Older primed brass

[Levergun1]

So, here's my question. No right or wrong answers.

Say that you purchased 150 pieces of rifle brass that was primed. You know nothing about the history of the brass, as far as when it was primed.

This brass is only going to be loaded as range ammo. No self defense or even hunting.

What percentage of the brass would you test the primers on or how many would have to pop, in a row, before you would expend the time to reload them?

Just curious what other's approaches would be.

 

[shibumiseeker]

They are fine. It’s pretty hard to kill primers so if there’s no corrosion, load and shoot.

 

[Levergun1]

They are fine. It’s pretty hard to kill primers so if there’s no corrosion, load and shoot.

So, you wouldn't at least be curious and snap 2 or 3 of the primers in the rifle.

 

[Michigan Slim]

I'd snap a couple or five. If good to go, load away. I wouldn't run top loads as they could be Magnum primers.

 

[Levergun1]

I'd snap a couple or five. If good to go, load away. I wouldn't run top loads as they could be Magnum primers.

I am going to load them for a Garand, so they will be kept under 50,000 psi.

 

[76Too]

Shoot em.

As stated above, primers are pretty hardy. You literally have to TRY to make them inert...they don’t absorb moisture like I’ve seen claimed, so they should be perfectly fine.

I’d definitely test one before loading the rest.

I have a pet reduced load for my Garands with a 168 Nosler CC w/43gr of Varget that shoots well below peak pressures and still cycles all my rifles.

 

[Bill2905]

Check a few randomly sampled from the lot to see if they go bang. If the brass looks like it was stored well with no dirt or corrosion, they are very likely to still be good.

I took a chance on a brick of old white box Winchester rifle primers (90's vintage) this past year. I sampled one each from about half of the trays and each one was good when tested. So far, they have been fine in the loads I put them in.

 

[2in1evtime]

I have primers that have to be 35 years old or more and they work as new, it is in all how they are stored really!

 

[Reale1741]

I had several cases of military primers that were from 1944. Used them in loading ammo for my Garand and never had a single dud or hangfire. I did, of course, load a few and pop them in an empty case just to make sure. If I were in your situation, I'd pop a few just to be sure.

 

[shibumiseeker]

So, you wouldn't at least be curious and snap 2 or 3 of the primers in the rifle.

Me? No. I’ve torture tested primers (with posts here of the results) enough to be very confident. You do you though if it makes you happy.

 

[Leo]

One thing about other people's brass. Make sure the stuff will chamber in your rifle before you load it. . Some bolt action guys only neck size. If your chamber is tighter than the rifle they came out of, the brass could stick. When that M1 slams the round in and it is 2mm shy of closing, you have a mess. Trying to hammer a loaded round out of a chamber is not my favorite thing to do.

One more thing, if the brass is before WWII, it could be mercury fulminate primers that are corrosive.

 

[indyblue]

Isn't about the only thing that can make primers inert grease/oily substances?

I'd check that none of the brass was lubed after priming. If they seem clean & dry they should be ok.

 

[BE Mike]

Now is not the time to waste primers to see if they are any good. Load up the primed brass and test them on the range.

 

[DadSmith]

Isn't about the only thing that can make primers inert grease/oily substances?

I'd check that none of the brass was lubed after priming. If they seem clean & dry they should be ok.

Curious as to why a person would lube a case after priming it?

 

[indyblue]

Curious as to why a person would lube a case after priming it?

Inexperience? I just threw it out there. The point was just to check to make sure no greasy/oily residue made it's way onto/into them however unlikely.

I use full length sizing/depriming dies and I tumble the deprimed brass to thoroughly clean the primer pockets before any other operations but who knows how these were prepped?

 

[shibumiseeker]

Isn't about the only thing that can make primers inert grease/oily substances?

I'd check that none of the brass was lubed after priming. If they seem clean & dry they should be ok.

I soaked a bunch in oil, like immersed them for a couple of days, and still half went bang. I had a little better luck after they had some of the oil evaporate over a few weeks.

Soaked in water for several days, about 3/4 still went bang. And all of them went bang after they dried out. When they are made at the factory, they use water to wet the compound before it is pressed into the primer.

 

[VinceU1]

Is the brass really old, like WW2 old? Check to make sure the primers aren't corrosive and shoot 'em.

 

[BE Mike]

Is the brass really old, like WW2 old? Check to make sure the primers aren't corrosive and shoot 'em.

Corrosive primers can still be fired, as long as, the gun is cleaned immediately after each shooting session. Hot soapy water works well, followed by good drying and oiling.

 

[Hawkeye7br]

From a batch of 150, I would pull 5 at random to test. It will cost 50 cents to replace.
Without knowledge of brass origin or history, I would definitely chamber 20 or more before loading to see if they fit correctly.

 

[cmstuard]

I just loaded some CCI pistol primers from the 80's for my father-in-law (his vintage stash). They all went bang.