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Berdan to Boxer
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britrifles View Drop Down
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    Posted: December 29 2023 at 1:57pm
Anyone tried this tool? 


I’ve got a lot of spent Berdan primed .303 brass.  Saving it for a day that I found a way to easily convert to Berdan primers or an easy way to decap to seat a new Berdan primer. 
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paddyofurniture View Drop Down
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Looks interesting.
Always looking for military manuals, Dodge M37 items,books on Berlin Germany, old atlases ( before 1946) , military maps of Scotland. English and Canadian gun parts.
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Stanforth View Drop Down
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Years ago I had a load of .762 Russia Berdan primed cases 
, a rifle but no loaded ammo 

 I tried the following. With a 1/8th drill I drilled the anvil out and was surprised to find that the entire primer came out with the drill, I thought it couldn't be that couldn't  but it was it was and a standard primer fitted perfectly.

 I used that combination for some years until UK laws stopped us from using Semi Auto full bore rifles.

Try it. What have you got to loose.? Try it on a low load first to be sure,
Life.. a sexually transmitted condition that is invariably fatal.
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britrifles View Drop Down
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Points: 8404 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote britrifles Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 30 2023 at 7:38am
Just ordered the kit along with the large Berdan bushings. I have a lot of .303 cases that have the Large Berdan primers.  Also have some PMP with smaller Berdan primer that won’t require the bushing.

Once I get some cases done, I’ll post an update. 
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paddyofurniture View Drop Down
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Works for me.

Look forward to the information.
Always looking for military manuals, Dodge M37 items,books on Berlin Germany, old atlases ( before 1946) , military maps of Scotland. English and Canadian gun parts.
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Sweet.
Maybe there is a use for all that "non reloadable brass Ive been keeping for things like action proving dummies & master cases!Hug
Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
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Works great.  I've been converting 7.65X53 Arg to boxer for some time.  The kit won't work with the .303 British until you first take an end mill and grind down the anvil INSIDE the case.  (Yes, inside the case.)  Without doing that first the long drill bit that comes with the set will be deflected to the side and simply drill another hole similar to the other two.  
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Ahh good catch.
Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
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britrifles View Drop Down
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Points: 8404 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote britrifles Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January 01 2024 at 4:14am
Thanks for that tip Sapper.  Do you do that by hand (5/16 inch dia end mill in a hand drill) holding the case in the full length die with the decapping rod removed?  Maybe center punching the anvil thru the sleeve that screws into the die to locate the punch?


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britrifles View Drop Down
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Finally, the kit and bushings are on the way, I was getting worried. 

 Excited to see how this works.  I have lots of Berdan primed empty cases, I’m going start with 50 cases of 1951 Mk 7 Dominion match grade brass as a test. It’s the most consistent brass in terms of weight and dimensions I’ve come across.  
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britrifles View Drop Down
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Started the process to convert Berdan to Boxer primed cases. 

It work is a bit tedious, but once I set up a production run, it will go faster. 

I had no trouble drilling the hole thru the center of the Berdan anvil. The frustrating part was getting the depth set right so as to drill thru the anvil, but not the spent primer. These primers are crimped in place, and many times, the recapping pin punches a hole thru the spent primer. 

Once hole is drilled and primer is removed remaining steps are:

Clean the remainder of the anvil off with a pocket depth uniformer
Chamfer the enlarged pocket opening with a case mouth chamfer tool
Press the bushing in using arbor press
Trim the bushing flush (if necessary) with the case head with L E Wilson case trimmer 
Ream/chamfer the bushing with a LR primer pocket chamfer tool held in the LE Wilson trimmer
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Mayhem View Drop Down
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Watching with interest.  Will be interesting to see if you think the end result is worth the effort.
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Yes, setting the depth of the drill bit is paramount unless you want to fight to decap the spent Berdan primer.  I use a tight fitting allen wrench to pry the holed primers out.  I'm going to get back to converting some more of my fired MkVII ammo to see why the drill bit is always deflected to the side, something that doesn't happen with the Argentine ammo.  I'm glad you're having success and enjoying the process, it's very satisfying to reload brass that usually gets thrown out.
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britrifles View Drop Down
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Originally posted by Mayhem Mayhem wrote:

Watching with interest.  Will be interesting to see if you think the end result is worth the effort.

I think it will be, for these reasons:

1) these are unquestionably match grade cases. Produced by Dominion Arsenal for the 1952 DCRA annual prize meeting (matches) and of known exceptional quality.  They are the most consistent .303 cases I’ve weighted and measured. Rims are very consistent, all measured 0.062 thick. 

2) good .303 case are hard to come by.

3) I shoot a lot, and need to restock my usable cases. I expect to get 40 reloads from these. 

4) as my Dad would say, waste not, want not.
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britrifles View Drop Down
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Here is my setup for pressing the aluminum bushings into the Berdan primer pockets. 

LE Wilson .303 Case gage, supports the case at the shoulder. Note that the case head sits above the gage as these are partial length sized cases to fit the chamber, not full length sized. 

K&M Arbor Press pushes the bushing into the primer pocket. The bushing protrudes by a few thousands of an inch (case on the right), this gets trimmed off square to the case body with a LE Wilson case trimmer, with the head against the cutter. 
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Very cool system for conversion.
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