I just happened upon a load that shoots blistering speeds with increadible accuracy out of my 22-250, only problem is I can't remember and didn't write down if I used a CCI magnum or standard primer, I still have a couple of the orginal loads I can take apart, I was wondering if there is any way to identify which CCI primer was used looking at the primer externally??

Did you check the primers? CCIbr4s have a marking on the outside of the cup. F/P would have hit that mark. Rems are gold, Feds are plain nickle. Maybe the plastic bridge on the inside can be identified by color. I hope that helped. Other than that load up five or 6 of each and back to the range. I am guilty of that shit all the time. Good luck

Some primers have different color priming compound. I am uncertain whether CCI follows this practice. It is worth taking the round apart to check. Kudude

I have limted the possibilities down to CCI large rifle or CCI large rifle mag primers. I just can't remember what I used I may have used a mag since I am loading h380 in the cases, this load was in the 3's for 3 shots out of sporter weight barrel, that is why I wanna just load up a bunch since I have no need to further tweak the load

Been there done that and I hate it when that happens. I just checked the CCI's I have here, the LR's and the LR Mag's look identical.

A good way to prevent the problem in the future is to use CCI BR2 primers and CCI Magnum primers. The BR2 has a marking on the bottom.

HOLD ON A SECOND HOT SHOT !!!

Just in case -- when you're taking ammo apart, let's not "de-cap" a live primer! Seems obvious, but only to those for which it "seems obvious."

Primers pack just enough "snot" that they can burn you, also de-capping in a die/press, you've got the charge "contained" enough that it can get ugly if one goes off.

I'll probably get howls of protest here, but I just use mag primers exclusively. (But then I opt for moderate to slow burning powders too.)

I tossed the pre-printed reloading notebooks in favor of a bound spiral. One spiral for each caliber. Load notes go at the head of a new page. That leaves most of that page and the back side for comments, range remarks.

I use a legal pad style small tablet (4 1/4" X 5 1/2") in the "batch box" when I'm running a "lot" of brass. I mark the date, count on the brass lot, and what's been done, e.g "trim to 2.123" "size" "primed/CCI mag"

If I'm loading over a few days, I enter the current date for each step, because I've trimmed, sized, primed brass and then set it aside for months. The slip in the load box works as an "inventory control tag."

-- Enter the dates in the spiral and you have cross checked records of the load.

Oh yeah, and I keep the brass on "ammo blocks" (range pickups from ammo boxes/45 ACP are nice), and keep the "lot" in "shoe box" plastic boxes I get from Wal-Mart at about $1.00 ea. (And they stack/transparent).

"The job's not done until the paper-work is up to date."

Accurate records are essential to "Accurate Reloading." -- I put dates of purchase on powder, primers, bullets, case lube, any component that goes into a load.

More people should follow your example. I don't go to the range without my notebook.

BTW I have never had a problem decapping live primers, big deal if one goes off if you ask me, although none ever have in my experience

quote:

Originally posted by cummins cowboy:
BTW I have never had a problem decapping live primers, big deal if one goes off if you ask me, although none ever have in my experience

Ditto. In 30 yrs of reloading I've never had a live primer pop when decapping. We've had this dicussion here many times.

I was trying to visualize a what if situation. On my press if a primer fired when the decapping pin hit it, the primer would more than likely have enough energy to exist the case and out of the press where it could bounce around and worst case cause an eye injury. So, at least wear eye protection in the what if scenario.

Let's see now: The case is in the sizing die, it's head is in the shell holder. How can it get loose and fly around.
It is safe to decap live primers, the jury is out on inertia bullet pullers, particularly with Berdan primers.
Good Luck!

What happens when you decap a primer? It goes out the bottom into the catcher tray. If it did fire then it come out the bottom a little faster and bounce around. Don't your shell holders have holes in them?

Load up a few with each kind of primer, and see which one duplicates the original results.

Terry beat me to it, just load up a batch of each, marking the cases as to which primers you used

I've decapped plenty of live primers with never a problem. Slow and steady wins the race.