Have you ever seen a gun blow up?

Years ago I was firing a Ruger 10/22 with factory loaded Remington Thunderbolt. Somehow a round went off when it was halfway chambered, blowing out the extractor and magazine. I swear, I do NOT reload .22 rimfire!

My brother demolished a Kel-Tec 9mm Carbine with an identical situation. Again, the round somehow went off when halfway chambered. The case was very neatly and cleanly cut in half. The gun did not frag but the whole thing was bent up very badly. Kel-Tec replaced it, no questions asked.

A few years ago a shooter at a local range was killed when a very old bolt action came apart. The bolt came straight back into his face. He was an experienced handloader and nobody figured out what went wrong.

Regarding my own personal stupidity, I suspect I once shot a Berry 185 gr. HBRN out the barrel of my 625 after it was launched there by a squib load. I was shooting a match, didn't hear the primer go and fired the next shot before anybody could stop me. There was no damage to the gun and that next "bullet" hit exactly where it needed to go. I also suspect (though can not prove) that my .45 Colt Redhawk once fired a severe overload of 231 with a 255 gr. cast bullet. There was a tremendous "boom" and greatly increased recoil. I examined the gun and it was fine.

Gotta be careful out there!

Dave Sinko
 
I knew better. It was, apparently, all my fault.

I had been shooting .44 russians - and a few Specials - through my 629MG - over 200 total. I had been the public range RO all day - it was late. One box of ammo left - and I wanted to ping the steel plate at 110yd one more time. They were 300gr LSWC over 6.2 gr Titegroup - chrono-ed at 880 fps from that 4" tube. Loud pinger, for sure.

I knew better, those chambers were nasty with crud from the short cased plinkers... difficult to load, too. I hit the plate with the third and fourth shots - the fifth made a lessor 'boommmff' noise, followed by tinkle-tinkle as the parts landed. A fellow a few lanes down told me I missed the plate. Duh... why does my gun look funny? I had two blood spots, possibly powder or the primer, on my forearm. The left lens of my 1.00 diopter safety glasses were dinged. I found the parts - easily - it really wasn't impressive at all... except for my 'luck'. I was blessed to be unhurt. Still, the tears - I destroyed my MG!

S&W wanted to test the remnants - and sent a pre-paid label for the body bag. Their results were indicative of over pressure - and offered to replace it with a standard 4" 629 for a price less than a used Taurus, since I was a good and honest customer. Their first question was had I ever shot homebrew ammo in it - I said that's all it ever got. I had to wait a few days for one to come down the assembly line - test it one day - ship it - and in my hands two days later. The dealer who transfered it didn't charge me - I had bought the MG new from him (... and lots more!). I was, indeed, fortunate.

KABOOM.jpg


I dissected hundreds of rounds of my 'new' hot load, to find all between 6.1-6.2gr Titegroup. I tried to double charge - only 10.4-10.8gr would make it into the case and still leave enough room to seat the long 300gr LSWC to the crimping groove. Excess ram pressure was noted to seat a bullet at that charge level, much less at 12.4gr, what a 'double' would have been. Also, leaving the cases set and not advancing them a quarter turn, ie, double charging a case, meant the ram had little force needed - definitely easily noticed. Of course, trying to seat that bullet was impossible in the next step (For safety, I didnn't replace the spent primer!). Hodgdon's agreed with S&W - it was likely a momentarily stuck round causing a pressure spike. Cleaning before long cased ammo is important. I knew that... it was all my fault.

Stainz

PS S&W returned the only serviceable part of the MG - the barrel! Nice pencil holder.
 
I saw an aluminum framed 1911 come apart one day. My best guess is that the shooter had a squib load and fired the next round off without clearing the barrel. The frame broke right at the hinge pin.
 
Only one was an M16A2 on an assault course. Pop-no-kick, then a functioning cartridge. At that time one of my jobs was weapons/ammo malfunction investigations. Got to see some pretty weird stuff happen will military weapons and ammo!!!!!
 
I still hear ringing in my ears. I was shooting from a port in my shed, with a chronograph set up outside. I was testing a subcaliber insert barrel, made up in .300 whisper, to be used in a 12ga over/under rifle shotgun combo (EAA). The gunsmith who made the barrel insert did not turn the "rim" of the barrel insert to the dimmension of regular 12 ga. rim, and the barrel insert took a "set" when fired, allowing the insert barrel to move forward in the shotgun barrel. This created a massive headspace problem, allowing the cartridge to blow at the rear. The .300 whisper with a 220 grain bullet at 1000fps is about equivalent to a .44 magnum in pressure, and this went off in my shed, which had a low hanging ceiling over my head. The gun blew partially open (the Russian made O/U rifle combo is very strongly locked), and the gases went mostly straight up, along with the brass fragments. Nothing hit me, but pieces bounced around the small room, and it stunned me pretty well, like a flash-bang grenade, as it was inches in front of my face. The resulting permanent tinnitis is just something one lives with...kind of an excellerated hearing loss as from shooting without ear protection. Shooters will eventually get tinnitis if they don't wear muffs enough. The load was fine, the gunsmithing was "off" just a little bit.....
 
