Successful very first run.

veggiengo · April 1, 2010, 11:27 PM

I loaded my first load of 45acp today (first ever load!) and after a boat load of mistakes, mishaps and just plain clumpsy, I had a couple of boxes of ammo. I only had time to test out half of the round. They all shot fine but since I used a low charge, I could tell the difference between them and some off the shelf ammo I have. But I was very happy with my (clumpsy) first effort.

Now before I continue, what do I do with the cases that I made my mistakes with? How can I get the live primers out of some damaged cases and reuse them? What happen if I shoot one of the rounds and it has no powder? Thank you if you can help me with those questions.

Sevens · April 1, 2010, 11:57 PM

If you have a primer in a brass case that you want out, you have some options.

First is to chamber that piece and point the handgun in a safe direction and discharge the primer. Do NOT have a bullet loaded in the brass case with no powder and be sure you have no obstructions in your bore.

It will "pop" and maybe send a flame out of the barrel.

The other option is to carefully and slowly run the piece of brass through your sizing die and decap it just as if it were already fired. YES, you can do this slowly, carefully and safely with a live primer. Wear safety glasses and go slowly.

If you have some poorly loaded rounds that need to be broken down then you'll need to buy a kinetic (hammer type) inertia bullet puller.

Jim243 · April 2, 2010, 02:52 AM

I am not sure by what you mean by "mistake"? I would not run a mangled case back through my dies to get the primer out, I would just toss them out. For the $0.03 that you might save you take the chance of maring up the inside of the die. Dies cost more than primers and you are not going to use that case again so into the garbage it goes.

Jim

mongoose33 · April 2, 2010, 09:23 AM

If you shoot a round that has no powder, you'll produce a "squib" which likely will produce just enough power from the primer alone to lodge the bullet in the barrel.

Squibs are a bit scary because if you quickly fire another round, the obstructed barrel (with the bullet of the squib) will quite likely result in a bulged barrel or worse, a blown-up gun.

If you're loading with a single-stage press, you should load all your cases and place them in a loading block. Before seating a bullet, inspect--look inside--each case to ensure they have the same amount of powder.

What I did was to intentionally create a couple of squibs (primer, no powder, bullet seated and crimped as normal). I then shot them through my pistol--loading only one squib at a time so I had no chance of a followup shot--so I could get a feel for what a squib load sounded and acted like. Then I drove the bullet out of the barrel with a brass rod.

If you're loading on a progressive, get a powder checker for one of the stations. I use the RCBS Lockout Die in my Hornady LnL progressive; it stops the complete cycle of the press if a case has a squib load (no powder) or a double-charge. In fact, it'll even catch partial load problems.

veggiengo · April 2, 2010, 10:11 PM

Thank you for your replies. I will discharge the primers and save the cases.

veggiengo · April 2, 2010, 10:14 PM

Also another question. Why would the bullet be lodged in the barrel and not fly a few feet out of the gun in a squib? Isn't the bullet smaller in diameter than the barrel?

jknight8907 · April 2, 2010, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Also another question. Why would the bullet be lodged in the barrel and not fly a few feet out of the gun in a squib? Isn't the bullet smaller in diameter than the barrel?

No..... If the bullet were smaller than the barrel, it wouldn't ever touch the rifling. Try it, take a bullet and try to drop it in the barrel of your pistol. It's a tight fit.

April 1, 2010, 11:27 PM	#1
veggiengo Member Join Date: February 17, 2009 Posts: 16	Successful very first run. I loaded my first load of 45acp today (first ever load!) and after a boat load of mistakes, mishaps and just plain clumpsy, I had a couple of boxes of ammo. I only had time to test out half of the round. They all shot fine but since I used a low charge, I could tell the difference between them and some off the shelf ammo I have. But I was very happy with my (clumpsy) first effort. Now before I continue, what do I do with the cases that I made my mistakes with? How can I get the live primers out of some damaged cases and reuse them? What happen if I shoot one of the rounds and it has no powder? Thank you if you can help me with those questions.

April 1, 2010, 11:57 PM	#2
Sevens Senior Member Join Date: July 28, 2007 Location: Ohio Posts: 11,775	If you have a primer in a brass case that you want out, you have some options. First is to chamber that piece and point the handgun in a safe direction and discharge the primer. Do NOT have a bullet loaded in the brass case with no powder and be sure you have no obstructions in your bore. It will "pop" and maybe send a flame out of the barrel. The other option is to carefully and slowly run the piece of brass through your sizing die and decap it just as if it were already fired. YES, you can do this slowly, carefully and safely with a live primer. Wear safety glasses and go slowly. If you have some poorly loaded rounds that need to be broken down then you'll need to buy a kinetic (hammer type) inertia bullet puller. __________________ *Attention Brass rats and other reloaders:* I really need .327 Federal Magnum brass, no lot size too small. Tell me what caliber you need and I'll see what I have to swap. PM me and we'll discuss.

April 2, 2010, 02:52 AM	#3
Jim243 Senior Member Join Date: January 6, 2009 Location: Just off Route 66 Posts: 5,067	I am not sure by what you mean by "mistake"? I would not run a mangled case back through my dies to get the primer out, I would just toss them out. For the $0.03 that you might save you take the chance of maring up the inside of the die. Dies cost more than primers and you are not going to use that case again so into the garbage it goes. Jim

April 2, 2010, 09:23 AM	#4
mongoose33 Senior Member Join Date: June 23, 2009 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 228	If you shoot a round that has no powder, you'll produce a "squib" which likely will produce just enough power from the primer alone to lodge the bullet in the barrel. Squibs are a bit scary because if you quickly fire another round, the obstructed barrel (with the bullet of the squib) will quite likely result in a bulged barrel or worse, a blown-up gun. If you're loading with a single-stage press, you should load all your cases and place them in a loading block. Before seating a bullet, inspect--look inside--each case to ensure they have the same amount of powder. What I did was to intentionally create a couple of squibs (primer, no powder, bullet seated and crimped as normal). I then shot them through my pistol--loading only one squib at a time so I had no chance of a followup shot--so I could get a feel for what a squib load sounded and acted like. Then I drove the bullet out of the barrel with a brass rod. If you're loading on a progressive, get a powder checker for one of the stations. I use the RCBS Lockout Die in my Hornady LnL progressive; it stops the complete cycle of the press if a case has a squib load (no powder) or a double-charge. In fact, it'll even catch partial load problems.

April 2, 2010, 10:11 PM	#5
veggiengo Member Join Date: February 17, 2009 Posts: 16	Thank you for your replies. I will discharge the primers and save the cases.

April 2, 2010, 10:14 PM	#6
veggiengo Member Join Date: February 17, 2009 Posts: 16	Also another question. Why would the bullet be lodged in the barrel and not fly a few feet out of the gun in a squib? Isn't the bullet smaller in diameter than the barrel?