Shooting unknown ammo/ reloads........

[fortyshooter]

Nice Winchester destroyed... https://youtu.be/sCgS7Evf8RE

[DsGrouse]

another one,
https://www.instagram.com/p/CjGQfvzLnTd/

canadianfirearmsfan2
Ok folks so here is a PSA on #firearmssafety and a big shout out and thank you to @alpha_firearms_one for the photo credit. Sure we all know the golden rules of firearms. Treat them as loaded until we prove otherwise, don't point a firearm at anything you don't want to put holes in, keep your finger off the trigger until you want it to go bang and be aware of what's behind your target. But just as important is to use quality ammo.

Your expensive thousand dollar plus striker fired #SigSaur has numerous safety features built in and is tested to make sure it doesn't turn into a grenade in your hand when you pull the trigger.

But as you can see Here, if you use bad or questionable ammo (even factory loaded stuff). You are running the risk of destroying that expensive new toy and wors seriously injuring yourself and others.

This looks like an over pressure caused by a barrel obstruction from a squib. Know our guns, know what a proper round sounds and feels like when it goes off. If you have any doubts, stop and check the barrel. Don't just rack and smash.

I did a quick Google search of this ammo, which is from Macedonia btw and what I found was not good. It doesn't look like we can get it here in Canada; but if you find any, LEAVE IT! Sometime a good deal at the store isn't a good deal at the range!

[JEBar]

that certainly reinforces our decision to only fire our reloads ....

[Headhog]

Good video Forty. I hope many shooters watch and heed it's warning.

Paul

[Ernie]

I have never shot someone else's reloads by my own choice. I did not know the loaders well enough to take the chance. As a rule I don't shoot ammunition produced by a company I am not familiar with but with the lack of choices nowadays I can see the temptation. The lack of ammunition available from trusted sources and the PRICES are what drove me to finally start loading my own. And I am paranoid enough to be very careful.

[Vaquero]

Have a good friend, he's been loading longer than I.
He was loading for a Marlin 444, and loaded Accurate 7, instead of Rel 7.
Said he had both sitting on the bench and just picked up the wrong one.
Blew the rifle all to heck, not quite as bad as that Winchester, he luckily didn't get hurt.
Says he Never has two different powders on the bench any more.

RP

[graywolf]

You just answered a question I hadn’t got around to asking yet. An Uncle brought me several 410 reloads he and a buddy of his reloaded several years ago. I don’t think either of them even had a 410. Someone give them a bunch of hulls and they decided they were gonna get into reloading. Just haven’t been able to bring myself to shoot one. Now I know I’m not.

[BrokenolMarine]

Another thing to keep in mind....

If you are picking up brass on the range and come across an unfired round in the mix...
Don't drop it in your bag to shoot later unless it was yours and you know why it was unfired and how it got there.
Sadly, I know a lot of young shooters who often volunteer to pick up brass at the public ranges to get free brass. More power to them. (However, that in itself is a discussion for another time. Right? )
But, they have said they often find live rounds that they can shoot later.
I have shared this PSA with them and they just wrote me off as overly cautious and I could tell by the eye rolls that they were going to continue to shoot their "good luck finds."

1. The unfired rounds they find on the range could be reloads, reloaded by someone who doesn't have a clue.
2. The unfired rounds could be ammo that didn't fire and were cleared due to hard primers. (They said it'll fire when MY gun hit's that sucker, I HAVE a good hammer / firing pin spring.)
3. Could have been the result of a double feed and cleared during a timed string. (Worst case.) The double feed can cause the bullet nose to jam against the chamber edge, and set back the bullet in the case. THIS can cause a serious overpressure situation. When the round is fired, the case can't contain the pressure and results in a blowout. NOT something I heard about, something I was there for.

The results can vary depending on the design of the firearm, but it can be catastrophic. Some Handguns will vent the pressure by swelling the grip, and ejecting the magazine out the bottom of the gun. Others will blow the grips off the gun. Some will blow the grips and the slide off the firearm. In Rifles it may be the mag blows out the base. The bolt can exit the rear, right where the shooter's face lives. Or the chamber let's go.

