primers punching through while decapping

[Grmps]

I was/am decapping a bunch of 300 AAC BO brass (much is converted 223) and a lot of the primers stuck in the pocket with only the bottom of the primer popping out.

What causes this?

It is a real pain, have to remove the shell holder and punch the primer falt to get the case out of the shell holder.

https://i.imgur.com/IOzU3BW.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/uxFlT6T.jpg

[Pipefitter]

How were the cases cleaned? If they were wet tumbled or sonic cleaned before you tried decapping then you are most likely dealing with corrosion between the primer and the primer pocket.

[OS OK]

Morning Jim, your up early putzing around the shop. Pipefitter may have it, I've seen this complaint before here where they were wet cleaned and put away without de-priming first.
Another observation...look how deeply they were originally 'staked' in. It makes me wonder if that doesn't distort the straight wall of the pocket leaving the top edge of it's circumference 'slightly narrower' in diameter. It gets chamfered (a new primer will insert) but not enough to remove all the radiused top edge. Another firing and the primer expands to lock itself in.
Shoot...I dunnoh, just spitwadding.

This will be a good thread to follow...love a good riddle!

[jcren]

Polish you decapping pin. A slight convex on the tip and just rounding the corners should eliminate stress points and reduce the punch throughs quite a bit.

[earlmck]

The only times I have punched through a primer when decapping were when I was processing military crimped-in stuff. Those look to me like they are still crimped in -- but I don't know how you did that.

[Shingle]

The only time i have had this happen is when decapping crimped primers. good luck.

[TNsailorman]

Yep. I had this happen several time years ago when I was reloading a lot of WW II 30-06 brass with their crimped in primers. Between the primer sealant and the crimp, they sometimes would require enough force for the pin to push the center of the primer out and leave the ring of the cup in the primer pocket. This most of the time seemed to happen when I was in a hurry. I had it happen both with a press and with the Lee de-capping rod and base. I would take a knife blade point and slowly wedge it between the primer pocket wall and the primer ring and it would come right out. Not a big problem, just aggravating. my experience anyway, james

[Bzcraig]

I'm going with the heavy crimp as well, don't see any signs the crimp was removed so whoever reprimed those had fun!

[Bodean98]

OP didn't specify if it was fired 300 BLK or freshly processed.
Probably once fired .223 range brass that has been cleaned w/primers intact, then processed into 300 BLK and sold. Processor did not bother to decap or remove crimp before selling to save himself some money=more profit.

[OS OK]

Looking like we are going to have to have more details Jim...

[Jack Stanley]

I had that same problem with range pick up .38 special brass that had been through the rain .

Jack

[gwpercle]

Fired cases exposed to moisture , outdoor range pickup (rain) or the cases were cleaned in water , seem to do it.
And maybe some of the crimps aren't totally removed.

[Joby]

I had that problem a year ago. 1000 7.62 x 51 LC brass. Most tore the cap off the primer. No matter fast or slow deprime. And tried a few other ideas none worked. Ended up using a number drill just under primer OD size and a cordless drill turning slow to grab the sides of primer cup. A slow process but brass was uninjured. And water was the aparrent culprit.
I'll keep an eye to see what others did in the same predicament.
Good luck.

[Grmps]

These are most likely once fired cases that were given to me. These were picked up at a friend private "jungle shoot" trail and were really dirty when I got them/ My guess was rust/corrosion. The decapping pin did not go through the primer, it pushed the bottom of the primer out leaving a round tab sticking out (like an opened tin can lid) making it impossibile to remove the boolit from the case without punching the tab sticking out (like an opened tin can lid) flat.

1,3,4 show the tab punched back in for removal
2,6,7 the bottom of the primer punched out
5 show the tab flattened the other way to allow removal

[OS OK]

These are most likely once fired cases that were given to me. These were picked up at a friend private "jungle shoot" trail and were really dirty when I got them/ My guess was rust/corrosion. The decapping pin did not go through the primer, it pushed the bottom of the primer out leaving a round tab sticking out making it impossibile to remove the boolit from the case without punching the preimer back into the hole

What? were they loaded or fired rounds?

[lightman]

I've had a few cases of different calibers do this. Mostly 223/5.56 and 308/7.62 X 51. Being outside, laying on the ground and getting corroded was probably the cause. I saw another post about this someplace, I don't remember where, and a guy made a tool to remove the stuck piece of primer. They used an allen wrench and ground a sharp chisel point on one end. I'm not sure if salvaging cases like this is worth the effort but the piece can be gotten out with some work.

[OS OK]

A bolt extractor ground to the proper length/diameter might do the job without damage to the pocket...
https://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images;_ylt=A0SO81Bk52Va.NsA601XNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEy MW41cXU3BGNvbG8DZ3ExBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjQ0ODJfMQRzZW MDc2M-?p=bolt+screw+extractor&fr=aaplw

[jmorris]

The dreaded “ringer”, where there is one, there is another.

I too suspect H2O has been involved.

[sparky45]

I'd try a chamfering bit in a drill to remove the military crimp and see if the residue of the primer will come out.

[BK7saum]

These are most likely once fired cases that were given to me. These were picked up at a friend private "jungle shoot" trail and were really dirty when I got them/ My guess was rust/corrosion. The decapping pin did not go through the primer, it pushed the bottom of the primer out leaving a round tab sticking out making it impossibile to remove the boolit from the case without punching the preimer back into the hole

I think you need to adjust your decapping pin (extend it) so that it will push the primers the rest of the way out.

[Mr_Sheesh]

BK7saum I think he's saying that the cylindrical part of the primer hasn't moved, just the bottom circular part of the primer has bent, hinged up like an open tin can's lid. I had a post asking about this a while back when one happened to me. Corrosion makes sense, primer crimp maybe in some cases too.

[mold maker]

I bought several K of 5.56 brass and found the same problem. In up to 3% of them, the primer cup top tore off the pocket contact ring either completely or part way. The partly opened can lid is exactly what it looked like. These tied the case to the shell holder making removal of the SH necessary to remove the case. These were all military cases dating from 08 to the present. All dates were involved in the problem.
I tried resharpened allen wrenches, drill bits, easy outs, nut picks, and anything else I could think of with little success. I had tried a numbered drill that was just under the primer dia but couldn't center it because of the irregular torn edge. To date, I haven't found anything that reliably worked. It appears the few I fixed were only the easiest ones and were already loosened when the caps tore off.
I'm sure some of you machinest can provide a reliable method without exceeding the value. I just hate to throw away perfectly good brass, because half the primer is stuck

[BK7saum]

BK7saum I think he's saying that the cylindrical part of the primer hasn't moved, just the bottom circular part of the primer has bent, hinged up like an open tin can's lid. I had a post asking about this a while back when one happened to me. Corrosion makes sense, primer crimp maybe in some cases too.


I understand what's happening now. I read the post as written without spending a lot of time on the pics other than to observe the heavy crimp. Thanks for the clarification.

[Grmps]

223 brass is too cheap to mess with the bad primers I reamed one out with a factory crimp remover to big a PITA

[Bmi48219]

Had this happen when I bought a pile of 30 carbine LC (1952 vintage). Punched through the primer roughly one out of twelve cases. Rest came out ok. Don't think they were crimped, I suspect corrosion. Gave them to someone more patient than myself. Always wondered if soaking in a solvent would have helped. I tried to pry between the primer wall & pocket, didn't work. Hey seller gave me a refund on the bad ones so no lose. The brass didn't appear to have been cleaned when I received it. Guessing the bad ones were in the bottom of a pail for a while.