removing live primers...

[vladtepes 1,060]

OK so in the process of reloading I messed up several rounds while learning.. I purchased an impact bullet puller.. which to be honest was kind of a terrifying experience at first... anyway so now I have disassembled the rounds and want to salvage the brass.. but there are live primers.. how to remove these?

 

thanks.. 

[dman2112 6]

I've decamped live primers. No bang

[dman2112 6]

Or fire them and decap

[dman2112 6]

The anvil seems to work only one way

[T Bill 649]

Or fire them and decap

best way to do it!

[DL75 0]

I heard soaking them in WD40 then pressing it out..... I never tried.  I just toss them.

[njJoniGuy 2,131]

Use a Lee Universal Decapping die.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/136543/lee-universal-depriming-and-decapping-die

Works great.

Go slow and wear safety glasses.

If you're really wimpy, put a towel over the entire press while you gently deprime the brass.

Live primers fall into the spent primer cup (on my Rockchucker).

[GRIZ 3,369]

I heard soaking them in WD40 then pressing it out..... I never tried.  I just toss them.

I've done this with no problems. Do wear safety glasses or better yet a face shield.

[Recon Racoon 49]

You can soak them in water for a day or two, or some other non reactive solvent. Or decap like others have said. 

[vladtepes 1,060]

I just thought that if I deprimed them on the press I risk detonating them?

isnt it the same as the hammer striking the primer just in reverse?

[njJoniGuy 2,131]

I just thought that if I deprimed them on the press I risk detonating them?

isnt it the same as the hammer striking the primer just in reverse?

That's why you use the decapping die (which does nothing but push the primer out) and you GO SLOW.

Done it dozens of times (nobody's perfect) and have not detonated a single one

[SmartAss 11]

As long as there is nothing flammable (powder, etc...) nearby, always wear eyepro and do it gently.

 

This may sound crazy - but you may want to get accustomed to seeing a primer go off in open air just so you know what you're working with. I often take primers that got mashed while trying to seat them and dispose of them by detonating them by squeezing them in a pair of wire nippers - using common sense off course - protect yourself with eyepro and a towel or tarp. They're about as loud as smacking a hammer on a 2X4.

[tony357 386]

I have removed them before but firing them off is a great idea, i have never removed one that was in ok,

 

A few that were sideways..

 

If you are trying to save the brass just leave it primed..

[alec.mc 180]

You can likely press them out with zero issue, go slow if your nervous. It actually takes a decent smack to set primers off.

 

The other question is, why are you removing the primers to begin with ? why not just pull the bullet, add powder, and reseat a bullet. 

[BullzeyeNJ 104]

I just use a Lee depriming die and pop them out. Never an issue. I had to remove a few hundred live primers that got moistened by cat pee last year.   They would give me erratic detonation at the range so I have to deconstruct all those rounds and start over with fresh primers.

[djg0770 481]

You can likely press them out with zero issue, go slow if your nervous. It actually takes a decent smack to set primers off.

 

The other question is, why are you removing the primers to begin with ? why not just pull the bullet, add powder, and reseat a bullet. 

 

My question as well.

[A-Tech 8]

I just use a Lee depriming die and pop them out. Never an issue. I had to remove a few hundred live primers that got moistened by cat pee last year. They would give me erratic detonation at the range so I have to deconstruct all those rounds and start over with fresh primers.

That's a lot of cat piss man

[carl_g 568]

I recently had this happen where one case neck had split and I caught it late and also one case just would not pass the plunk test.. I pulled the bullet and tried to resize again but no change..I just tossed both of them.

[warden469 2]

I have a similar problem.

 

When I started reloading I buckled a few .357 rounds when seating the bullet. I have since removed the bullet and powder and set the case to the side. I can not fire the primer off because the bullets wont go in the cylinder due to the bulges and I didn't want to just throw them away with live primers in them.

 

I guess I will try the de-priming die and go slow.

 

Thanks vlad for asking the question, and thanks to all that answered.

[Rob0115 1,105]

I've used both the resizing die and the universal decapping die for live primers and I've never had an issue.  I've done it because of bad brass where the primer is pressed in properly or when I've not reamed enough crimp and it gets side ways / distorted.  

[Mr.Stu 1,922]

Oil is a great primer killer. I put a tiny squirt of WD-40 in the case and let it stand for a day out more before tossing the case.

 

Sent from my SCH-I800 using Tapatalk 2

 

 

[bhunted 887]

Real simple..... Boil them then just press out. I use to sell bullet jewelry and if you wanted a primer, one was pressed in then boiled. Powder comes right out and brass gets a car wash...

 

 

Sent from John's iPad 2 via Tapatalk HD

Typos courtesy Apple...

[njJoniGuy 2,131]

Oil is a great primer killer. I put a tiny squirt of WD-40 in the case and let it stand for a day out more before tossing the case.

But only 'till the WD-40 'goes away' then the primer is active again.

The only way to PERMANENTLY kill modern priming compound is to detonate it.

[Greydaddy 2]

That's a lot of cat piss man

+1 -- shoot the cat!

[kman 56]

If it is just a primed case take it to the range and chamber it and fire. I had to do that for 200 cases once. If you don't want the case anymore wrap it in paper towel and put it in a ziploc bag and put water in the bag and put it in with your kitchen garbage. Done.

 

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

 

[Buns of Guns 7]

That's why you use the decapping die (which does nothing but push the primer out) and you GO SLOW.

Done it dozens of times (nobody's perfect) and have not detonated a single one

 

I use a lee auto-prime and occasionally put the primers in backwards.  Would I still be good to use your method of removal with the decapping die? Up to this point, I've just tossed the cases.  But I want to avoid waste, keeping safety in mind.

[raz-0 1,259]

Uhh. It's like $0.03 per primer.

 

I posit that 1) any negative outcome is not worth $0.03. And 2) if it requires any adjustment of the press, $0.03 is probably not worth the time.

 

Every time I pull the handle on my press, I save between $0.16 and about $1.50. I'm not sweating a few primers or heads for the occasional whoopsie of a flipped primer, missing primer, or split case neck.

 

Not that I never did it when new, but my perspective on it has changed.

 

Don't want to get injured, don't want to deal with the wife's reaction to something going boom, don't want to break gear that may be in short supply by unnecessarily abusing it.