Agree with Brian. The material is the issue, not the primers. Steel cases wearing out your dies aren't really a worry as the steel used is pretty soft. Steel has 2 properties that work against it for reloading. 1, it's much more elastic than brass, meaning that under the same conditions it won't resize to the same dimensions in the same die. After being compressed there's a certain amount of springback. 2, it work hardens much more quickly than brass. This keeps it from expanding as readily in subsequent firings, meaning it may not seal the chamber as well. It also makes it much more likely to crack sooner.
Being an engineer, a certain amount of, ah, retentiveness, is an occupational hazard.
If I really wanted to reload steel I would have to do some studies. Do I need a custom dimensioned die? Do I need to anneal the case? At what time and temp? Quenched or air cooled? Before sizing? After? Both? Any other heat treat needed to maintain the case head integrity?
I have no doubt that it can be and is done. But you can't simply substitute steel for brass with no changes in your method and results.