My First Catastrophic Failure

That Guy said:
Thanks for sharing. I'm glad to hear you made it out with every body part in tact.

I'm grateful that all the calibers I load are the kind where a double charge is immediately apparent (9mm, 223, etc.). That's a scary prospect.
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I use 3.8gr of bullseye in my .45 and 4.0gr in my 9mm. A double is for me is very easy to do. This is why we must try to pay attention the best we can.
 
I reload over 60 different calibers 10 of those pistol, and I admit I like to load things on the hot side. But I will only load pistol loads with powders that will over flow the case with a double charge, I don't care if brand X powder is better and only uses half as much. It's almost like a booby trap just waiting for that moment of inattention.



Dean

PS: Glad all extremities are accounted for.
 
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Dean Crawford said:
I reload over 60 different calibers 10 of those pistol, and I admit I like to load things on the hot side. But I will only load pistol loads with powders that will over flow the case with a double charge, I don't care if brand X powder is better and only uses half as much. It's almost like a booby trap just waiting for that moment of inattention.
Dean
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Well said indeed
 
Glad you're OK. I've seen someone bulge an S&W cylinder with a hot load of Titegroup in a Short Colt case, but that's something else.

The Goose said:
I am (was) meticulous when I reload. I always focus and I check the powder charge about every 10 rounds or so. The session that produced this load was no different.
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This is your likely issue. There is no good reason to stop the press and introduce an opportunity for failure every 10 rounds. I get my load dialed in, check once after 20, and then it's off to the races. Have some faith in your equipment.


The Goose said:
I went over every detail in my mind and then I think I might have figured it out. At one point a piece of debris had fouled up the primer feed and I stopped to clear it. Once cleared I continued reloading and I think this is where I made the mistake. I should have cleared everything off of the shellplate at that point. Just dump the powder back and started over. Instead I just went "Oh yeah, this is where I left off" and kept on going. No doubt I double charged it at that point. A really stupid mistake and completely avoidable.
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Loading on a 550?
 
peterthefish said:
This is your likely issue. There is no good reason to stop the press and introduce an opportunity for failure every 10 rounds. I get my load dialed in, check once after 20, and then it's off to the races. Have some faith in your equipment.
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Every 10 is overkill but it's worth noting that if I had complete faith in my equipment I would have produced a box of 80 squibs instead of like 3.

He already described the issue; he had to stop because of some other error... if it was just to check the powder, you probably wouldn't double it... but if you get a jam, that screws everything up and creates confusion.

-Mike
 
Wow! First off I'm glad you are OK. Second, I'm glad you potentially figured out what happened as I just picked up the exact same revolver and am glad it's not a defect from S&W! [wink]

Seriously though, happy to see all is OK. Looks like most everything blew upwards and a little back.
 
drgrant said:
Every 10 is overkill but it's worth noting that if I had complete faith in my equipment I would have produced a box of 80 squibs instead of like 3.

He already described the issue; he had to stop because of some other error... if it was just to check the powder, you probably wouldn't double it... but if you get a jam, that screws everything up and creates confusion.

-Mike
Click to expand...

It could just as plausibly have happened when a case is removed, powder charge was checked, case was replaced, and handle pulled without indexing shell plate.

It's not like the only time you can goof is while clearing a malf. It's just another opportunity to good. And if you're watching every powder charge, I can't see getting 80, or even 3, squibs.

Anyway, this is my big gripe with the 550 - an AP press is much less likely to cause a double, although you can still end up with a squib.
 
The Goose said:
Yeah, and also the new Hogue wooden grips that are already enroute. I may just have to buy another 686 just to fit the grips. LOL!
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Sounds like a plan. Good eye protection is worth every penny. I used to use just my regular glasses too but got out of that bad habit.
 
Wow glad you are okay! It is so hard to see into the long narrow case of .357 when reloading, this will give us all a little pause to think about our technique.
 
Holy crap! That'll wake you right up!

I'm glad you're OK. What press were you using? I'm going to assume either a 550 or an RCBS without auto-index?
 
I will agree with all and say I'm glad you are unscathed. What press are you using? A progressive or a 550?

Years ago I bought an RCBS Lockout Die and it is added insurance against what will inevitably happen to someone else in the near future.
 
I'm thinking you certainly used one of your nine lives with this. Couldn't be happier you suffered no more than a minor bruise to your cheek. But as you proved out again always safety first and you did that by wearing those safety glasses over your other lenses. I see people at the range all the time they wear the muffs but no eyes. I do not reload but I am neurotic as I wear eyes and ears at the range even if I am not on the line. It might be overkill but like you said you were glad nobody else was there because a piece went flying.

Sorry about your gun but thank you for sharing this eye opening experience.
 
Wow! Really glad you are ok and thanks for posting because it's human nature to get complacent when you've reloaded 1,000s of rounds and this was a wake up call for me.
 
I think checking the powder charge every 10 rounds probably contributed to the double charge. There is no reason to interrupt yourself constantly.
 
Glad you're O.K. and the gun you destroyed was new and replaceable. It's a mistake that will cost you a few hundred bucks but you're a lucky man. It could have been much worse.
 

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