De-Priming before Sizing

[Ronin6]

Why do some reloaders remove the spent primers in a separate step vs during the sizing process?

Neck sizing only or also FL sizing?

[ar15barrels]

Some people go crazy about having their primer pockets shiny clean so they decap the cases before cleaning the cases so that the pockets will be cleaned out.

Clean primer pockets help accuracy and reliability just about as much as clean underwear.
Maybe a little less than a clean hat does.

[RickD427]

I do it because I wet tumble my cases before sizing and I want to clean the primer pockets during the tumbling process.

I dry tumble the cases, with a case polishing additive after sizing to remove the die sizing wax and to put a protective coating on the cases.

[ar15barrels]

There's one of those crazy people.

[L4D]

im crazy. I deprime, wet tumble, resize then I wash again to get the lube off.

[RickD427]

There's one of those crazy people.

And damn proud of it too.

I shot tactical rifles for many years and used quite conventional reloading techniques, and was pretty happy with 1/2 MOA groups.

Then I caught the benchrest bug and like a lot of benchrest folks have become fanatical about my loads and load development. It paid off, I went from 1/2" groups at 100 yards and just shot a .292" group at 200 yards (that's a 1/8 MOA).

That "Crazy" stuff pays off.

[ar15barrels]

And damn proud of it too.

I shot tactical rifles for many years and used quite conventional reloading techniques, and was pretty happy with 1/2 MOA groups.

Then I caught the benchrest bug and like a lot of benchrest folks have become fanatical about my loads and load development. It paid off, I went from 1/2" groups at 100 yards and just shot a .292" group at 200 yards (that's a 1/8 MOA).

That "Crazy" stuff pays off.

I shot a 0.95" 3 shot group at 600yds in 5 seconds (no joke) with dirty primer pockets.
How much better do you figure it would have been with clean primer pockets?

[RickD427]

I shot a 0.95" 3 shot group at 600yds in 5 seconds (no joke) with dirty primer pockets.
How much better do you figure it would have been with clean primer pockets?

As I'm sure you're well aware, there a lot of "Voodoo Magic" involved in benchrest. I'm still very much a newbie and learning the sport (and figuring out the "Voodoo")

But from a purely geometrical point of view .262 at 200 yards would be equal to .876 at 600 yards. The difference between .876 and .950 would be .074.

Since we're only talking about dirty primer pockets, I'd say the difference is .074"

[pacrat]

As I'm sure you're well aware, there a lot of "Voodoo Magic" involved in benchrest. I'm still very much a newbie and learning the sport (and figuring out the "Voodoo")

But from a purely geometrical point of view .262 at 200 yards would be equal to .876 at 600 yards. The difference between .876 and .950 would be .074.

Since we're only talking about dirty primer pockets, I'd say the difference is .074"

Yet shooting in the real world is quite a bit more involved than just the geometric aspect. Or it would not be the best shooter, with the most accurate rifle, and consistent loads who wins on any given day.

It would be whichever "nerd" showed up with the biggest calculator on the firing line.

Conversations like this makes me glad I never got bit by the Benchy Bug.

[Cheep]

I deprime then wet tumble so the brass can dry all the way, the spent primer will hold water.

[glassparman]

I like my brass looking like brand new so I deprime AND size in one step then I wet tumble.

It's all a matter of preference. Do what you like.

[Dirtlaw]

I like my brass looking like brand new so I deprime AND size in one step then I wet tumble.

It's all a matter of preference. Do what you like.

glassparman has a good point. Many people do this because they enjoy it -- it makes them feel good. I can rough machine a part that will work, as an example, but for some reason I feel better when the part looks perfectly machined.

[morthrane]

I deprime then wet tumble so the brass can dry all the way, the spent primer will hold water.

This. Plus I can deprime with a dedicated decapping die in a handheld while watching TV.

(In theory cleaning the brass before sizing keeps your sizing die from getting scratched up by crud, but who knows if that's actually useful and/or true)

[ar15barrels]

But from a purely geometrical point of view .262 at 200 yards would be equal to .876 at 600 yards. The difference between .876 and .950 would be .074.

You are missing the wind part.
It's much more important than the basic geometry part at 600.

[G38xOC]

I read somewhere they do it for long term storage .