Printable View
I load a lot of 308 for f class shooting..One thing I hate
is brass prep..I seldomclean the pockets unless they are really
crudy..Do you guys clean your's everytime?
I can see no difference in accuracy with my loadings and
dirty pockets.All primes are seated with a RCBS bench
priming tool...John
No difference IME.
I have a lee tool, but don't use it much.
Me nether as long as the hole is open its good too go ;-)
I will run a uniformer thru the pocket first time i load then if it looks really bad i have a 1/64 allen wrench i scrape the gunk out with.
I use a small screwdriver and just twist it in the pocket and knock the big chunks out.
If I'm trimming with the Redding (unusual; don't need to for most of my brass or most loadings) I might put the brass across the pocket cleaner on the frame, or not. I have the Lee tool, too, but rarely use it.
For my semi-autos with a floating firing pin, I use a uniformer to ensure the primers are seated below flush. For my bolts, not always but sometimes I'll use the little lee tool.
Here's my long answer to a "short" question:
Hornady Primer Pocket Cleaner is used on all cases after each firing. Couple of twists is all it takes to remove most of the large crud.
Does this small step take a lot of time? No
Is this small step a pain in the arse? Not to me.
Does this small step provide better accuracy? I don't know.
Does this small step allow primers to be properly seated a few thousandths below the base of the case? Probably yes.
Does this small step cause any harm to the case? Probably not.
Does this small step improve the performance of the primer/case interface? Probably yes.
Will I continue to conduct this small cleaning operation? Yes.
Will I feel guilty if I do not conduct this small cleaning operation? Yes.
When, at the range, I shoot the occasional flyer, will I think it might have been caused by a not-so-thoroughly-cleaned primer pocket? Probably.
Assuming every action we take in life has either a positive or negative outcome, or both, (I suspect some might challenge me on this statement) I would suspect primer pocket cleaning has more of a positive effect than a negative one.
Best wishes and good luck to all.
that sounds like a lot of work for nothing..lol
Thank god for dirty primer pockets or else how would you keep the primer from falling back out, LOL
Ditto.Quote:
Originally Posted by jimbo88mm
Good post. Read a test on tumbling brass and accuracy a while back. No difference in accuracy could be shown between tumbled clean brass and "dirty" brass that had been fired several times.
I use the rcbs brush in there handle, along with a neck chamfer and a neck brush
I have found that in precision reloading the primer pocket is THE most overlooked part. Cold ignigtion can wreak havok on small groups, and this is why consistant primerer seating depth is crutial. Cleaning primer pockets can help but it is not enough, the primer pocket needded re-cut and uniformed after each firing. With this it will ensure that the primers are set at the correct, and uniformed seating height. It only takes a second to do. Seating a primer on a dirty primer pocket is only asking for trouble.
Agreed.Quote:
Originally Posted by Trent
It's like painting an older car to make it run better..lol When I was shooting the Pennsylvania 1000 game
few cleaned the pockets and few weighed the powder charge and they still shot excellent scores..
I seldomtumble the brass...Unless it is real dirty..You can only seat the primer so deep..My RCBS
bench tool seats themgood everytime...Iam just glad to see I am not the only one to not clean them..
If someone looks at your crappy looking brass, might make them wonder about the rest of your gear?
Clean brass keeps the crud off the inside of the chamber and for anyone that see's it, might make them think that you really know what you're doing?.
Clean primer pockets makes for the same seating depth all the time.
If you can't bother to keep the pockets cleaned out, what else are you letting go?
But factory ammo, shoot it and throw the brass away. That way you won't have to worry about the dirty primer pockets!
Trent, with respect, I am going to disagree with you a teensy bit. You state "...It is an absolutely unnecessary step that is done purely for aesthetics...." I do not clean primer pockets for aesthetics. I clean them so the primer is seated solidly against the base of the primer pocket. When so seated, the primer will absorb the full impact of the firing pin and not be "cushioned" by crud at the bottom the primer pocket. That's all. :smug:
Continued best wishes and good luck to all. :cheerful:
I never had primers get that crudy in the first place.What kind of primer are you using?
