Anyone ever had a primer to off when seating it

[charles p]

I was seating primers today with a hand primer and encountered some that would not seat, and could not be extracted from the tool.  I squeezed the hand primer hard enough to seat the primer but it certainly was an uncomfortable feeling.  Has anyone ever set off a primer while seating or removing it from a case?

The cases were 30-30 mixed manufacturer.  I had necked them to 7-30W.  The problem cases were Hornady.  I used a RCBS primer tool to clean up the pockets after the first tight squeeze.  The Rem and Win cases were not a problem but the Hornady pockets were so small I could hardly get the primer tool into the pockets.  There were tighter than military cases I've used.

[charles p]

I noticed my Nosler manual has data for 7-30 in its rifle and pistol pages.  When loading for a 21" TC Carbine, is it permissable to use the rifle data or should I stick to pistol data?

Powder was W748 with 120 grain Hornady bullet.

[gr8ful]

Never had one go off with a hand priming tool, but i did have one go off once while cleaning up with the shop-vac.  I have heard off primers being set off while priming on the press, but it has never happened to me.

[bulletstuffer]

I had a primer that was sitting crooked in the press.  I was picking at it with my finger to get it out of the press and it went off.   I was startled, finger stung and lesson learned   Be careful handling primers!

Bulletstuffer

[Graybeard]

Yes and no. No to centerfire primers but yes to one shotgun primer. I had some how managed to get a shot pellet in the MEC primer seater and when I seated it the primer popped. No big deal but made me jump.

As far as centerfire goes I've crushed and mangled more than my fair share using a Lee AutoPrime but never has one popped while doing it. Quite honestly I don't think it's possible to pop one while seating or decapping but that's just my opinion. It is however based on having seated well in excess of a quarter million of them, how many more I dunno.

Primers are designed to fire only when fully seated in the primer pocket and hit with a firing pin. I won't say it's impossible to make one fire otherwise except with heat but if it's possible I've not managed to do it yet.

I've seated them upside down and deprimed them without setting them off even tho the deprime punch hit just like a firing pin does on them. I've had them seat a bit sideways and just went ahead and crushed them flat to get the case out of the Lee Tool and knocked those out as well. I've deprimed hundreds of primed cases and never once had a primer explode on me.

That's just my experience and yours might be different.

[PowPow]

Having a primer go off during seating is just part of the fun with the Lee Classic Loader.
When I first started using it, it was probably 1 in 20 that went off, sometimes 5 in a row.
Now its probably 1 in 500.

[res45]

My experience pretty much follows Graybeard been there and done that.  The only exception is the ten years I loads 12 ga. on a MEC Sizemaster I never had one of those go off either.  I've used everyone's primer.

[rdmallory]

I have loaded many thousand with a RBC hand primer and only had one go off priming a .223. I was not pushing it hard and it went bang, hurt like heck because my finger over the hole when it went off. Never did find the round after it went off. I was priming over a 5 gal bucket and when it went off I dropped it into the bucket with the other 1,999 rounds I had just primed. Posted it on another board at the time and I was told it could not of been a static charge that set it off. But I have smashed plenty sideways, backwards, and through a crimp and never had one go off. So I keep my finger off the shell opening, wear safety glasses and keep the kids away and keep priming. I still prime off the press.

Doug

[Land_Owner]

I used to load 45LC and 30-30 rounds with a Lee Loader.  If you have done that, one round at a time, without a press, you know what I mean.  To seat a primer with a Lee Loader, you literally "hammer" the case down onto the primer.  You insert a steel rod into the case and hammer the case down onto the primer that is positioned in a special case holder. 

How strongly you "hammer" the case is quite important.  Too hard and the primer can and will go off.  The first time one does it scares you.  Doesn't hurt.  Just gets your attention RIGHT NOW.  Brings your mind back from wandering and focuses it on the task at hand.

Never, have I had an RCBS hand feed Posi-primer set off a primer.  Never have I had the RCBS Rock Chucker with Piggyback II progressive reloader attachment set off a primer.

[charles p]

Thanks guys.  I've "mis-loaded" a few myself with a Pacific press and primer tube, which is one reason I like the little Lee hand primer tool that you grip and squeeze to seat a primer.  I like to feel the primer seating, which tells me if there is a problem.  Also I see every primer before it goes into the case.

Good to know those buggers will not take your finger off or disfigure your hand.  They aren't exactly blasting caps, except inside my mind.  Maybe its good to think of them that way, just to be more safe.

[woodchukhntr]

I had one go off many years ago.  It went in hard and I applied more pressure.  Apparently too much pressure!  I didn't think that they would go off just from pressure, but I thought wrong!  I was not over the case, so I didn't get hurt, but the bang was pretty impressive!

[thirdbase]

I'm just a small time handloader with not near the experience most of you have.  One time I was using a Lee Auto Prime and did not notice a upside down primer and I primed the case.  It did not go off but it sure scared me when I realized I was not paying good enough attention to my reloading.  I thought surely a backwards primer would go off.

[S.B.]

Because of their soft cups, Federals are notorious for this and yes have had some go off while seating them in primer pockets over the years.
Steve

[SteveHawaii]

The very first primer I set went off.  I was using the Lee Classic Loader and was hammering it into the case.  I was being extremely cautious because it was the first time I had ever done it, so I was hammering it a bit, inspecting, and then hammering again.  I guess I must have cocked it a bit when I replaced the partially inserted primer back into the holder and them hammered again.  It just sort of sparked.  No bang.  Scared the daylights out of me though.  Went to the internet and watched a YouTube clip on using the Lee Classic Loader.  Didn't have a problem thereafter.  No more priming however using the Loader.  I immediately got a hand primer.  I've pressed them in backwards and sideways with that thing and none have gone off.

[S.B.]

The very first primer I set went off.  I was using the Lee Classic Loader.

Strange, my first experience was with a Lee Auto Prime and near 100 LR Federal primers went off after a double stacking of primers, in my face. I layed on an emergencey table for close to two hours while they picked plastic and aluminum out of my eyes.
Steve

[no guns here]

Nope but when I was about 16 I was loading some shotgun shells and then decided I wanted to see what would happen if I hit a primer with a hammer.  You know what?  Them primers is LOUD in a closed garage!


NGH

[gypsyman]

I primed 10,000's of thousands on a Rock Chucker press, and many more than that on an RCBS and now a Hornady hand press. Never had one go off. Like gr8ful, I did have one go off with a vacum sweeper.
I have a small remnant of carpet in front of my bench. Decided on day, to vacum it. Bought my old Hoover sweeper down stairs, and proceded to sweep. When that baby went off, not sure who moved quicker, me, or my dog. Scared the crap out of me, and I don't think the dog touched the strairs on the way up. She was looking down at me from the top of the stairs, with that, what in the hell did you just do look. I was laughing as I removed the bag from the vacum, as I was afraid the primer might start the dog hair on fire in the bag, which it didn't. Now I take the carpet outside and shake it. gypsyman

[huntducks]

I have primed thousands and thousands of cases and hulls have never had one go off in 54 years (dam i'm getting old) I have stuck primers in at all angles and directions.

I was at a fellow reloaders house several years back and we discussed primers going off he has been loading longer then I and has never had one go off he did show me something about primers he took one and put it in the jaws of a vice and squashed it did not go off then he hit the vice with a hammer bang.

There damn hard to set off so I wonder what happened that some of you did to set one off.

[SHOOTALL]

Yep sure did with a Lee kit . The kit that comes in a box like a die set. You use a wooden mallot to seat primers . I'm certian I did something to make it happen