How much to swage pockets?

[timelinex]

I've been picking up range brass to start reloading 223 plinking rounds for my AR15 for a while now. So I bought a dillon super swage to get rid of the primer crimping that most of the LC brass has. Then when I was playing around with it to set it up, I realized something.

Even on the crimped LC brass( I verified that they were not previously swagged), I could easily insert the primers without crushing them. After doing some testing, by seating and then popping them out, the primers seated into crimped pockets still looked good. The only difference is that the ones seated into the crimped pockets have bright scratches on the sides of the primers, while the ones that were seated into non-crimped or swagged pockets barely do.

<span style="font-weight: bold">Is there a point in even swagging these pockets??? Should I just seat all of the primers and only swag the cases that won't accept a primer without too much force?</span>

I remember before I knew about crimped primers, I tried to seat a primer into some 308 crimped brass and I couldn't even begin to seat them. I thought this is how it would be would all crimped primer brass.

 

[lanwickum]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

I swage everyone. Crimped primmer pockets that is. It is easy enough to do with the dillon super swage.

 

[Teggy1]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

If you are loading on a single stage press, I guess that would be fine.

On the other hand, you have the best swage tool on the market (IMHO) it is easy and fast. Your going to spend more time knocking out the primer that doesn't seat, swage, and reprime, than it would take to swage 20 pcs. of brass.

I am running mine (Lake City 5.56) through a progressive (a few thousand), so I'd be pissed if I had to stop for partially stuck primer that won't seat because I didn't swage.

 

[timelinex]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

So then what am I supposed to set the dillom tool to? It's already easy to hand prime them, so I don't know how much to adjust the tool

 

[Beef82]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

I've had some crimped pockets that took primers ok, in fact I thought I'd already swaged them, and then I'd run into one that became a few that jammed up/crushed and were a pain. I feel its better to swage first than deal with that, bit more adamant about tagging now.

 

[insight3b]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

What you do to adjust the dillon is this:
Insert a deprimed case onto the rod and flip it down.
Lower the handle and run the swage into the primer pocket.
Not enough removal then raise the handle and flip the case back up.
Loosen the lock nut on the case stem. Turn the stem to the left(as looking down at it with the handle side near you) This lengthens the rod the case rests on.
Tighten the lock ring back up and insert a case onto the stem.
Flip the case down and lower the other handle. Wth your other hand jiggle the case until the swager slides into the primer pocket. With the swager inserted into the primer pocket let everything go.
With the handle facing your chest and the flipper to the rear there is a hole on your right side of the SS600. Insert th correct size allen wrnench and start movingthe screw in ether direction. Turn the allen screw until the silver block under the case touches the case...not presses against the case but just touches it. Your SS600 is now set-up to swage for whatever headstamp brass you have in it. WHenever I do say LC and switc to FC or WCC I have to readjust.
I know this description is clear as mud so I'll be happy to elp you over the phone. Just pm me your ph #

 

[Teggy1]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

What Insight said is pretty close to verbatim from the Dillon instruction manual.

I like your sig. line Insight

 

[JoeBUtah]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

I have a Dillon swager as well for pick-up 5.56 brass although as you have discovered, not all brass needs to be swaged.

Working on a single stage press, my first step is to deprime with a dedicated deprime-only die. As the brass comes out of the press, I then insert a Lyman Pocket uniformer. This step allows me to determine if the primer pocket needs to be swaged if the tool does not fit. If it does fit, then the pocket gets squared up. Then I resize and trim as needed.

When I get to the priming stage I keep my swager, pocket uniformer, pocket reamer, and deburring tool handy. When I come upon a stubborn primer, I'll deploy whatever I have at my disposal to get it to fit.

Seems tedious, and it is, but I just run 100 or pieces of brass or so at a time and once I've got a thousand or more primed, I fill them up.

 

[insight3b]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Teggy1</div><div class="ubbcode-body">What Insight said is pretty close to verbatim from the Dillon instruction manual.

I like your sig. line Insight </div></div>

Thanks.

 

[Deadshot2]

Re: How much to swage pockets?

I just sort all brass by mfr and swage away. Even if they don't "need" it, with a Dillon Super Swage it's just as easy to do a whole batch rather than try and figure out if the pocket's swaged or not already. I also find that this helps with some brands of brass that the Mfr doesn't put much, if any, radius on the primer pocket opening.

It's important to segregate brass prior to swaging due to the different web thicknesses. That will insure the proper amount of radius on the pocket opening and primers will slip in with few issues. Real important on a progressive.