I clean them once in awhile but not everytime..Ihave to see prove that it is reallyneeded.
until someone can give me the proff that it is absulutly nesseary I aint gonna worry about..
I asked 82 boy basically this same question. It only takes a second to hit the brass with the uniformer and you don't have anything to worry about, HOPEFULLY
Dennis
All I can say is the "anal BR guys" your talking about must not be competitive, I cant think of a competitive Benchrest shooter that doesn't uniform their primers. When I went through Jack Neary's tuning clinic, he also stated that unifrorming the primer pocket after every firing is one of the most curtial things that can be done for accuracy. When it comes down to wining and loosing by a couple thousands of an inch, I cant think of a single BR shooter that would be willing to risk loosing on the possibility that they seated a primer on a dirty pocket. Also consider that most benchrest shooters will pay between $75 $120 dollars just for a priming tool to garentee that each primer is set to the proper deeph, I can imigine then using it, and saying that it dont matter if you seat a primer on a dirty pocket.Quote:
Originally Posted by Trent
I guess I was not aware that uniforming primer pockets was the same thing as cleaning them..My mistake....My bench priming tool will seat a primer in a dirty pocket with ease..And I understand that maybe a hand primer will not do the same job..And as far as careing what someone thinks about my brass not being shiney,,I could care less what they think..You can clean it untilthe cows come home and still not be a good shot...You do your thing and come on over and show me your accuracy..Do a simple test yourself..Load some with uncleaned pocket and some cleaned..Then do some shooting and see if they is a difference.I think you will be surprised...Like I did the same thing with inside neck cleaning..I found the inside clean necks shot some what worse than the dirty inside necks...Only thing I could figure was that the risidue was like a lube..The bullets even seated easier...So go figure..Quote:
Originally Posted by 82boy
Yes every time
PSE EVO 57 Lbs.
Blacked out
+1 with Patrick's comments - I'm 100% with him on this....
I know one person who doesn't - and he's usually sitting in the seat next to you on the way to and from matches. :whistle: Can't say I've ever seen Fred clean or re-uniform a primer pocket while reloading between relays at a match (unless he's just recently started doing it). And from what I hear, he's still whipping up on you and that fancy new-fangled "Spruce Goose" of yours. LOLQuote:
Originally Posted by 82boy
:boink:
As for me, I'll uniform the primer pocket when I first get the brass and ream the primer passage hole, but that's it. If it's Lapua or Norma brass that lasts awhile I may end up cleaning them once or twice over the course of 20-30-40 loadings, but usually don't bother with the cheaper Win/Rem/Hornady brass.
I'm pretty much a believer in uniforming the pockets as part of the initial brass prep, but cleaning after that....ehhhh.
I made these for use in my Wilson trimmer many moons ago. IIRC they are the old style from Sinclair.
http://i47.tinypic.com/5yum0x.jpg
Most brass including Norma and Lapua always seem to have radius at the edge of the pocket wall and floor to varying degrees and some brass the floor is tapered, low in the center. After squaring depending on the primer anvil you'll see two or three spots with primer residue on the floor and the rest of it almost perfectly clean. The other thing after squaring, when seating a primer it stops like it hit a rock instead of a spongy feeling.
BTW, I use a K&M priming tool in the room and the old Lee that came with the target loaded in my range box.
I like to feel the primers seat. After bottoming out I'll give them a little additional nudge and call it good. I do have a RCBS tube feed bench priming tool with a shortened handle, but I only use it on the rare occasion if for some reason I'm loading 20 or more rounds and I'm in a hurry!
Cleaning? Well, I'm from the camp if one think it helps it probably does!
Bill
Okay, I must ask: Who, in the name of goodness, is "Patrick"? :confused:
You properly imagine I must truly enjoy displaying my ignorance before the entire universe of earthly reloaders. :sour:
Best wishes and good health to all. :angel:
John_M: I believe he is referencing user 82boy.
