Advice on primmed casings

Looking for advice. I have some .45 ACP, .357 Magnum, and .38 special that are sized and primed. All I have to do is dump powder and load bullets. The problem is that I have no idea what the primers are. I don't even know if they have been primed with standard or magnum primers. What should I do with these casings? Is there a load that I could use that would be safe regardless of the primer used? I know that everyplace you read about it that you are not supposed to deprime live primers but, I wonder if there is really much of a safety issue. I don't want to get in the habit of depriming live primers but, should I really have much of concern? I have deprimed a few live primers with nothing ever becoming of it. What would happen if one would go off. As a kid, I remember getting into my dad's primers and setting them off, individually, by dropping a hammer on them on the concrete. Nothing bad happened. Glad my dad never found out or something bad would have happened. So what do you think? I have a couple hundred cases that are primed.

I would assume the hottest primers and load light and use for plinking...

unknown powder would be a completely diff story...

You could also deprime using a firearm, would just need to clean it thoroughly...

Load them like you normally would, avoiding max loads.

You can also deprime them like you would normally would, using care and caution.
Hope this helps.

K.E.C. Darkside said:

Load them like you normally would, avoiding max loads.

You can also deprime them like you would normally would, using care and caution.
Hope this helps.

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Make slow contact with the primer and then just push them out with slow gradual pressure?

Unless you are some sort of competition pistol shooter, I'd just load those primed cases with a light load and shoot away. Magnum versus standard primers will never put a judicious load over limit.

Just load up some light loads assuming mag primers and have fun shooting them. I am about to do the same plinking bullets are 50-60 bucks per 500. Great practice

Thanks

Buck

I would not deprime a hot primer, ESPECIALLY a lot of them to many opportunity's for a safety issue. I would load mid loads and use for training as usual at close distances there shouldn't be a significant amount of difference unless all X's are required.
Just my two cents, like butt holes everybody has one.
Nick

I would not deprime a hot primer, ESPECIALLY a lot of them to many opportunity's for a safety issue. I would load mid loads and use for training as usual at close distances there shouldn't be a significant amount of difference unless all X's are required.
Just my two cents, like butt holes everybody has one.
Nick

Sorry about that hit it twice, dunhhh.

cdherman said:

Unless you are some sort of competition pistol shooter, I'd just load those primed cases with a light load and shoot away. Magnum versus standard primers will never put a judicious load over limit.

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This. Guys get WAY too worried about small stuff. I have never seen a standard pistol or revolver load go over pressure by changing from regular to magnum primers. If it was a top load on the ragged edge, MAYBE, regular loads, never.

Keep primers in and load 5 @ mid chargeable test. I've had some primed brass that had terrible inconsistent primers. Not as in unsafe, just wouldn't go bang.

slick Nick said:

I would not deprime a hot primer, ESPECIALLY a lot of them to many opportunity's for a safety issue. I would load mid loads and use for training as usual at close distances there shouldn't be a significant amount of difference unless all X's are required.
Just my two cents, like butt holes everybody has one.
Nick

Click to expand...

You are certainly free to go about things as you wish, but know that depriming hot primers has been done by many, and I've yet to hear a case where a hot primer detonated by the act. I had to deprime 3000 cases once when the WLR primers were discovered to be defective. I've deprimed countless other cases with no issues. I've also not detected any performance reduction reusing the decapped primers. This question has popped up on the forums for the past 30yrs.

Load up some at grain and a half under max, shoot them. If all works well.
Then load the rest. Pistol primers are not as big a deal between mag and standard.

Knowing the history on the primed brass would a great thing to know.

I have de primed untold thousands of brass that has been primed with never an issue, brother the same. Always a good idea to wear safety glasses, go easy on the ram not slamming it up and down.