A few years back a friend of mine detonated a 03. Rifle in 30/06 came completely apart in a most violent detonation. A very experienced reloader whose been at the craft since early 50�s set down to load some 06 in his favorite H414 powder. Stepped out the door and touched one off for testing. He said a bright light was all he ever saw. In his hand was held a piece of wood or whats left of the stock. The bolt was on the ground lying between his feet. Barrel was about 30 feet out in front and completely unharmed. That barrel is now in another rifle. The scope bent into a curve and 20 feet behind. Floorplate and mag box along with various pieces of the action were scattered here and there. Gathering them all up we took this pic.




Here is a pic zoomed in a little closer on what we found of the action. There's the rear bridge some feed rail and mag box. Trigger guard and floor plate is there. All we found of the front ring was just a couple small pieces. basicly the front of the action came completely apart.



A closeup of the case reveals that everthing from the web back is gone.



What happened to cause this? Well we took apart a couple rounds and discovered that instead of reaching for what he thought was H414 he pulled down a can of H110. And an 06 case full of H110 is NOT a good idea. Result�. Complete Detonation.

He received numerous splinters and small cuts all up and down his left arm and face. Nothing that required a doc. His hearing came back the next day but he said "Huh" alot for weeks.

Lessons learned. Oh you bet. His age and with less than perfect eyesight combined with a heaping dose of �I�ve done this a million times I know what I�m doing� attitude is what caused this.

So we all can benefit from his most unfortunate accident by always double/triple checking everthing.

I have this picture framed and hanging in my loading area with the caption in bold letters �ARE YOU SURE ABSOLUTELY SURE�

I posted this in another fourm and it was suggested that I post this in other reloading rooms to spread the information. Good idea. If anyone wants to may copy this post and repost in other reloading rooms as well.

Thanks for posting this. A few years ago, my former supervisor took up handloading and made a big(potentially dangerous) mistake. He bought a can of Ramshot powder using the data for Big Game only he had TAC! He kept having stuck brass, primers falling out, etc. and couldn't figure out why this was the case. He then looked at the can when he got home and realized he'd loaded forty 308 rounds with TAC using Big Game data. Fortunately for him, it wasn't a painfull experience but he admitted it scared him. I know of another guy that loaded a 270 Win. using 270 Weatherby data and blew up a gun. Scary stuff.

Thanks,I'm just starting out and it puts things into perspective,CHECK,CHECK And after that CHECK again!!!Reloading is a safe thing if YOU ARE CAREFUL AND FOLLOW ALL SAFTEY PRECAUTIONS.Thanks for the post a picture is truly worth 1000 words!

Damn, that would ruin your whole day.

If that's not a great reason to never use an old POS like and 03, I don't know what is.

Thanks for posting. It is a reminder not to have our mind on other things while reloading.

Also, this photo reminds me of another that was in about the same condition from firing a .308 win in a 25-06 chamber.

Springfield 1903..... not a POS.... fine military rifle that in the past was the platform for many custom rifles. Not so much today.

One of the big danger points in flying is the 500 hour mark. Up to then , you do everything "by the book", double checking everything. Then, you get lazy..
You mention getting the incorrect powder, and then loading with it. That's scary..
Don

The picture above, along with hundreds of other incidents lead me to believe otherwise.

Choose your own poison.

What's your point?
Don

Would the result have been any different with a Mauser 98? How about a Sako, or a Sucks, or a Mark V?

Point is, that much pressure, caused by a very simple and careless (though understandable) mistake would have done that to any action out there and the fella is just very, very lucky to be alive.

A few years ago, I bought the remains of a once-fine custom FN Mauser that a friend had blown-up by a similar handloading booboo. Haven't yet photographed the mess, which looks for all the world just like the photos that you've posted here. I wanted the remains to show and to photograph, as warnings against the very same careless inattention that caused the blow-ups in my friend's and your friend's rifles.

Some time before, I'd given this friend a canister of Ramshot "Big Game" powder for his .30-06. I don't load for anything, these days, that could use "Big Game" powder.

Later, he had a custom Mauser built for my .220 Howell, which does well with what Ramshot then called "Big Boy." He asked me for (and I gave him) my load data for "Big Boy" powder in the .220 Howell.

