Has anyone here heard of or used "Russianreloads.com" Berdan conversion products?

[HeadLead]

Been watching video and considering this new product to convert berdan primed brass to boxer and it looks promising.

http://russianreloads.com (http://rrussianreloads.com)

I know it sounds silly but I have been picking up 7.62x39 steel berdan primed cases for some time now and I am seriously considering this conversion kit.

Has anyone else out there checked this product out or possibly used it?

It is available for several calibers.

[Garyshome]

Looks pretty simple. Drill out the primer pocket, but then it needs to be sized smaller for a SRP. A little pricey though.

[HeadLead]

Mark V unit is less than $100.00

Also need primer pocket swaging die.

[Valley-Shooter]

This is an interesting process. If you watch the YouTube video, it tell you how it works. I didn't know that a RCBS primer pocket swagger was required.

Has anyone bought one?

[VHoward]

http://products.russianreloads.com/
I couldn't get to the web page using the link provided by the OP. So I found it using google. That is a neat product. I don't need it, but would be interesting to hear from someone on here that has used it.

[mdi]

One positive fact; They offer a conversion kit for 5.45x36 cases. Tempting, but not quite there yet. It would be an interesting "toy", but I don't think I'd want to convert every case fired from a "spray and pray" type gun [smilie=1:. I recently came across an AK 74 and later found dies, brass, bullets, etc., are not available (Hornady does have a 5.45x39 available, but it too is steel cased, Berdan primed). So, I've been stocking up on whatever ammo I could find and ferget reloading for it...:cry:

[M-Tecs]

I have seen the do it yourself version but never a commercial manufactured one. The 7.5 x 55 Swiss shooter tended to do the Berdan to Boxer conversation

[Ballistics in Scotland]

Some cases, particularly steel, seem a bit thin in the web above the primer for this. I didn't see exactly how these work, but I would feel happier partly reaming and partly punching the new pocket in a brass case, so that it protrudes a little into the powder space, and thus leaving a little more metal there. I wouldn't be surprised if there is a danger of cracking if you did this in steel.

[PS Paul]

Some cases, particularly steel, seem a bit thin in the web above the primer for this. I didn't see exactly how these work, but I would feel happier partly reaming and partly punching the new pocket in a brass case, so that it protrudes a little into the powder space, and thus leaving a little more metal there. I wouldn't be surprised if there is a danger of cracking if you did this in steel.

id listen to BIS on this one. He's pretty sharp AND a fellow Scotsman.

[Artful]

Did you look in the stickies

Larry Gibson already posted a how to
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?143958-Converting-Berdan-primer-pockets-to-Boxer

[HeavyMetal]

I wouldn't want to reload steel case's but have seen plenty of Brass Berdan 308 and 7.62x39 out there that might certainly become a reloadable source of Brass.

I watched the video on you tube and then went to the web site and looked at the Mark V set up, they have one for several case's including the 7.62x51 / 308 case But in all examples this converts the Berdan case to use small rifle primers.

The question now is how will this effect accuracy?

Wasn't a kit out a few years ago that contained a stainless steel bushing that converted large pistol primer pockets to small pistol primers? Never interested in that concept myself but how did the loads work after the switch of primer size, this may tell us of this is a conversion worth the time, effort and funds.

Anyone got that information??


HM

[mdi]

Just my opinion, but I would think this kit/method would only benefit a "SHTF" prepper, or one that cannot find Boxer primed brass for a certain cartridge (see M-Tec's post), not readily available in the US. It may be a "fun diversion/experiment", but for an everyday reloader, Boxer primed brass cases are still available. The other "problems" with reloading steel cases are still there, even when converted to Boxer primers...

[GhostHawk]

Seems a little pricey to me. I'll just keep buying boxer primed brass and save my money.

Interesting idea. I think they'd have to sell it to one of the big company's to get the price down.

Edit.

Watched the video on this process last night. Seemed like a lot of steps, and a lot of work to make use-able cases from berdan primed steel case ammo.

Taking for example the cost of 7.62x54r brass and applying it to the cost of loaded ammo. Suddenly that PPU loaded ammo seemed like a really good bargain. Now I have not bought any for a year, my stocks are in good shape. I am sitting on enough ammo for any concieveable use by my Mosin's. I have just under 1k of 7.62x39 once fired brass just waiting for me to get to it.

So I really don't see the need to spend a pretty hefty chunk of cash so that I can reprime steel case into useable ammo. You are going to pay one way or the other. Me I'll stick with buying boxer primed brass when it is reasonably priced and let someone else stand all day at their drill press converting.

Now if you could buy the tool for 20-30$ and stash it, and the drill bits needed away for a day when brass is no longer available, well I'd probably jump on that.

But remember, when that SHTF day comes chances are your drill press is not going to be running. So you are going to turn it by hand?

[Ballistics in Scotland]

id listen to BIS on this one. He's pretty sharp AND a fellow Scotsman.

Well it was mostly guesswork, but it isn't guesswork that brass cases are available and not unduly expensive. Even someone preparing for the end of civilization as we know it would surely be better to do his preparing with those.

[Eddie2002]

I've got to agree with B.I.S. about thin webs in 7.62x54r steel cases. I was playing around with converting 54r steel cases over to boxer primers and never had any luck with it, drilling out the center of the berdan primer and top of the anvil seems simple enough but the new flash hole would end up too large. There wasn't enough metal under the anvil in the cases I was working with.
I lucked out and bought two bricks of .217 berdan primers at a show last year which is more than enough for the ocassional 8x57 or 30-06 berdan primed brass I pick up and convert to 7.7 Jap.
I'm comfortable with reloading any .217 berdan primed brass with the punch and pry decapping method, it's another step but I decap boxer brass before resizing anyway. The steel cases and larger .250 berdan primed brass I leave alone because I just can't get them to be safe no matter what I have tried.