Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters When should I use magnum primers?

I plan to try IMR4831 & RL22 in my 25'06. I normally use these powders in a 7 REM Mag with magnum primers, should I use large or magnum primers?

Both those powders are readily ignited with standard primers, especially in a case the size of the .25-06. But it sure won't hurt to use magnums, especially if you hunt in cold weather.

Regular large rifle primers should work fine.
I've run alot of both types of 4831 and RL19 in a 25.06 with a Win. WLR primer.
The 25.06 doesn't hold enough powder to need a magnum primer in most cases, but some people still run them.
Good luck,
Ted

Didn't see Mule Deer's post - I type slow.......

FWIW I tend to use almost only mag primers these days. Doesn't seem to hurt anything and often increases accuracy a bit.

Exception has been standard 308 where I use Fed Gold Medal Match primers.

I agree with Mule Deer. I've used CCI 250 Mag primers when loading my .270 Winchester with IMR 4064 and 150 grain Nosler Partitions. I love that load.

So then is it's expected the maximum load will be below published max loads with a standard primer when changing to a magnum.

Could you give an idea on just how much less powder is used to reach max, a couple of grains ? I know there is no hard answer.
I've often wondered if it would be more than a few grains.

What do you consider cold weather ?

I have heard or read somewhere that when using over 60-grs a magnum primer is recomended, any truth to this? You know if I read it on the internet it has to be true right?

campcreek,

All I can say for sure is you'll reach the same velocity with a little less powder when using a magnum primer--which indicates approximately the same pressure. But that point will vary depending on the standard primer you started with, the magnum primer you switched to, and the powder/case/bullet.

I'd drop the standard-powder charge at least a couple grains before using the magnum.

Personally, I started considering it cold down around zero Fahrenheit, because I've never seen any problems such as really bad accuracy or hangfires from 20 F. on up with extruded powders. Sometimes down around zero there'll be hangfires with ball powders and standard primers.

I'll be using my magnum primers pretty soon.......as my standard primers are becoming scarcer and scarcer. Where are all the primers going?

Into the hands of people who're reselling them at gunshows and on the Internet.

Just a sample of one but I found a bit better accuracy in my 25-06 with standard primers as opposed to magnums.(Federal Match).
But YMMV.
Edited to add that the powder was/is H4831.

One may wish to try a magnum primer with compressed loads and any other loads with high powder density such as larger amounts of ball powders.....say over 60 grains

A few years back now a friend had been chonographing loads in his Ruger 270 with RL22 that gave wide velocity strings.He had been using standard primers and on a whim I said try Fed215's.

He did and velocity variations tightened up and so did accuracy.I did my owm messing around and found the Fed 215's just did a better job with RL22 and it has become a standard recipe for me.

Interesting but with H4831 the WW standard primer seems to do fine near as I can tell.

With any magnum case I just reach for the magnum primer.

I'll try magnum primers any time standard primers don't seem to be cutting it, especially with ball powders.

I once had a Ruger No. 1B in .220 Swift that even after various a curizing tricks was shooting 5-shot groups of 1 to 1-1/4" at 100 yards with Ramshot Big Game. I switched to Federal 215's and groups were half that diameter.

I've also found CCI 450's (small rifle magnums) result in slightly finer accuracy than any other primer with Li'l Gun in my 1B .22 Hornet. This includes small pistol primers, which according to Hornet lore are supposed to work best in the little case.

John that's interesting....I never tried them in smaller cases.

700 Classic .300 H&H groups improved to MOA for 3 shots with 200-gr Partitions/H4831 after change to F215 from WLR. Tried 215M, and got same groups as straight 215.

That rifle shot about MOA for 3 shots with 180-gr BT over IMR4350 and WLR primers, but would not group 180-gr Partitions as well, so the search lead to the 200-gr load. I had the notion that a Partition load matched better with a .300 mag than the '90's BT loads. (150-gr BT's from that time, fired from a .30-06, would make soup out of the lungs of deer.)

Very interesting and informative thread. Thanks guys.

That is were I am at, I use standard primers in standard cartridges and magnum primers in magnums. With the hard times getting any type of primers I may have to think differently. Already hit that point in handguns, have magnum small pistol and needed standard. Seems to work just fine as long as you reduce the load a tad. I would not normally use magnum primers when they are not specifically called for.

I switch to magnum primers when the charge hits 70 grains or more.

I seem to get better results with magnum primers in medium to large cases with slower powders.

I know I get better and more consistent accuracy and consistent velocities from my targets punched and bullets clocked over many years, as a rule. Not always, however.

I dial back a couple grains in initial load development.