Saw a Weatherby Vanguard rechambered to 30'06 Ackley Improved blown up. Guy who did it was in a hurry reloading and read the powder number for the recipe wrong. Can't remember what powder he was supposed to be using, but he ended up putting in a compressed charge of a much faster powder. The rifle was in pieces: broken stock, bent action, magazine blown out the bottom. However, I was impressed by that Howa action. It didn't let go, and diverted the blown out gases down and not back at the shooter. Still, I think he was real lucky he was wearing shooting glasses.
 
Yep, saw an early Smith & Wesson Model 29 blow up. The top half of the cylinder and the top strap were gone. We believe it was a double charge, because after dissecting his handloads, we found one cartridge with no powder. We think he put two charges in one cartridge case and nothing in the other. Real fine revolver that was converted to scrap metal. Luckily, no one was hurt.

I have seen a Ruger Redhawk in .44 Magnum with a cracked barrel due to excessive handloads. No damage to the cylinder. The owner brought it to a local gun store to have another barrel installed.

I saw a early Colt New Army & Navy revolver that was designed for black powder .38 Long Colt cartridges that some idiot tried to shoot with .38 Super +P cartridges. I am still amazed that the cylinder didn't bulge, but the barrel split.

I may be criticized for saying this, but...there are some people who are too stupid to be allowed to own guns.
 
A friend friend loaded a Remington cap and ball revolver replica with Titegroup instead Triple 7 when we were at the range. The bottles look similar and he had brought the wrong powder. He loaded it and shot a full cylinder full. I also shot a cylinder full after he loaded it again. The loads did seem pretty hot. He loaded it again. He fired the first shot and it sounded strange. I looked over and saw the top strap was bent up radically. A chamber of the cylinder was blown open. I noticed this as he attempted to cock the revolver again and found he couldn't. The revolver was ruined but no one was hurt. The revolver had a brass frame. Maybe that was good since the frame was softer than steel and gave some and bent before it could break...
 
Not really a blow-up, I guess, but I did have an M-1 come apart on me during a High Power match. I don't remember what I was using for ammo, but the last two shots of the first slow fire string doubled on me.

This had happened before and one or two of the old timers had told me it was my fault for caressing the trigger too lightly; that I should squeeze it more quickly. Whatever....

So anyway during the second string, the rifle tripled: BangBangBang! And it locked up solid.

The bolt was loose in the receiver. It had run back in recoil so hard that it split the back of the receiver. Needless to say, I retired from the line! There were no injuries, and no parts flew off. These were tough weapons!

With the same old, old timers gathered around for the postmortem, we discovered that the op-rod spring was some inches shorter than mil-spec.

This was a DCM rifle that I'd sent off to Springfield Armory (tm) for a re-build and, foolishly, a conversion to 7.62 NATO, because I'd always heard that the .308 is measurably more accurate than the .30-'06... as if it would make a difference to my own scoring.
icon_rolleyes.gif


Apparently, as part of the conversion package, SA had shortened the op-rod spring. How this would result in doubles and triples, I still don't understand. But that was the good ol' boys' diagnosis.

I still have the receiver. I had the rifle rebuilt by a local 'smith who knew how, and shot it for years more without further trouble.
 
Yes, two actually.

1. I was shooting with my pistol team members (U.S. Army, Ft. Lewis, WA) when I saw a bunch of "stuff" (smoke and small particles I suppose) fly by in front of me from the left. I heard the soldier next to my left give out an "Ow" (or something similar, but not as polite
icon_wink.gif
). I looked toward him, while keeping my 1911A1 pointing down range.

He still had his 1911A1 in his left hand, pointing down range, but was bent over to the right and was holding his right hand over his left eye. I quickly called for a cease fire, cleared my pistol and set it down on the bench; then reached across to secure his pistol from him (I grabbed it across the top of the slide), and yelled "Give it to me" and "What happened?". He said he got hit by something in his eye. I called for the Range Safety to get a Medic, and had two other soldiers take the injured soldier away.

