My brother gave me a bag full of bullets that were exposed to excessive heat while in a house fire. I managed to pull some out with a kinetic puller except for the 40 S&W rounds. The powder went bad. And I gave up trying to pull them. Instead, I used a bolt cutter to cut them in have. Sometimes, the case would tear open at the mouth and release the bullet. The rest will be scrap lead. I also tried cutting the separated case with the head in half again. This set off the primer so it's best to cut the casing in half closest to the bullet or in the middle.
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Bolt cutters work
- Thread starter BJung
- Start date
When lacking a puller,I've pulled a few bullets usin the press and some pliers.
Don't put a die in the press. Put the round in the shellholder and raise it up
Grab the bullet with the pliers and lower the ram. I've used water pump pliers.I grab with the end of the jaws,rather than the side.I let the jaws rest on the press.
Its never failed me.It does mess up the bullets.
Smashing the brass is good.Its not useable.
Don't put a die in the press. Put the round in the shellholder and raise it up
Grab the bullet with the pliers and lower the ram. I've used water pump pliers.I grab with the end of the jaws,rather than the side.I let the jaws rest on the press.
Its never failed me.It does mess up the bullets.
Smashing the brass is good.Its not useable.
Bummer! I never had that problem.
If the damage is minor,you might be able to iron it out by starting a die up from below,taking advantage of the threads to pilot a 7/8-14 loading die up through the damaged threads. Worst case,a 7/8 -14 tap up from below will fix it.
I know,not eveyone has a tap.
In the future,a large flat washer over the top of the press will protect the threads. Anything with a hole large enough the cartridge can pass through.
If the damage is minor,you might be able to iron it out by starting a die up from below,taking advantage of the threads to pilot a 7/8-14 loading die up through the damaged threads. Worst case,a 7/8 -14 tap up from below will fix it.
I know,not eveyone has a tap.
In the future,a large flat washer over the top of the press will protect the threads. Anything with a hole large enough the cartridge can pass through.
There is potential hazard with this approach.
Explosives can become sensitized by exposure to heat. Powder, for example, has been known to break down just far enough to destroy its deterrent chemistry, raising its burn rate a lot. Double-base powder breaks down the nitrocellulose web so that it can actually release nitroglycerin on its surface. The quantity is small, but using a crushing tool on it could still cause ignition. Unless you are sure that the powder is completely dead, this creates the possibility of a case bursting and tossing fragments your way. Those who think smokeless powder will just pop the bullet out and not burst the case haven't watched the YouTube videos of this experiment being done. There were flying brass fragments in every example I found.
The commercial bullet pullers are generally good. If bullets are stuck in a case, wearing appropriate protection, you can usually just run them into your seating die and seat them in a small fraction of an inch deeper. If they've bonded to the case, that breaks the bond and allows a conventional puller to work.
Explosives can become sensitized by exposure to heat. Powder, for example, has been known to break down just far enough to destroy its deterrent chemistry, raising its burn rate a lot. Double-base powder breaks down the nitrocellulose web so that it can actually release nitroglycerin on its surface. The quantity is small, but using a crushing tool on it could still cause ignition. Unless you are sure that the powder is completely dead, this creates the possibility of a case bursting and tossing fragments your way. Those who think smokeless powder will just pop the bullet out and not burst the case haven't watched the YouTube videos of this experiment being done. There were flying brass fragments in every example I found.
The commercial bullet pullers are generally good. If bullets are stuck in a case, wearing appropriate protection, you can usually just run them into your seating die and seat them in a small fraction of an inch deeper. If they've bonded to the case, that breaks the bond and allows a conventional puller to work.
New idea too late
I didn't think about breaking the bond by pressing the bullet into the case a bit more. Instead, I cut near the bullet the so the case would atleast vent and a developed cracked would release the bullet. But then, the exposed part of the bullets are swollen. Sizer die or just melt them down for cast bullets? It's good that I cut near the bullet! I took a case I cut in half and recut it again near the extractor groove and the primer went off!
I mentioned in a previous post that I burned some powder pulled for 7.5x55 ammo exposed to heat. Rifle powder just burns but his batch from PRVI sparkled. I'll test some of the powder later before showing it burn for the neighborhood kids. To me, it's better that kids know the reality of what firearm powder is like and not rely on Hollywood to teach them.
I didn't think about breaking the bond by pressing the bullet into the case a bit more. Instead, I cut near the bullet the so the case would atleast vent and a developed cracked would release the bullet. But then, the exposed part of the bullets are swollen. Sizer die or just melt them down for cast bullets? It's good that I cut near the bullet! I took a case I cut in half and recut it again near the extractor groove and the primer went off!
I mentioned in a previous post that I burned some powder pulled for 7.5x55 ammo exposed to heat. Rifle powder just burns but his batch from PRVI sparkled. I'll test some of the powder later before showing it burn for the neighborhood kids. To me, it's better that kids know the reality of what firearm powder is like and not rely on Hollywood to teach them.
jetinteriorguy
New member
Breaking bullets loose by seating a few thousandths deeper first makes a huge difference when pulling down ammunition that’s been loaded for a while. If your not concerned with saving the bullets using a side cutter to grip them while pulling them on a press works good.