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Member Joined: 24 Dec 2005 Posts: 134 Location: Idaho

Thanks to all who answered the questions about the federal hull. I have been reloading fiochi hulls and the federal primers are sometimes loose in the primer pockets. I seem to remember that the fiochi uses a slightly larger primer. These are once fired hulls. Is this so? Thanks in advance. Larry

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Yup, it sure is.

Precision Reloading sells a tool that will 'shrink' the expanded primer pocket. It works well. It will keep the Federal 209A's nice and tight in the Fioochi hulls.

Both Fiochi & Nobelsport Hulls have a similar challenge in that their std primer is a few thousandths wider than the US standard 209 primer.

Easiest course is to use Fiochi 616 or Nobelsport primers as they will fit fine and require no work around. The other course is to do as earlier suggested in another post get a primer pocket tool from BPI.

I would just use the Fiochi & Nobelsport primers as the extra handwork time over many hulls will get old fast

*Last edited by 16gaugeguy on Tue Mar 10, 2009 8:48 am; edited 1 time in total*

Thanks for the clarification old colonel. I just can't seem to get the 616 designation fixed in my old noodle. That is the number I meant. Thanks again.

BTW, are the newest lots of Fiocchi primers still a bit bigger than the standard 209 size primers? I was given to understand Fiocchi was producing a 615 primer made to conform with the domestic 209 primers. They then dropped the old 616 line and redesignated the smaller 615 as the new 616. I'm not certain about it.

I do know there are still bunches of the old 616 pimers to be found at very reasonable to dirt cheap prices. They were never very popular because of the size issue. This confounds the matter to some degree to be sure. The older ones or some of the older ones come in 120 count packs. The sleeves are black with white and yellow stripes. At least the 5 or 6 hundred I still have left out of the several thousand or more I once had on hand are so packaged. I think mine are from the mid- 1980's. I got them so cheap, I could not pass them up. I've been using them off and on for over 15 years as it is--mostly in ammo designed for cold weather target shooting or for sure ignition with certain slow burning powders like Winchester 571 ball and HS-7 (same stuff). These old primers have never failed me for these uses.

The Fiocchi website shows the newest style packaging. I don't know if there are any other packaging color schemes around. So I could not tell one from another except those I have on hand.

Member Joined: 16 Nov 2006 Posts: 1338