Can you remove live (unfired) primers with a resizing die? I have some live primers (of the wrong type) in some brass I want to use. Guess the other option would be to “fire” them in the rifle.
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Removing Primers
- Thread starter Woolsocks
- Start date
Can and Should mean different things? 
I’ve removed more than one live primer from brass without incident. I used a “universal” depriming die for the job.
I’ve removed more than one live primer from brass without incident. I used a “universal” depriming die for the job.
If you don't have very many primed cases and you haven't charged/seated any bullets, just chamber them in your rifle and pop them off into a rag/towel one at a time.
I know, primers are (hideously) expensive. But, it beats having one go off in your die. Conversely, the others are correct. You can unseat them, but just go real slow.
I know, primers are (hideously) expensive. But, it beats having one go off in your die. Conversely, the others are correct. You can unseat them, but just go real slow.
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A universal decapping die has a large inside diameter so at least it won't have a good seal if the primer does go off.
I've decapped hundreds of live primers. Re-used most of them later in practice ammo. Never had a single one detonate during decapping. I HAVE however had a couple detonate when using a hand primer seating tool.
Primers don’t go off unless they receive a sharp blow. Go ahead and deprime them.
I've also deprimed hundreds of primes cases with no problem.
Now, there was this one time I dropped a loaded round and it hit square on the case head. As I rolled my chair back to try to catch it on the way down I rolled over a loose primer laying in the concrete floor. It went off the same time that loaded round hit the floor and I thought all was lost for that instant!
Now, there was this one time I dropped a loaded round and it hit square on the case head. As I rolled my chair back to try to catch it on the way down I rolled over a loose primer laying in the concrete floor. It went off the same time that loaded round hit the floor and I thought all was lost for that instant!
I’m in the camp of just go for it, but don’t go crazy on it. I’ve deprimed many a case without incident and also reused them without issue.
Still not a bad idea to wear safety glasses while doing so.
Still not a bad idea to wear safety glasses while doing so.
I reload shotshell also and run a Spolar for that with hydraulics.
I have had a primer pop out of the primer cup and get caught by the press as it comes down and go off. No damage to me or the press, but my underwear needed some washing! haha
As said, just wear safety glasses and go slow. You'll be fine, I believe
I have had a primer pop out of the primer cup and get caught by the press as it comes down and go off. No damage to me or the press, but my underwear needed some washing! haha
As said, just wear safety glasses and go slow. You'll be fine, I believe
At one time or another I believe every reloader has de-capped live primers and as others have said steady downward stroke and all is well .
IF You're concerned take a towel and drape it around the press while doing so or at least in position between You and primer . Always wear safety glasses or prescription glasses . Eye's are Never optional .
You nor anyone else has old mercuric primers and shouldn't have any potassium perchlorate, most likely lead styphnate referring to 1954 and newer primers .
I de-capped a number of old rounds which were Mercury fulminate primed ( I DON'T recommend that ) as I did have a few go BOOM . Seems they were sensitive either direction . So in the end I just shot the remaining rounds ,immediately neutralized mercury contaminated brass . Mercuric fulminated salts will em-brittle brass . Those primers are real sensitive and dangerous ,as they were coated with amal acetate and later used an aqueous solution . Nobody was reloading military WWl brass ,so Gov. didn't see a problem . Those fulminate of mercury primers have about Dbl the juice of today's primers .
IF You're concerned take a towel and drape it around the press while doing so or at least in position between You and primer . Always wear safety glasses or prescription glasses . Eye's are Never optional .
You nor anyone else has old mercuric primers and shouldn't have any potassium perchlorate, most likely lead styphnate referring to 1954 and newer primers .
I de-capped a number of old rounds which were Mercury fulminate primed ( I DON'T recommend that ) as I did have a few go BOOM . Seems they were sensitive either direction . So in the end I just shot the remaining rounds ,immediately neutralized mercury contaminated brass . Mercuric fulminated salts will em-brittle brass . Those primers are real sensitive and dangerous ,as they were coated with amal acetate and later used an aqueous solution . Nobody was reloading military WWl brass ,so Gov. didn't see a problem . Those fulminate of mercury primers have about Dbl the juice of today's primers .
I've had to remove primers that I seated but should not have a few times over the 50 years I've been reloading. I've never had one fire.