You can already see the problem coming, can't you?

Yep, he saw only the word "Big" on the canister and started loading "Big Boy" charges of "Big Game" for his .220 Howell rifle. His first shot produced results almost identical to those produced by your buddy's booboo.

As a result, Ramshot's "Big Boy" is now Ramshot "Magnum." Same powder � no change in chemistry, size, shape, or quickness.

The same danger lurks in other powders, especially those that come with similar designations but vastly different quicknesses (misnamed "burning rates"), in canisters that are not differentiated by caps, labels, etc, of different colors.

The best protection? The only protection � continuous careful attention to what the Hell you're doing.

� Have only one canister of powder anywhere near where you're about to load ammo.
� Read the label before you take that canister to the bench.
� If you use a powder-measure, immediately put a strip of masking tape � marked with the powder's designation with a grease pencil or felt-tip marker � on the measure.
� When you're all done with that loading session, immediately empty the measure back into what you're absolutely sure is the same canister.
� Immediately take the masking tape off the measure before you leave the bench.
� Take the canister back to separate storage. Don't leave it on the bench or on a shelf right next-to or over the bench.
� Go through every step of the same procedure again next time, even if you're going to load some other cartridge right away.

.

I fail to see how the '03 Springfield is at fault here. A .30-06 case full of H110 would produce a tremendous pressure and would be about like holding a small bomb in your hand.

I fail to see any suggestion that the '03 Springfield is at fault here.

.

I had a similar experience and I wrote about it in Handloader Magazine.

Several years ago, Hodgdon H-4895 and H-4198 had exactly the same color (green) label. I was handloading at the range and I ran out of H-4895. I walked to my truck and grabbed a 5-pound bottle of Hodgdon powder with a green label. Then, I loaded five .308 Winchester rounds with 150-grain Hornadys and 44 grains of the "green bottle powder."

Yup, it was an overload of H-4198.

I was shooting a Remington Model 700. At the shot, all I saw as a huge yellow flash and a whisk of white smoke out the gas port. The action was LOCKED.

When I managed to beat the bolt handle open (no, the bolt handle did not come off), the .308 case was basically flared solid to the bolt face and extractor recess. It cost me a new bolt, a very cheap price for my profound stupidity.

My old friend, Ted Curtis, worked at Kimber of Oregon at the time. Ted, was probably the wisest gun man I've ever known...particularly when it comes to the time/pressure curve. Ted's response, upon my telling about the accident was a simple warning, "Steve, do you know how close you came to rifle DETONATION?"

I never made that screw-up again.

Steve

I have often thought about my friends close call with death. I think what saved his life was that the pressure and the explosion was so great that the action cmpletely opened up instanateous and let the bolt fall down by gravity. He said the bolt was on the ground between his feet. If he had loaded a couple or few grains less then the action may not have opened quite so completely allowing the forces to propel the bolt right between his eyes.

Steve, after handloading for 30 years I had one of those same booboo's as you did. Two years ago I thought I had reached for
RL25 to load in my 700/ 264 instead I had grabbed RL15. I saw RL and the #5 and without hesitation loaded it. It took a large rubber mallet to open the bolt. The extractor was ruined. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

Me learn big lesson. YOU just cant be to careful!

Ken, I was actually directing this towards CAS, who in post #458652 said - "If that's not a great reason to never use an old POS like and 03, I don't know what is. "

I guess when you type in the "quick reply" section of the page it replies to the last person that posted on the topic.

We have a sako we use in hunter safety class that looks a lot like that one. 243 double charged with a fast powder. Only damage was to his drawers which required changing. Bent the scope tube on a loopie. tom

Buzz,

I don't know if you were around then, but Chris Dichter at Pac-Nor stuffed a 30-06 case full of Unique several times, and even pushed a larger-than-bore bullet down the tube several times with no detonation.

That action was a VZ-24, and it held together. I have also head stories of Winchesters, Remingtons, and others subjected to similar abuse that withstood the pressures. I'll post them if I can recall the exact instances.

Here is a quote from Chris about what they did:



The thread is here.

