Couple of Primers Didn't Ignite First Time-**UPDATE**

[kbm6893]

I got into reloading 2 years ago. I have fired probably 500 of my reloaded .38's and have about 1500 loaded and ready to go

Today I had 4 rounds fail to fire on the first time. 2 fired on the second strike and the other 2 took 2 strikes. It's not the first fail to ignite I've had. Probably 8 out of the 500 failed to fire the first time.

I use a Hornady hand primer and give it a good squeeze. Primers are either CCI or Winchester.

Target ammo so no big deal, but what am I doing wrong? I also hand load 9MM and have fired probably 200 rounds and no problems.

 

[tomf52]

I have been handloading for years and have had no trouble with primers until this past year where I have been having a failure rate of about 1 to 2% with CCI small pistol primers. Quality control? No trouble with S&B and some other brands.

 

[andyo5]

CCI and Winchester are very hard primers. Unmodified S&W triggers will ignite them properly. If mainspring force has been lessened, maybe not. I switched to Federal primers for this reason. Their primer cups are made of softer steel and they fire more easily.

 

[hangnoose]

PRIMERS

Re-read a manual regarding seating primers correctly. I've had similar problems & found out I wasn't seating them deeply or below flush &/or not flattening the bottom of the primer (instead of it being rounded). The problem with hand primers is your hand gets tired & after a certain # they don't get seated as deep or consistently. I use the system on the rockchucker & let the high torque/machine do the work. Yes it's slower but more consistent & I've had zero problems since switching. Reports of hard vs soft primers may be 30 years old. Primers have been improved many times while the old stories still persist. If seated correctly they should all work. If your gun has no issues with store bought ammo, it's not the gun. YMMV.

 

[max]

In order the problem is usually: primer not seated deep enough, weak spring on gun, bad primer. I would first check if you are seating them deeply enough.

 

[alwslate]

I've had no problems with Winchester primers. CCI primers are hard to
fully seat and if left even slightly high will most likely misfire on the
first try. The first firing pin blow seats the primer and the next one or
two hits fire it. I no longer buy CCI SP primers.

 

[hangnoose]

ALW

Do you uniform & clean the primer pockets? Many claim it is not needed & a waste of time but you only have to uniform them once. If the pockets are full of hardened crud after many firings, seating issues shouldn't be a big surprise Have you altered the trigger? There will always be some degree of variation of the primer or primer pocket size. Back when I had problems I blamed CCI instead of myself. I had 2 bad primers (would not ignite) in the last year or 2 and they were Winchesters. I go with federal match (if the price is right), regular federals, Winchester, and CCI as that is what's on the shelves locally. The only primer issues I've ever had with any brand has been MY FAULT. In an industry that make many of millions of primers, a mis shapen or bad one now and again is inevitable, just as is the 1 that wants to be seated upside down or sideways. If yours are from the same lot # send them back or a letter/E-mail & maybe you will get some freebies.

 

[Rule3]

Read post #4. Read it again,

 

[gen3guy]

I had this happen with some light .44 Special loads I did for practice with a Charter Arms Bulldog. About 1 out of 6 wouldn't fire. Some with multiple attempts. I saved them up and loaded them in my Super Blackhawk and they all went bang the first time. I then went through a box of Ultramax cowboy loads and they all fired the first time. I could probably fiddle with the primer seating or change manufacturers and get better results. That Bulldog is not a plinking gun anyway. I'll settle for the fact that it works with factory ammo.

 

[subvet69]

I had this problem on a newer 686 and found the tension screw on the hammer spring backed out. Learned about that on this forum somewhere. Locktite stopped that problem.

 

[kbm6893]

Everytime this has happened it was using my 67-1. I'll check the screw for tightness. Never happened with my Ruger service six, and I would say the same number of reloads fired with both.

As for the hand priming, I don't prime more than 150 at a time. I give a good solid squeeze and I check to make sure they're flush, so I'm kind of doubting I am not seating them deep enough.

I don't clean the primer pockets, but they look very clean. I deprime and resize first, then tumble, then rinse in clean water to get rid of walnut media dust, then sonic clean the brass.

 

[Rule3]

Has it been 2 years already? I remember when you were just a pup.

99% of the time it is just that you did not squeeze hard enough with the hand priming system. The fact that they went bang the 2nd times says they were not deep enough. If it was the gun or the primers more would have failed. Remember you loaded those some time back,
Yes, it may be something else but I believe if it was you would have more failures,

Remember this thread?

http://smith-wessonforum.com/reloading/434217-cci-small-pistol-primers-failed-ignite.html

 

[daniel lawecki]

Just reading all the post is there still a little water or moisture left? And seating firmly in the pockets is a must. I haven't cleaned a pistol primer pocket in 30 years. In the last 30,000 rounds with Tula, CCI ,S&B no problems read the MANUAL.

