Primer Performance — Technical Insights by CCI Expert
Winchester Pistol Primers on bench. Photo courtesy UltimateReloader.com.
There is an excellent article about primers on the Shooting Times website. We strongly recommend you read Mysteries And Misconceptions Of The All-Important Primer, written by Allan Jones. Mr. Jones is a bona fide expert — he served as the manager of technical publications for CCI Ammunition and Speer Bullets and Jones authored three editions of the Speer Reloading Manual.
» READ Full Primer “Mysteries and Misconceptions” Article
This authoritative Shooting Times article explains the fine points of primer design and construction. Jones also reveals some little-known facts about primers and he corrects common misconceptions. Here are some highlights from the article:
Size Matters
Useful Trivia — even though Small Rifle and Small Pistol primer pockets share the same depth specification, Large Rifle and Large Pistol primers do not. The standard pocket for a Large Pistol primer is somewhat shallower than its Large Rifle counterpart, specifically, 0.008 to 0.009 inch less.Magnum Primers
There are two ways to make a Magnum primer — either use more of the standard chemical mix to provide a longer-burning flame or change the mix to one with more aggressive burn characteristics. Prior to 1989, CCI used the first option in Magnum Rifle primers. After that, we switched to a mix optimized for spherical propellants that produced a 24% increase in flame temperature and a 16% boost in gas volume.Foiled Again
Most component primers have a little disk of paper between the anvil and the priming mix. It is called “foil paper” not because it’s made of foil but because it replaces the true metal foil used to seal early percussion caps. The reason this little disk exists is strictly a manufacturing convenience. Wet primer pellets are smaller than the inside diameter of the cup when inserted and must be compacted to achieve their proper diameter and height. Without the foil paper, the wet mix would stick to the compaction pins and jam up the assembly process.Read Full Primer Story on ShootingTimes.com:
http://www.shootingtimes.com/ammo/ammunition_st_mamotaip_200909
VIDEOS about PRIMERS
Here are two videos that offer some good, basic information on primers:
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Tags: Allan Jones, Anvil, CCI, Flash Hole, Foil, Gun Digest, Ignition, Magnum Primer, Primer, Primer Cup, Reloading, Shooting Times, Speer
While the article contains much useful information, something that probably should have been added is that what is referred to as the bridge thickness (proper depth below the case head) depends on the depth of the primer pocket. This is particularly important for shooters who feel compelled to modify pocket depth. Shooters who do not shoot as well as those who compete in formal benchrest matches, but who cannot get their heads around seating primers by feel are likely to scurry around and measure how deeply they are seating their primers without taking this into consideration.