Always check

[SecondsCount]

I doubt you will see much of a difference between magnum and standard primers.

Years ago when I started reloading, I accidentally substituted Hodgdon International Clays for Universal Clays. Nothing really bad happened except when I shot the rounds they were hot! When I got home and double checked everything I realized my mistake.

I can see the level of powder (Dillon 650) in my 9mm rounds as I load them and as long as there is powder, I drop a bullet to be seated.

[GardoneVT]

As the victim of a reloading error which by the grace of chance only damaged my wallet ,I want to thank you guys for being so detailed when reloading.

Edit:the vendor was a large scale "remanufactured ammo" shop I won't name publicly. For details beyond this post PM me.

[JM Campbell]

Sounds very similar to mine.

Before I start a session I'll actuate the powder die to throw ten (10) charges and add each one onto my electronic scale. I'm looking for the throw to throw variance and the total to be within my acceptable range so I know there's not a problem causing an occasional short or over charge and that the average throw is consistent instead of just checking a few. I picked this method up from Glen Zediker's book on AR reloading.

After that I'll check my first few rounds out of each 100 or so rounds for OAL and crimp diameter.

All done with the intent to make sure nothing has changed since my last session.

This is for 9mm. For rifle I'd add a final check with a headspace gauge to make sure shoulders are set back correctly.

Exact same procedure for me.

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[Hambo]

I doubt you will see much of a difference between magnum and standard primers.

I checked as many articles as I could find, read a lot about various pressure cartridges in TC Encores, and the consensus was that it might push them from starting .30-06 loads to maximum .30-06 loads. I wasn't willing to take that risk in a break action pistol. YMMV.

All my rifle and specialty pistol ammo is loaded on a single stage press, using an RCBS Chargemaster powder measure/dispenser. 9mm, .38, .357, .45acp, and some .44mag are loaded on one of two RL550Bs. Tool heads have measures set for one powder. I run about 10 cases of powder to make sure it's OK before loading ammo, then I visually check each case for powder before adding a bullet.

My rules are only one type of primer and powder on the bench. Verify powder charge from a manual or manufacturer data before starting. No powder is left in measures at the end of loading. No TV or other distractions while loading.

I log all my loaded ammo in a notebook and label each box. I can match ammo by date/caliber/bullet type/powder/etc.

This time I took my eye off the ball for a second on one component. It might not have been catastrophic, but that doesn't make it right.

[Slavex]

I bought a dillon powder die to throw on my Rockchucker with a Hornady Lock N load bushing so I can swap it out easily. My new routine is to pull the measure off the 1050, confirm the load on the RC with two scales, then back on the machine. Then, check the first 3 or 4 rounds, running the MK VII in single operation mode. Then I check randomly. Every round is case gauged as it comes off the press and boxed. As I'm not pulling a handle I can just catch the rounds as they come out and put them straight into the gauge, although at 1800 an hour it's a fight to keep up when fumbling the caught rounds.

[olstyn]

One other thing that falls under "always check" - always chamber check and/or case gauge your rounds. It's not fun to find out that your dies have become maladjusted by having to pound a case out of the chamber with a rod (or in my case, a pen) at the range because it was just enough out of spec to still go into battery and fire, but got stuck there. Thankfully nothing was harmed but my pride, and the only pen I had with me that day. Every round since that day has been chamber checked. Learn from my mistakes...

[JAD]

One other thing that falls under "always check" - always chamber check and/or case gauge your ...

I chamber and primer height check a sample per lot for practice ammo. If it's going to a match or a class it gets checked 100%. That's also when I cull .45 cases that have more than 2 or 3 cracks.

[Hauptmann]

I don't know how many tens of thousands of rounds I have loaded over the years, but I have only had one screw up that I am aware of. I was doing some 9mm load development on a Dillion 550b, so I was pulling casings, dumping powder back in the hopper,.....etc as I was trying to get the ideal charge. Well, I got distracted and lost my focus, resulting in a 9mm bullet getting pressed into a case with no powder. Went to the range to fire a 5-shot group, and the second shot was little pop with no recoil. Fortunately, I stopped everything and checked on what happened. The primer had pushed its way out of the back of the case to release the gases generated by the primer, and the bullet had squibbed itself in the barrel. If it was a training environment, I might have tapped, racked, and fired again which would have likely resulted in a KB as follow up round would have jammed into the squib. It was easy to push the squib back out, but it could have ended badly.

[SLG]

I don't know how many tens of thousands of rounds I have loaded over the years, but I have only had one screw up that I am aware of. I was doing some 9mm load development on a Dillion 550b, so I was pulling casings, dumping powder back in the hopper,.....etc as I was trying to get the ideal charge. Well, I got distracted and lost my focus, resulting in a 9mm bullet getting pressed into a case with no powder. Went to the range to fire a 5-shot group, and the second shot was little pop with no recoil. Fortunately, I stopped everything and checked on what happened. The primer had pushed its way out of the back of the case to release the gases generated by the primer, and the bullet had squibbed itself in the barrel. If it was a training environment, I might have tapped, racked, and fired again which would have likely resulted in a KB as follow up round would have jammed into the squib. It was easy to push the squib back out, but it could have ended badly.

I would never say always or never in this case, but I have seen a round fired behind a squib load several times. usually it just pushes the squib out the barrel. Often it bulges the barrel, but that usually doesn't matter too much, though it certainly can. Never have I seen a gun blow up from it. I'd like to hear if someone can actually verify that a squib caused a blow up, as opposed to something else that they are not aware of.

[JAD]

Folks have asked if I would send them the excel sheet I use. I have created a stripped out template that you can play with. I'm no excel pro, but it works for me. I'm happy to PM it to anyone who'd like. If you significantly improve it, PLEASE send it back to me.