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Can rifle primers be used in a pistol cartridge?
- Thread starter StrawDog
- Start date
I am doing this now. They are the same size and if you stay away from the higher load ranges you should be fine. I'm loading 9mm with small rifle magnums. Some pistols, particularly striker fired ones, may not hit hard enough to set them off. My 1911 works fine, the Glock and P7 do not always set them off. You need to check each firearm.
I would not. Based on my experience using small pistol, small pistol magnum, and small rifle in 9mm, 38spl, and 357 mag, the small rifle, based on my experience, is equivalent to small pistol magnum.
Granted this is not scientific testing, just my opinion based on my experiences with the ones i have tested. Cci, winchester, federal.
Granted this is not scientific testing, just my opinion based on my experiences with the ones i have tested. Cci, winchester, federal.
Marco Califo
New member
Www.Midwayusa.com and www.midsouthshooterssupply.com both had small pistol primers in stock this morning. No need to substitute.
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There is a reason the manufacturers make the four categories of primers. Case volume and pressure. Why don't you call the manufacturer to get an accurate opinion? Best example I can use is the 454 Casull. It uses Small Rifle Primers because it uses more powder and has a 55k PSI rating. If it wasn't dangerous to swap primers, then the manufacturers would recommend it.
Primer function is complicated. They can raise pressure or actually lower it in some instances. One mechanism for that latter situation is when the primer pressure is great enough to unseat the bullet faster than the powder can raise pressure to do it, and then, if there is some jump to the throat left, you wind up with the powder building pressure in a bigger space. Small-capacity cases are vulnerable to this.
But you can get higher pressure, too.
For accuracy, I would not expect the CCI 450 to be the best choice in a handgun. James Calhoun measured the cup as 35% thicker than the standard small rifle primer. Some handguns will have trouble consistently firing them. Even when they fire, the firing may suffer small delays that can impact group size adversely, so it's not a great choice for the application, IMHO.
But you can get higher pressure, too.
For accuracy, I would not expect the CCI 450 to be the best choice in a handgun. James Calhoun measured the cup as 35% thicker than the standard small rifle primer. Some handguns will have trouble consistently firing them. Even when they fire, the firing may suffer small delays that can impact group size adversely, so it's not a great choice for the application, IMHO.
GeauxTide, I got my Freedom Arms .454 in 1990, as best I can recall, with reloading instructions for FA cases that held Large Pistol Primers. Shortly afterward they sent me inserts to accommodate small rifle primers, that required swagging, and it was my impression that the change was due to the need for a comparable increase in initial energy generated to ignite the powder, which was either W296 or H110, neither of which required a change in powder volume. But your experience may differ and any clarification would be welcomed.
Average Joe
New member
I've tried this myself, some of my pistols would not set off a rifle primer, some would. You should try out each pistol before mass reloading.
I have used standard SR primers in revolvers since the great shortage almost exclusively. After Sandy Hook I under stocked SP and over stocked SR. To add to that I have greatly reduced the number of 223/556 firearms I load for. I have noticed no accuracy or velocity changes in MY firearms. YMMV. Those 75,000 SR Primers gotta go somewhere ??????