Sadly - Another .40 Shield Kaboom

[frmach]

Sorry
I thought that the issues might be related.

 

[gutterman]

I have never owned a Shield and won't either. I have owned several 40's-Xd40 and berettas with no problems with either reloads or factory ammo. This sounds like a gun flaw--it will be interesting to see where it goes from here. Glad there were no serious injuries but how long will this be the case?

 

[turbo38gn]

Hahaha.... this stuff is funny... amazing some of the stuff I read here.. I mean you couldn't script some of these posts.. ...

 

[andyo5]

Sorry
I thought that the issues might be related.

And they well may be related.
There may be some very high gas pressure in the gun at the time of ejection. and with the magazine gone it could force the case into the path of least resistance.

 

[Bkreutz]

And they well may be related.
There may be some very high gas pressure in the gun at the time of ejection. and with the magazine gone it could force the case into the path of least resistance.

Could be, I've never shot mine with the magazine removed. Can't imagine why one would do that unless the magazine was inadvertently dropped. Maybe I'll try that tomorrow and see if it happens on my FS. Maybe the round was underpowered and just fell off the extractor.

 

[RobzGuns]

I've shot mine without the mag... To verify that it could.
One time, the shell dropped out the magwell and the other time, it ejected, but just barely cleared the port.
I'm guessing that the mag itself seems to be part of the proper ejection process.

It's amazing though, how this thread refuses to die and keeps getting resurrected.

 

[Stevewins]

I've read thru a good part of this thread but not nearly all of it so I apologize if this was covered and put to rest. I have seen a lot of posts about there being no .40 S&W +p ammo in existence. It reminded me of a pic I have on my iPad of some of my older ammo. Perhaps there is no SAAMI spec, but there is ammo label +p from Corbon. Here's a pic.

 

[baldmedic]

If multiple .40 shields have blown up, and each with different ammo, then it would appear to be a flaw in the gun. Has anyone thought about a class action law suit against S&W? It's sad that their lifetime warranty is worthless since they NEVER admit any flaws with their guns. I own a .40 shield and I am concerned about the possibility of a kaboom as I have grown fond of having my hands...just a thought...

 

[Prasko]

If multiple .40 shields have blown up, and each with different ammo, then it would appear to be a flaw in the gun. Has anyone thought about a class action law suit against S&W? It's sad that their lifetime warranty is worthless since they NEVER admit any flaws with their guns. I own a .40 shield and I am concerned about the possibility of a kaboom as I have grown fond of having my hands...just a thought...

Medic, no lawsuit has been filed because it's been proven that of the 6 or 7 actual cases, it's mostly been ammo related.

Since I've been following this issue, it's been the same people complaining all over the internet, with the same pictures, of the same guns. People have been regurgitating the pictures from the cases that actually happened. So it seems like more then 7 when it's actually not.

FYI, 2 cases were caused by freedom munitions*whether or not reloads is another story*, 1 by winchester*proven double charge*, and 1 by magtech*proven double charge*

Another kaboom caused by a fitz munitions works reload was over at the VSO channel on youtube, but that caused a kaboom on a full size 9mm pro. Thus proving, overcharged rounds can pop even the big boys. Meaning shield aren't the only ones prone to exploding from using too much powder.

 

[baldmedic]

Thanks for the response, I appreciate it. Good to know when you carry a .40 shield daily.

 

[ggibson511960]

Out of Battery????

I didn't read every post but did you measure the length of the fired case?
To see if the case was a tad too long. The headspace is measured by the case length on most pistols. Too long of a case could cause an out of battery firing situation. This would explain the damage.

I've asked this question before with no response, but maybe some new illumination can shine. How can a tilting breech automatic firearm of any brand, and there are many, "fire out of battery"? If the case is too long, or the bullet ogive engages the rifling too soon, or the cartridge jams on the chamber entrance, the slide stops running forward and stops camming the barrel up. The firing pin never lines up with the primer, let alone the other stuff that has to happen to make the striker fall. "Too long of a case" would cause the barrel breach to stop sliding up the breach face. A high primer is plausible, but way less likely than a simple overpressure round.

 

[Rastoff]

I didn't read every post but did you measure the length of the fired case?
To see if the case was a tad too long. The headspace is measured by the case length on most pistols. Too long of a case could cause an out of battery firing situation. This would explain the damage.

No, this is impossible. If the case is too long, the gun won't go into battery. If it won't go into battery, the gun won't fire. I've tested this myself and know that it's true.

Further, I had a friend that had this exact thing happen. We were at the range and he had a cartridge that wouldn't feed. We discovered it because the slide wouldn't go fully into battery.

Here is what was happening:

This was the cause:

The cartridge on the left was the issue. The case was too long and wouldn't let the slide go fully into battery. The gun won't fire in this condition, it's physically impossible. So, this wasn't the problem.

 

[instymp]

same kind of posts exists on the Glock sites. Love my G23 & have "Blind Faith" in it.