Sorting and assessing pistol brass in prep for progressive press and I noticed about 30% of brass, 9mm in this case, have small nuggets of media wedge into the primer pocket.

With the progressive setup, once you deprime you really are not is a position to inspect the cartridge as it makes it rounds.

I would assume that the little nugget gets punched thru but though I would post to get some suggestions, this is normal, that sort of thing...

Comments?

I tumble first, then resize. There is always a nugget or two of media in the flash hole. It just gets in there. Depriming after tumbling gets it out. I have a single-stage press but yes, I also get this problem. It's a pisser, but it is what it is...

Yes I tumble first and I am swithcing to the progressive and once you put that little bugger into the slot, you do not see it again until it is all loaded up...

Can't think of anyway around it...

quote:

Originally posted by garyn:

Can't think of anyway around it...

Get an ultrasonic cleaner. See the thread elsewhere in this Forum. You obviously shoot a ton of ammo if you have a progressive. I just cleaned more than a hundred .223s in mine. I suspect you can clean more than 200 9s in the 2.5-liter model offered by Harbor Freight. If you go that route, I suggest the 50-50 water and vinegar mix, with a squirt of dish soap. I added a bit of the cleaning powder, but it makes for a rather biting gas in the nose. Must be something in that powder reacting with the acetic acid in vinegar. Anyway, my brass came out super-clean-- NO carbon residue inside or out. The water is a blackish, cloudy, dirty soup. That's where the carbon is. Makes me smile...

Garyn, Get yourself a universal depriming die and deprime before cleaning or sizing. If you only have a progressive press put only the universal die in the press and run all your cases through, then throw them all in the tumbler. You can now check your cases for media before reloading. I happen to have a air compressor and blow them out real good before sizing. I also use the compressed air after trimming and reaming. Like the Pink Panther would say (problem solvit)
Bob

i use compressed air

9MM brass, tumble, run through progressive press of your choice, shoot, repeat as necessary
Bill

Thanks all for the great tips!!

glad to know this wasn't a personal problem

Hey GaryN, If you decide to "push out" the stuck media, you can make a nice "Stuck Media Removal Thingy" by removing the Pointed Wire from a Push Pin and replacing it with a longer non-sharpened piece of wire from a Paper Clip. You can Super Glue it in and it will not come loose.

I'll guess mine has the wire sticking out 1.5"-2" and I used a Red Push Pin so it is easy for me to locate when I put it down.

Best of luck to you.

use your brain--get an ice pick and push out the media.