Tight primer pockets on new Starline .41 Mag brass?

[trooperdan]

I just finished priming 100 new Starline .41 mags. I had over 25 that were VERY difficult to seat the Winchester primer. Those I sat aside until the magazine on my Lee AutoPime XR was empty then tried each one again. I still wound up with 10 or so that just will not seat! I am talking all my strength with both thumbs on the lever can't seat! Just how tight was brought home when I had 2 that had primers seated flush but up side down and I gently ran them back though the Lee carbide sizer and they were so tight the primer stayed and the decapper rod moved! This is a new set of dies and you know how tight Lee usually has the nut on the decapper rod cinched down!

Anyone had trouble with Starline brass and very tight primer pockets before? This is the first time I've used the Lee primer tool except for doing 100 fired mixed .357's last night, smooth as butter using CCI primers. Lot of variables here, brass, primers, shellholder, priming tool!

[Vulcan Bob]

I ran into the same thing with new Star Line .44 Mag brass a few months ago. I used a champhering tool on the primer pocket edges and that helped although still very tight with Federal primers. After one fireing however all was well and primer seating felt quite normal. Just got some .45 ACP from them and they do not have the problem. Now I hold Star Line in high regard and like everyone else in the component business they are running overtime to try to meet demand and perhaps they had a boo-boo. I thought about giving them a call about this issue but I didn't have the heart to do so as long as this was a one off problem.

[bangerjim]

I have all kinds of problems with Starline 45LC and Win primers. CCI, Fed, & Rem.....NO problems!

Something has changed with Win!!!!!!! The old ones fit perfectly.

I now buy ONLY CCI, Fed, or Rem. No more Win primers for me. Same with their powders....dirty as all heck!

I will try swaging some and see if the Win's fit easier.


bangerjim

[trooperdan]

I'll try the RCBS primer pocket swage on the reluctant ones and I'll see if CCI primers are easier. I'll tell, doing 100 rounds sure make the fingers sore!

[Dale53]

trouperdan;
If I were having that problem, I would simply get out my RCBS primer pocket swage and reform ALL of those primer pockets. One might say that Starline should have done them properly (and that would be true) but with component shortages these days, I would just "fix" it. I WOULD notify Starline, but I would fix them myself. Maybe Starline will send you a couple of extra cases for your trouble[smilie=1:

FWIW
Dale53

[Big Rack]

I have had a heck of a time with Starline 44 Spl. with oddly enough Winchester primers with a old style Lee hand primer. Seated with a Lee Ram Prime easy as could be. I kinda figured the pockets were a little tight, anyone have a selection of primers they could mic?

[rexherring]

S&B brass has ben the only ones I have trouble with. My StarLine .45 Colt brass has been fine. I need to pick up a pocket swager for the S&B brass.

[9.3X62AL]

I'll try the RCBS primer pocket swage on the reluctant ones and I'll see if CCI primers are easier. I'll tell, doing 100 rounds sure make the fingers sore!

This is the route I took with a lot of Winchester 9mm brass my agency bought and fired about 12 years ago. Even after swaging, the only primers that would seat were CCI SP. Total PITA--I scrapped several thousand pieces of this stuff, and replaced it with R-P. Problems over.

[JLarsson]

One other thought - Instead of the primers pushing the decapping rod up, could it be that the flash holes are too small? I don't care how tight a primer is - if you seated it with a handheld tool, there's no way it should push the decapping rod up. Possibly the decapping rod was not tightened sufficiently? Not all of my Lee dies came with that rod tightened tight enough.

[osteodoc08]

I bought 500 nickel plated about 1-2 years ago. They did seem a little tight with CCI, but I attributed that to them being new. I was able to seat them with my RCBS hand primer or Dillon and now Hornady LnL ok, but you could tell they took just that bit much more effort.

[9.3X62AL]

I think some lots of brass just happen to get made with tight/out-of-spec primer pockets. If swaging or re-cutting resolves the problems, then cool. The 9mm brass I spoke of was just plain intractable--it wouldn't swage out, and after resorting to an RCBS Positive Ram priming unit the seating was still problematic. ENOUGH. This was in pre-shortage/pre-flipper & stripper times, and another maker's cases got the call. Life is too short to deal with intractable brass. We are not yet to the point of refilling primers--cutting up 35mm negatives for powder--and shaping rocks to fit prehistoric Lee-Enfields, like mujahadeen in Afghanistan fighting Soviets in the 1980s.

[WallyM3]

"--cutting up 35mm negatives for powder--"

(LOL) I think that might be harder to get than primers!

[Love Life]

Measure the spud on your RCBS swager to make sure it isn't over sized...