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Old June 7, 2014, 12:00 PM   #12
James K
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Join Date: March 17, 1999
Posts: 24,383
FWIW, maybe my comment about primers deserves a bit more explanation. Priming compound is a true high explosive. When a primer fires, high pressure from within the primer itself forces the primer metal back around the firing pin, creating the kind of crater we usually see and think of as "normal".

But if the primer doesn't fire, the firing pin produces only a small "dent", since the firing pin is stopped by the anvil before it will actually make a deep crater in the primer.

Only close examination can show if the latter type of "dent" has resulted from a light firing pin blow or from failure of the primer to fire. However, if misfires occur along with "pierced" primers (hole in primer with a small disc blown out), it is certain that the cause is light primer strikes caused by low mainspring tension or a too-light firing pin. So-called "pierced" primers are the result of the pressure inside the primer overcoming the firing pin inertia and forcing the firing pin back so primer metal is blown into the firing pin hole.

Jim
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