primer tube explosion

[targetshootr]

The primer tube on my 650 went off about 20 minutes ago and wow it was loud. It happened so fast I don't know if the handle was going up or down but Dillon has parts on the way. They said to throw away the old tube and everything attached to it except the alarm. Now I'm going to be looking over my shoulder when I get it running again, like I do whenever I get a speeding ticket. Always heard about this kind of thing happening and now I'm in the club.

[Shiloh]

This is the first actual experience I have heard about. Can you find any?? Did they all go??
Did the tube contain them?? What caused it??

Shiloh

[mike in co]

yep post all the details
primer type/maker/age
caliber/type of brass/brass prep/times loaded
anything else you can think of...

without pointing any fingers, have you done any adjusting on the primer system ?

i had a cam bar( the long bent rod) get out of adjust, but it just spit primers till corrected on one of my 550's...no bangs yet)

hope all is fine, mechanical parts can be replaced.....its those touchie feelie parts that are hard to replace.

mike in co

[targetshootr]

I'll get out there tomorrow and take it apart. The tube was too hot to do touch after they went off, about 90 of them, and it made one big POW. I think the shellplate was out of line and I pinched one as it was going into the case but I've done that hundreds of times with nary a pop. I bend WLPs so often this was a real surprise.

[August]

This topic has circulated here before with numerous testimonials of such episodes. You are not the only 650 user who has gone shopping for new underwear.

[quasi]

yup, Dillons blow up on occasion, it is a very rare event when you consider the billions of rounds loaded on them.

[Hardcast416taylor]

Now you have an idea why I removed the auto priming station from my Hornady Pro-Jector about 10 years back, it had the up-grade features and all - I just didn`t trust the way it worked. I use a LEE hand held priming tool and have never had a problem priming enough cases to keep me busy empting them.Robert

[Four Fingers of Death]

I have turned primers inside out at times and never had one pop just plumb lucky I guess. Not that I still don't take precautions with eye protection/whatever. I guess you have to be plumb unlucky and holding your mouth right at the same time. I just sold some gear and am thinking about upgrading to either a Hornady or Dillon. Decisions, decisions.

[Lloyd Smale]

buddy did it twice when he first got his 650s. you have to slow down and learn to feel out your press and never force it to do something if things dont feel right.

[Nazgul]

Interesting. I have never bent a primer on my Hornady. Then I don't push it for speed.

Don

[TonyT]

I have two shooting buddies who had the same experience. In one case an attempt was made to undo a primer stuck in the tube by force (a plain dumb move according to the individual) but in the other case no explanation was offered.

[targetshootr]

I haven't found the case that may have been getting primed but other than off-color primers and a twisted feed rod, nothing looks odd.

I've probably loaded 150,000 rounds on this press and bent so many primers lodged under the feeder disc or bent by the punch that I wondered how they managed to go off under a gun hammer. WLPs will take a lot of abuse without popping.

Dillon said the unusual thing was the brand of primers. He said most of the time it happens with Federals.

[Dan Cash]

Now you have an idea why I removed the auto priming station from my Hornady Pro-Jector about 10 years back, it had the up-grade features and all - I just didn`t trust the way it worked. I use a LEE hand held priming tool and have never had a problem priming enough cases to keep me busy empting them.Robert


Had a primer go off while priming with one of these. Ouch.

[mike in co]

I haven't found the case that may have been getting primed but other than off-color primers and a twisted feed rod, nothing looks odd.

I've probably loaded 150,000 rounds on this press and bent so many primers lodged under the feeder disc or bent by the punch that I wondered how they managed to go off under a gun hammer. WLPs will take a lot of abuse without popping.

Dillon said the unusual thing was the brand of primers. He said most of the time it happens with Federals.

inspite of the number of rounds done, if you are bending/mangling primers, YOU NEED TO LOOK AT YOUR PROCESS. it is not correct, nor normal to deform primers .

mike in co

[9.3X62AL]

I do not recall having set off a primer since advancing past the Lee Loader stage of development. This includes RCBS single-stage with either pivot-arm or ram primer unit, and the Ponsness-Warren P-200.......which is like a MEC 600 Jr for metallics. I don't trust primer tubes one iota. I'm glad you are OK, TS!

I have discovered 2 methods of reliably setting off loose primers, though.

1) Roll over one with a gun safe on a reefer dolly on the concrete garage floor. Makes neighbors keep their distance for quite some time.

2) Have Marie vacuum one up in her floor sweeper, inside the house. Marie did NOT keep her distance, quite the opposite--she was in my face for quite some time, detailing her disappointment & surprise at the development. In two languages, I should note--Spanish and Early Anglo-Saxon, both strongly flavored. In the few subsequent repeats of these occurrences, Marie's excitement has mellowed over time, barely producing a shudder and a mid-volume "DAMMIT". Ah, maturity.

[StarMetal]

Al,

Too funny. What's really bad is when the primer sets off the dust in the vacuum bag!!!!! You have combustion material and lots of air volume.

To the other poster deforming primers and still shooting them. Man I know they cost a lot and we hate to loose or waste one, but....don't ever shoot a primer that is deformed. The least that can happen is a little gas leak that will definitely burn a pit in your bolt face. I just punch them back out with the decapper die and discard them. Don't believe for one second because is a low power cast load that it won't burn that hole in your bolt face.

Joe

[HeavyMetal]

Oddly the only time ( knock on lots of wood!) that I've set off a primer was decapping an empty 38 special case with an lod Lyman 310 tong tool.

It made quite the pop and I was shocked that I had set it off!

As others have said I have bent the snot out of all types of primers, seated them up side down and then de capped them and reseated them right using a 550 lee lyman and rcbs press's but only had the one bang.

Consider it a learning experience and please post anything you learn.

I have considered moving up to a 650 but have heard many say the primer feed system leaves a bit to be disired. Curious as to what you may find has caused the problem.

[targetshootr]

The scariest thing I do with primers is when one is high binding up a cylinder and I have to work the cylinder back and forth to get it out. That makes my eyes close and my face sweat.

[targetshootr]

At first glance it didn't do much damage.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b233/targetshootr/DSCN4713.jpg

[S.R.Custom]

...I have discovered 2 methods of reliably setting off loose primers, though...

I have a third.

I live out in the country, so to save on gas I make the 20 mile round trip to the dump very sparingly. Which means I'm a participant in the time-honored tradition of having a back yard burn-barrel. I get the neighbor sticking his head over the fence when the loading room floor sweepings start cooking off... And it was after one particularly exciting episode that I came to the conclusion that I need to stop throwing my defective reloads in the trash.

[Four Fingers of Death]

I forgot to mention my early days in reloading. I bought a 44Mag 94 Winchester and a Lee Loader. The only hammer I had was a claw hammer. Liek a young dumb ass that was what I used. Used to fire em' off pretty regular. No matter how much you were prepared for it the bang still made me just about jump throug the roof. :D