The Original CZ Forum
GENERAL => Ammunition, questions, and handloading techniques => Topic started by: mrcabinet on July 08, 2023, 06:13:34 PM
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Today, after reloading for close to 40 years, I had my first squib round. Fortunately, it was quite obvious, so no round was fired behind it. No damage to people or hardware occurred. I attribute it to a lapse in attention while loading this batch, primarily due to interruptions by family members and work phone calls. No matter the reason, it was 100% my fault, and a good wake up call. I'm now weighing the rest of the batch to make sure I didn't mess up any others.
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I don't use my Lee progressive press (cheap one) as a progressive press and still charge powder manually with the brass sitting in an empty handgun cartridge tray (rifle and pistol brass both). Still use a small flashlight to look down into the brass to both gauge powder level and whether or not there is powder in the case.
Slower, I know, but adequate for my needs.
You gotta pay attention. Every step of the process requires observation/inspection of the components and how they are "fitting together" while making your ammo.
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I'm now weighing the rest of the batch to make sure I didn't mess up any others.
Unfortunately that won't find anything. The weight of the case alone varies so much that finding 3 or 4gr of powder is nearly impossible.
Good catch on the squib. You're correct. They are not something only muzzleloaders need to be concerned about.
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Glad you caught it and no one was hurt.
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Getting my first squib was certainly humbling, but what was most disappointing was that it happened half way through the first mag of my MAPP1's maiden voyage, and I didn't have a rod with me to knock it out! An old cleaning rod now has a permanent home in my range bag.
I went ahead and weighed the rest of the batch and, as Wobbly said, any difference was hard to spot. There were a couple that made me go "hmmm", so I just tossed them in my to-be-pulled bin to be safe.
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Mrcabinet,
Remember a 2700 match and a shooter had a problem. Found 3 200gr SWC stacked into the barrel. Needless to say had two very slight bulges and had to be replaced. Good news is nothing else was damaged. He pulled the rest of that batch and found two others that were lacking the proper powder charge. Remember it was a large flake powder (700X?) and he used a Dillon press and that turned out to be the issue. Very light load and the powder drop was too inconsistent with that powder.
Glad neither you or your pistol were damaged. Thanks for the reminder, about to start a run on some warm 40 S&W for my P-07. A similar instance would not have the same results. :(
JW
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welcome
everyone makes mistakes at one time or another.
when it comes to reloading, its important to keep in mind why and try not to do it again.
Distractions are a big issue no matter what you are doing.
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Distractions are a big issue no matter what you are.....
(https://i.imgur.com/zc1qBybl.jpg)
The secret is to put your Dillon calendar on the wall BEHIND your reloading chair.
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I have never had a Dillon calendar, but you can see what's on the wall in front of me when I am at the bench.
(https://i.imgur.com/1s46v8I.jpg)
I triple check powder levels, and I had one squib back in the day, no explanation. mrcabinet is absolutely correct - pay attention and don't cut corners while reloading. Glad to hear no damage.
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I had a couple of squibs and primers not getting set with my progressive press when I tried to load ammo sitting in a wheel chair after I became disabled. I have remedied that now that I can stand for periods of time. I now can feel the primers seating better and while standing, I peek into the casing to see the powder before I set the bullet on the casing as a quick QC. I’m more confident when I go shooting now. It’s amazing how muscle memory and old habits come to the rescue.
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I have had 2 squib loads in my life....so far.
First one was when my father decided to come out and shoot with me once. He was firing my 1991A1 in 45ACP, and I caught the squib "sound" and started yelling for him to stop shooting. He pretty much gave up shooting after that, even though I made sure he knew that he was not to blame for the problem. No damage done, except that I think he never wanted to do that again.
The second time was with a AR that I was testing out for a friend. This one cost me a new upper to replace the one I wrecked. Gunsmith looked at everything on that deal and came to the conclusion that it was most likely an underloaded/underpowdered round that I had a detonation with.
BOTH were 100% my fault. No questions there. No excuses. I don't remember the 45 loading problem, just missed a powder charge is all. The 223, I knew what happened, and I was testing out Darwins theory on myself by not refilling my powder hopper when it was about empty.
Both could have been dangerous to myself/others. The AR did damage me, and I took off from reloading for almost a year after that happened.....it shook me pretty bad in the confidence department. I am back on the reloading wagon, and making much better decisions in the quality control department in my reloading steps.
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Hey man, I’ve been reloading for years and ya just never really know when something like that can happen. I had one not too long ago on my .357 Mag wheel gun. Luckily I was mindful of the noises that were made, and found the squib before sending another round. Always gotta be on top of your game.
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(https://i.ibb.co/KGYDR0Q/squib.jpg) (https://ibb.co/KGYDR0Q)
didn't pay attention :(
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(https://i.ibb.co/KGYDR0Q/squib.jpg) (https://ibb.co/KGYDR0Q)
didn't pay attention :(
Yikes :o
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(https://i.ibb.co/KGYDR0Q/squib.jpg) (https://ibb.co/KGYDR0Q)
didn't pay attention :(
Details please!
Hopefully nothing else was damaged.
Cheers,
Toby
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It is my friend's gun, almost a brand-new CZ Shadow 2. He is a new and inexperienced shooter and reloader. Although he knew what a squib is, he experienced his first jam (first jam ever of any type for him) during a training stage. He thought he had a failure to eject (FTE), manually ejected the 'spent' case, and fired the next round. He continued shooting without noticing anything amiss. A few people were behind him, including two GMs, but nobody noticed. He realized what happened when cleaning the gun at home.
:(
Nothing else was damaged, except for a few scratches and burrs on the interior of the slide.
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(https://i.ibb.co/KGYDR0Q/squib.jpg) (https://ibb.co/KGYDR0Q)
didn't pay attention :(
This is the sign of a classic Pressure fracture. Whether in a pipe or a barrel, a tubular container will always split along the length of its axis when encountering too much pressure.
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That’s a great reminder!! no matter how experience you are. Thanks for sharing.
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I have been reloading for 25 or more years and have rarely had a problem. When I did have one it was generally attributed to inattention. The failures I have had were due to no powder, or low powder in the case. No damage to anything other than my ego, but things can go south real quick it you don't pay attention. My latest example of this was with a .38 Special wadcutter in a S&W 52-2. The primer detonated and pushed the 148 gr wadcutter about halfway out of the case and locked the pistol up. I don't know exactly how that happened because I use an RCBS lock-out die on my progressive reloader, but it did happen. In reality the saving grace was the pistol locking up with the slide slightly held open so no chance of firing another round. The RCBS lock-out die has saved me a few times in the past from "no powder" loads, but this time it didn't. Perhaps it was a low powder load instead of a "no powder" load. Anyway, the point is you can never fall asleep at the switch when reloading, nor be too careful.
Rick H.
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There was a gunsmith in the town near where I used to live who kept some interesting items on the wall or under the counter to show people. One was the barrel of a smith revolver that had been cut in half length-wise. You could see several bullets crammed one behind another in a row. I think he had it as a cautionary instruction tool, maybe also as a prop to demonstrate quality....I never could get over why the gun involved didn't blow up or at least give the shooter sign that the bullets weren't exiting the muzzle. A friend of mine had a Marlin Goose gun that had a crack on the receiver near the chamber, I heard but never actually saw that he had that hung on the wall as a conversation piece. I think he may have been a designee for warranty work for some manufacturers
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I find that a cheap fiber optic camera attached to the reloader lets you check the level of powder in the case.