After (mumble mumble*) years of reloading, I produced my very first squib!
Don’t know how it happened, since I’ve got procedures specifically designed to prevent** no-charge and double-charge loads. I’ve seen what happens when a bullet gets stuck halfway up a barrel with another on its way right behind it, and I’ve gone to some lengths to avoid having it happen to me.
On the other hand I learned something new about what results when this happens in a revolver: The bullet gets stuck between the cylinder and the forcing cone, and You. Are. Done. Shooting. Ain’t nothin’ on the gun gonna work until you fix it.
Thing is, I didn’t hear the primer pop, which seems weird since I had my Peltors on and should have heard it fine. So it came as quite a surprise when the gun just hung completely up in every possible way. Even after it became clear that the bullet was stuck, I assumed the crimp had failed somehow. Which meant I had to force back the bullet on a live round, which didn’t really thrill me. I didn’t know it was a squib until I’d forced the bullet back into the case so I could get the damn thing out of the gun.
The brass is all covered with soot, and the primer’s pushed a bit out of the pocket which we’ve established is a sign of very low pressure. I tried pressing the bullet back into the case with a drift punch, but was forced to timidly tap the whole thing against the anvil of my bench vice to drive it in before I could free up the action.
Once I’d fixed it I went back and shot the rest of that fifty with no further problem.
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*I really had to think about this. Give or take a couple of years, I’ve been reloading off and on for about 40 years. And this has never happened to me, though it came close that time many years ago when I learned reloading and television do not mix.
**More like ‘reduce the likelihood of,’ I suppose…
Makes a serious case for having a back up gun. Hate to think of what could happen if you had a squib during an emergency.
Only saw one squib load in all these years… but it was really scary. I was shooting with a friend and he didn’t hear the low power report. Luckily, he wasn’t trying to speed shoot and I DID hear the muffled sound, so had time to stop him from firing again. Would probably have blown up the brand new 1911, as well as my friend. WHEW
Glad you didn’t have any worse trouble than you did.
“Makes a serious case for having a back up gun. Hate to think of what could happen if you had a squib during an emergency. ”
Yeah, that’s why I use reloads for practice, but day-to-day I keep the gun and my speed strips loaded with commercial ammo. I trust factory machines more than myself.
Also, the one time I saw a pistol that had been fired with a bullet stuck in the barrel it was a 1911 and it didn’t come apart. It bulged the hell out of the barrel, though.
Saw a Colt Trooper Mk III on display in a SD gun store … too many years ago (on the way to Wood Stock ’99). Barrel was sectioned to show SIX bullets jammed in the barrel. Forcing cone, cylinder, and top strap blown apart. Wanted to cry.
Found myself half hoping the moron who hadn’t noticed not one bad round, but also the next four not making it out the shooty end, and fired the final terminal round, had been injured.
Three Thoughts:
(1) you are correct in saying that reloading and TELEVISION (or any other distraction) do not play well together.
(2) I had my squib load using a Lee Turret Press. That relies on you turnng the turret from each loading stage to the next, and you’re processing 4 cartridges with each stroke, Powder feed is one of the four stages. If you half-stroke and aren’t paying close attention (see #1), it’s easy to half-stroke the mechanism. Especially if you get a foul-up on one if the other four stages, (deprime/size, prime/powder, seat bullet, crimp.) Since then, I use the turret press like a single state press and do each stage ONE TIME for all the cases. And after i measure the powder (using a BULLSEYE Pistol Powder Measure), I visually inspect every case in the block under a strong light, to ensure that all cases have the same level of powder.
(3) Mechanical devices fail .. even the perfect ones. When we rely on them, we forget the value of human Quality Assurance. True “Progressive” Presses can take some of the worry out of reloading, but they are mechanical and prone to failure. But at least, they allow the possibility of a double-charge under only the most extreme conditions,
Chin up. I blew up the new S&W 659 that way. Bulged the barrel, which cost me a couple hundred bucks, but it also cost me another $200 to convince a gunsmith to figure out how to get the badly bulged barrel out of the slide without a cutting torch.
The best lessons are learned from the worst mistakes. And I’m very smart today, ’cause I’ve been very stupid in the past.
But I’ll be smarter tomorrow, ’cause I’ll do something stupid again.
Hey, it happens. Just be glad that you are aware of the possibility and know what to do (or not do) when something “unusual” happens.
Now, of course, you need to pull the bullet just to be CERTAIN of the presence of powder . . .or not. ya never know.
🙂
Did it once myself and a very alert RO running a IPSC stage caught me before I could finish the clearing drill and fire again. I do use progressive machines and have found that good light and no distractions are absolutely required.
I understand the old Dan Wesson company used to test the strength of their frames by screwing in a barrel without a hole in it and shooting full power loads. That must have been fun to watch.
I don’t have a progressive press. I have figured out an idiot-proof procedure (because I need it):
1) Prime all the cases, and set the primed cases *mouth down* in the block
2) Pick up a case, charge it with powder, seat the bullet, put it back in the block bullet up.
3) Repeat.
Notice, the key is to not add powder in batches. There is never a condition with a case mouth up in the block, to get a double charge or no charge.
Well, I suppose theoretically, I could pick up a primed case and just seat a bullet, but it is rather obvious a step is missing, and I haven’t done it yet…
Yeah, this is why one day I do want to get a separate stand for my powder measure. Right now I can only screw it onto my single-stage press, and so have no choice but to batch-charge the cases. And you’re right, it’s not the right way to do it. I always check all the cases in the block before seating bullets – or at least I’m supposed to. This time, I think, I blew that step.
Sometimes static cling can cause the powder to bridge. Don’t know if it was dry enough there to cause that or not. My fix is to wipe out the measure with a dryer sheet between loading sessions. Its been so wet here of late that has not been an issue at all. I think having good lighting so you can see every charge is most important especially using a progressive machine. They make powder check dies for them but I’m using all five stations now on my old Hornady.