Tight Primers - need a bit of help guys...

[Ruthless4645]

Hi all,

New reloader here, just signed on. I seem to be having a bit of a problem and maybe some more experienced reloaders could help me out?

I'm trying to reload brand new, never fired Lapua brass, .308 caliber. I'm using CCI BR2 primers and an RCBS Universal hand priming tool. The problem I'm having is the primers are to hard to seat, to the point of actually flipping the empty brass out of the holder!. This happens when first starting to seat the primer (the primer never even gets started into the pocket) I have different lots of this brass and it's the same. It's like the primer pocket diameter is too small or the primer is too big. I've always heard Lapua is Premium brass so I'm not sure what's going on here.......Any help guys?

Thx Paul..

 

[savagedasher]

Paul that is how primers should seat Many of hand priming tool don't have enough leverage to seat primers correct. Larry

 

[dkhunt14]

Are you sure you are using the right shellhoder? Matt

 

[Ruthless4645]

Paul that is how primers should seat Many of hand priming tool don't have enough leverage to seat primers correct. Larry

Thanks for the quick reply Larry,

But I'm pretty sure when seating a primer with an RCBS Universal priming tool, the tool should not be flipping the empty brass out of the tool before it even starts to seat the primer (with considerable force applied). If that was the case there would be posts all over the Internet about this tools poor performance, yet I found nothing, as a matter of fact most postings I've found about it say it's a rather good priming tool.......Not sure though, new at this, but I've read an awful lot about this tool in the last few months..

Thanks for the post though.

 

[rduckwor]

Try some Remington LRP.

I had some Norma brass with tight pockets and the Remington primers were the only ones I could seat.

Good Luck,

RMD

 

[Ruthless4645]

Are you sure you are using the right shellhoder? Matt

Hey thanks for the reply Matt!

The RCBS Universal doesn't require a shell holder, it uses a pair of constantly adjusting "jaws" for lack of a description, to grip the empty brass..

 

[jimcasey01]

Are you certain that you do not have .308 Palma brass? They use a small rifle primer.

 

[savagedasher]

Paul When loading always set your primed case an a flat surface and see if the primer is even or below the surface .
It is strange you brought it up I was teaching my grand son about load Saturday. I stressed to him about using a flat surface.
My advice is to get a seating tool with a dead stop on it. But always check on a flat surface.
Larry

 

[savagedasher]

Are you certain that you do not have .308 Palma brass? They use a small rifle primer.

Jim if I read it right he can seat some . Great answer . Larry

 

[gotcha]

Ruthless, I've had VERY tight lapua primer pockets also with BR-4's Google, rifle primer dimension chart. Pick a primer with a slightly smaller diameter. In my case (pardon the pun) I went with some Fed. 205's and they slithered right in. Not only do the 205's have a smaller cup diameter, they also have a thinner softer cup. You'll find other choices that might solve your problem in the Rifle primer dimension chart also.

 

[Clint M]

I had some tight seating primers/brass that I was unable to seat using RCBS universal priming tool. I rarely use the hand primer anyway, I ended up using my Forster co-ax press, I love the priming feature on the co-ax press.

 

[johnfred1965]

+1 on the palma brass, he said the primers won't even start in the pocket. I"ve used the universal hand primer, and it holds the brass very well.

 

[spclark]

Ruthless, look at the case heads on that Lapua brass. There are two kinds made by Lapua for 308 Winchester; the one that has PALMA stamped on the heads uses small rifle primers (and can last far longer that the other 308 variety if loaded and maintained with care) not the large rifle used in their and other brands of 308WIN.

 

[Brians356]

C'mon, guys, if it was Palma and took SRPs, no way he could even get a LRP started, and it would be too obvious a mismatch.

(Edit: Ok, I hedge - he never said he succeeded in seating any primers, so ... is it possible the SRP vs LRP mismatch escapes the OP's notice? )

If you had a LRP primer pocket uniformer (e.g. Sinclair) the tool should reveal a tight pocket, as it's not designed to ream out a narrow pocket, only to plunge and uniform the pocket depth while squaring up the bottom corners.
Or, 0.2085" "Minus" pin gage.

That RCBS case gripper sounds hokey and useless.

PS

http://ballistictools.com/articles/primer-pocket-depth-and-diameter.php

" ... the loosest in-spec pocket is the same size as the smallest in-spec primer. It's for these reasons that we sometimes run into so much frustration with certain brands of brass and primers."

Another way to put it is that there is guaranteed to be an interference fit, and seating a primer must swage the primer cup's sides inward. In the worst case (max primer, min pocket) the cup resizing required can be quite significant, and seating force required high, especially if the cup material is hard.

 

[Patch700]

Are you able to insert a pocket uniforming tool into the primer pocket?

If you are then something is awry with either the primers or the tool... Im not familiar with the rcbs priming tool but if is made so that the priming anvil drops past the bottom of the hole where the primer sits then perhaps the anvil is catching on one if the sides and this is the resistance you are feeling.

I would try the same tool , same primer but with a different brand of brass and see if the problem still exists.

Do you have a means of seating primers with your press? If they are seating quite hard with a press or a good priming tool you should be able to see slight damage and cupping to the primer once seated if there is a clearance problem between pocket and primer.

 

[OldmanFCSA]

I use the RCBS Universal Primer for all Large Primered cases not primed in a Progressive press. It works very well but must be kept clean and retainer plate tight. The fingers in yours should be inspected for wear and or damage that will allow for case slippage out of grippers before seating a primer.
A primer pocket tool is highly recommended.
BUT I feel that a slight bevel on the primer pocket will help with your problem as it will permit the primer to enter straight and thus reduce any excessive priming force.

YMMV = let us know your findings.

 

[308warbird]

Did you uniform the pockets? I have had similar issues with new Lapua 308 brass. A few seconds on a pocket uniforming tool will solve it. I primed 400 tonight for Perry, all virgin brass and all uniformed, no issues.

 

[william5409]

Try some Remington LRP

 

[Ruthless4645]

First off, thanks for ALL your kind help and suggestion. Now on to a quick follow up.

After I posted my message I returned to the reloading room determined to find out what was going on, even if I had to scrap that priming tool! I disassembled the entire tool and cleaned it (even though it's brand new and never been used) then I found it!

The "Black" holder that the primer tray slips into (the one with the "L" on it, for the large primers) had a big piece of heavy black plastic flash jammed in it, you could barely see it, until you disassembled the thing..

Using a pair of long nosed medical tweezers I carefully removed it gave the tool a light lube and reassembled it......Works like a charm!

I'm not sure how it was affecting the primer seating, maybe it was getting caught between the seating stem and the primer and stopping the stem from moving any further....Dunno...But it's fixed now and works like a charm.

Thanks again everyone
Paul