Primers

[mag_01]

:coffee: ---Had some old primers given to me by an old friend--some were small rifle which I have not been reloading for so I tried using them in small pistol loads and they are working fine---really see little or no difference in performance--yesterday at range I shot about 100 wadd cutters (148) with 2.8 tight group and they shot well--also shot (158grs.) swc with 3.8 tight group..good results. Will load more today---keeps me busy and out of trouble----Mag----:castmine:

[NVcurmudgeon]

mag, once I had a bunch of surplus small rifle primers and nothing to shoot them in. I did the same thing you did and used them up in light target loads in a .38 Special revolver. From your loads it looks like your are using them in a .38 Special, too. Because rifle primers are taller than pistol primers I used them in a revolver only, and avoided heavy loads because of possible high pressure. It worked just fine for me too, but don't tell the primer manufacturer what you are doing!

[felix]

Bill, small primers, rifle and pistol, are spec-ed to have the same height; not so in the large primers, which almost always come out with their own seperate lengths as spec-ed. Always expect lot-too-lot variations in dimensions, composition, etc. ... felix

[44man]

They only thing I can see to worry about is if the cups are harder and don't fire all the time with the revolver mainspring. If the dent in the primer is good, I see no problem. The rifle primer will be hotter but with light loads it won't be noticable.

[NVcurmudgeon]

Thanks, Felix. I knew about the difference in height between large rifle and large pistol primers, and had measured it. I just assumed it would be the same in small
rifle and small pistol primers. "You can't assume a damn thing in the Navy!" Captain Queeg in "The Caine Mutiny." Nor in handloading ether.

[versifier]

I had some fun last spring with my .30carbine Contender and both small pistol and small rifle primers. Both worked fine. One light boolit load liked the pistol primers better with one powder, one heavier boolit liked the rifle primers better with another. With the majority of them it didn't seem to make any measurable difference in the group sizes, though I did not chrono them to see if there was any difference in velocities. I seldom shoot for score, just pick the best grouping loads, adjust the sights for them, and go hunting.