Did a dumb thing, need a smart answer. Please!

[RickG]

Primers

Bought Win. WLR was given WLP.  Used 110 of them before the error was discovered and some 6 months had passed.  Primers are Mixed between 22/250 and 308 Rem rounds, filled short boxes, and have no idea which rounds have the pistol primers.  

Do I shoot them (@paper), pull them all, probably 500 rds which is the safest thing to do but how do I unprime the cases after pulling the bullet.  

Feeling real stupid

Rick

[Thomas Krupinski]

Rick,

What are you going to be shooting them in?  If the firing pin hit is not terribly strong I would probably just shoot them up.  If the strike is pretty stout I would probably just pull the bullets and reprime, charge and seat the bullets.

I use an RCBS Universal depriming die for that job rather than lower the priming rod on your sizing die.

Send me an e-mail with your phone number if you don't have one.   And don't feel bad, I will tell you about an even dumber stunt iver the phone.

[Jerry Lester]

Probably be best to pull the bullets, and start over

You can just fired the primed cases through your rifle. It takes a few minutes, and wastes your primers, but that's about the simplelest way to go about it all.

[hogship]

If there were no difference in performance of primers, then primers would be universal.

If it were me, I wouldn't gamble my firearms, or possibily my safety....I'd just chalk it up to experience, disassemble them, and start over. Once the work of doing them over is done, you'll be glad you did. My bet is you (as it would be for me) are just feeling frustrated at the thought of the work you've caused yourself....but, that will pass once the error is corrected.

If you shoot them and get away with it, you'll always be wondering if there was some unforseen damage......it just isn't worth it.

hog

[BCB]

RickG.
I have often times asked myself this question:  If I am reloading 357 Magnum rounds that are to be shot in my Marlin rifle or my Ruger handgun, which primers do I use!!!!???

I have actually used pistol primers in rifle cartridges to see if better accuracy could be achieved--especially with light loads and cast bullets.  I have never had a problem with pierced primers or such.

Guess only you can decide what to do.  Be careful and good-luck...BCB

[IntrepidWizard]

In a Bolt action I would fire them off.

[ricciardelli]

The pistol primers will be seated deeper in the primer pockets.

[Graybeard]

Pull them. Single biggest concern should be the fact pistol primers are NOT designed for rifle pressures. Sure they "might" hold. But they also MIGHT NOT. Ask yourself this. Do you really want to experience what a blown or pierced primer does?

It ain't fun. Had one pierce in an R700 once when I accidentally got some milsurp stuff mixed in. A piece of the primer got into the firing pin hole and locked it up until I figured what was going on and got it out. Worse was the piece that somehow got out and cut me right above my safety glass lens.

Sparked another off in a Browning Low Wall in .22 Hornet when I violated my cardinal rule to never ever use reloads from anyone no matter whom. Thought this one guy could really be trusted. Last time that will ever happen in this life time.

Take the time and get them out without firing.

[RickG]

I'll be off line awhile I've some bullets to pull.

Thanks Again

[ricciardelli]

You really gonna listen to Graybeard (that young whipper-snapper)!  :lol:

[TNrifleman]

Excellent decision. Chalk it up to education.

[BCB]

Hmmmm…Interesting.

This sort of leads to another question:  I wonder what primers commercial manufacturers, such as Winchester, put in there cartridges that can be fired from either a handgun (pistol) or a rifle?  There are many such cartridges that fall into this category.  And to further complicate the issue, what about T/C stuff that has interchangeable barrels?  What firing pin spring do they use since the cartridge could be handgun (pistol) or rifle—and then more complication, rimfire!

I have reloaded ammo for 35 years and I really have only had a few primers that “fall into the category” of pierced primers.  At least they were blackened around the point of impact.  These have occurred from one handgun—a Ruger Security-Six in 357 Magnum.  Don’t know why this occurs, but they have never caused a problem.  For the past dozen years at my latest residence, I have saved my spent primers and put them in quart Mason jars.  No particular reason, just eccentric maybe!  But, I have 3 completely filled and the 4th one is near being filled—you do the math on the number of rounds fired JUST during the past 12 years!

Personally, and I don’t mean this as advice, I would have fired the rounds with the “wrong” primers.  I know it is a Cardinal Sin to go against published data from handloading manual, but so be it!  I always wear glasses.  Hope you can salvage the powder, but be careful not to get any of it intermingled (another problem that could lead to pierced primers--but that's another subject!!!)…BCB

[CJ]

Should use pistol primers in pistol cartridges and rifle primers in rifle cartridges regardless of what you  shoot them in. Pressure of the round matters, not what you put it in. Thats why .454 uses rifle primers. It operates at rifle pressure. I wouldnt want to fire a 7mm mag loaded with pistol primers in an encore. I believe the height of the primers is different also.

[Graybeard]

CJ is correct. It is pressure NOT the type arm the cartridge is fired in that dictates what primer is used. And those slightly blackended primers sound more like leaks than pierced primers. When one is pierced or blown it means there is a hole in the primer proper and in worst case it can mean a significant part of that primer is blown away toward the shooter. How well the gun handles it is what determines the outcome.

In the case of the one in the R700 I mentioned I have no clue how some of it got out and hit me but the blood right above my eye sure proved to my satisfaction it did. And there was enough more of it in the primer hole in bolt to completely lock up the bolt and prevent the firing pin from falling again. Extreme yes. But this was a milsurp factory type round. Came straight from a box of them I had.

[gerry@fundy.net]

I recently discovered that I have done the same thing.  When I got home from the gun shop, I discovered that the box of large rifle primers that I had bought was short 2 packets.  When I returned to the store later, they gave me two more packets.  I didn't notice that they had given me large pistol until I was on my second pack several months later.  I know I have fired at least several dozen that worked fine.  I don't know which cartridges have the pistol primers and have no intention of unloading several hundred cases that could have pistol primers.  The group sizes were no different with the cartridges with pistol primers.

[Haywire Haywood]

and to further complicate things... brass offered by Hornady in 500S&W has Large Pistol primer pockets while Starline's offering has Large Rifle pockets.. go figure..

Ian

[Graybeard]

That same mistake was made on the early .454 brass too I believe but was soon corrected.

[RickG]

So I decide to fix the error.

I prepped new brass and primed.  Pulled the bullet, weigh the powder, fill new case, seat old bullet.  Then when only the old are left I deprime with a decapper and neck size and they are ready to go next time.

Turned out to be 210 rounds took maybe twice as long as regular reloading.
I don't use a progressive press.

Thanks for the information and the antidotes.

Rick

[Black Jaque Janaviac]

OK,  so I can understand that rifle primers are built to tolerate higher pressures, hence it would be unwise to use pistol primers in a rifle-pressure load.

However, is there a problem with using rifle primers in a pistol-pressure load?

It seems that the blue-box Winchester pistol primers are really sensitive to pressures.  It doesn't take much at all to flatten them.  Just .357 magnum loads will do it, even below maximum.  I also noticed that factory loaded American Eagle primers flatten out.

[Haywire Haywood]

yes, there is a potential danger in using rifle primers in pistol pockets.  Rifle primers, while having the same diameter, are taller than their pistol counterparts, so they don't seat level.  I've been told that there is the possibility of slam fires in autos if you use the taller primers.  Maybe someone will speak on this.

Ian