Can I de-prime cases with live primers?
Or is this just a really bad idea?
Or is there a way to kill the primers before I start poking around in there?
I’m using a single-stage manual press and Lee(?) die.
Long story short, need to make some live ammo inert for a certain specific reason.
I’ve deprimed live cases before and never ran into any problems. You should be fine as long as you don’t jam the press down really hard and fast.
Do you have a dedicated de-priming die? If not, it may be a good idea to get one for this specific purpose.
I’ve done it several times. Just take it slow and easy and you’ll be fine. If you do want to kill them first, a squirt of WD-40 in the case will kill them in short order.
I hand prime and on occasion I’ll accidentally seat one upside down (1 per 1K or so). These, I slowly de-prime, flip the primer and put it back in the right way. I just make sure it goes in my “target/blasting” ammo bin and not my hunting ammo bin.
Wear eye protection and you will be fine.
Another voice in the chorus: no problem depriming live cases. Take the same precautions that you (hopefully) are when priming and wear eye protection.
No reason to “kill” them before you do it, unless you want to intentionally waste the $.
Great.
Onyx-Yes, I do have a dedicated depriming die.
Thanks for the info.
I’ve never done it and I see no reason to start. A primer with case here or there is hardly going to break the bank and I am not wealthy by any stretch. I say try to deaden it and throw it away. Not worth it.
A buddy of mine had a primer tube jam and tried to unjam it with a rod. Now he has fewer fingers than he was born with. Primers are sensitive to ignition and tough to kill.
Un-jamming a primer tube with a rod (I assume using a tube on a progressive machine where numerous primers are all stacked together), and de-priming single cases using a decapping die, are two completely separate situations.
+1
It makes me nervous, but I do it. Just be very slow and gentle…
I’ve deprimed live cases in every configuration. Primer in normal, backwards, sideways and at an angle. Never a problem.
If you truly are concerned shoot the primer with some WD-40/Oil. That will desensitize it.
Some years ago I did a little experiment where I loaded up six 45 acp brass with a primer, squirted about 1/4" of WD-40 in each case and left them to soak overnight. Came back in the AM, dumped out the WD-40, chambered the empty case in one of my 1911’s and pulled the trigger.
BANG!!
Repeated for every one of the cases I had loaded. Six bangs.
Don’t recall whose primer I used - likely Fed or CCI. Whatever the case, don’t rely on WD40 to kill em.
YMMV, etc. etc.
I’ve never had one detonate when I went slow and easy. My brother says he had one go off and it wasn’t that bad an experience.
Just treat it as though it WILL go off and use good safety procedures. That means eye protection, gloves and long sleeves. Wrap old rags around any area where sparks and tiny shrapnel might shoot out.
It’s not going to be very loud if you can find some place to shoot it.
Believe it or not in my 40 years of reloading I had one go off when I was seating a primer the right way
and to this day don’t know how it happen.The primer did not have a mark on it. It went off like it was a percussion cap.