 

[kbm6893]

Has it been 2 years already? I remember when you were just a pup.

99% of the time it is just that you did not squeeze hard enough with the hand priming system. The fact that they went bang the 2nd times says they were not deep enough. If it was the gun or the primers more would have failed. Remember you loaded those some time back,
Yes, it may be something else but I believe if it was you would have more failures,

Remember this thread?

http://smith-wessonforum.com/reloading/434217-cci-small-pistol-primers-failed-ignite.html

I do remember it, and it has been 2 years! And I remember all your help then and continue to appreciate it (and everybody else's) now.

Yeah, I'm still shooting from the early batches, so I figure it's probably a primer not seated as deep as it should have been. But I'm kind of OCD and I know I give a firm squeeze to that primer tool handle. Don't wanna snap the thing but I'll do squeeze more firmly in the future. Just weird it has never presented itself in the 9MM I load.

Just finished the 1 pound of Red Dot that was my first powder I bought. 2175 rounds loaded! I'm not gonna use it anymore cause it doesn't meter that great, but the 7625 for 9MM I am still using drops dead on every time. I bought 2 pounds of HP38 for when I get back to reloading .38 and if it meters well I'll use that for .38 and 9MM now that 7625 is discontinued. My shooting hasn't increased that much but I still like making my own and having it ready for when I feel like hitting the range. Also like being independent so the next panic doesn't affect me!

 

[Szumi]

If cci or winchester I suspect you didn't seat them all the way.

 

[SMSgt]

I've been reloading since 1975 and have had a total of two dud primers, both CCIs--both from the same pack--many years ago. Nary a misfire since, even though some have not been seated below flush. That includes CCI, win, Rem, and Fed primers in pisto, rifle, and shotshell. That despite giving up cleaning primer pockets long ago.

You have a problem that needs to be resolved. Follow the suggestions above.

 

[kbm6893]

It's probably me, but I still don't see how. I give a firm squeeze on that handle and my reloaded rounds don't look any different than factory. After I place the primer I inspect it before I put it into the "primed and ready for powder bucket". They look flush to me.

But I'll squeeze harder for future loadings. Won't actually shoot them for a few years since I have at least 2000 .38 rounds loaded. Same for 9MM, although I have yet to have an issue with a reloaded 9MM round.

I'm gonna shoot again Thursday. I'll take my Ruger six. Never had an issue with that one and my hand loads.

 

[Houlton]

If you didn't buy your S&W new check the width of the main spring. A lot of folks narrow the spring to lighten the pull. I That's not always a bad thing but the springs tend to loose their temper quicker. I have done it on target weapons but not for anything I would use for self defense. Might not hurt to replace the main spring. Might be an inexpensive fix.

 

[sunnyd]

After using hand priming tools for years, I have gone back to priming on the press. I have found that it is difficult to consistantly seat primers deep enough with a hand tool. I have found that some cases take extra pressure to properly seat the primer deep enough. Only talking about a few thousandths difference. Learned the hard way.

 

[ageingstudent]

Everytime this has happened it was using my 67-1. I'll check the screw for tightness. Never happened with my Ruger service six, and I would say the same number of reloads fired with both.

If you rule out a seating issue with the primers have that mainspring checked. I bought a 66-0 last year and it wasn't hitting the primers hard enough when fired in double action. About 1 in six had to be struck twice but it only did it during double action. I had a gunsmith replace the mainspring. Totally solved the issue.

I've had a couple primers fail completely in the last year. 2 large rifle and 1 small pistol. All cci. But of the thousands of rounds I've burned I figure that's pretty reasonable. It's pretty rare to get a truly bad primer.

 

[hangnoose]

CHECKING PRIMER SEATING DEPTH.

Look at them with your finger tips. You should be able to feel that they are below flush, & if so they should be flattened also. Beyond that it's time to look at the gun. Good luck.

 

[chief38]

Check to make sure your primers were seated all the way as that could be your problem. If you have no failures to fire with Factory, than I would think either it's your seating depth or you got a bad batch of primers which is PRETTY RARE. I use which ever of the Federal, CCI, Winchester or Remington primers are the least expensive or available at the time (usually Winchester and Federal) and have only had a couple of Rem's fail over 35 years. When I say a couple I am not kidding - maybe 2 or 3 - that's it. I have reloaded so many rounds over that time (hundreds of thousands) and with only a couple of bad primers I;d say it's RARE and a non-issue. So the first place I'd check is your primer seating.

