.

[want2race]

One thing I was having a problem with was primer ram alignment. After everything I did, it was adding a chamfer to the bottom side of the shell plate that resolved it. My .40 plate must have been older because when I added a .45 conversion I noticed the underside of the .45 was already chamfered.

[atbat82]

I had the same issue last night with 3-4 out of the 50 I loaded. This was my first time loading and it turns out I didn't have a sturdy enough table (the whole table was moving). I'll brace the table (or find a new one before I try it again).

One question: I have a kinetic bullet puller (the hammer type) that says not to use for rounds with high primers. How else do I pull these or should I just toss them and chalk it up to a learning experience?

[Alvarez Kelly]

I had the same issue last night with 3-4 out of the 50 I loaded. This was my first time loading and it turns out I didn't have a sturdy enough table (the whole table was moving). I'll brace the table (or find a new one before I try it again).

One question: I have a kinetic bullet puller (the hammer type) that says not to use for rounds with high primers. How else do I pull these or should I just toss them and chalk it up to a learning experience?

If you have a hand primer, like a Lee or RCBS, I would point the round in a SAFE direction, and gently seat the primer. I have done it many times.

I've also used the inertia bullet puller. Just use an abundance of caution.

[kevin c]

I'd think, however unlikely it might be, that taking precautions against a detonation is well worth while. The shrapnel from the burst case can go everywhere, like a grenade, so even if the bullet end is pointing away from you, you can still get seriously hurt. I would advise against trying to reseat the primer using a hand tool, unless you are going to put a shrapnel proof shield between you and the round, and even then your hand and arm are at risk.