How do I dispose of a stuck live primer?

[TGibe]

Ok. So while reloading 9mm brass I mistakenly tried to seat a small pistol primer in a .380 case. It felt like it wasn't seating on the forward push (dillon 550b) so I backed off and removed the case to see the primer "jammed" in just far enough to get stuck real good. That is when I noticed it wasn't a piece of 9mm brass...

I saw somewhere that oil will "kill" a primer, so I filled the cartridge with Break-free and have it sitting on a shelf in a baggie.

I don't want to put it in the trash if it might go off...

Any suggestions?

Thanks much,

Allen

[murkish]

Ok. So while reloading 9mm brass I mistakenly tried to seat a small pistol primer in a .380 case. It felt like it wasn't seating on the forward push (dillon 550b) so I backed off and removed the case to see the primer "jammed" in just far enough to get stuck real good. That is when I noticed it wasn't a piece of 9mm brass...

I saw somewhere that oil will "kill" a primer, so I filled the cartridge with Break-free and have it sitting on a shelf in a baggie.

I don't want to put it in the trash if it might go off...

Any suggestions?

Thanks much,

Allen

Spray it with WD-40 and then toss it.

Jack

[JThompson]

Unless it's got powder and a bullet in it I just pitch them... Even if it gets lit it's not going to hurt anything.

[Classic_jon]

Ok. So while reloading 9mm brass I mistakenly tried to seat a small pistol primer in a .380 case. It felt like it wasn't seating on the forward push (dillon 550b) so I backed off and removed the case to see the primer "jammed" in just far enough to get stuck real good. That is when I noticed it wasn't a piece of 9mm brass...

I saw somewhere that oil will "kill" a primer, so I filled the cartridge with Break-free and have it sitting on a shelf in a baggie.

I don't want to put it in the trash if it might go off...

Any suggestions?

Thanks much,

Allen

Spray it with WD-40 and then toss it.

Jack

Yep, WD-40 works

Another suggestion that I picked up from some friends that reload is this:

Keep an old powder can and use them for spent primers and other "trash" from reloading.

I take the label on the can off and label it as "trash" to prevent confusion, but I leave the Hazardous materials part of it on and then dispose of it all in the one can. No muss, no fuss, no loose primer mess in the trash can either. I picked up a cheap funnel with a large opening from the $1.00 store nearby and stick it in the mouth of the can and just pour the primer catch bin into it and close the lid afterwards. That keeps the gunk off my hands as well

[TGibe]

Thanks for all the help.

I will douse it with WD-40 and pitch it.

Cheers!

Allen

[Guy Neill]

Oil doesn't actually "kill" a primer. As the chemists explained it to me, it raises the ignition temperature. Translated, that means it takes more to set the primer off, but it is still capable of firing.

Soaking with oil will make a primer safer to handle, but still treat it with some amount of respect. Best disposal is burning, but special precautions need to be taken there as well.

Guy

[TGibe]

Oil doesn't actually "kill" a primer. As the chemists explained it to me, it raises the ignition temperature. Translated, that means it takes more to set the primer off, but it is still capable of firing.

Soaking with oil will make a primer safer to handle, but still treat it with some amount of respect. Best disposal is burning, but special precautions need to be taken there as well.

Guy

Interesting.

Oiled it. Wrapped it in duct tape. And it went away with the garbage today :-)

Thanks for the reply!

Allen

[photog]

We all have to throw away a case, primer or even a cartridge here and there. The 10 cents saved is usually not worth the time or the safety concerns when dealing with live defective ammo/cases/primers. Throw them away and keep all your fingers.

[Dodge DeBoulet]

From my first reloading attempt last week, I wound up with 8 duds. I'm quite sure the cases were properly charged with powder, and that the reason for the FTFs was a light strike . . . most likely due to either an improperly seated primer or an aggressive crimp.

So now I have 8 .40 cal S&W cartridges with "dimpled" primers, a minimum recommended charge (5gr of WST, 140gr Cast Lead conical flat point). I want to "safe" them, but I suspect the only prudent way is to use a collet-style bullet puller, and I currently own only the impact-style.

Can anyone address the danger of using the impact-style bullet puller on duds such as these? I'm not interested in reusing the components, I just want to dispose of them safely and I need to pull the bullets to deactivate the primers.

Thanks . . .

Edit: I discovered what FTF actually means, and replaced the acronym with "dud"

Edited December 22, 2009 by Dodge DeBoulet

[Boats]

Easiest way to break down cartridges if you are not going to save the bullet, is to take the die out of your press Raise the ram, grab the bullet with a pair of pliers and lower the ram with the pliers held against the top of the press. Pulls it right out. If carefull with the pliers it's possable to even save some bullets.

Boats

[Dodge DeBoulet]

Easiest way to break down cartridges if you are not going to save the bullet, is to take the die out of your press Raise the ram, grab the bullet with a pair of pliers and lower the ram with the pliers held against the top of the press. Pulls it right out. If carefull with the pliers it's possable to even save some bullets.

Boats

Turns out I can't reach the bullet with pliers due to the design of the Hornady LNL AP. So I wound up clamping the bullet end in my bench vise and twisting the case off slowly and carefully with pliers. Then I killed the primers with the striker of my S&W M&P Compact. Interestingly, they actually fired this time.

[kildar]

If you reload, duds for what ever reason comes with the territory. I use an "impact" or kinetic bullet puller on pistol bullets without any issues to disassemble duds. It of course allows me to reuse the bullets and capture the powder for reuse as well. Why waste the components when they can be easily recycled especially with component shortages these days.