When I was about 14, I had a shotshell loader set up in my bedroom closet. I had a stack of several primers in a feed tube. I went to seat a primer and it fired and sent the rest of the feed tube up into the sloped ceiling of the closet and a small fire that I frantically smothered with a jacket. It freaked me out tremendously. My mom heard the pop and came to check on me. (My dad was KIA Vietnam, so I was experimenting on my own and what I could read and what I could learn from some men at church and the guy that owned a sporting goods shop that had befriended me...she was very tolerant and is still very pro-gun). She banned reloading. I was devastated. The neighbor man found out from his wife and told mom that it had to have been a rare instance or something i had done wrong because it had never happened to him nor had he ever heard about it. He came to check out my shit. He was a damned good guy and told my mom that I was doing nothing wrong. I was still a little freaked out after that though for quite a while. To this day, I have no idea why that primer fired.
The one thing I learned was to ALWAYS wear safety glasses when reloading and keep an extinguisher nearby.
When I was about 14, I had a shotshell loader set up in my bedroom closet. I had a stack of several primers in a feed tube. I went to seat a primer and it fired and sent the rest of the feed tube up into the sloped ceiling of the closet and a small fire that I frantically smothered with a jacket. It freaked me out tremendously. My mom heard the pop and came to check on me. (My dad was KIA Vietnam, so I was experimenting on my own and what I could read and what I could learn from some men at church and the guy that owned a sporting goods shop that had befriended me...she was very tolerant and is still very pro-gun). She banned reloading. I was devastated. The neighbor man found out from his wife and told mom that it had to have been a rare instance or something i had done wrong because it had never happened to him nor had he ever heard about it. He came to check out my shit. He was a damned good guy and told my mom that I was doing nothing wrong. I was still a little freaked out after that though for quite a while. To this day, I have no idea why that primer fired.
The one thing I learned was to ALWAYS wear safety glasses when reloading and keep an extinguisher nearby.
Don't know if any of you would care to comment, but when reusing unseated primers it seem that they were a bit loose in the pockets?
Hence why I said I re-use them (mostly) in practice ammo.
I keep the primers I've de-capped in well-labeled pill bottles on a seperate shelf from my "new" primers.
Probably 85% of my reloading is for AR's and pistols-meaning no long range precision ammo. The vast majority of my cases are military that the crimp has been reamed out of. Some of those cases still have very tight primer pockets which will cause the primers to be under-sized. Should I have to decap those primers, and I have recently decapped several hundred of them, many will be measurably smaller in diameter. So when I re-use them later I have to pay close attention to the amount of effort it takes to prime the cases. No effort=too small for that case. I simply push the primer out BY HAND with a Lee military decapper. I then later try the same primer in other cases until I find one that's tight. Some are just too small for anything and they go in the trash, but they're few and far between. If I've ever had a recycled primer fail I can't remember it. Prices nowdays bring back the old saying-"Po' folks got po' ways"
Most all the primers I've had to decap have been either #41 or #34 military primers from AR ammo.
Side story: Recently discovered a potentially bad batch of LC 762 brass that I had loaded a few years ago. I pulled over 500 FMJ bullets and decapped the cases to sell for scrap. Reclaimed the powder and bullets and loaded them in non-LC brass. I got rid of every LC 762 case I had and now refuse to buy any more due to about a 10% failure rate in that batch.
Decapper & Base 30 Caliber
Lee Easily removes crimped in primers from military cases
I've never noticed that issue and probably why I don't have issues is . I only chamfer crimped pockets on ( 5.56X45 7.62X51 and 7.62X63 ) and more than likely those calibers were what I'd have de-capped . As a general rule I only load a few boxes of magnum Rifle loads at a setting and I double check cases before priming with Mag primers . I Don't bother using Mil spec primers any longer on any of My bolt or Gas guns ,including M1 & 14's ,I've never had an issue with slam fires . IF I'm not mistaken I believe those Unis-Genex primers are Mil Spec ,as someone at PPU told Me that .
However I'm Not certain of it as I've yet to use them .
I do it, sometimes accidently since the place I buy my brass from catches primed brass, but with a FW Arms die and go slow.
Still, wear glasses and some ear protection and make sure your shell plate isn't full of powder in case.
I've crushed a primer or 2 on a 1050 and it scares the shit out of me all the time
Still, wear glasses and some ear protection and make sure your shell plate isn't full of powder in case.
I've crushed a primer or 2 on a 1050 and it scares the shit out of me all the time
