Reclaiming Primers

A

akinswi

New member
I was doing some house keeping and I found some 44 magnum and 44 special cases primed but not loaded I had them sealed up in some ziplock bags inside a 30 cal ammo can probably been in there 10 years? I dont reload for either caliber, But was thinking I could use them for 45acp, they are magnum primers.

Could I deprime them with a decapping tool and reuse them? 200 of them in there.

Thanks
 
As long as the gun will set off the magnum primers it should work. Id be careful your not at max loads or drop them down a little using the magnum primers.
 
Generally speaking, you can slowly, carefully push out the live primer with a decapping pin. I would suggest you do so with the pin in a die body that does NOT resize the case Eye protection and hand protection are a must.

Its a bit nerve wracking, and I wouldn't do it, except as a last resort, but with care, it can be done. I have done it.

I would NOT, however, trust my life to a "reclaimed" primer. Practice, possibly hunting, fine, but not self defense. You can't tell if the primer has "gone bad" until it fails to fire...

I'd also suggest cleaning the press and primer catcher areas before starting, so that no debris, or lubricant can find their way to the primer.
 
Lee makes a Universal Decapping Die that is great for this ... and crimped in primers .
Having the shell in a die body while decapping is safer than a hand held de-priming tool .
If a primer pop's the force is directed upwards , keep hands , fingers and eyes from over the die and you won't damage any parts .
Any de-capping die will work , adjust the de-capping pin so it pushes out the primer before fully resizing if the die is a sizer / decapping die ...many de-cappers are in the neck expanding die ...these work just fine .
Do it slow and gentle ... the primers can be re-used .
Gary
 
akinswi said:
Could I deprime them with a decapping tool and reuse them? 200 of them in there.

Thanks
Click to expand...

I de-primed and reused many hundreds of primers without a single mishap or misfire. I did use a universal decapping tool to allow space for the gases to escape in case one went off while decapping. Would recommend using loose fitting die like a .45 colt for the .44's with the decapping pin extended to the max. That should allow for gas escape and save the cost of a universal decapper.
 
44 AMP said:
Generally speaking, you can slowly, carefully push out the live primer with a decapping pin. I would suggest you do so with the pin in a die body that does NOT resize the case Eye protection and hand protection are a must.



Its a bit nerve wracking, and I wouldn't do it, except as a last resort, but with care, it can be done. I have done it.



I would NOT, however, trust my life to a "reclaimed" primer. Practice, possibly hunting, fine, but not self defense. You can't tell if the primer has "gone bad" until it fails to fire...



I'd also suggest cleaning the press and primer catcher areas before starting, so that no debris, or lubricant can find their way to the primer.
Click to expand...
Nah it isn't that dramatic. Just go slowly. Primer needs both energy and power to go off . Personal protection gears are a good idea though.

-TL

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
 
In theory a primer needs percussion to detonate it. You can put a primer in a vise and crush it slowly and nothing will happen except. On the other hand, if you strike it expect it to pop. Just like others have said go slow and wear eye protection. If you have dainty skin wear gloves.

my first reloading experience was making .38 special using a Lee hammer loader back in the 70's. I probably popped 100 primers that summer when seating them and giving it one more tap than it needed. It stung the fingers a bit but never broke skin
 
hounddawg said:
In theory a primer needs percussion to detonate it. You can put a primer in a vise and crush it slowly and nothing will happen except. On the other hand, if you strike it expect it to pop. Just like others have said go slow and wear eye protection. If you have dainty skin wear gloves.

my first reloading experience was making .38 special using a Lee hammer loader back in the 70's. I probably popped 100 primers that summer when seating them and giving it one more tap than it needed. It stung the fingers a bit but never broke skin
Click to expand...
Lol those good ole lee loaders
 
Your primers are probably fine for plinking , informal target shooting, etc. I'd avoid max or near max loads and no self defense loads.
That said, if you don't want to shoot them and de-capping live primers is bad for your nerves, just load the empty cases in a pistol and fire them. It's relatively safe and not too loud [don't do it in the house or Mrs. akinswi will have your head]. Wear your muffs, about as loud as a loud cap pistol. Can get smokey as well.
I, and others, sometimes fire a primed case or 2 to verify proper function after service. Be sure to clean your firearm afterwards.
 
For goodness sake, don't waste the primers to make noise. Give or trade them to somebody who has use of them, if you are chickened out pushing out the live primers yourself. It is $20 in today's market.

-TL

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
 
My own approach in your shoes would be to use this as an excuse to get the reloading dies, and, if I no longer had the guns for these cartridges, getting some new ones. ;)

Like the others, I've done this before a number of times without a problem, but what I haven't tried is doing it to sealed primers. I don't really expect that to cause a special problem, but that could depend on how strong an adhesive the particular sealant is. I've had crimped primers resist ejection from the primer pocket to the point the cup came out conical rather than flat on the bottom. I don't know that you'll run into that, but if it happens, you may want to abort and look at trading the primer brass for some LP primers.

If you don't have one, the Lee Decapping Die is a modest investment that will give you the desired blast clearance. I use one whenever I want to clean primer pockets before the rest of the reloading operations.
 
I have salvaged hundreds of live primers.
You should, of course, exercise caution.
But it can be, and is done safely by many people.

The only primers that I have 'popped' with a press or tool were during seating, when one hung up and then 'slammed' into a loose pocket hard enough to initiate.
 
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