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I got this tin of Berdan primers from a fellow club member over the weekend. It is not quite full but this lot, plus what I already have, will probably see me out. I now have to find all the South African and NNY Berdan primed .303 cases that I think are stashed at the back of the garage under a pile it-will-be-useful-one-day stuff. I see primer packaging has moved on a bit over the last 42 years. The tin is four inches in diameter and just over 2 1/2 inches high. Regards
Peter.

Not Berdan primers. Percussion caps, as labelled.
Fred

So, is there a difference between a no.81 labelled as a percussion cap as compared to one labelled as a Berdan primer? They look identical to me. I took it as a variation on a description as primers were often referred to as caps in the old days. The chap I got them from reloaded with them.
Regards
Peter.

it's been a long time, but the '69 berdans that I used to used had a much thicker case and were shallower than percussion caps.
Fred

The Berdan primers container usually had a white label, and was noted on the label as Berdan Primers.......

The 81 PRIMERS are what I use in my 7,62 x 51 NATO brass
5000 tin - what a result. Lucky man.
Some 303 brass cases do take the 81 primer but not British 303 cases

The Berdan primers container usually had a white label, and was noted on the label as Berdan Primers...

Correct!

I have some tins with the contents marked as Berdan primers with the white label. I have had the calipers out and the items in the 5000 tin measure the same as the ones in the Berdan primer marked tins. So, what is the difference between the two, if any? They are not percussion caps for a muzzle loader and must be for use in a cartridge case. I suppose I will have to load a few rounds and compare and see if there is a difference.
Regards
Peter.

Right, I got out 20 MEN 7.62x51mm cases and primed 10 with the primers I have been using and 10 with the caps from the 5000 tin. I loaded them all with a 150 grain bullet and 41 grains of IMR 4895, just above the starting load in the Lyman manual. I took them to the range today and shot them all in my Parker Hale 1200TX. As far as I can tell, there was no difference between them. The fired primers looked the same and there seemed to be no difference at the target end. So, it seems my tin of caps is good to go. I doubt I will ever finish the tin.
I was looking at a dealer's stock list the other day and noticed they were showing RWS Berdan primers in stock at £75 per thousand. I think I have enough to be going on with though.
Regards
Peter.

PeterN wrote: ↑Sun Oct 03, 2021 6:17 pm I was looking at a dealer's stock list the other day and noticed they were showing RWS Berdan primers in stock at £75 per thousand. I think I have enough to be going on with though.
Regards
Peter.

Can I ask who the dealer was please?