As they walked away, I tried to clear his pistol. The magazine came out ok, but the slide wouldn't pull back. A closer look showed that the rear 1.5 inches or so of the slide had jumped the rails, but the rest of it was still mostly in the rail groove – very strange.

Even with the slide popped up like it was I was still able to remove the main spring housing (with difficulty), the thumb and grip safeties, the hammer, plus the other small parts in there, to make the pistol as safe as I could, and placed it, pointing down range, on the shooting bench.

Eventually the armoror and I were able to pound the slide off.

We found that a round had detonated in the chamber (don't know why), splitting and separating the chamber directly above the link. The remaining barrel (obviously under great pressure) pushed up on the slide causing the rear portion of the slide to jump the rails.

The soldier, luckily, only received some light burn to his eye, and soon recovered.

2. I was preparing to shoot at the Ft. Eustis, Va., Rod and Gun Club range when the sound of the shot coming from a shooter, several shooting points down from me, suddenly sounded much louder and sharper. The shots had been loud before (like .357 Magnums), but this one was noticeably different.

I looked and there this guy was pointing a revolver frame, with no cylinder, down range. At that, I heard a "Cease Fire, Clear All Weapons", and did so.

The guy, new to shooting, had bought a new Chief's Special, and the clerk had also sold him a box of SuperVel .38 Specials! This was way before J frames were rated for +P ammo; in fact they didn't even call it +P back then.

When the cylinder gave way to the pressure, it split into two halves (each were lying on the bench), and the top strap of the frame separated from the rest of the frame and was stuck into a wooden beam above where he stood!

Other than a look of shock on his face, the guy didn't even have a scatch!

Peace,
 
I had a brand new NEF single barrel let go two days after I bought it. I was using from off the shelf 7 1/2's in standard 2 3/4 shells (12 gauge gun), and then I decided to try a slug. (Also 2 3/4) The breech blew open, the back of the shell came off (went past my head) and I had one heck of a burn on my face. Who know what my eyesight would have been if I wasn't wearing glasses. I took it back that afternoon.
 
Spend enough time as a match director and Range Officer and yyou see most everything.

Blackpowder barrels split, blackpowder revolvers chain fire, case failures in Glocks, 1911s, squibs in barrels, shotguns split, magazines blown out, and an IPSC open gun spit the back half of a slide into the shooters face.
 
Back in the early 80's I had a brand new Dan Wesson .357 mag. on the 33'rd round it blew the cylinder in half the frame blew up on a 45 degree angle and the rear sight hit the roof of the range. I called the factory and they described the gun to me before I described it to them. I was told they had a bad batch of heat treating. They tooled up a new gun with the same serial no. and sent it to me but I traded it in on a Colt Python.I have a picture of it somewhere if I can find it and scan it in to my computer I'll post it.
 
This is a terrific learning post,
and I hope many more folks read it.

This is not a thread drift...stay with me.

My wife and I went to the range
today... first time she has shot
in too many years (shame on me).

After review the ABC's of safety
on the fire line, and showing her
how to check the revolver cylinder,
to make sure it is empty, she places
the gun down, cylinder empty and open,
turns to me and asks "should I also
check the barrel from this safe end
to make sure it is empty and unobstructed". Gotta love that!
icon_wink.gif


I replied, yes and I'm sorry I did
not instruct you to do that...
and from now on...


By the way, .22lr Blackhawk, Mod 36,
and Colt Officer's Match 6" .38 spls,
at 21 feet - all center mass in
four inch groups. Dang she was
good, and I kept telling her
"shot placement is everything"!

Thanks Erich!
icon_biggrin.gif
 
Yes
Springfield sporterized rifle split the metal at the breech. Split the stock full length. Put the shooter in the hospital.

S&W 44 mag blew the cylinder and top strap right off.

Hammerli 208s blew from bad PMC ammo. Minor damage and no injury. Ball of smoke was 3-4feet diameter around shooters head

38 Spcl 1911 target gun blew from a likely double charge. Some damage and former Olympian hand very sore. I was firing next to him and the concussion sound rocked even me.
 
A picture from a class I took a couple of years ago. The guy was shooting his reloads, and at some point just couldn't find the rear sight anymore. He did mention having some issues with the powder scale.

IMG_0626.jpg
 
I have a model 19 that came apart on me about 9 years ago. I was shooting some .357s from a gun show that I had had for who knows how long. It blew the top strap and the top of the cylinder off. It opened up the top three chambers. I had fired 21 rounds so there wasn't any obstruction. The round that blew it up sounded a little differant but didn't feel differant and I didn't know that had blown until I looked at it. That was one of the few things in my life that made me sit down and recoup for a while. By the way, I suffered no injuries. I guess everthing went straight up.
 
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