I saw a beautiful pre-64 M70 Winchester chambered in 300 H&H that looked just about like those pictures. This was another case of powder identity mixup. If one does not pay attention, REALLY pay attention, he may get a real surprise. The strange thing is, few people are seriously hurt by these "bombs". I know of one guy who lost his right eye, a serious enough injury, to be sure. I should probably touch wood, but in 40+ years, I have not managed to do anything like that. Good to have the stark reminders, though. Eagleye.

Jn316 - very interesting post - I think that it is always good for us to hear about (and see) evidence of what can happen when we lose concentration. I do have to warn you that there are some out there (not at this campfire, but out there somewhere) with impeccable backgrounds in science who sometimes wear their undershorts far too high that might take great umbrage at the use of the word "detonate." If I understand them correctly, smokeless powder cannot "detonate", so I doubt that they will accept that a rifle would either. Please note that I am not one of these, I understand you to mean that an inadvertant disassembly took place with great force and speed. Just had to take the opportunity to throw a dig in another direction. Once again, thanks for a great post.

The Springfield is not one of the stronger bolt actions. Neither are the pre-war M-70s or most any other rifle built prior to the late 40s, the early Arisakas being the exception. The military M-98 was made of weak steel by today's standards, but it's design was so good that is was "stronger" than the steel it was made of.

In 1948, Gen Julian Hatcher conducted blow-up tests with a "good" Springfield, an Enfield, a military M-98, and then then new Rem 721. The Enfield and Springfield blew early. The 98 and 721 kept handling hotter and hotter loads until the M-98 blew. The 721 held the load the M-98 blew.

This test illustrates well the differences in relative strength. The 721 is a modern action design built from strong chrome-moly steel. Most actions made of modern steel will have similar strength, which includes tensile strength and gas control. That is why we hear all the stories about modern bolt actions--notable the Rem 700--handling severe overloads without coming apart. The military M-98 hanging in there so long speaks to is excellent design. It would have been interesting if Hatcher had continued the test until the 721 blew.

However, any action can be blown up if the pressure becomes great enough. Who knows if a 700 would have held the load that blew the Springfield Jn316 told us about. I hope nobody is curious enough to try.............

good post

DZ - I think that I remember this one - did you appeal to the manufacturers to perhaps be more aware of the colors they assign to their containers and also advocate having the powder numbers printed in large letters/numbers? If I recall correctly, some cluck wrote in criticizing your suggestions. I also seem to recall the editor or someone commending you on being willing to put your mistake out for everyone to think about. Let me add my vote to that of the editor.

5sdad,

Yes, I called Hodgdon soon after I changed my shorts <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

The event made me really tighten up on my loading procedures and, specifically, my attention while handloading.

Yup, I got quite a bit of criticism from that one. If I had remained quiet about it, however, I might not have saved others from making the same mistake that I did. Heck, we're all human and if we are forewarned, perhaps we can change the odds in our favor.

By the way, after buying a new bolt from Remington, the 700 action went on to enjoy life as Karen's .250 Ackley. The rifle is still shooting wonderfully to this day.

Some time later, I blew up the very first Kimber 6PPC (serial # 6PPC1). The problem was a chamber that was cut for a turned-neck and I was issued Sako factory ammo.

The first round chambered a bit hard, but I assumed the headspace was tight. At the shot, the barrel blew downrange about twenty-five yards, the laminated stock forearm split and closed on my left hand, the receiver split in two and the bolt shroud blew into a thousand pieces and embedded themselves into my right hand and face. I wear the steel in my thumb and hand to this day.

As someone said, those who deny detonation on firearms wear their undershorts too high. Presumably it cuts off the circulation of blood to the gonads and brain. Also, they haven't actually experienced a friggin' rifle blow up.

Steve

Steve, please take a look at my post about "You don't need a primer..." Interesting that the round in this case was a PPC that chambered with difficulty as it was in your experience.

Thanks, Amigo, for elucidating. I missed that line. You were right, and I agree with you (not with the line from CAS). So I apologize.

(It ain't easy bein' senile! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />)

.

That's why I only use one kind of powder! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

SS

Well, I've got 4 POS '03's, and I like shooting them. Matter of fact, I know it's NOT the strongest action out there, but I DO try to keep loads for it more apt.

