I was shooting some 125 gr. .38 +P through my Model 28, and some of the rounds blew a small amount of hot gas and carbon in my face.

Is this normal, or is there something wrong with the gun?

Not normal. Did you check and see if the fired cases split or cracked? Did you check and see how the primer pockets looked?

The cases looked good. It wasn't like a "blast" to the face, I just felt a little bit of grit and carbon hit my face. It happened on maybe 3 out of the 24 rounds I fired.

I have had issues with CCI Blazer aluminum case before, maybe this gun just doesn't like it.

My first thought was that the aluminum doesn't expand right and allows blowback from the chambers, maybe some of it got around the recoil shield. I haven't fired this gun a whole lot, I may have to wait until I can get some different brands of ammo through the gun.

Had the same problem with Blazer aluminum in a M-29 about 15 yrs ago. I had been peppered several times but when they drew blood on my sons cheek I stopped using them and had the revolver checked by my gunsmith.The M-29 checked out perfectly and the ammo got the blame. Hated that this happened because the were very affordable and accurate out to 100 yds.These were 44 Mag not 44 Spec, which I'm curious if anyone has had the the same problem with them. I want to give these a try but past history is hard to overlook.

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KMAG YOYO

I just bought a Ruger Redhawk .357 mag. Another shooter had a Python at the range. The rim/case on shell #6 blew out of the Python between the cylinder and frame. He opened the cylinder, almost wet his undies, and gave me the box with 44 rounds. I fired all forty-four 357 mag 158 grain bullets without a problem. Nothing hurt that Ruger and accuracy was amazing, but it wasn't as sophisticated as his Python.

Now why did I sell that gun? For a $175 profit to a Ruger collector.

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S&WHF 366

Been firing CCI Blazer aluminum cased ammo in a variety of calibers ever since they brought it to market. This is the first I've ever read of a problem with such ammo. Has anyone contacted CCI for information or possibly instructions for replacement of potentially defective ammo? Has anyone sent their handguns to the manufacturer for evaluation to see if there is some problem with the weapon. I make the above suggestion based on experience. A shooting buddy had a Bushmaster AR-15 that had "problems" with Winchester Q3131 5.56mm ammo. The rounds fired perfectly in my rifle (COLT Hbar). Bushmaster found no problems with the rifle. Winchester evaluated the remain rounds of the lot. They never told us what they found. They did replace all the ammo in that lot and paid for the shipping of the ammo and the shipping of the rifle to and from Bushmaster. Thought it was odd that the ammo gave no problems in my rifle. But the ammo did show signs of high pressure in his rifle. Just a suggestion. Sincerely. bruce.

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A while back, I felt a couple "puffs" while firing aluminum case Blazer .357mag in a M19-3 that had just been overhauled by S&W.
Short, thin, jagged black line on the rims.
Primers looked okay.
Shot remainder of box in carbine.

I also felt a couple of "puffs" from aluminum and steel cased .45acp in a new (less than 200 rounds through it) 625JM yesterday.
Never bothered to look at cases, just de-mooned them into trashcan.

Fortunately, those were the last of the non-brass cases in my ammo stash.

IMHO, If a case isn't re-loadable, it shouldn't have been loaded to start with.

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Age + Treachery = JohnnieB

I've shot the Blazer aluminum casing ammo in my M29-2...no problems at all. But since I've started reloading, I don't buy them anymore.

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Have .44, will travel

Sounds like the gun is spitting - Usually caused by a slight misalignment between the face of the cylinder / chamber, and the forcing cone. Certain loads can exasperate the condition, but its still basically a gun related issue.

Larry

I think I will stop buying CCI aluminum Blazer! 5 years ago I almost blew up my semi-auto Kahr Thompson with Blazer .45 ACP.......had a "squib" and the next round bulged the barrel.

I fired the same 28-2 today, with the last few rounds of brass case 158 gr. .38 I had laying around and had no problems, no "puffs" or carbon in my face. I'm starting to think it was the ammo

How did the squib load have enough energey to cycle the action, allowing you to fire another round?

I have similar results with Blazer .357 in my 28-2, but I shoot it anyway. I had my HP checked out my a Smith 'smith after it happened the first time, and the revolver is in great health. The explanation is that Blazer's powder is a bit cheap and slow-burning, and I was hit by burning powder, not lead shavings. It was also very windy the day it happened to me, with the wind blowing right back at me from the backstop. This may have made the problem worse, or at least more noticeable.

What the OP describes is a common occurrence with many types of ammo fired from many different revolvers. It's just blowback of bits of powder ejecta from the barrel/cylinder gap. In .357s, with .357 mag. ammo, it is more the rule than the exception. It is less common with .38 ammo, but still common. It can usually be reduced by reaming the forcing cone, and is not necessarily a problem with ammo at all. However, ammunition with slower-burning powder tends to spit worse than the faster powders, having a greater volume of unburned granules.

I was shooting a Hi-Point automatic pistol 9mm with Blazer 9mm 115g bullets. The casing from the 4th bullet on the 2nd round came back and hit my mouth, completely pulvarizing my upper front tooth and chipping my bottom tooth. This was completely unexpected. This has never happened before using Blazer but suspect it was the ammo from what others have been posting, not the gun. However, some blogs have said it could be the gun/ammo combo not "getting along". When reviewing the video footage we took, my stance and grip was dead-on. This was an expensive lesson and a risk for others.

"I was shooting a Hi-Point automatic pistol 9mm with Blazer 9mm 115g bullets."

More likely gun parts. Just saying...

Especially one of those Thompsons. My friend has one and you have to eat your wheaties & spinach just to charge the thing.


I think it's just powder blowback from the cylinder gap in regards to the blazer, especially if indoors in a booth.

Blazer 9 MM Lugers in a Glock: anyone had any problems target shooting with them? They are low priced, can't be reloaded, but is that any kind of reason to turn away from them? Hope this is an appropriate question for this thread.

I don't have a Glock, but they're the ONLY ammo that's ever caused FTE's in my 9mm Springfield, so I don't buy them any more. No reason not to try them, but buy 1 or 2 boxes and see how they work before loading up.

Heard Blazer ammo is dirty? Leaves A LOT of carbon build up in your pistol

Don't forget to wear your eye protection at all times!

Yeah, when your kid is bleeding it's difficult to forgive and forget.

I've had trouble with the blazer aluminum cases in a 1911 in 45acp, and in a 380 pocket pistol. The casings broke in the 1911, and the grit clogged up the internals in the 380 causing feeding issues.

I didn't have any 9mm problems, but I don't mess with them anymore.

the original point and click interface, by Smith and Wesson

Correct. It is also more common with 125 gr. & lighter projectiles as it has to do with the length of the shorter bullet in its passage from chamber to forcing cone and powder used. The classic Fed. .357 Mag. 125 gr. JHP is the worst offender as you damn near need a welding mask to shoot it and that's even with the forcing cone chamfered!!

I have reason to believe that Blazer Aluminum casued this damage to my M&P 40. Full details here....

Problem with new M&P, how does yours look? Updated/Solved***
6-23-2013 slide.jpg

Leaking primers caused severe pitting on the breech face, the slide was replace by S&W under warranty. I was able to send one of the 5 boxes that I had left back to CCI to show the blown primers. They only replaced one of the 5 boxes a well, not that I will ever use it again.

It's possible that the primers were damaged due to early unlocking as a theory but once again, its the only ammo that I ever had a problem with.