Case Preparation

Thorough case preparation is a vital part of the reloading process and can be done with just a few tools.

New cases, unless they are high end Alpha, Lapua, Norma or Peterson, should have their flash holes checked for burrs.  This is because many manufactures punch out primer flash holes and not drill them.  Sometimes the piece of metal does not completely detach from the case.  To remedy this, a flash hole deburring tool is used.

Fired cases should be cleaned with a wet or dry tumbler.  Some shooters prefer to punch out the fired primer with a Lee Universal Decapping Die or similar tool before tumbling and others don’t.

Cases then need careful inspection. Some shooters like to clean their primer pockets with a wire brush while others use a carbide tipped primer uniforming tool.  In any case, the primer pocket should be free of debris to allow proper primer seating and ignition.

Military brass, like GGG requires the primer pocket crimp be removed by swaging or reaming.  Swaging is the preferred method as no metal is removed from the case head thus leaving strength in this area.

Cases need to be check for length.  Maximum case length is listed in your reloading manual.  For example the 308 Winchester case should be no longer than 2.015 inches.  A suggested trim to length is 2.005 inches.  To do this, a case trimmer is used.  Case trimmers can be manual, or electrically powered.  Your choice is determined by your loading volumes.