You see, I also blew a gun - in my case, a Ruger Super Blackhawk .44. I came home late, not too long before deer season, and wanted to shoot the next day to prepare for deer season. I wanted to use the .44 for the deer, so .... I decided (just as some described) that I'd been reloading long enough that I'd be able to load in the dark and STILL get good loads.

Baaaaadddddd mistake!

I also happened to find that my can of 2400 was near empty, and I wanted to load at least 250 rds., and likely more, for a good pre-season workout with the beloved .44. Sooooooo .....
I reached for the can of WW-231, and looked up some good mid-range loads. Loaded up 250 rds. with a cast 250 gr. bullet and the 231, which I'd not tried yet in the .44 until then, and two loads a grain apart, and both under the listed maximum, performed adequately, though not stellarly.

NOW we come to the problem. It was about 3:30 a.m. when I was finished, and out of force of habit, I reached for the can of 2400, which of course you'll remember was near empthy, as would be the case had I filled the powder measure's hopper, right? Well, I poured the remainder of nearly a full hopper of 231 into the can of 2400, THEREBY setting myself up for the NEXT loading spree!

Yep. I did it. Came back to the bench a week or so later, and loaded up 22.3 gr. of what I THOUGHT was 2400 from the can I'd poured the 231 in, behind a 240 gr. JHP. Those rounds LOOKED good, and I was already eating the venison I was going to gather with those shiny wonders.

Went to the range next day to check the sighting. First round kicked HARD! MUCH harder than normal, wrenching the gun's muzzle backward just barely over my head, and twisting violently as the lands rotated the bullet down the barrel, and inertia rotated the gun in response in my hand. The SOUND of the shot was abnormal, and seemed a bit "hollow" in addition to being louder than normal. GEEZ did that thing kick! I held on, though, a testimonial I guess to developing a good, firm grip.

Well, I took it down and held it horizontal with the left side facing me. Something just didn't look right, but I couldn't spot what it was ..... so I turned it over to the right side.

I nearly FAINTED! No joke! LITERALLY!

The right side of the cylinder under the hammer blew, from top dead center over, taking the adjoining cylinder with it. The remainder of the brass case was brazed solidly to the remaining sidewalls of the portion of the cylinder under the hammer that was left. The head of the case was firmly welded to the recoil shield. The top strap was buckled upward, and was cracked 2/3 of the way across at the thin part, where the square cutout is for the rear sight. The "bottom strap" of the frame was even bulged outward slightly, and THAT's a LOT of darn good, thick metal!

I was frozen with the realization of what I'd done, and just stood there gaping in disbelief. I honestly had no idea of what had caused the detonation at that time. I was, or so I thought, SURE that the load was 22.3 gr. of 2400. Only hours later, when the shock of it all began to subside, did I start thinking back, and remember loading that 231, and the 2400 can being empty. I hadn't bought any more 2400, so how did it get so full all of a sudden???? I may not be too bright, but .... well, even I could put 2 and 2 together, and deduce what I MUST have done. It was STILL some time before I could allow myself to believe I'd actually done it, though, but admit it I did. I HAD to. 2400 and 231 look nothing alike, and when I compared some 2400 from a friend's cache and my can of "2400" and then compared my can of "2400" to some 231, the mystery was forever solved, and most permanently at that. There could be NO doubt of what I'd done.

So boys, and especially you newer reloaders, don't think it can't happen to you. It CAN! And DOES!

This happened back in the late 70's, I believe it was, and to this day, it makes me shudder inside to think of it.

I PROMISE you, if you EVER blow a gun - ANY gun - you will NOT be ABLE to forget it, and it will govern your reloading for the rest of your life. Guar-on-teed!

Oh, and BTW, re the '03 - it ain't no slouch. I DID fire some '06 ammo donated to me from a buddy who died soon after. He'd warned me that some of them were "a bit hot," and I THOUGHT he meant "maximum." Boy did I get yet one MORE lesson about loading! I fired one in my all-original 1929 issue '03. It extracted without the least bit of extra pressure on the bolt, but upon that extraction and ejection, I saw the primer pop out into the magazine well. Nearly had to take the floorplate off to get it out. The primer pocket was probably about 32 caliber, if not larger! The case had split above the web, which accounted for the smoke coming from the action as I ejected the spent case.

