Recenty experienced several failed detonations while working up new load for Encore rifle. Thinking the hammer spur I had installed was affecting firing pin strike, I removed it. Still failed to go off consistantly. But I noticed that loads with a different primer worked. Putting a mic on the CCI 250 (magnum) primers I found them to be .002" to .004" shorter than the others. In fact the mag primers are .004 shorter than the CCI 200 non mag primers. Go figure! This particular Encore has a firing pin with a very slight pit at it's very end. Apparently, that and the slight difference in primer length prevented detonation of the CCI 250's. Switching to the longer primer made it go boom again.
By the way, 130gr Barnes XBT, 60gr H4831SC, with bullet set .040 off lands makes for lethal and very accurate hunting load in this 270 Win.

I doubt it is a probelm of the primer height, rathe it is with the hammer hit. CCI's are about the hardest cup of any. Try a different brand, such as Fed. or Win.

20 years ago, I bought 10,000 cci shotgun primers for trap shooting. With these I was getting 3 misfires in every round (of 25 shots). These primer dents were quite round with shallow dents from my rem 3200. My wifes 1100 dented them well (without misfires), but still they were rounded compared to other primers.

Being very puzzled, I took a used primer apart and found the basic cup quite hard. I took one of the cups and put magnet to it. YES!!! Steel primer cups in those cci primer cups. I know the anvil and outside case of the shotgun primers are always steel, But the basic cup is copper or brass in all other brands.

BTW. I returned them in exchange for federal.


JerryO