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8mm Mauser reloading
gunpirate
Member Posts: 75 ✭✭
I NEED HELP, Is it possible to deprime Romanian 8mm brass?? I purchased Lee decapping die and proceeded to break non-breakable decapping pin. Any info would be appreciated Thanks GUNPIRATE
Comments
The bid difference between the 2 (other than size) is that boxer has the anvil as part of the primer, while Berdan has it as part of the case. As a result, the Boxer type is easier to work with.
Look inside the case, is there 1 hole in the center (Boxer) or 2-3 holes off center (Berdan)
In fact, very little milsurp 8mm IS reloadable... some Canadian stuff is, maybe 1 or 2 others.
If looking for cheap reloading brass, 30-06 can be converted quite easily- rough trim, size, final trim and chamfer.
In case you didn't know the difference between Berdan and Boxer primed is two or one primer hole. In Berdan there are two holes. Hold your Rumanian cases up in the light so that you can see to the bottom of the case. A flashlight will work wonders here. You should see two smallish holes off-center in the bottom of the case. {Obviously your centered primer punch pin won't hit that}
In Boxer primed you will see one larger hole centered in the bottom of the case.
Berdan are re-loadable. Just that here in the US the market hasn't gone to making reloading components for them. It has been done in the past, but reloading components being imported is a difficult thing. Maybe that will change.
FWIW, You can buy Remington 8mm brass. And Federal makes good brass for 8mm in their loaded 'Blue box'. Maybe buy two boxes and reload with that. I personally like the Federal for reloading my 8mm's.
I wounder if you can make berdan brass to fit boxer primers?[?]
Yes, you can. Is it worthwhile for a readily available cartridge? Probably not.
It involves swaging in the primer pocket, using an RCBS primer pocket uniformer, then drilling a flash hole.
I just converted 100 pieces of Yugo 7.62x39 brass, just to see if I could.
All the Romanian 8mm I have had has been steel cased. It would be impossible, or at least impractical.
the difference between Berdan and Boxer isn't the NUMBER or PLACEMENT of flasholes per se- though that is usally the easiest way to identify them- but rather the construction of the primer.
Boxer primers have an anvil built into the primer cup. When the firing pin hits the primer, it crushes some of the priming compound between the primer shell and this anvil, igniting the mix. Berdan primers have the anvil built into the case with just a cup shaped primer cup fitting over that- no internal anvil in this primer. The ignition mechanism is similar, just where is the anvil located?
Now I mention this as there are different designs of Berdan primer anvils. The most common is a central anvil at the base of the case in the center of the primer pocket, flanked by 2 flash holes. However, I have seen some with a larger anvil with a hole drilled through it, much like a boxer primer; but integral to the case itself. These might fool you into thinking they are boxer primed cases if you look into them. They might even decap satisfactorilly with a regular die set. You will not however be able to use regular primers with these.
Others include offset single flasholes or 3 hole triangular arrangements.
Berdan primers occaisonally become available but require special efforts to decap and aren't really worth it. Modifying the case to take a boxer primer is tricky; berdans are SLIGHTLY larger in diameter than boxers and you have to move some metal to make the pocket fit, and remove the central post. This usually smears metal over the offset small flash holes, so drilling a new hole is required too.
Again, FAR more effort than it is worth, other than a lark just 'because.'
have not annealed any (yet) but so far so good on my 8mm, even found some 243 cases that is stamped 3006