Primer seating method?
- Thread starter Kevin1990
- Start date
Primal Rights' primer seater tool is excellent and well built tool. I've taken a close look at it and if I were doing a high volumes of cases, like doing 400 or more in prep for a tournament, it'd be on my bench. It's not for everyone and I'm sure Greg would admit that (mainly due to price). The tool is fast and accurate for producing consistent primer seating depths, and . . . it too is very easy on the hands.
New $600 Competition Primer Seater from Primal Rights « Daily Bulletin
Seating primers is kind of a dark art. Many top shooters prefer to seat by feel using a hand tool. Others prefer bench-mounted tools that offer higher work-flow rates -- with a good bench tool you can prime more cases in a given amount of time, plus it's easier on the hands.
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No matter which device you chose, this is the only thing that matters.
DogBuster
Silver $$ Contributor
Best I have ever used.
Automatic Priming Tool | RCBS
Buy Automatic Priming Tool at RCBS, the leading producer of high-quality reloading equipment supplies for over 60 years.www.rcbs.com
What he said ^^^^^^^^^^
Best $100 tool you'll ever spend for your bench
Totally agree.
I’m currently reading the long thread on here about primer seating depth. I’m not going down that rabbit hole.
The CPS is excellent for large volume loading. Its feel is okay with the longer handle they offer. It isn't as precise as the K&M Primer Gauge or even the 21st Century Primer Seater.
However, none of these adjustable depth primer seaters do anything unless you uniform your primer pockets and then measure the cup height of all your primers.
What matters in seating primers is getting a consistent crush. The K&M Primer Gauge does that by measuring each primer pocket and each primer cup, and then has a dial indicator so you can set exactly the crush you want.
However, that is only a minuscule advantage over a very high quality handheld primer seater like the 21st Century. The 21st Century has such good feel that you can feel when the primer bottoms out. Then you squeeze a little more and you are very close to what the K&M gauge does.
Back to the CPS. If you consider the time it takes to load the primer tube and measure all the primer cup heights, I doubt you are faster than the 21st Century. So I think the best way to use the CPS is to get the long handle, set the depth setting to the max, then prime by feel as well as you can.
Realize that none of this obsessing over weighing primers and seating them to an exact crush is going to matter for most cartridges. It is worthwhile for BR (long range and short range) because in BR, .1 MOA is a big deal. However, in most other disciplines, it just won't matter.
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Florida Wally
Gold $$ Contributor
You will not be disappointed. Well made tool and a great company to deal with.
I have used K&M, RCBS, RCBS Bench, and finally CPS.
The K&M worked well and could be very consistent, but required too much hand strength.
The RCBS hand tool was just basic. Force was high too.
The RCBS bench tool had pretty good feel and leverage, but depths were all over.
The CPS is better at consistent seating, but it doesn’t seem to add accuracy. I need to test that more to really understand if it can add accuracy. It is a high quality tool with good feel.
The K&M worked well and could be very consistent, but required too much hand strength.
The RCBS hand tool was just basic. Force was high too.
The RCBS bench tool had pretty good feel and leverage, but depths were all over.
The CPS is better at consistent seating, but it doesn’t seem to add accuracy. I need to test that more to really understand if it can add accuracy. It is a high quality tool with good feel.
The only time my RCBS benchtop priming tool will spit primers is when I clamp it to my bench and the handle barely strikes the benchtop. When I position it correctly it works 100%. I shoot f class ftr HM scores with a .223 most of the time, my PRS and pdog shooting do not suffer from using it. I think there is more to gain in uniform primer pockets and a good feel from whatever priming tool you use.
6.5 forever
Silver $$ Contributor
Same here. Same old hands too
Unless the individual primer cup depths and seated primer depth is measured, there is still the variable
in the case rim dimensions, and almost all of the precision depth adjustable tools seat against this rim.
A known single lot of brass should do well, but I've measured some that were not.
For me, the RCBS bench primer works very well, and is one of the few that keeps the seating primer totally away from the primer tube. I have several of the others mentioned; the RCBS stays on the bench.
in the case rim dimensions, and almost all of the precision depth adjustable tools seat against this rim.
A known single lot of brass should do well, but I've measured some that were not.
For me, the RCBS bench primer works very well, and is one of the few that keeps the seating primer totally away from the primer tube. I have several of the others mentioned; the RCBS stays on the bench.
I use a Lee hand priming tool I bought about 1970 for $8? Never had aproblem. Good feel seating.
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