They may be squashed a little oval. I would toss them. I pulled few with an RCBS collet puller. They were about 1" out of the group at 100 yds. They had minimal damage. Measure around the beginning of the bearing surface and see how round they are.
Pulled bullets?
- Thread starter kyotekiller25
- Start date
kyotekiller25
Silver $$ Contributor
I don't know why people would use collet pullers if they just ruin your bullets...The hammer/kinetic types are way better. They don't damage them at all and I never could tell any difference in groups with them after pulling either.
I thought it was dangerous to slam a loaded round on a work bench top. A collet seemed safer. I only pulled a few bullets in my life time. No reason to save them. If you have to pull a lot of bullets you must be screwing up something loading ammo.
kyotekiller25
Silver $$ Contributor
Agreed. I haven't pulled bullets in a long time personally. The only instance I can see pulling bullets anymore is doing a ladder test to find max pressure. You may have 1 or 2 that you just don't want to shoot above that and need pulled. Other than that, I see no use or need to pull bullets.
Retired shooter
Gold $$ Contributor
I get slight rings on A tips when seating. Slight visible, can't feel anything. Shoots fine.
Heck. Tubbs sells bullets with rings.
Doubt coyotes will know the difference.
To all a good evening.
kyotekiller25
Silver $$ Contributor
I get those dumb rings on all my ELDMs also when seating Rather quite annoying, doesn't seem to effect accuracy to much if any either. But these pulled bullets are a lot worse off...
I loaded up 10 rounds to see what they'll do. Just waiting for a decent range day now.
kyotekiller25
Silver $$ Contributor
Well, I had to seat these by COAL instead of the ogive. Kinda what I was thinking since the pull marks are right where the Hornady ogive tool measures from. Dang it anyway...
I did measure the OAL length of the bullets I loaded and picked the same lengths. Ended up getting +/- .001" variance on the finished seated round. Target goal was 2.485" and was getting 2.482"-2.484"
I've been seating off the ogive the last 10 years so we'll see how these do. Don't have very high hopes to be honest. Not a fan of seating by COAL and with how tore up these bullets are, be interesting none the less.
I did measure the OAL length of the bullets I loaded and picked the same lengths. Ended up getting +/- .001" variance on the finished seated round. Target goal was 2.485" and was getting 2.482"-2.484"
I've been seating off the ogive the last 10 years so we'll see how these do. Don't have very high hopes to be honest. Not a fan of seating by COAL and with how tore up these bullets are, be interesting none the less.
In theory the kinetic hammer is perfectly safe. Pounding bullets out isn’t any worse then having your ammo bouncing around in car while driving a backroad to hunting lease.
Unfortunately, there have been reports of cartridges accidentally discharging during bullet removal. The common thread between these events has been that something struck the primer to ignite cartridge. Further investigation determined that in all of these accidental discharges the user had replaced the factory pseudo-collet type holder (3metal wedges held together with rubber o-ring) with a standard shell holder (all metal) designed for reloading press. Although convenient for quickly dropping in/out cartridges, the base of the standard shell holder extends over the base of the cartridge. If the rear cap on the kinetic hammer isn’t screwed down tight then the cartridge can shift around. The result is cartridge’s primer may end up underneath edge/point of shell holder. The result is effectively a direct strike on the primer which can cause the cartridge to “fire”.
No doubt that the factory pseudo-collet holding ring seems cheap and a little bit of hassle to use. However, it will never come in contact with the primer. So no risk of accidental discharge while removing a bullet. The Easy Solution is to use the kinetic hammer as it was designed. Or.. you can save 1/2 second loading a case by using a reloading press shell holder and assume the increased risk.
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Yup,.. THIS ^^^
I mark mine with Red, Perma Marker ink and Save them ( in Separate Box ) for, AFTER, a "Good" Barrel cleaning !
Used for, copper "Fouling", a clean Barrel or Other, NON- essential,.. "Plinking" Use, they are,.. Fine !
kyotekiller25
Silver $$ Contributor
Well here's the results...They speak for themselves. Those pulled bullets are absolute trash, and the midway blems/2nds aren't a whole lot better either, although maybe decent enough for dogs out to 5-600. Looks like I'll just stick to 1sts out of this rifle haha. The 1sts don't do to bad...The first 6 of those 10 went into the same cluster, I blame the last 4 on a warm barrel and Hornadys QC Still a .7" 10 shot group. Easy 1/2 or better for the first 5. The 3rd target is 80.5 Bergers which did .7" for 10 also.
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ELR LVR
Silver $$ Contributor
One reason I dont always like using a collet puller
Only if they were recently loaded with light neck tension do they come out unscathed
otherwise - Kinetic puller them out
They don't necessarily ruin the bullets. If they are tightened too much, then yes. Otherwise the bullets are usable.
Having spent some time with kinetic pullers, they are a last resort. Slow and sometimes messy if the powder gets away from you on emptying.
Mark W
Gold $$ Contributor
I’ve never damaged a bullet or left a mark using and RCBS collet puller. Sounds like someone doesn’t know how to use the tool properly.
searcher
Gold $$ Contributor
Yes - and no about screwing things up as a need to pull bullets. I have many times pulled bullets from older ammo I have loaded, pulled many a round out of new ammo for the brass - and pulled because I decided I wanted to work up a different load after tiring of my current load. Sometimes I'd have several hundred rounds loaded for a varmint rig and the barrel went south. But I also do make a mistake now and then. Like not learning nuances of having to allow a Charge Master to warm up before charging cases - and finding the end of the batch was 2/10th grain lighter than the start, etc. And that is all before I get into "real" boo-boos. I'm not putting you down when I say this - but I'm guessing some of us load a heck of a lot more (and possibly experiment) more than you do.
When I view those pictures of the genuinely jacked-up pulled bullets, I agree with your statement of "tossing them", unless used as a target fouler or for blowing out shoulders, etc. The problem with working up a load with them (unless one has experience with that particular non-pulled bullet in that gun), is that if it shoots like crap - do you change powders, seating depth and go through all that you would if the bullet were not known to be deformed? Just looking at them - that is not a gamble I'd bet on. Those really are bad, even for the worst of pulled bullets.
searcher
Gold $$ Contributor
I tend to agree with this, having pulled more than I care to think back on. I had never encountered a bullet becoming distorted using my RCBS collet puller. I reloaded many pulled bullets which shot very well on paper. Of those that were firmly "stuck" in the cases, very light markings on the bullets were the worst I encountered EXCEPT for some factory Winchester .375 H&H ammo I pulled that had sat around in my shop for about 20+ years. I do believe the bullets were slightly distorted after pulling even if not perfectly visible. And they would not come out with the old impact puller due to the large surface area, crimp and galvanic action. But even those .375's looked like new bullets compared to those shown in this thread.
OP, where did you purchase the pulled bullets?
kyotekiller25
Silver $$ Contributor
Bought them from a guy on Snipers hide. Bought 3 new boxes, and a box of pulled. He didn't specify they were jacked however...So it was a nice surprise when I opened them ha! I figured they'd be trash. Probably why he sold them and didn't take pictures of them. I didn't ask for pics either, so it's just as much my own fault at that point.
What I've learned from all this though is I won't be buying anything but new 1sts from here on out. No pulled, no 2nds/blems from midway. My components and time ain't worth it for sub par and dismal accuracy.
That was my immediate reaction when I saw the pic. Bubba in action whatever the cause
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