Two Questions

[dross]

I'm reloading .223 for an AR.

1. After making an error, I pulled a bunch of SP bullets with a kinetic puller. This smashed the lead point into a pancake. Can I just file this down and shoot these?

2. I had some rounds that had been crimped and some that had not been crimped. It seems to me that it took the same amount of blows and force from the bullet puller to pull the uncrimped rounds as it did the crimped rounds. Doesn't this seem to indicate that crimping is not necessary?

Okay, I lied, three questions:

3. Some of the rounds were primed with match primers. I've since heard these are dangerous in an AR due to the chance of slam fires. Any thoughts?

 

[shooter1054]

Just a suggestion for future reference put a piece of foam in the kinetic puller so the point will be caught before it deforms.

 

[shibumiseeker]

My kinetic puller has a felt plug inside. Don't worry about a little lead deformation on the tips unless you are loading for precision long range shooting. If it's just plinking rounds you'll never know the difference.

SOME very soft primers MAY be subject to slam fires, but it has nothing to do with the primer being a match primer, and more to do with the brand of primer and year of manufacture since primers change without notice.
Mysteries And Misconceptions Of The All-Important Primer

A crimp is never a bad idea in a semiauto weapon. If loading for bolt action rifles then sufficient neck tension is plenty.

 

[dross]

My kinetic puller has a felt plug inside. Don't worry about a little lead deformation on the tips unless you are loading for precision long range shooting. If it's just plinking rounds you'll never know the difference.

SOME very soft primers MAY be subject to slam fires, but it has nothing to do with the primer being a match primer, and more to do with the brand of primer and year of manufacture since primers change without notice.
Mysteries And Misconceptions Of The All-Important Primer

A crimp is never a bad idea in a semiauto weapon. If loading for bolt action rifles then sufficient neck tension is plenty.

Does the amount of force the kinetic puller takes indicative of how much tension holds the bullet?

 

[Mayday671]

I have never had a problem with match primers in an AR. The only primers Ive ever had a problem with were the wolf primers in some cheap wolf ammo a buddy brought to shoot. With the cost of ammo, I tell my buddies now they can shoot anything they want if they feed it. My big mistake was telling them to bring there own ammo. He used one of my AR's and handed it too me since he wasn't hitting the target, I fire a few rounds and suddenly felt something sting me as well as a strange sound. Turn out the firing pin pierced the primer detonating it and the powder. I assume it was the gas pressure and unburnt powder that escaped through the charging handle and cut me below my right eye and filled my eye with crap. My vision was blurry the rest of the day. Two lessons learned, 1. I now make my buddies purchase my own rounds to compensate me. 2. I wear eye protection now.

 

[red_zr24x4]

I'm reloading .223 for an AR.

1. After making an error, I pulled a bunch of SP bullets with a kinetic puller. This smashed the lead point into a pancake. Can I just file this down and shoot these?

You can put some cotton or a couple of cleaning patches in to avoid this. Yep, file or a razor blade ..

2. I had some rounds that had been crimped and some that had not been crimped. It seems to me that it took the same amount of blows and force from the bullet puller to pull the uncrimped rounds as it did the crimped rounds. Doesn't this seem to indicate that crimping is not necessary?

I've never crimped, I load for--AR's, M1 Garand, M1A, Bolt guns and pistols

Okay, I lied, three questions:

3. Some of the rounds were primed with match primers. I've since heard these are dangerous in an AR due to the chance of slam fires. Any thoughts?

Never had a slam fire in my AR, M1, M1a Not saying it wont happen anything is possible. Keep the rifle pointed downrange when chargeing shouldn't be an issue

 

[shibumiseeker]

Does the amount of force the kinetic puller takes indicative of how much tension holds the bullet?

Only in a very broad way. Neck tension can vary broadly and you won't really be able to tell. Now, the difference between rounds that have the minimum neck tension necessary for precision shooting, and the tension in a heavy crimp in a bullet with a cannelure, yes, you can tell. But heavy neck tension versus adding a light crimp; not so much.

 

[kludge]

 

[noylj]

Damage to a bullet any where BUT the base will have negligible effect on the accuracy until you get out to 3-400 yards. If, however, you remove the lead tip, you have changed the bullet weight and that MAY effect down range performance.
If you are shooting jacketed bullets, no crimp is required and bullet/case tension is more than sufficient. You can only successfully crimp a jacketed bullet if it has a cannelure and you are crimping into it (otherwise, all you are doing is damaging the bullet). If you chamber and extract a round several times, you could cause bullet set-back. This is a problem for police who load and unload frequently.
Match primers are supposed to be made with tighter control on the amount of priming compound used and consistentcy of the anvil and primer body. Unless you are into long-range shooting with a custom rifle, you will not see any difference (and maybe not even then). Many people are buying special "military" .223 primers for perceived problems with standard primers.
During the great Obama primer shortage, some of us bought match primers because we couldn't find any others.