38 Long Colt Ballon head cases

[reno]

Has anyone out there had trouble decapping  old balloon head cases? Have 25 have had trouble with. I don't think the decapping pins are long enough  to push the old primers out as they look deeper than solid head cases. I broke a pin trying to do the job. Also wonder if they are safe for Trail Boss powder.
Thanks
Reno

[Drydock]

Should not make a difference.  Sure they're not Berdan cases?

[reno]

Drydock, thanks for the reply,  all I know is it looks like the primer pockets are deeper than a solid head. I forgot to say they are old WRA. CO cases,  and I've loaded for years and never seen this before, if I can't deprime them I sure can't reload them.
Thanks Drydock.
Reno

[Coffinmaker]

Hmmmm.  25 cases.  Not sure they would be worth the aggravation.  Not that this helps the OP at all.  Nope.  Nada.

Play Safe out There

[Bunk Stagnerg]

somewhere on the shelf is most of a cigar box full of balloon head .45 Colt cases. I can't do much with them because they do not have the extractor groove like new cases do. They are almost rimless and unless I want to dig out the Ideal tong tool they will stay in the box.
Things change
Yr' Obt' Svt'
Bunk

[Professor Marvel]

Has anyone out there had trouble decapping  old balloon head cases? Have 25 have had trouble with. I don't think the decapping pins are long enough  to push the old primers out as they look deeper than solid head cases. I broke a pin trying to do the job. Also wonder if they are safe for Trail Boss powder.
Thanks
Reno

Jack Christian could have answered this one....
Photos would help, I have to wonder if they are one of the style in which the primer was crimped in palce all the way around...

Also, since they are balloon head, one must ask if they are worth he effort , unless one has a particular historical type experiment in progress.

Yhs
Prof marvel

[pony express]

somewhere on the shelf is most of a cigar box full of balloon head .45 Colt cases. I can't do much with them because they do not have the extractor groove like new cases do. They are almost rimless and unless I want to dig out the Ideal tong tool they will stay in the box.
Things change
Yr' Obt' Svt'
Bunk

Same here, except only about 25 or 30 cases. the odd thing is, I had reloaded some of them in the long ago past, but I have no idea how I did it anymore, since I don't have any shell holder that will fit them.

[ndnchf]

It would be prudent to retire those old balloon head cases.  I've read that the old mercuric primers contributed to brass embrittlement. Its not just a matter of annealing them, it somehow affects the grain structure.  I certainly wouldn't use Trail Boss or any smokeless powder in them.  With a little searching, you can find new made Starline brass. That would be safer all around.

[swampman]

somewhere on the shelf is most of a cigar box full of balloon head .45 Colt cases. I can't do much with them because they do not have the extractor groove like new cases do. They are almost rimless and unless I want to dig out the Ideal tong tool they will stay in the box.
Things change
Yr' Obt' Svt'
Bunk

Would you entertain parting with those .45 cases?

[Gabriel Law]

When I started out in CAS, I had a bag full (around 300) 45 Colt balloon head cases, so I thought I was off to the races.  My brother gave them to me, and he and I had reloaded them many times, mostly with Unique powder.  We shot them in a 1917 New Service.
So I attended a shoot in a little town south of here, and borrowed a 1892 Winchester repro since I didn't own a match rifle yet.  On about the third shot, I had a case head separation which ended my day's shooting...particles in my right eyeball, and a rifle with a brass sleeved chamber.
I was able to fix the rifle without too much effort, and since it was borrowed and I was using black powder loads, I thoroughly cleaned it too.  I discarded all of that balloon head brass and purchased 1000 new Starline cases, which I've been loading and shooting ever since.
That's my experience with balloon head cases!

[reno]

Thank you all for great input. Iam glad I asked.
Thanks again,
Reno

[reno]

Maybe this should be on the Darksiders Den, but hear goes. I had a friend give me 50 38 LC cases mixed head stamps, that look to be in good condition. I had no trouble depriming, sizing, priming, and belling them. I have had trouble finding out how much 2FF black was in a old 38 LC as they seem to talk about 3 FFF I don't have any 3 FFF but have 5 lbs. of 2 FF so I plan on loading them with 17 to 19grs. of black 2FF with 158 gr. cast RNSP. Have to see if they will compress okay, Any thoughts?
Thanks
Reno

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Like Pettifogger advised on another related thread, fill the case so that a seated bullet would slightly compress the powder. Works for both 2Fg and 3Fg, and for most commonly available calibers. The load you propose seems close to my experience.