That ain't trash, ye who berate the great '03. If you don't want one, GOOD! More for ME! I'll take all those POS's you want to send my way. I'll even spring for the shipping costs!
Am I a dirt road sport, or what? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

The simple Truth, with a capital "T," is that ANY rifle can be blown, and depending on a M-7XX or Mk V or any other action to save yer dang bacon ain't too good a way to approach loading.

To this day, and for the rest of my life, I'll check and double check the APPEARANCE of the powder, as well as visually check the level of powder in the cases after they're charged and are sitting in the loading block.

Blowing that gun is also a reason I don't (yet, anyway) own a progressive press. If I ever DO get a progressive press, I'll almost surely stick to ball powders exclusively, or very small grained and easily poured powders, so that powder bridging in the measure is almost (?) impossible (as long as the powder's dry and in good shape - something I'd also watch for closely) in that type of setup.

Blowing a gun will just RUIN your image of your "immortality," and give rise to serious doubt about your being "bulletproof." Without those two, being "10 ft. tall" just loses some of its luster, too. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

As above, hope this keeps someone else from doing what I did. Otherwise, I'd NEVER tell on myself like this! NEVER!

Ken:
Your message is so great, that it deserves a response.

I do something very similar myself. Only the container of powder I'm using is out, labels on the measure, and powder trickler. and everything gets put away when done. Next time the same exact procedure.

I'm glad to know I'm in good company. Especially after hearing about how easy it is to mistakenly use the wrong powder.

Thanks again, Smitty of the North

Glad to read these posts as I was thinking about taking up the hobby. Will just stick to ordering off the internet when they run the specials on the factory stuff. Old age has its drawbacks and one is making more mistakes then the young bucks. I didn't get this old being foolish but just get these desires to do things I did not get to do when younger. Got a motor scooter in the garage that is fun but one of those things that could be the end if I make a mistake.

Blackwater-

Thanks for the story!

I too once contaminated one powder with another but caught the mistake within a few minutes. The lesson of double checking only cost me about $20. That was very cheap, considering.

For you non-handloaders: Maybe sometime I'll write about the 243 Win round I sent downrange from a 7mm Rem Mag rifle. Damn, she was a good looking women. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

I have always made it a practice of ONLY ONE can of powder out at any one time. I'm sure this is a very good policy. Mixing powders can ruin your day!! Another hazard is in buying powders from an unknown source without verification of the product. I once bought several pounds of a very coarse grained extruded powder that was mixed with a very fine ball powder of some sort. The extruded powder was the right number, but the ball powder mixed in...who knows? I salvaged this lot by using a sieve that allowed the ball powder to pass, but held up the coarse extruded stuff. Obviously, someone had inadvertently dumped about � lb of the ball powder into the opened 8 pounder of the other powder. Here's a powder mixup experience a friend of mine had 20 years ago. He was loading 30-06 for himself and two of his buddies. Two of the rifles were 760 Remingtons, the other a 77 Tang safety Ruger bolt action. Noting an ad in the local rag selling some handloading tools, dies and components, he responded. The woman selling the stuff had lost her husband, and she was getting rid of all the firearms related items. My pal bought the works, and included were several tins of powder, some unopened, a couple had been opened. Noting a partial tin of 4320, a powder he was using in the 30-06, he simply added it to his powder supply. Later, in preparation for a hunt, he and his two sidekicks [No, I was not there!] went out to sight in. A few shots later, older ammo was expended, and they decided to try the new batch, loaded with the "IMR4320" he had bought. You can imagine the surprise when one guy touched off a round, and it blew the magazine clean out of the 760, broke the forestock and siezed the action tighter than a boar's a** in flytime! Turning to my pal, he says: "It's that stinking ammo you loaded" My pal, not being convinced, says: "No way, that gun must have had a flaw." Picking up his own 760, he loads a round, and aims it at the target and pulls the trigger. Real consternation strikes now, since the result is practically a repeat of what just happened to the other 760. So, he gathers up all the ammo, and heads for home to check for an overload, etc, etc. Pulling some down, he weighed the charges, but they were bang on. Realizing he must have some other powder in that can, he pulls the rest, and dumps all that powder down the toilet. It would be nice to say this was the end of story, but it's not. My bud bought a new rifle for his pal and himself, and vowed to never use powder if he was not absolutely sure of the identity. However, one of those loaded rounds got overlooked, and ended up in the third rifle a few weeks later. This Ruger suffered permanent damage as well, and My pal bought another rifle to replace that one. The real miracle is: none suffered any personal injuries save a few small abrasions from wood slivers from the broken stocks. No one knows what powder was in that 4320 tin, but it had to be a fast burning number [maybe 4227] Bt there is certainly a lesson in this: Be absolutely SURE of the powder you are using!! Regards, Eagleye.