Of course if you have lightened the trigger pull that could also be the problem!

 

[Aussie Collector]

Check the firing pin, if the pin has bent and can hit the frame on the way to the primer it will reduce the inertia. I have seen this occur and it presented as an intermittent fail to fire one in 20 or so, with the second hit setting it off. It was a model 66-2, I have not used it since the pin was replaced however I have no doubt its fixed. The gun was used in competition, double action only.

My competition revolvers will not set off CCI primers and have a 50/50 fire rate with Winchester, they are tuned to fire Federal, in double action only. If you think the mainspring is a possibility to rule it out give the screw 1/2 a turn.

 

[Engineer1911]

No new problems

Murphy comes home when we forget the basics. There are no new problems, just repeats of old problems.

 

[ramairbrc]

Hand priming, though an ok alternative, is not as precise as a priming station on a reloading machine. Think about how small your level is versus a long handle. A fraction short of a full stroke and you have a high primer, which is then seated by the force of the firing pin. I'd suggest you purchase at least a Dillon 550, and maybe invest in a 650, and that long handle stroke should solve your problem. Also, you'll gain many rounds per hour over your current method.

 

[kbm6893]

Hand priming, though an ok alternative, is not as precise as a priming station on a reloading machine. Think about how small your level is versus a long handle. A fraction short of a full stroke and you have a high primer, which is then seated by the force of the firing pin. I'd suggest you purchase at least a Dillon 550, and maybe invest in a 650, and that long handle stroke should solve your problem. Also, you'll gain many rounds per hour over your current method.

I'm not interested in changing my press. Single stage is all I want since I weigh every charge. There is some primer tube that goes into the hornady press that I may invest in, but in any case I have already loaded over 3000 rounds and have at least 600 cases already primed and ready for powder, so it will be quite some time until I am shooting anything that wasn't hand primed.

I'll go shooting again on Thursday and bring some factory ammo to see if it happens with that. I doubt it will.

 

[alwslate]

I'm not interested in changing my press. Single stage is all I want since I weigh every charge. There is some primer tube that goes into the hornady press that I may invest in, but in any case I have already loaded over 3000 rounds and have at least 600 cases already primed and ready for powder, so it will be quite some time until I am shooting anything that wasn't hand primed.

I'll go shooting again on Thursday and bring some factory ammo to see if it happens with that. I doubt it will.

I load on a single station, Rockchucker, although I don't
weigh every charge, I just prefer to use a single station. The
primer that I have been using for the last several years is a
small bench mounted primer made by RCBS. It uses regular
shell holders for the cartridge being loaded. I prime one case
at a time but it is pretty fast to use. The handle is only about
six inches long but the cam effect of the press provides
plenty of pressure on the primer. I like it better than any
other way of priming that I have used. I don't think they
cost very much. It's something you might want to take a
look at.

 

[kbm6893]

I load on a single station, Rockchucker, although I don't
weigh every charge, I just prefer to use a single station. The
primer that I have been using for the last several years is a
small bench mounted primer made by RCBS. It uses regular
shell holders for the cartridge being loaded. I prime one case
at a time but it is pretty fast to use. The handle is only about
six inches long but the cam effect of the press provides
plenty of pressure on the primer. I like it better than any
other way of priming that I have used. I don't think they
cost very much. It's something you might want to take a
look at.

Just checked it out. Looks good. Might pick one up for my birthday in a few months, but it's gonna be a long time before I prime anything. I have thousands of loaded rounds already in the can and close to a thousand primed cases ready for powder. Does it only use RCBS dies? I load with Leee dies since they offer the 4 die set to crimp separately. Thanks for all the help.

 

[Rule3]

I forget what press you are using? Why not prime ON the press?? or as mentioned get a bench mounted dedicated primer tool. ??

I used to use the hand primer thingy , the LEE and a RCBS universal. It was a pain in the thumb I prime on the press and slam them in all kinds of calibers, pistol and rifle,

 

[kbm6893]

I forget what press you are using? Why not prime ON the press?? or as mentioned get a bench mounted dedicated primer tool. ??

I used to use the hand primer thingy , the LEE and a RCBS universal. It was a pain in the thumb I prime on the press and slam them in all kinds of calibers, pistol and rifle,

I have the Hornady Lock and Load Single Stage. I see there is a tube that can attach to the side of the press and prime while expanding, but I don't see that accessory on their website.

As for the hand tool, I don't mind it. I batch load so I just prime while I'm watching tv. I do look into the hole to be sure the primer is in there right before I put the case in the holder and squeeze. I feel it go in and give it a good firm squeeze.