Primer pocket depth

[birdiemc]

I just got the hornady primer pocket uniformer. I checked my primer pocket depth, checked my primer measurements, checked the tool, adjusted to achieve .005 below head. I checked and rechecked, cut one, checked my depth everything looked perfect, so I ran 30 cases. I just sat down to seat primers and they're seating .012 below case head. One step forward 12 steps back. Obviously I should have bought a better tool so nobody has to point that out, and now I see I should have seated a primer before running 30 cases so no need to point that out. Question is, will I have misfires with such a deep primer? Should I throw the brass in the trash or will it still work? Factory remington 700 .308 win.
Ya know, I consider myself to be a smart enough fellow, and I'm pretty mechanically inclined, but reloading has made me feel like a pretty big moron.

 

[newmexkid]

Why don't you just chamber one and fire it? It's not going to make that loud of a noise to be heard outside your room.

 

[birdiemc]

Never fired primer only...any negative effects?

 

[can1010]

pocket depth should be .1299 my Hornady uniformer is set .131

 

[ShtrRdy]

I've fired a primed case and I think it's loud. It also leaves a lot of residue in the barrel.

But you could try it due to your situation.

 

[newmexkid]

Never fired primer only...any negative effects?

Don't know of any. I've done it before several times.

 

[Alibiiv]

I just got the hornady primer pocket uniformer. I checked my primer pocket depth, checked my primer measurements, checked the tool, adjusted to achieve .005 below head. I checked and rechecked, cut one, checked my depth everything looked perfect, so I ran 30 cases. I just sat down to seat primers and they're seating .012 below case head. One step forward 12 steps back. Obviously I should have bought a better tool so nobody has to point that out, and now I see I should have seated a primer before running 30 cases so no need to point that out. Question is, will I have misfires with such a deep primer? Should I throw the brass in the trash or will it still work? Factory remington 700 .308 win.
Ya know, I consider myself to be a smart enough fellow, and I'm pretty mechanically inclined, but reloading has made me feel like a pretty big moron.

First off it looks like you are being a bit hard on yourself. I have been reloading for fifty-seven years, and.......still asking questions and getting answers because there's always something to learn. I think that you are a pretty smart guy to realize that you have a problem, or may be having a problem, and that you are reaching out searching answers. No one, and I mean NO ONE has all the answers about any one subject!!! And anyone who thinks they know everything on any given topic is a fool!! I started out with a pretty smart mentor who taught me a lot about reloading, casting bullets and accurizing my rifles to make them shoot better. He was a member of the Army pistol and rifle team during the Viet Nam era. He brought stuff to the table that I still use today; and......sometimes I am fortunate enough to have him, and still call him on occasion. I recently had a "primer" problem and couldn't for the life of me figure out what was going on. My son and I have two primary rifles that we shoot/use (Ruger 77s tang safety), however we couldn't figure out what was going on with primers, was told that the primers had hard anvils and I needed to get a different primer. While in the midst of this dilemma, I read on this forum that Ruger 77s have problems with firing pin springs. Two Blitzschnell 28# striker springs later, problem solved. Simple and I ought to have thought of it and would have, "IF" it had not happened to both rifles. Who would have thought that is was the striker springs. Both rifles were made in the same year and the firing pin springs were old. I've now replaced the striker springs in all of my Ruger 77s

I've done hundreds if not thousands of primer pockets using the Hornady tool. I removed the cutter and chucked it into the electric drill. Never a problem. I agree with "newmexkid", might want to try seating a few primers and then shooting a couple of the cases. Or.....you could have gotten a bad cutter. Did you actually measure the depth from the front of the cutter to the shoulder of the cutting tool. It ought to be easy enough to measure with a micrometer or with a dial caliper. The cutting tool unscrews easily out of the plastic handle. There are a number of extraneous variables at play here. Did you measure your brass to make sure that you don't have a bad batch of brass. When I first started using the primer uniforming cutter, I could not believe how crooked the primer pockets were drilled in the brass. I don't know what the dimension/height of the primer ought to be, however again another variable. One of the most important rules that was instilled in me when I first stated reloading, "The only consistent thing with reloading components is that there is no guarantee that everything will be consistent". You're a smart "young guy" and you will figure it out.

 

[birdiemc]

Thanks Alibiiv. Kinda decided I'm getting too paranoid here. Loading up a few right now. I have the luxury of being able to shoot on my property, so plan is to see what happens. Worst case I have to go by a puller and pull a few bullets. Let's see what happens if a sloppy factory chamber with a sloppy bolt and sloppy firing pin...

 

[newmexkid]

Just read your post again. You are stating that your seating your primers .012 below the case head?! What kind of brass are you using? I use Lapua and Alpha. There is no way I could seat a primer .012 below the case head without crushing it. My primers end up .004 below case head level. I use a K&M uniformer.

 

[ShtrRdy]

Just read your post again. You are stating that your seating your primers .012 below the case head?! What kind of brass are you using? I use Lapua and Alpha. There is no way I could seat a primer .012 below the case head without crushing it. My primers end up .004 below case head level. I use a K&M uniformer.

Maybe you should reread again. The OP bought a Hornady Primer Pocket Uniformer. He worked on 30 cases with this new tool. Then he seated primers in the 30 cases. Then he measured the seating depth and discovered they were 0.012" below the case head.

 

[newmexkid]

OK. The OP stated his seating depth was .012 below case head. I asked, ( in a round about way) if he was sure on the depth of the primer. Honest question! Then in your post you restate what he said. Don't know where you are going with this! Later, I'm off this post. Good luck to the OP.

 

[bigedp51]

The Op measured a primer and then set his uniformer cutting depth to .005 more than his primer height.

The problem is this is not the way to adjust the cutting depth of the primer pocket uniformer.

The problem is the primer anvils on a new primer are sitting high and when the primer is seated it should have a slight primer crush with the anvil putting a preload on the priming compound.

NOTE, I have a military drawing of a Lake City 7.62 case and the max distance below flush for the primer is .008. Meaning your cases with the primer .012 below flush should be thrown away.

I think its the Sierra manual that tells you the primers should be seated from being flush to .004 below flush to give you a ball park idea on seating depth.

Below the primers do vary in height and primer pockets can vary in depth. but this is where you go by feel and make sure the primer bottomed out with a preload on the anvil.

 

[birdiemc]

Biged that's what I was afraid of. When I set the cutter depth I measured spent primers and new, noted the differences, read all I could find on the forums, set my cutter depth at .131 based on what I could find as being the best recommendations, and when combined with the measurements I took seemed logical.

 

[Dosh]

Sinclair has a carbide SAAMI spec primer pocket uniformed which works quite well.