AM I PRIMING THE CARTRIDGE CORRECTLY USING LYMAN AUTO FEED PRIMING TOOL?

[marathonrunner]

Guys, I have another question. So far I got brass cleaned, expanded properly, seated, and crimped. I am on the step where you prime. When I use the Lyman auto feed tool, I am getting a very subtle but slight indent on each primer used. It is so subtle, you would have to really look for it but compared to factory ammo, I don't see any tell of any waviness to the primer cap. Mine looks again a slight indent or dimple. Anybody here getting the same? If I try to be too light, then it will not push the primer all the way in

also there is a red plastic trap door. Do you have to only allow one primer to enter at a time by using the trap door or can you leave that open so more primers get passed and in line with the one that is already ready to feed?

 

[blujax01]

I assume that you are trying each step as a dry run and that you are not attempting to prime ammo that has already had bullets inserted, yes? If not, your steps are out of order. Dangerously so.

 

[forestswin]

Runner, you've got a great group of guys here helping you out. As blujax cautions, you maybe going into dangerous territory, please stop the press until your coaches get back to you on this question.

 

[marathonrunner]

Oh no....I know I was going out of order. I first made dummy rounds with no primer or powder. All I did was clean brass, then decapped, resized, flared the mouth, then placed a bullet on top, seated it to proper depth, and then crimped it. No powder no primer. I wanted to make sure I knew how much to flare before actually making a live round. I did all of this just using one cartridge.

Now I starting to do it for real. I decapped, then I cleaned my brass, then I used primer pocket cleaner, then ran them through ultrasonic to rinse. Then I resized, then opened the mouth, and now I am using the auto primer by lyman. I first tried using as little pressure as possible, then a bit more, but regardless the tool is still leaving a slight dimple in each primer that I do not see in factory ammo. So think this is normal I hope.

I really do appreciate all the great advice! If I win the lottery, just to show my appreciation I will buy everybody a brand new Corvette on this forum!...lol

 

[blujax01]

Great! It does sound like you're proceeding with caution and in a safe and sane manner.

Now as to your question - I don't know! Sorry, no 'Vette for me!...

 

[arjay]

I don't think a barely perceptible dent is a problem unless it ignites the primer [emoji33].Much better than them not seating into the bottom of the pocket.

 

[Ben_hutcherson]

Just a quick thought...I've found at times that if there's a piece of "crud" on the primer seating ram, it can leave its impression on the primer during seating. I regularly wipe the ram off with a Q-tip, as I find that it tends to accumulate a lot anyway.

I sometimes find primers with odd markings on them. I've found them to be fine just as long as they are seated deeply enough. Just another thing that might make a difference, but that I'm not a good enough shooter to see or appreciate.

 

[Rule3]

Please let us know when the powder and ignition stage happens.

What exactly is the Lyman Auto feed tool?? Is it this hand tool?? An auto feed goes on a press?

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/69...versal-hand-priming-tool?cm_vc=ProductFinding

 

[Badquaker]

Take a picture.... it's worth a thousand words.

The primer should bottom out in the pocket. Any additional pressure will flatten the top of the primer slightly (or strongly if you push to hard). A primer sitting just under flush is fine, over flush is not. You can feel the primer sliding into the pocket, and you need to feel it bottom out, then stop. Check the primer height. After you've seated a couple hundred, you will know what it should feel like. When it feels wrong, stop and check.

 

[Engineer1911]

Step #57 in the on going pursuit of perfection. When do you plan on reading the instruction manuals for all this new equipment you purchased?

You are reloading ammunition, not performing open heart surgery on some head of state. Read the instructions, perform the operations as described, and reach the finish line with your first reloaded round of ammunition.

 

[venomballistics]

Primers are seated with a small flat ended punch.
Most everything we see is lathe turned.
The dent you report is a result of one of the quirks of a lathe turned part.
It's called a tit and appears dead center of all turned parts.
the resulting mark left means nothing

I do hope to hear of a fired test string by Sunday.

 

[Neumann]

I can't find details on the assembly and operation of the Lyman Auto Prime feeder, but these things tend to have a lot in common.

If there is a trapdoor, it is intended to allow only one primer at a time to escape the tube on to the feeder. It also serves as a blast shield in case a primer detonates, so that primers in the tube are not ignited at the same time.

