Wake up call

[Drm50]

Me and 2 buddies all have 243s. I'm the one who does the loading. I have cardboard box in trunk the empties go into.
One night I had about 100 brass in box and decided to size
and deprime them. I was well into the 100 when it happened.
Boom! dust, dirt, and smoke rolled. Upon inspection a 22 LR
had ened up in a 243 case. Broke my pin and sizing button and
ruined my shorts. Didn't do any serious damage but got my
attention. I have done a little more inspection since.

 

[amazingflapjack]

Thanks for the heads up, and the humility to share it.

 

[rwsmith]

Thanks.....

It's amazing what weird things can go wrong. This isn't nearly as dangerous as your situation but I catch my rifle brass at the table so there's no scrabbling around to collect it. I had a hard time depriming a case and checked EVERYTHING (or so I thought) for about an hour and ended up loosing patience and damaging my decapping pin and rod. FINALLY figured out that a Berdan primed case had gotten in. How, I'll never know. I guess what we learned from this to inspect, whether you think you need to or not.

 

[fredj338]

Consider the rim is about 0.265", how is that even possible? I've had 380 sneak not a 45acp, but that is pretty easy. Glad there was no injury.

 

[Forrest r]

I started de-priming rifle cases decades ago by hand with one of those cheap lee tools that you insert a pin in the case and tap it with a hammer.

Takes all the fun/surprises out of reloading & is easier on the wardrobe but it works.

No more broken pins, no more bangs, no more nothing.

 

[ageingstudent]

I used to keep my 'calibers I don't load' brass under the bench in a box in a dark corner. I pulled out some .308 brass to decap for my brother-in-law and went to town on it. After about 30 cases the decapping pin had slime on it. A good sized funnel webspider had squeezed into that case. Just gave me the willies. I don't care for spiders. No more decapping without a flashlight.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

When I first started reloading (1979), I used a Lee loader in 303 British. You place a new primer, anvil up, in a spring loaded holder, put the deprimed case over the primer, and seat the primer by inserting a long rod into the case and tapping the rod with a hammer. At about the 35th case, the Large Rifle Primer went off. I came off the basement floor and flew upstairs to the bathroom. No damage done, just a little excessive pressure. Ivan

 

[ageingstudent]

When I first started reloading (1979), I used a Lee loader in 303 British. You place a new primer, anvil up, in a spring loaded holder, put the deprimed case over the primer, and seat the primer by inserting a long rod into the case and tapping the rod with a hammer. At about the 35th case, the Large Rifle Primer went off. I came off the basement floor and flew upstairs to the bathroom. No damage done, just a little excessive pressure. Ivan

That's how gray hair and baldness gets started. That and teenage daughters.

 

[Vulcan Bob]

When I first started reloading (1979), I used a Lee loader in 303 British. You place a new primer, anvil up, in a spring loaded holder, put the deprimed case over the primer, and seat the primer by inserting a long rod into the case and tapping the rod with a hammer. At about the 35th case, the Large Rifle Primer went off. I came off the basement floor and flew upstairs to the bathroom. No damage done, just a little excessive pressure. Ivan

Sounds familiar! I used the Lee Loader for the 30/40 Krag. I must have been heavy handed with the hammer, every now and again my Mom would ask, must you do that!

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

Actually My grey hair started in about 1996, I had 4 teenagers at home and one was very good looking daughter. A few primers being detonated during seating (12 and counting), are nothing to 5 totaled cars and 2 sons in combat zones! Ivan

 

[rwsmith]

I was tapping on a Lee tool.....

....when a primer went off. Not hurt but had to change my pants.

 

[Golphin]

I have found cases in cases but so far have not set off any primers. I try and pick my brass up as best I can at the indoor range but have at time had 40's or 38's get mixed in. Recently I have notice a few 45's with small primer pockets. I can see the day I crush a primer if I don't pay attention.

 

[05CarbonDRZ]

I have crushed a ton of primers and never had a single One go off.Not that I do it on purpose or that I think One will never explode...

 

[ageingstudent]

Actually My grey hair started in about 1996, I had 4 teenagers at home and one was very good looking daughter. A few primers being detonated during seating (12 and counting), are nothing to 5 totaled cars and 2 sons in combat zones! Ivan

You sir are granted sainthood. 4 teenagers at once...I think setting off a primer is prefferable.

 

[gwpercle]

When I first started reloading (1979), I used a Lee loader in 303 British. You place a new primer, anvil up, in a spring loaded holder, put the deprimed case over the primer, and seat the primer by inserting a long rod into the case and tapping the rod with a hammer. At about the 35th case, the Large Rifle Primer went off. I came off the basement floor and flew upstairs to the bathroom. No damage done, just a little excessive pressure. Ivan

That's exactly what prompted me to get a single stage press, and dies. Those primers randomly going off was just way too much excitement.
Gary

 

[mi2600]

Guess I've been lucky. Like 05Corbon, I've squeezed in primers upside down, even sideways.

 

[REM1875]

The old Lee handloader- everyone should spend some time with one.
Yes lauching the priming rod every once in awhile certianly gets your attention. 44-40 1978 right after I got home from Korea. That tool and the odd ball caliber (before the days of the cowboy craze) taught me all sorts of valuable lessons and about how God watches over and protects fools. That single stage rock chucker seemed like the fastest progressive after that.

 

[nagant]

I have a lee loader in .45 colt and now i have a lee hand loader. If a primer go's off with the hand loader it would be right in my face. Anybody have a bomb squad helmet

 

[fredj338]

That's exactly what prompted me to get a single stage press, and dies. Those primers randomly going off was just way too much excitement.
Gary

In more thn 200k + loaded rds on progressive presses, another 25k + on ss, never had a primer go off, randomly or otherwise. What are you guys doing wrong? Then again, I am smart enough to not seat primers with a *******g hammer.

 

[Doubless]

Different, but similar: years ago I bought several hundred lbs of linotype, and in that lot were a few "3-lb." coffee cans of Hensley and Gibbs #130s that had been cast but never sized. There was no way they were going through my Star sizer; I tried.... so I decided to re-melt and re-cast them into whatever I needed at the time. So: into the Pro-Melt they went, a few hundred at a time.

In the bottom of one can were 11 live primers. Ask me how I know there were eleven of them...

 

[Tadeus67]

Different, but similar: years ago I bought several hundred lbs of linotype, and in that lot were a few "3-lb." coffee cans of Hensley and Gibbs #130s that had been cast but never sized. There was no way they were going through my Star sizer; I tried.... so I decided to re-melt and re-cast them into whatever I needed at the time. So: into the Pro-Melt they went, a few hundred at a time.

In the bottom of one can were 11 live primers. Ask me how I know there were eleven of them...