In all cases it depends on the amount of overpressure.

In all cases, I would rather not be the shooter.

[fortyshooter]

When I begin loading and fill the powder hopper I label the cap on the hopper with the powder being used and only that container is out on the bench.
The label stays on the hopper after it is emptied into the powder container and until a new loading session is started at a later time.

I have found that after dumping the powder out and cycling the 550B powder hopper many times to remove any old powder you will still get some flakes of it that come out on the first dry cycle after it has sat for a good while. I always look for that before refilling the hopper with a new powder.

[DsGrouse]

When I begin loading and fill the powder hopper I label the cap on the hopper with the powder being used and only that container is out on the bench.
The label stays on the hopper after it is emptied into the powder container and until a new loading session is started at a later time.

I have found that after dumping the powder out and cycling the 550B powder hopper many times to remove any old powder you will still get some flakes of it that come out on the first dry cycle after it has sat for a good while. I always look for that before refilling the hopper with a new powder.

and a new step is added to my process. Normally I keep only the can on the top, but, it can be a while between loading sessions for me.

[BrokenolMarine]

I never have a problem mixing powders. I only load for handguns and only load with 231. Makes things easy.

[Vaquero]

I never have a problem mixing powders. I only load for handguns and only load with 231. Makes things easy.

I remember those days, even though it was a long time ago. My first few years reloading were pistol only.
Now I load for Every single cf cal. I own and then some.

RP

[BrokenolMarine]

I never have a problem mixing powders. I only load for handguns and only load with 231. Makes things easy.

I remember those days, even though it was a long time ago. My first few years reloading were pistol only.
Now I load for Every single cf cal. I own and then some.

RP

I did the math.

I was able to buy 223 / 556 at contract price while I was teaching. I bought a case or two every year out of pocket when I placed the department's bulk order for the coming year.

The cost to reload at the time, figuring in dies, toolhead, and the rest, would have been about the same. I just never bought the rifle setups.

[Vaquero]

I never have a problem mixing powders. I only load for handguns and only load with 231. Makes things easy.

I remember those days, even though it was a long time ago. My first few years reloading were pistol only.
Now I load for Every single cf cal. I own and then some.

RP

I did the math.

I was able to buy 223 / 556 at contract price while I was teaching. I bought a case or two every year out of pocket when I placed the department's bulk order for the coming year.

The cost to reload at the time, figuring in dies, toolhead, and the rest, would have been about the same. I just never bought the rifle setups.

The cal. that pushed me into reloading was the 41 mag., for obvious reasons. and then the 44 and I'm not really sure what came after that. The first rifle cal., was 35 Rem., the 223 was probably 3rd or 4th set.
My problem is I always seem to like more odd stuff so reloading is a No brainer.
Like 25-20, 32 colt, 32 s&w, 35 rem, 41 mag., 444 Marlin, 308mx, 38-55.
Could you even imagine what some of those would cost if they made today?
So now whatever I want to shoot next week or tomorrow I just sit down and pop out whatever I want


RP

[BrokenolMarine]

I started reloading 38 semi wadcutter to compete in local level ppc matches. These were 60 round matches called "match five" because you only shot a portion of the true 150 round 1500 point ppc course. Match Five takes place from seven to twenty five yards. The 150 round state level match works all the way back to fifty yards.

By the time I moved up to state level, I was shooting in three matches a month, and shooting the 1500, service revolver, service pistol, and backup gun matches.
I was loading 38, 9mm, 40, and 45acp. Yup... Lots of fun.

[coachk64]

Many years ago (late '80's) I had a bunch of different pistols and some friends at the local pistol range. We ran into an issue where the brass was getting stuck in the cylinder of my Charter Arms Bulldog .44 Spl. The empty cases had to be tapped out with a metal rod. It was only after I noticed it happening a second time that I saw that someone was loading the .44 Spl pistol with .41 Mag ammo. In this case the cases were splitting, therefor relieving the extra pressure before the thin-walled cylinder was blown out. I was shocked that the cheap Charter Arms pistol suffered no damage at all, and I still have it today. But I never put the .41 Mag ammo anywhere close to any .44 or .45 revolver.