Is it really necessary to clean the primer pocket everytime?

[poline]

Is it really necessary to clean the primer pocket everytime? What are the consequences of not cleaning the pocket pocket everytime?
Does tumbleing, after the primer is remove, clean the primer pocket?
Can an unclean primer pocket cause a revolver to hang up?
This is in reference to hand gun ammo.

[Sevens]

I quit cleaning primer pockets like 8 or 10 years ago, something like that. Makes no difference that I can possibly tell. Maybe a bench-rest shooter that measures groups in fractions of an inch could say differently.

Tumbling after removing primer will not clean the primer pocket if you are tumbling with the classic vibratory & corn/walnut media. If you are using a liquid sonic cleaner or an actual rolling tumbler with stainless steel pins for your "media" then they will get cleaned.

Note if you do decide you want to tumble with primers removed: if using standard corn/walnut media, not only will you not get clean primer pockets, you may very well get corn/walnut media STUCK in the flash hole and this can/will cause you trouble elsewhere in the loading or shooting stages. Also, unless you are using some kind of a universal de-cap die, then it would seem that you are re-sizing your brass while it's dirty, before tumbling, which not only does no favors to your sizing die, adding dirt and filth to it, but it makes the dirty cases abnormally dirty & awful looking as the carbide sizing ring squashes the dirt to an ultra-fine stain layer. They end up looking like hell.

In summary, I believe it's a horrible idea to decap before tumbling for so many reasons.

Clean primer pockets look really spiffy-- if there is even one other benefit, I haven't found it.

[nate45]

I've got that little primer pocket cleaning tool, does that count?

Mine looks like brand new still.

+1000 on tumbling media getting stuck in the flash hole. I tried that once twenty + years ago.

[Shootest]

I only clean the pocket about every fourth time, I have never had a revolver hang up. The primer must be seated to the bottom of the pocket or you will get misfires, when the first firing pin strike only pushes the primer to its fully seated position. The primer will not go off reliably if the anvil is not supported from the bottom of the pocket.

[mrawesome22]

It is not necessary to take a shower everyday but I do it.

[FrankenMauser]

Is it really necessary to clean the primer pocket everytime?
What are the consequences of not cleaning the pocket pocket everytime?
Does tumbleing, after the primer is remove, clean the primer pocket?
Can an unclean primer pocket cause a revolver to hang up?
This is in reference to hand gun ammo.

In order:
No. It isn't necessary.
The consequences are trivial (even for rifle ammo).
No. It just gets crap stuck in the flash hole.
Hang up? As in the cylinder dragging? Or as in a hang-fire / squib?

Don't bother cleaning primer pockets on handgun ammunition, unless you have 10+ reloads on the cases. At that point, it can be beneficial to clean the primer pockets, to regain about 0.005" (or more) of primer seating depth.

[jr05]

Currently I only load handgun ammunition, but I never clean the primer pockets.

If I was loading for precision rifle, I may clean them just to take out a variable and keep the ammo consistent. I would use a simple primer pocket cleaning tool.

[lockinload]

I clean all of my primer pockets for my 308 hunting rounds, not so much for everything else.

[larzb93]

i clean my primer pockets every time. help the primer seat all the way where it should be and it makes the priming process easier. also i measure my grouping in fractions of an inch so i like to be very precise with my rifle. as far as pistols go... i cant really see it being a very big deal. i dont clean my 9mm primer pockets and my Glock cycles them just fine..... the again it is a Glock . Good luck and happy shooting!

[Bowdog]

In the last two years I have reloaded 4000 rounds or more of .45 Colt never have cleaned the pockets. Never had a problem.

