Case exploded today !!!

Butch Lambert said:
Looks like mostly uneducated shooters on that forum to put it nicely.
Butch
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I dont know about that Butch, because that forums shooters fire alot more re-manufactured ammo than the shooters here, they will probably have a greater data base of info.

Another, different shooters, same malfunction of 3D remanufacture, LC, Hornady, except 60 gr bullet, on the same day, and also in a Rem. rifle at a different range. Not quite as catastrophic but still enough to throw junk in the shooters face.

Note the similar; primer cratering, location of failure, and wide "date" dispersion of LC brass.

One snipershide member suggested over sizing of brass and primer pocket distortion of crimped LC fired from sloppy chambered automatic weapon as the most likely source of the weakening of the base area of the brass, causing ultimate failure................this sounds most plausible to me......Don


http://www.snipershide.net/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1025550&page=2



b92c3db9.jpg
 
Mark

First the firing pin hole has either intenionaly or by accident been chamfered severly. Great pictures by the way. It needs the firing pin hole bushed and reduced in size.

Measure the neck diameter of the remaining loaded rounds in two places. One mid point of the neck, the other at the end of the neck. I've seen virgin brass that was rolled over so bad when it was pinch trimmed at the factory that it created an interference fit in the chamber. Might or might not be an issue.

Have to agree with Butch about Snipers Hide

There are a few over there that know what's going on but they get lost in the noise. Case failure caused by an over charge of primer compound????? The primer compound is powerful stuff, I have the scares to prove it but give me a break.

I've got brass that I've fired I know over 50 times and no problems. If repeated use caused case failures like we've seen, there would be failure, case after case and that's just not happening.

I would like someone to section a piece of LC brass and measure the heigth/ depth of the head. Maybe post a picture. That's made to Goverment specs for a specific purpose. Slight chance there may be an issue there.

Dave
 
Thanks Dave,

So you think the failure came from the case?
 
Without having everything here in the shop I can't say with certainty but from all indications I'm leaning towards a brass issue.

Dave
 
Where was the ammo purchased?

I purchased this ammo about a month ago and decided to try it today.
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Was the ammo purchased at a gun show? Or over the counter at a trusted well known retail sporting goods store?
 
I believe the picture posted by Don is conclusive that it is a brass issue.
If there wasn't a problem with the brass it would expand rather than crack as the case in this picture did, as did the one in the original picture.
It is also an incredible coincidence that the both split in the exact same place with reference to the head stamp.
The only thing that would indicate high pressure is the cratering of the primers and that is an unreliable indicator for chamber pressure.

James
 
Roll Sizing of Fired Brass

Roll Sizing is a process i have just heard about from a poster that looked at the photos. He has seen its before from brass that has been Roll Sized. He said
Back around 2000,2001, Sarch processed brass they were selling had been roll sized too hard.
There were a LOT of case head failures that looked like the one posted up top.
I have a few of those cases still around to remind me not to buy roll sized brass.
Click to expand...
Here is info from a company that does Roll Sizing.
Roll Sizing is the only method available to insure that the previously fired cartridge cases are sized down to the rim of the case.
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http://www.ultramaxammunition.com/quality.php Wolf has info on Roll Sizing also at http://www.wolfbullets.com/rollsize.htm So maybe this brass went thru the process? :confused: And the brass is now damaged? :confused: Lake City Army Ammunition Plant (LCAAP) > Hope none of the fired quality control brass makes it into the used brass market.
The approximate shelf life of the ammunition is also tested here. "We place the ammunition in a chemical solution. This process allows for the brass imperfections to be easily identified" said Ojeda. "Any potential defects in the brass will become more apparent due to the reaction of the solution. Theoretically, the test makes it possible to identify flaws in the brass that under normal conditions, could only be noticed after a lengthy period of time."
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This "Chemical Solution" would seem to age the brass fast. http://www.army.mil/-news/2008/08/22/11859-ammunition-testingrigorous-process-well-worth-it/index.html
 
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roll sizing became popular for pistols with the advent of glock's large chambers. i have seen a lot done in 40 s&w, 45, and 9x21. this is the first i had heard of it being done to rifle brass.
learn something new every day.
since bases are not annealed, i can see where this might create an issue.


mike in co
 
Don't hold it against me that I'm a member of snipers hide, but I did build shooter65's rifle and am pretty confident it was not the rifle's fault but I'm not perfect. If anyone has any questions about the rifle I'll try and answer them.


James
 
hearing and eye protection

Glad you had your safety gear on.

Years ago I had a young gentlemen (16 or 17 year old ),he had shot a 270 win in his 7 rem mag Rem 700 ,and he wanted me to check his rifle . I asked him if anything happened to him? He stated " that he had not been wearing glasses and had apeice of brass embedded in his eye .The choices were to leave it in his eye or the doctor could remove but had a 50% chance of losing his eye. He was going to live with it in his eye . Sure would have been simple had he been wearing safety glasses..


Remember your safety gear .

Chris
 
James, It's not sniper's hyde itself. It's some of the things that are said that make you shake your head. We may do a little of that here also.
Butch
 
a picture of some of the unfired ammo might help. checking the brass for head pressure/stress would not hurt.

One thing for sure, no way in hell I would fire that rifle again until a WELL qualified smith tears that rifle down and is 100% sure it's safe.

When you contact Hornady, I would ask them who they suggest check the rifle out. If it's a stock rifle, I would send it back to the MFG.

I'm sure the Hornady people will jump on this like stink on a skunk. They have treated me like a king over the years. When I start a new hand load that uses their bullet, I give them a call. Every time they were happy to recommend several loads that worked well for them in the past.

Thank God you weren't maimed. I have had one case blow in 30 years of hand loading. Thank God if was in a Glock 17. It blew the mag out of the gun, and absorbed the blast inside the grips. Unreal how much powder burn my hands got, and if felt like someone had hit my hand with a hammer.

keep us posted and good luck
 
Mark,

You have a very large audience that is closely following this thread. It is safe to say we all would like to know where the investigation leads.

Glad you were not hurt. This is just a real world reminder about the importance of safety gear and also a reminder why I value the participation of those on this board.

Doug F
 
UPS has picked the ammo up today and it is heading to Hornady for inspection.
 
Hi Guys

FWIW I had a Remington 223 in here today. Same problems with cratered primers. It has the same issue with a chamfer on the firing pin hole.

Dave
 
looks like 98

had the same look with what turned out to be bad brass(primer pockets loose)
 
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