heard from a wise man once that hand priming is the way to go. does anyone have input???
is it good for accuracy stuff, and press priming for the bulk stuff? thanks, nated

As far as I know, the two main reasons for hand priming are safety and precision. There is an awful lot of evidence that it is not usually needed for either reason. I DO hand prime, and here's why:

Precision: When I hand prime, I can feel the primer seat to the bottom of the pocket. I then turn the case 180 degrees and apply the same pressure again. That makes me believe that the primer is seated squarely to the bottom of the primer pocket. I believe that that is what I should be doing for most uniform ignition. At the same time, I use my finger to check that the primer is actually at or below case head level. It always is. Some people believe it makes sense to seat to a uniform depth below case head, regardless of what pressure it takes or of the resulting relationship to the bottom of the primer pocket. I don't, haven't run any tests on their theory, don't intend to.

Safety: Some people think it's not a good idea to stack a bunch of primers in a brass tube, reasoning that if one goes off, they all go off, and you may REALLY wish they hadn't. I agree with them. However, I'm not aware of a lot of mishaps of that nature. Then again, there are lot of things that I'm not aware of. Doesn't mean they didn't happen.

I have heard that there are a lot of satisfied Dillon users. I even know some personally.

Your choice.

I have primed with RCBS's handprimer from the begginning of my short handloading career of a little over two years. I do not know any better but I think it is a good way of doing it and reasonable quick. I do get a good feel for seating depth of primers and when you have 500-600 cases to prime you can fly through them.

Regards PC

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I haven't used the priming arm on a press in years. The only thing I've used is the old Lee and the new Lee hand priming tools. They are very good, but will wear out after a few tens of thousands of primings. Just throw it away and buy an new one when this happens.

Several companies now make hand-held priming tools that are probably also good and may even last longer. Try a couple out at the store and buy the one which feels best to you. Besides, you can sit in front of the TV and watch Oprah and Rosie and all of your other favorites while using the hand tool!

Well, I find it to be this way...

If there is something decent on TV to watch, then I take a bucket of brass down to the living room, along with a good amount of primers. Go to the fridge and get a cold Pepsi, and use the RCBS handprimer tool.

If there is nothing on TV worth watching (which is generally the case) I use either the Rock Chucker or the Big Max to do the priming.

I honestly haven't noticed any difference at all in accuracy of the loads...

I own and have used both the RCBS and Lee hand priming tools. I started with the Lee and at the time I thought it worked fine. 2 months ago I bought a RCBS hand primer. Now I see how I was hanicapped over ths years with the Lee tool. The RCBS tool is much smoother and much easier to feel how the primer seats. In my humble opinion, go with the RCBS.

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From my cold, dead hands!
Thanks Chuck!

Sinclair hand primer if you can swing the $$ if not RCBS hand primer is a good choice
i didn't know you could use a reloading press to prime with

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Death Before Dishonor

I too have used nothing but the RCBS hand priming tool in my short reloading career. It offers all of the benifits mentioned plus one very important additional benefit. I can feel when my primer pockets are starting to get a little loose (about 14 reloads)

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Life is more exitin' when yer stickin' suppositories inta a wildcats behind!