[oldmanFCSA]

I used to tumble everything in crusked walnut shell, pistol, revolver, rifle, didn't make any difference. Tumbled without removing old primer. Tumbled for days, weeks sometimes, wore out tumblers, wore out two cement mixers.
I used corncob media for final polish of cases. Then I processed my brass, resizing and reloading. Pistol brass and revolver brass, the only problem was breaking pimer ejecting pins occasionally, and getting primers to seat to a consistent depth every time due to crud at base of primer pocket.
Rifle brass was always getting more and more crud buildup on insides of bottle-necked cases, which bothered me, as I load every rifle round for precision, because I didn't want a junk round to ruin a rifle hunt or a target shoot opportunity. When I got started in 50BMG Target shooting at 1000 yards or 1 mile, I found I needed consistency in every round, and knew I had done everything possible to make my ammo precise, with the only unconrolled variable being the Nut Behind the gun.
I saw an advertisement for stainless steel pin process just after my cement mixer broke again, so decided to give it a try. Bought Thumlers Tumbler Model B and ten pounds of media (I have two extra barrels because of previous tumblers that were wore out). I deprimed a batch of 40S&W cases (3000), and tumbled for 12 hours because that was just how it worked out over night.
I found I used too much LemiShine additive as my brass came out looking coppery colored, BUT VERY CLEAN EVERYWHERE. I literally could not believe how clean the casses were, inside, outside, and primer pockets. I had to try bottle-necked rifle cases so loaded a batch of 40 50BMG cases that I had deprimer with hammer and punch. Again tumbled 12 hours overnight. Results very clean rifle cases, unbelieveably CLEAN everywhere. I used that batch of cases to shoot a 5-shot group under 5 inches center-to-center at 1000 yards in FCSA competition. I am now processing all my brass this way, and my MATCH brass gets two tumblings before final loading. (I know this sounds like a testimonial, but I have not listed the company on purpose.) I am now buying 20 pounds of media and a larger tumbler to proces 1000 pcs bof 223 brass at one time, or a larger lot of 50BMG brass at one time. I now tumble brass for other reloaders in the area that have seen but still can't believe the results.
The wet proces can be a little messy, but the results out-weigh the hassle.

[rclark]

I quit cleaning primer pockets like 8 or 10 years ago, something like that. Makes no difference that I can possibly tell

+1. But I do clean them after shooting BP. Don't tumble every time either as revolver shoots dull vs bright cases just as well.

[hounddawg]

it if makes you feel good do it, it's kinda like shiny cases once it's in the chamber it does not matter. Consistent powder charges, COL, and neck tensions are what affects trajectory.

[oldmanFCSA]

"it if makes you feel good do it, it's kinda like shiny cases once it's in the chamber it does not matter. Consistent powder charges, COL, and neck tensions are what affects trajectory. "

It does make me feel good - knowing I'm not scratching my $300 die set, not introducing dirty cases into my $4000 rifle.

Clean cases in the chamber DOES matter - knowing each case will respond the same and I'm not introducing more dirt to chamber walls each firing.

Consistent powder charges - I weigh each charge to +/- 0.1 grains, each doubled checked on another scale. If case volume is affected by crud buildup inside cases, it will affect the perssure generated by the powder charge.

COL - all casses trimmed identical, all bullets weighed and seated identical.

and neck tensions - I anneal case necks every firing, all cases are neck turned to same wall thickness, and necks are lubed with dry graphite just prior to seating bullet.

are what affects trajectory - much, much more involved, but too much to type here, as I only type with one finger, and its getting tired.

[hounddawg]

"it if makes you feel good do it, it's kinda like shiny cases once it's in the chamber it does not matter. Consistent powder charges, COL, and neck tensions are what affects trajectory. "

It does make me feel good - knowing I'm not scratching my $300 die set, not introducing dirty cases into my $4000 rifle.

Clean cases in the chamber DOES matter - knowing each case will respond the same and I'm not introducing more dirt to chamber walls each firing.

Consistent powder charges - I weigh each charge to +/- 0.1 grains, each doubled checked on another scale. If case volume is affected by crud buildup inside cases, it will affect the perssure generated by the powder charge.

COL - all casses trimmed identical, all bullets weighed and seated identical.

and neck tensions - I anneal case necks every firing, all cases are neck turned to same wall thickness, and necks are lubed with dry graphite just prior to seating bullet.

are what affects trajectory - much, much more involved, but too much to type here, as I only type with one finger, and its getting tired.