I met a fellow some years back who showed me a Polaroid photo of small pieces of rifle d�bris laid-out on a blanket. The rifle had been a very nice SMLE, and he'd been a careless tyro handloader.

He'd bought IIRC eight cans of surplus 4831 from a gunsmith who bought it by the keg and parceled it out into canisters that he marked with "4831" on strips of masking tape.

The 'smith's mistake was that he filled all his empty canisters first, then put the strips of tape on 'em. In the last session, he'd unwittingly taped a fresh canister of Bullseye that he'd just bought, that happened to be on his loading bench behind the empty ones. That canister was among those that my friend bought as "4831."

My friend used the last powder from one canister of 4831 part-way through a loading session and opened another. He noticed � but ignored � that the second canister was sealed � that the odor from that canister was different � that the granules of that powder weren't the same size or shape of the 4831 that he'd just been loading.

So he filled his powder-measure with Bullseye and continued loading charges of the same volume as his earlier, relatively mild loads of 4831.

One piece of the action went through his windshield (he was shooting with a rest on the hood), ricocheted off the door post on the passenget side, and came out through the glass of the rear window on the driver's side.

.

Lets all face it guys.... Reloading is Murphys Law run amuck...

There are two kinds of reloaders...those that have made a mistake and those that are going to make a mistake. We all just hope and pray that when the times comes it is one of minor consequence.

I did mine... I was loading for a SUCKS 30-06 ADL and ran out of powder about 95% done of the number I was loading. I stopped loading..marked everything and got ready to hop in my truck until I recalled that every shop around me is closed on sundays. I was SOL I thought. Then a buddy of mine who also loads, called. I told him of my problem and he said hed be over in a few with some powder for me. I told him what I was using. I dont remember what it was now.

He shows up with about 4 ounces of powder in a glass jar. We shot the bull for a few. After he left, I got set back up and wnet to finishing my loads.

Next day at the range, I got all set up to shoot. The first round was from the box I had loaded with the powder given to me. The BOOM was thunderous to say the least. The reciever split from top to bottom..the stock was shattered...and the scope looked like a pot of gold should be at the end of it. I got darned lucky.

Lesson learned.... Unless I go and buy and UNOPENED conatiner of powder..I am NOT using it!

"Unless I go and buy and UNOPENED conatiner of powder..I am NOT using it!"

I agree! Last summer I was helping a buddy "refresh" his handloading. He had not done any for several years and wanted to get back into it. He had the bullets but needed the powder. We went to a local retailer and got a pound. When we got back, I opened the container and found that the seal was no longer attached. It was there but the bond was broken. I weighted the new powder and discovered that about 1/8th of a pound was missing. We took it back to the retailer and found out that someone had returned it saying it was the wrong powder. They replaced our pound with a new one with a good seal and put the other container back on the shelf. Holy $hit! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

Varget for everything is looking better by the minute....wonder if it works in .40 SW <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I can't believe they took it back either time. I don't know of any retailer in this area that would do that.

A few years ago I asked for a pound of H4831SC (they keep it behind the counter), just to try the new stuff. I was yacking with the sales guy about something or other and never checked to see what he stuck in the bag. When I got home I discovered that it was H4198.

I drove back to the store to return it, not 30 minutes after I bought it, and they wouldn't take it back. I really don't blame them, since they have no control over anything I could have done to it after it left their shop.

It did turn out all right in the end, since I discovered that my old 223 really liked the stuff behind 40gr BT's.

