How do you determine Berdan primer size?

[texassako]

I found 5 boxes of Hornady Vintage Match 7.62x54r steel cased berdan primed once fired at the range that look to be really nice cases for steel. I came up with nothing on whether these use the Berdan primers available. Anybody know how determine which size they use?

[I'll Make Mine]

Given there are several sizes of "large" Berdan primers, the only reliable method is to get a primer out (hydraulic or a hand-operated punch with offset pin to go through one of the flash holes) and measure it with a micrometer or dial/digital caliper. Even Soviet Bloc surplus has at least two, possibly three sizes, depending where/when it was made.

Steel cases are also more prone to splitting from work hardening, and harder to effectively anneal; there's probably a good reason someone shot five boxes and left the empties behind. I've been working on converting surplus 7.62x54R steel/Berdan cases to use shotgun primers for low pressure loads ("cat sneeze" or "mouse fart" loads), for which I expect good case life (they won't even require resizing after the first time), but I wouldn't expect enough case life with full power loads in steel to be worth doing anything on them beyond resizing and repriming (if you can even get primers the correct size).

[NuJudge]

All the Russian 7.62 x 54 R I have encountered has .254" Berdan primers. Only early Bulgarian and all Albanian have .217" Berdan pockets.

I used to reload Russian and Chinese 7.62 x 54R in the early 1980's so I would have non corrosive ammo to put through my Tokarev. I used RWS .254" primers.

RWS and Murom (the people making TulAmmo's Berdan primers) still make .254" Berdans, reportedly. It would be useful if people would nag at TulAmmo to slip a few cases of these in with the two types of .217" primers they bring in now.