Although a C press is not very sensitive during the priming operation, you can still feel the primer slip into the pocket and bottom out. You should stop pressing the lever when you feel that happen. Check the results. The face of the primer should be below the face of the cartridge, typically 0.005" which is easily seen using a straight edge or by feel, sliding your finger over the bottom.

A raised primer is dangerous, and may detonate in handling or when chambering a round. More often it results in a misfire or slow fire, sometimes requiring a second strike, because it cushions the first blow.

Resizing and decapping before using an ultrasonic cleaner works well, but may create a serious problem. Any moisture left in the case may result in a misfire or dud round, and it is surprisingly difficult to completely dry the cases. I put them in a mesh bag and hang them in front of a window fan for half a day or longer.

Consider buying a vibrating bowl cleaner, and process the fired cases while the old primer is still in place. That keeps media from clogging the primer hole, and cleans the case as well as needed. Deposits in the bottom of the primer pocket don't seem to cause ignition or seating problems.

Hand priming tools work very well, but gets tiring after a couple hundred rounds. A bench tool (e.g., RCBS) with a tube feeder is fast and easy to use, reliable, and gives excellent tactile feedback.

Wear safety glasses and KEEP YOUR FACE away from the case opening when priming. A primer can push a bullet well into the barrel without the aid of powder. It is not to be trifled with.

 

[blujax01]

I have done this. I was about the same age as the lad shown here but I remember it like it happened yesterday. Still sets my skin crawling...

 

[marathonrunner]

I am using the hand priming auto feed and yes I tried light pressure and it still leaves a tiny mark on the surface. Now I have to figure out how to use the 10-10 scale which seems very complex

 

[venomballistics]

I am using the hand priming auto feed and yes I tried light pressure and it still leaves a tiny mark on the surface. Now I have to figure out how to use the 10-10 scale which seems very complex

You have bullets of some stated weight.
weigh some.
They will be close enough to the stated weight
when what you read on the scale is close to your bullet weight, your reading it correctly.

We want to see a picture of your first reloads and target fired with said reloads, by Sunday, or you owe us all coffee

 

[Rule3]

Maybe I have not be following along or paying close attention.

I thought you are using a Lee hand press??

Exactly what primer tool are you using?? Please post a link to it or a model number or something. Is it the one I linked to above or a different one??

 

[marathonrunner]

Just got a call from Lyman tech support and they mentioned something to the effect there is a large and a small one and they will mail me a large one whatever that meant. So I guess the unit should not be leaving any marks at all. I just hope the 20 cartridges I made will work and not misfire

 

[Badquaker]

I am using the hand priming auto feed and yes I tried light pressure and it still leaves a tiny mark on the surface. Now I have to figure out how to use the 10-10 scale which seems very complex

I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but you are either over thinking EVERYTHING, or dumber than a bag of hammers. I truly believe it is the former.

You should probably seek a mentor to help you with hands on advice. A beam scale is about as easy as it gets.
Sets the slides to zero.
Adjust the foot to make the pointer hit the line.
Adjust the slides to the desired amount.
Fill with powder until the bar points to the line.

With all the information available online, you could build ..... just about anything. How do you think people learned in the days before the internet? We read books mainly. I learned by reading the hornady loading manual, several times. It's still good reference material 30 years later. Read the instructions, try to make a few rounds, then read the instructions again. The instructions make more sense after you have practiced a little.

 

[rwsmith]

When you are loading for real

You reprime after decapping (of course) and before any powder or bullet or crimp happens (of course).

Don't prime a cartridge with a bullet (or powder) in it. A detonating primer will send a bullet flying, especially one that is seated and crimped.

We strongly advise you to really get familiar with a good reloading manual before working with anything 'live'.

 

[marathonrunner]

You have bullets of some stated weight.
weigh some.
They will be close enough to the stated weight
when what you read on the scale is close to your bullet weight, your reading it correctly.

We want to see a picture of your first reloads and target fired with said reloads, by Sunday, or you owe us all coffee

Not sure if I can fire some by Sunday. I am currently now looking at how to use my 10-10 scale probably by wed but will post some pics. I plan on starting at the low end of 4.7 and working it up slowly to 6.0 to see how that works