Thread: Die problem

Yep the 5 7.62 are Berdan, brass was actually a though smaller to the neck than ones fired in my rifle. Been to see another member this evening and have a much better grasp. Thanks for everyone's input you never stop learning

Originally Posted by Happy Jack

Yep the 5 7.62 are Berdan, brass was actually a though smaller to the neck than ones fired in my rifle. Been to see another member this evening and have a much better grasp. Thanks for everyone's input you never stop learning

Nearly been caught myself with Berdan primed brass. If you suspect any like that in future shine torch down the case neck first to check the flash hole / s in the bottom of the case. Two holes is Berdan, as you probably learnt today.

Sorry about that, I didn't know they were Berdan primed

Originally Posted by 308

Sorry about that, I didn't know they were Berdan primed

No worries mate, I think we all learnt something from the exercise, and it was only 5 so all good.

Originally Posted by Happy Jack

Yep the 5 7.62 are Berdan, brass was actually a though smaller to the neck than ones fired in my rifle. Been to see another member this evening and have a much better grasp. Thanks for everyone's input you never stop learning

Greetings,
Older handloaders tend to forget that there was a time when most military cases encountered in NZ were Berdan primed. With .303 the difference was obvious with a larger primer dia. With 7.62 and 5.56 cases it was not so obvious and we would automatically peek inside the case to check if it was Berdan primed. These can often be reloaded but you need the correct primers. I have a batch of Berdan cases I deprimed hydraulically and some Berdan primers but have never got around to loading any.
In one of those quirks of history Boxer primers were developed by the English and Berdan primers in the US. The existence of Berdan primers and the need to clean rifle bores with boiling water after firing old military ammo seem to be two things that each generation needs to learn often the hard way.
Regards Grandpamac,