Hi Jn316

My name is Bodvar Thorsteinsson and I live in Iceland. These pictures of yours of the rifle that has come apart are unbeliveable. The thing is that I am writing a book about hand -/reloading and my question is: Would you be willing to let me use one of these in my book? I think these are likely the best of the kind I have seen. Of course I would give you the full credit in the book as the owner of the photos. So if you are in on this I would need them in high enough res to print in a book. Would you be so kind to let me know? I think the minimum resolution for printing is 300-400 psi. Maybe in e-mail would do, or on a CD.

Hope to hear from you and thanks in advance,

best regards from Iceland
Bodvar Thorsteinsson
bodvar@barnaskolinn.is

Bodvar, I believe we can work something out. As long as this book is not anit-firearm or anti-reloading and the subject related to the photos is reloading safety. I'll sent an email and we can discuss details.

While it's good to hear all the reminders (and I have boo-booed myself a few times, though never to the point of shattering a rifle), we should also all realize that we don't need such a dangerous "mistake" load to blow up a rifle.

The worst blow-up I've ever heard about happened to a friend who was fond of red-lining every load. If he wasn't getting 100-200 fps more than the manuals called for, he was unhappy.

The rifle in question came totally apart from a load that had been fired hundreds of times before. Why? The action simply grew weary.

Steel's structure does indeed change drastically if we stress it too hard, too often. That extra 100 or 200 fps will not take your rifle apart on the first load, or probably even the 100th, but if you shoot it often enough, odds are you too can have a rifle disinegrate in your hands. It doesn't matter if it's an '03 Springfield or a Rem. 700.

I also own a couple of Springfield .30-06's. These days I load them to those darned wimpy facrtory specifications, around 2700 fps with a 180. But then again, I tend to do that with Remington 700's as well. There isn't an animal on earth that can tell the difference between 2700 and 2800 fps, but some rifles can.

MD

Friend of mine was a sniper in France during World War Two. He loved to pick on German tank crews because they had the 9mm loads (hot stuff for their Schmeissers) that he liked to use in his British revolver. With side-cutters, he snipped notches that raised burrs around the rims and headspaced like the rimmed cartridges that were the normal grist for that revolver.

One day soon after U S forces took Paris, he rushed into a Paris hotel in a hurry-up call to the latrine. Forgetting the revolver in his belt, he threw his field jacket open, unbuckled his belt, and undid his trousers to get into relieving action. The revolver tumbled to the tiles ...

... and shattered.

As MD has pointed-out, even the best steels sooner or later just get tired of handling overly hot "safe" loads. They resign with a flourish that can be down-right exciting. No one has any idea how many rounds of that hot Schmeisser ammo had been fired apparently "safely" in that revolver. The break surfaces of its shards and little chunks resembled the "facets" of a cube of sugar.

.

Those are two superb reminders of what exceeding safe loads can eventually do. Thanks, Mule Deer and Ken Howell.

I would say the Springfield must be a pretty good action or the shooter would have been seriously hurt or killed.

Ray, there seems to be something wrong with the e-mail delivery, I�ve got a message two times now that my mail to you has been delayed and then that i�ts undeliverable. So I send my e-mail this way now.

Thank you Ray!!
Good to hear from you and thaks again for the response.
No, the book is certanly NOT anti-firearm or anything like that, in fact shooting, hunting and reloading is what I mainly live for (besides my children).

I think the best solution (if you can manage) would be to scan the photo in some resolution above, say, 400 dpi and put on a CD and mail to me. A 300 dpi resolution will do if you can send it via e-mail. Please let me know,

my address is:
Bodvar Thorsteinsson
Tungata 47,
820, Eyrarbakki,
Iceland

bodvar@barnaskolinn.is

Thank you Ray, for your kindness. I will send you a copy of the pages where the pic. will be seen, when finished.

Regards,

I got mine behind me.Hope there are no more in front.I type too slow for all the details but back in early sixties a friend and I partnered on an old Texan progressive shot shell loader since we both shot 12 gage.
We loaded Red Dot the first season or 2 then switched to Unique.We had loaded several the 3rd season with Unique when I remembered we had the Red Dot bushing in.I wantedto throw them away.He tore them down for me to load back.After a few I noticed they weren't crimping right.We used cardboard wads back then.I tore one down and it had the R.D busing full of unique and the RD bushing full of Red Dot over that!
That time,I did throw them away.All but one.
I thank God that the little EIG double I was dshooting was well made.Doctor said it was the worst bruise he had ever seen without a broken bone.Still cant hear with my left ear and have a hearing aid in the right.
Handloading should be a solitary operation.
At the first hint of something amiss,clear your loading bench of all completed ammo.Trashcan it.
Most of the accidents you hear about had ample warning signs that were ignored.
Handloading is as safe as a man makes it.Make it safe,

Gene, I have also had one or two "almost's" when trying to 'team reload'.

