Depriming live primers

[Buck-N-Rut]

This may be a dumb question. However, can I deprime some cases that have live primers in them? Without them going off that is?

[leadhead]

I've done hundreds of them. Just be very gentle when you push them out.
They can be reused without problems.
Denny

[762 shooter]

May I ask why? I have loaded pulled primed military brass with excellent results.

762

[scattershot]

Like.leadhead said,just be gentle.with them and wearsafety glasses.

[Buck-N-Rut]

May I ask why? I have loaded pulled primed military brass with excellent results.

762
I want to full length size some brass that I only neck sized. But I have already primed them.

[Buck-N-Rut]

I guess I could take the pin out huh?

[dsbock]

I want to full length size some brass that I only neck sized. But I have already primed them.

You can also remove the depriming pin from your resizing die and run the cases through that way.

David

[Char-Gar]

I guess I could take the pin out huh?

Sounds like a winning idea to me!

[John Allen]

I use a rcbs universal decapper in one of there handheld presses for this.

[Baron von Trollwhack]

Here is why.

When you are reloading 556 and find primer insertion to be a bit loose, you want the primers OUT, so that you can either swage the pockets for case reuse later, or junk the brass less primers. In a semi auto, a LOOSE primer will JAM the action very easily if it gets trapped in the action.

BvT

[Shiloh]

It has never been an issue. Go gentle and slow. Safety glasses sounds like a good idea if you don't already wear glasses.


Shiloh

[leadman]

I have done probably a thousand or more as people know I reload and cast and I always end up with old ammo of unknown source. I just size as normal or use the Lee deprime kits for this. I really like the newer Lee Turret press as it catches the primers in a plastic tube.

[AmmunitionU]

Buck-N-rut,
In Your Specific Case, If you need to Full length Size after neck sizing, Simply Change the Depth of Deprime Pin on the Full Length Die so it doesn't knock the primer out. I keep the Pin in to adjust the neck back to the correct size on the Back stroke. This will enable you to continue without having to deprime, and reprime your brass.
When you have to Deprime Live primers, I agree with everyone here, Do it CAREFULLY and as last option


AmmunitionU

[Buck-N-Rut]

Thanks everyone.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I'd like to inject my .02 here.

If you are going to deprime live primers be real careful!

A slow smooth motion will do the trick.

You should be real careful to not go spastic on them. They actually will go off.

Randy

[CastingFool]

You can also remove the depriming pin from your resizing die and run the cases through that way.

David

that's what I did to fix some loaded ammo that wouldn't chamber in a buddy's rifle. Apparently, the guy that reloaded them, got a bit overzealous with the crimp and bulged the shoulder. I took one apart, ran it through my full length die (without the depriming pin), dumped the powder back in, reseated the bullet, and tested it in my rifle. Chambered just fine, no issues, so I proceeded to fix the remaining 199 rds.

[bruce381]

my 2 cents for the savings of 2 cents each i throw them away. i want my reloads 110% reliable lets say you smash the primer pellet and load it then thats the one shot that will NOT fire say thats the big buck you miss or the bad guy beating wife up. Just saying any dought at all and I save any suspect and all setup laods in a marked box for end of range day shooting, where I know I can have a dud or hange fire etc and I'm ready for it.

[bruce381]

oh yeah forgot you can knock the anvil loose and may even loose it then dud, not worth the agravtion for me.

[snuffy]

my 2 cents for the savings of 2 cents each i throw them away. i want my reloads 110% reliable lets say you smash the primer pellet and load it then that's the one shot that will NOT fire say that's the big buck you miss or the bad guy beating wife up. Just saying any doubt at all and I save any suspect and all setup loads in a marked box for end of range day shooting, where I know I can have a dud or hang fire etc and I'm ready for it.


oh yeah forgot you can knock the anvil loose and may even loose it then dud, not worth the aggravation for me.

Yeah IF you slam the DE-priming pin into the primer with a lot of force, creating a domed primer cup where there was a flat cup! Same for the remote possibility of said primer firing.


scattershot


Like.leadhead said,just be gentle.with them and wear safety glasses.

You mean you don't ALWAYS wear safety glasses when loading??¿¿!

[shuckinthecorn]

With the Redding type S full length sizer die, you can remove the decapping assembly and neck bushing, and resize loaded rounds if you want.

[lightman]

Another guy here that has done several. Just be slow and smooth. Safety glasses are a good idea. If I'm depriming crimped military primers, I'll add gloves to the list of PPE. I've reused some of these without any problem, but I probably would not use them in my hunting or match ammo. The Lee Universal Depriming Die is a great tool, and is on sale at Midway pretty often for $9.99. Lightman

[Walter Laich]

I've done it for years but YMMV

like the others said: smooth is the way to go

[Thin Man]

Years before dedicated depriming dies were available I used the Lee dowel and base kit, plus whatever hammer was handy. It didn't take a lot of force to remove primers but eventually one went off with a mighty roar. Guess who was the closest person to that racket when it went off! That was lesson #1, followed a few years later by a repeat performance, lesson #2. Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me. From those experiences I learned to wear both safety glasses AND hearing protection when deprining cases. Then depriming dies came available. I agree with the above comments on a steady, slow, smooth push on the press handle. I haven't had a live primer go off with the die and press method, yet. All the same I still wear both eye and ear protection when depriming cases - just in case.

Thin Man

[MrWolf]

I don't deprime on my Dillon, I use a handheld Harvey Deprimer for everything. I have deprimed with no issues and have found it is a lot easier to judge pressure when doing it by hand. Like the others have said, just go slow with steady pressure. If in doubt, wear safety gear or just dispose of properly.

[claxton]

I've deprimed live ones before accidentally but prefer just to chamber the cartridge and blow them to reuse the brass.

[Frank46]

I bought a couple thousand 30-06 cases from somewhere and spent the next two days gently decapping them with an old rcbs '06 die I keep around for that purpose. I had just gotten the lee classic cast press and stuck the drop tube into a jug full of water. All went well and to my suprise the drop tube worked like a charm. There are universal depriming dies out there and I have two, but murphy's law prevailed and wasn't able to find either one of them. Frank

[Mod42]

You can deprime live primers, but as others have said, slow and easy. Another thing to remember is to keep your hands away from the press while pushing the primer out, I can show you scares to illustrate this point!