Not sure how you interpret "not shiny" as dirty but whatever. I bet my cases which are cleaned by boiling in soapy water for ten minutes would not scratch your 300 dollar dies anymore than ones that ran in a tumbler of crushed walnut for 6 hours. Maybe less since I don't have to clean the polishing media off them or out of them. I anneal every third firing and use good old talc (body powder) as a neck lube and manage to get velocities plus or minus 10 FPS with my non shiny cases that have never had a primer pocket cleaned.

[Sevens]

oldmanFCSA, I don't take issue with anything you've written. All seems completely reasonable to me and it sure sounds like it works for you.

The only part I might question is your results after one match were quite good, but there's no real evidence that your tumbling and primer pockets were the deciding factor. Could have been that you wore matched pajamas the night before or you were simply shooting in a great "zone" and had favorable conditions for the match.

I'm certainly not saying that you shouldn't do it your way-- confidence is everything and when your process breeds confidence, your shooting is likely to improve.

There is just ONE little thing, however...

The OP said:

This is in reference to hand gun ammo.

So I'm not sure how relevant all of this is.

Not a snippet of anything you've detailed in your posts could possibly convince me to start cleaning primer pockets on handgun ammo. I've got some .38 and .45 brass that I've loaded 20 times and have never cleaned a pocket on them. Won't be starting now.

Your posts are interesting and enjoyable to read, however!

[Bigdog57]

I do not shoot competitively, and don't generally load high quantities at one sitting. I DO clean the pockets each time, after having tumbled AFTER removing the old primers. I generally these days decap with the Lee Universal Decapper , not on the press.
Just my personal preference.
It takes longer, and it's more steps getting the reloads done. But I feel better about my loads. I ALWAYS check the pockets after decapping and tumbling - rarely do I get media stuck in it - it's quick and easy to remove.

Every handloader has his own methodology. Use what works for YOU.

[oldmanFCSA]

You are correct, Sir !!! I got this topic - OFF TOPIC - Sorry !!!

To get back on topic, I have found that pistol or revolver brass that was loaded with a FAST burning powder leaves very little residue in the primer pocket, thus making primer pocket cleaning a possibly unnecessary task.
However, if when re-priming the cases, you notice primer depth seems or measures inconsistently, cleaning of primer pockets is recommended.

If a slow for caliber burning powder was used, more residue will be found in bottom of primer pocket.

Just my observations.

[oldmanFCSA]

Not sure how you interpret "not shiny" as dirty but whatever. I bet my cases which are cleaned by boiling in soapy water for ten minutes would not scratch your 300 dollar dies anymore than ones that ran in a tumbler of crushed walnut for 6 hours.

Try adding Lemon Juice to your cleaning process - I've heard it really helps the cleaning process such as yours. How do you dry your brass? I use hair dryer, but am working on a better process for larger amounts of cases.

I don't use crushed walnut anymore. When I did, I wiped each and every case with a soft bath towel, which Wifey hated.

[oldmanFCSA]

I see with 15 posts, I am now a "Member", not a "Junior Member".
How many does it take to become a "Senior Member"?
I've got the OLD as in OldmanFCSA, how does that relate to "Senior"?

[Sevens]

Quality, old timer, not quantity.

If you want quantity, there is Glocktalk and ARFcom!

[oldmanFCSA]

Today, 11:52 AM #21
Sevens
Senior Member


Join Date: July 28, 2007
Location: Central Ohio
Posts: 5,867

Quality, old timer, not quantity.

If you want quantity, there is Glocktalk and ARFcom!
__________________

Thank you - I was hoping that was the case.

[MR-7-45]

Do I clean primer pockets each time, NO
Do I inspect them every time, YES!
When in doubt, clean it.

I don't know what you mean by "hang up".

[m&p45acp10+1]

First time FL sized rifle brass get the promer pockets cleaned due to the fact that I use a sonic cleaner. After that I do not mess with it again I neck size with a Lee Collet Die.

Pistol brass I have never cleaned a primer pocket on a pistol round.

[Hal]

I used to punch out the primers then toss the brass into the Dillon vibrator w/some corn cob media for a few hours.
I spent way too much time digging bits of corn cob out of the flash hole so I quit doing it.