No team reloading for me. I let my son help but its with complete supervision and I dont do something else while he's busy at the chore.

Yes and no, yep and nope, right and wrong, do and don't ...

I've done a lot of "team" handloading, for a lot of years, without any "almost" or complete "uh oh!" mishap.

The crux of the matter is first, system and second, rigid concentration. The culprit that so often creeps in and messes with you is not so much another person's presence as it is the distraction that comes with him, if you let it. This distraction is almost always conversation (Alas, I've never been distracted by the presence of anyone like Raquel Welch or Ann-Margret! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />).

My "team" handloading has always been on my equipment, using my system, with the other fellow just seating bullets in his ammo. Every operation up to the moment when I handed him a charged case went strictly according to my rigid system. There was never anything else � no TV, no coffee or Coke, no snacks, no alcohol, no tobacco.

... no distraction ...

... which can occur all too easily even when you're loading all by yourself.

.

I am still having some e-mail problem so I send the last message this way as last time:

Thanks again, Ray.
I don�t think there is any limit on my side when it comes to receiveing files but IF there is it is probably 10 mb. But again I dont�t think so. Of course if you ZIP the file it will be somewhat smaller. Let�s try.

All the best,

Bodvar



bodvar@barnaskolinn.is

One of the most thoroughly devastated guns that I've examined was a shotgun � about which I just posted this in another Campfire forum �
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sometimes the bullet or shot column is the "bore obstruction" that doesn't move forward fast enough to lower the rate of pressure-rise.

I had a case like that � a 12-gauge Marlin "Goose Gun" that blew-up so violently, in such a brief fraction of a second, that the force of the blast was essentially all radial (i e, almost all in a "disc" of explosion, all outward, with no evidence of excessive force exerted forward or backward along the axis of the bore).

The lawyers for the insurance company didn't want me to submit a long, detailed report that they'd have to share with (and thus educate) the plaintaiff's lawyer, so I submitted a very brief statement of what I'd concluded from my examination of the destroyed shotgun �

... that the shell was a handload, with an extremely excessive charge of possibly the wrong powder, with the shot very probably buffered with flour ...

The lawyers told me later that they'd shared that statement with the plaintiff's lawyer, who'd shown it to his client ...

... who immediately dropped the lawsuit.

I've felt, ever since, that it must've seemed to that plaintiff that some kind of ESP had told me the truth � that I'd flat nailed the cause of that "catastrophic failure."

.

Hoo Boy!

Another reason that I stick with One Caliber, One Powder, and One Primer!

308 Win, Varget, and Fedearl 210M primers.

A guy simply cannot get enough Varget in the case to blow it up.

The Max load is 46 grains (+/- with 165 grainers) and that fills the case to the shoulder.

I am looking at adding a caliber and I suspect that I will choose one based upon the ability to use Varget (makes the 223 and teh 375 H&H good candidates).

Less room for error is a good thing.

BMT

I remember being told years and years ago when I was loading some highly reduced 30-06 loads and using a filler, that there were some materials that just weren't good filler choices. When compressed they begin to act like a solid, jam in the throat, and can disassemble a rifle in short order. Flour was at the top of that list. I used Cream of Wheat, Grits, or Kapoc and stayed away from the flour.

Only recipie I ever found for grits that was to my liking. 2000 fps grits. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />Thank you Ray, I have got the pictures and everything works great. I look forward to use them in my book along with the story you told about how it happened. If anyone was in doubt before about watching every step of the reloading process carefully, this will bring an end to that for sure!

Bodvar, Iceland

I turned one into a 9.3x64 and have been runing full house load's in it for years... the person just used the wrong powder
or double charged it.
Or used 56 grains of blue dot and a 180 grain bullet
that would be about 120 Thousand PSI