Uniforming Primer Pockets

[45R]

Who does this when prepping brass? Do you actually see an accuracy improvement over just brass with primer pockets that have not been "uniformed".

[mark501w]

Ido it to make sure my primers sit below the cartridge face. Ido flash holes also . I think it helps.

['ol shooter]

I used to do it just to make sure the primer would seat fully. Since I started wet tumbling, I inspect the pockets when re-sizing, and if it doesn't look right, I set it aside and do all the ones that need it at one sitting. I also do the same when processing new brass the first time. I will clean up the flash hole also if there is a burr on it. I rarely do either anymore, though.

[Divernhunter]

Rarely do it.
I did on all my ammo I loaded for Africa just because. Did the flash holes. I even weighted and separated brass to within one grain. Maybe overkill but I may never get back.
I still do all flash holes because I noticed many with big burrs in them. I think that matters more than the primer pockets

[CSACANNONEER]

I do on my 50BMG rounds.

[ireload]

I do. Plus also debur the flash hole. As far as helping out with accuracy, I never did check it. I'm sure it helps in some degree. I'm just anal with brass prep. If the brass is going to be scraped soon then I don't bother.

[John Browning]

I found it to be a huge waste of time, but I am not a benchrest guy.

[Khromo]

I bought a Lyman Case Prep Xpress when they were on sale for about $100-110. I added a flash hole deburring tool.

I put on some music, and then I trim all my new rifle brass. I put away the trimmer and then use the Lyman to uniform the primer pocket, deburr the flash hole, and chamfer the necks inside and out. It goes pretty quickly because you are doing all those operations at the same time, and you're only handling each piece of brass once.

I figure that since you have to trim and chamfer anyway, you might as well perform the one-time-only operations (flash hole and primer pockets) while you have the brass in your hand. The motor saves a lot of wear on your hands. You get a lot of brass shavings, mostly from the flash holes.

Most of my buddies who are serious benchrest shooters swear by flash hole deburring, but they don't seem as enthusiastic about uniforming the primer pockets.

David Tubb covered it in his DVD on reloading for high power competition, and if I remember correctly he recommended doing it for shooting beyond 300 yards, or for important matches.

I don't do it for pistol ammo. If I didn't have the Lyman, I probably wouldn't bother because it is hard on my hands.

[LynnJr]

The whole reason for reloading is so all your rounds will be as consistent as humanly possible.
Uniform your primer pockets.

[bruss01]

The whole reason for reloading is so all your rounds will be as consistent as humanly possible.
Uniform your primer pockets.

That's the reason SOME people reload. I'd think it's fair to say it's not everyone's primary concern though.

I've run into a batch of .40 range brass from one of the local sheriff's practice ranges. The primer pockets seem to be VERY tight on about 30 % of them... enough to cause problems with my dillon press. And when you lose the regularity on the progressive, what should have a great time saver turns into a huge time waste.

I don't think I'd bother with uniforming primer pockets to get a wee bit more accuracy from my .40 pistol loads... but if it makes the press run smoother and the process more efficient once done, then it is of some tangible value to me.

[stevec223]

I uniform military brass after i swage them out.. Some are pretty shallow and need it,, most just a scrape will do.. Commercial brass i usually just hit with the pocket brush... I use a RCBS prep center and it works very well... Doing this also makes me look closer at the quality of the brass and for defects... Cheers..

[Khromo]

...I've run into a batch of .40 range brass from one of the local sheriff's practice ranges. The primer pockets seem to be VERY tight on about 30 % of them... enough to cause problems with my dillon press...

I don't think uniforming the pockets will help with that problem. The diameter of the pocket shouldn't be affected, just the depth.

[bruss01]

I don't think uniforming the pockets will help with that problem. The diameter of the pocket shouldn't be affected, just the depth.

I didn't think so either... until I met this batch.

[23's Dad]

I uniform primer pockets on:

Brass that I am using for matches. It only takes a couple of seconds and it is one less OCD worry. The Precision Reloading Handbook recommends uniforming the pocket every time because there is a bit of brass flow. (This is for max OCD BR types). I just do it the first time I prep the brass.

Any Crimped Brass (Rifle, Match Rifle, or Surplus Pistol). After cutting the crimp with my chamfering tool, I find the primer pocket uniformer to be a pretty good gauge. If I can't easily uniform the pocket, there is usually a bit of crimp remaining.

[J-cat]

Primer pocket uniformer cuts only the depth. It supposedly helps with ignition in that all the primers are seated to the same depth. Maybe it does. I used to do it but now I don't. Maybe I'll start doing it again. Damm you people.