Look at the signature line below 82boy's post.
(Don't feel stupid...it is ok to be ignorant. I was also. I had to search the thread for the answer.)
Well you have not paid much attention to his loading technique. He has a lee primeing tool, that he has adapted a primer pocket cleaner onto the front, and every shell he loads on there he places the case and gives it a little twist, cleaning the pockets before he seats the primer. So yes he does clean every time, and has done it as long as I have known him, and shot with him. You may not have noticed it because it is very subtle.Quote:
Originally Posted by Admin
Now for beating up on the Spruce goose you may want to check out the SE Ohio match report. I had a bad flyer in the first match, (It is wasn't for that it would have been a nice small group.) but you may want to look and see who shot the smaller groups in the second 2 match's. (Dang it I came close to winning money 3 times, and at the very end, I would just get beat out.)
http://benchrest.com/showthread.php?...-Shoot-Results
So, he doesn't re-uniform them, then?
:D
Nope, but at least he does clean them.
But I can say that it is safe to say Fred has learned a lot this year, and how subtle little things can make a big diference. For example, Fred has realy shot good this year, before he was competitive, but now he is more of a terror than ever, and just plain dang shooting good. Fred changed one thing in his reloading technique, and this has made all the diference, He stated trimming the me-plats on his bullets. Fred is experimenting with diferent stuff, and who know he might try uniforming the primer pockets, and it may make a big diference for him.
I started cleaning the insides of the necks on my brass again, I thought that this was a waste of time, but I can say it did make a diference for me. In the end, what this all pretains to is finial tweeking of a round, and the affects of it on accuracy. Many will shoot well doing the things they do, and many can say they have tried this and it did not work for them, but it may be that they have not truly properly documented the evidence before and after, to come to the conclusion, that they have come to. On uniforming primer pockets, just about every BR shooter I know dose it, Top names in the sport swear by it, (Read Mike Ratigan book, and look at other sources.) and I have come to the conclusion, to get the utmost in accuracy, it is absolutly necassary. With this all said I will qoute something a smart man that has been my shooting mentor has always said when asked questions about relaoding or gun building ETC "If it makes you feel good then do it, if it dont, then dont do it."
If I am taking the time to turn case necks, why would I chance inconsistent primer seating? I clean; every time.
Never noticed the modification to Fred's Lee priming tool, but never really looked real closely at it either. Touche`Quote:
Originally Posted by 82boy
As for the Spruce Goose - I wasn't beating up on it, just ribbing you a little. I'm actually waiting for ya to get that stock painted and post up some pics so we can watch everyone scratch their heads trying to figure out what it is. lol
Heard you did pretty good down south the other weekend but kept getting edged out for small group by someone in the later relays.
guess i'm anal when it comes to cleaning my brass i deprime my brass in a universal deprimer then run mine thru a ultra-sonic cleaner for 24 minutes next tumble for 1 hour then resize . i couldnt beleive how much crud came out of my brass the first time i sonic cleaned them .
I almost put a picture up of it, I had it up for a minute, and then I pulled it down. I will say that it is showing some promis. I know that you was razzing me, but I thought I would still defend her honer. She is just an expermintal little girl, that I am sure would cause quite a stir.;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Admin
one thing that got me was i was starting to show alittle bit of pressure sign on some of my cases now let me say these cases are on thier last set of reloadings i've been shooting them and reloading them for heck 3yrs maybe i lost count on how many times i have reloaded them (lapua). after i started using the sonic cleaner on them the pressure sign i was seeing went away i ruled out powder lot difference(same lot) the only thing that comes to mind is i had so much crude in the case that it was taking up some case volume and maybe increasing pressure there. and yes the slugde was thick.
Quit teasing us man! Put the picture up!Quote:
Originally Posted by 82boy
Just wait untill she is painted, good things come to thous that wait.