• Winner! Quick Shot Challenge: What’s the dumbest shooting myth you’ve heard?

    View thread

Swage non-crimped brass??

Graye2

Sergeant of the Hide
Full Member
Minuteman
Oct 25, 2018
107
65
Milton, GA
I’m new to reloading and can be a bit obsessive so I think I’ll enjoy the physics of all this. I bought 100 rounds of 140gr ELDM Hornady factory rounds and fired them once through my desert tech 6.5 Creedmoor barrel. I bought the Sinclair primer pocket uniform tool so all will be set to the same depth but I as I was checking them with Ballistic Tool pocket swage gage, in some it fit perfect whereas others it won’t fit at all.

Should I swage them to a uniform diameter before priming? I know I would have to for crimped primers but I don’t believe Hornady crimps 6.5 and the fact that some are fine and others are tight are making me question this.

Thanks in advance!
 
Last edited:
Do not swage. It's common for brass to be a little tight taking a primer the first time or two. That large primer Horn brass will loosen up, more than you want them to.
 
I’m new to reloading and can be a bit obsessive so I think I’ll enjoy the physics of all this. I bought 100 rounds of 140gr ELDM Hornady factory rounds and fired them once through my desert tech 6.5 Creedmoor barrel. I bought the Sinclair primer pocket uniform tool so all will be set to the same depth but I as I was checking them with Ballistic Tool pocket swage gage, in some it fit perfect whereas others it won’t fit at all.

Should I swage them to a uniform diameter before priming? I know I would have to for crimped primers but I don’t believe Hornady crimps 6.5 and the fact that some are fine and others are tight are making me question this.

Thanks in advance!

I suggest you don’t swage as it will displace metal and raise material around the primer pocket. I prefer a RCBS military crimp cutter. It makes a dual angle cut, wider toward the outside and narrower toward the inside of the primer pocket. It is stupid easy and fast.
 
  • Like
Reactions: clcustom1911