reloading accident ?

ndt man

Well-Known Member
out stalking last week and the keeper informed me that a stalker that used to stalk on the estate next door had lost 3 fingers and an eye when his rifle exploded after using home loads given to him by a fellow stalker . i have been trying to find out more about this but at this time im not having much luck .any one know anything about this accident ?
 
The only incident I have seen confirmation of was Mauser action which was shattered by a chap at Bisley who tumbled his reloads AFTER they were assembled. This caused the powder grains to break down and turned a slow burning rifle powder into a very fast burning powder. Even this took two rounds to blow it up (the first round took a mallet to extract but the guy still stuck another up the spout and let it go). Serious injuries resulted and the failed action is in the workshop at Fultons.
 
out stalking last week and the keeper informed me that a stalker that used to stalk on the estate next door had lost 3 fingers and an eye when his rifle exploded after using home loads given to him by a fellow stalker . i have been trying to find out more about this but at this time im not having much luck .any one know anything about this accident ?

Which is why one of the primary rules of reloading is that you NEVER shoot someone else's handloads.
Ever.

Sorry about the man's injuries.~Muir
 
agree totally sad for the poor man injured but i will never ever leet anyone have my reloads ,ive only done them for my shotgun and am getting the stuff together for my rifle but i wont even let my shooting mad son use them .my reloads any issues my problem.
 
It always constantly amazes me how many people ask/use a friend to load rounds for them for their rifle. Not only is it fool hardy, it is also in some cases illegal as in many instances they construct a round they are not licenced to hold.
I used to know someone some years back who consistently used a retired man to load rounds for his rifle, this was all well and good until he got a batch that to say the least was far from perfect! up to that point he had taken little heed of what I had advised him on the matter. But for some strange reason this episode stopped him using him!!
 
The only incident I have seen confirmation of was Mauser action which was shattered by a chap at Bisley who tumbled his reloads AFTER they were assembled

Now there is a scary thought. I am never ceased to be amazed what seem people think to be a good idea such as 'throw 100 live rounds rounds into your tumbler & switch it on...'. Wow.
 
I witnessed a trapdoor let go at bisley (all the accidents I've ever witnessed were at bisley) the American civil war type in full uniform had decided to use duplex loads but put 5grains of black in the case then topped up with pistol powder ! (should have been the other way round) a bit of claret but thankfully no serious injurys!
 
out stalking last week and the keeper informed me that a stalker that used to stalk on the estate next door had lost 3 fingers and an eye when his rifle exploded after using home loads given to him by a fellow stalker . i have been trying to find out more about this but at this time im not having much luck .any one know anything about this accident ?


the only examples I have heard of of this type of catastrophic failure was a long time ago on an early Blaser where the bolt assembly let go
Blaser .308 wanted

and the use of the complete wrong powder:
http://www.thegunzone.com/m1akb.html

it would have to be a major failure for the action on a standard bolt rifle to explode enough to do the damage described. Could happen I suppose but I would be interested to hear the details
 
that's a real shame for the chap, I often reload with guys just getting started and they are with me til they get going. It's quite often the same story with new reloader though, they want to push bullets really fast rather than starting at the bottom and getting a smooth round developed.
 
seen a glock 17 explode and take his trigger finger with it after, he reloaded with bluedot as this was all the powder he had to use at the time !! cracking rolling fire ball down the range thought !!!.
also had a 38 wheely gun explode on the shooting line while i was the RM due to same thing the cylinder chamber exploded into three bits and ripped the crane back and the range still has the three bat shape holes in the walls to this day just to remind folks reloading can be a bugger at times , he was lucky as he had hold of it, i have the case or what's left of it up the shed.
I understand but what about chaps who reload for others for profit !! or sit in while there ammo is loaded for them lots do this with no undue out come and i would have no problems use'g it as long as it my fire formed case's and powders etc, if you trust the guy who reloads for you and you no he is not a C**K then i can see no probs with have'g someone reload your ammo lots do with no hicups.:stir:
 
seen a glock 17 explode and take his trigger finger with it after, he reloaded with bluedot as this was all the powder he had to use at the time !! cracking rolling fire ball down the range thought !!!.
also had a 38 wheely gun explode on the shooting line while i was the RM due to same thing the cylinder chamber exploded into three bits and ripped the crane back and the range still has the three bat shape holes in the walls to this day just to remind folks reloading can be a bugger at times , he was lucky as he had hold of it, i have the case or what's left of it up the shed.
I understand but what about chaps who reload for others for profit !! or sit in while there ammo is loaded for them lots do this with no undue out come and i would have no problems use'g it as long as it my fire formed case's and powders etc, if you trust the guy who reloads for you and you no he is not a C**K then i can see no probs with have'g someone reload your ammo lots do with no hicups.:stir:

this doesn't sound right as I used to use a full case of blue dot under 147 grain heads in my glock 17 ? if anything blue dot is a little slow for general 9mm ammo ,say 115-124g bullets ?
 
Which is why one of the primary rules of reloading is that you NEVER shoot someone else's handloads.
Ever.

Sorry about the man's injuries.~Muir


Agree 100% on the above Muir... NEVER ever take that chance,

god forbid it could be your last !

Buck.
 
hands up it was a 21 not the 17 still
it happend at palmers cross gun club in 1988 ish in a ukpsa match he was use'g a glock 21 45acp sorry got me tupperware guns wrong he was useing 230 rnl with i think 12gr compressed load of bluedot which is not the best practice. the go powder at the time was GM3 for 45acp . he was new to reloading and payed the price for not reading the data just taking some ones word for it !
 
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hands up it was a 21 not the 17 still
it happend at palmers cross gun club in 1988 ish in a ukpsa match he was use'g a glock 21 45acp sorry got me tupperware guns wrong he was useing 230 rnl with i think 12gr compressed load of bluedot which is not the best practice. the go powder at the time was GM3 for 45acp . he was new to reloading and payed the price for not reading the data just taking some ones word for it !

it still surprises me ? I used to run my 17 at major levels to compete with the 45's !
 
To quote Muir "using someone else reloads is akin to having casual sex without a condom"
 
what comps did you do feller and what grade did you run in, i also run in major comps both here and over sea's ,i run 38 supers stv/svi and para ord with Tim Hannam CLan and later i was running a 9x19 used this in SWX 5 day match and lastly a 9x25's in the usa we may have meet up in the past . I was with ron flint when he showed off the first glock race gun with the floppy comp attached later it was a tad better with the barrel/slide ported still they was't as good as the 1911 type guns only good thing was cleaning you could used the dishwasher the 40cal was horrid to use :doh:


it still surprises me ? I used to run my 17 at major levels to compete with the 45's !
 
what comps did you do feller and what grade did you run in, i also run in major comps both here and over sea's ,i run 38 supers stv/svi and para ord with Tim Hannam CLan and later i was running a 9x19 used this in SWX 5 day match and lastly a 9x25's in the usa we may have meet up in the past . I was with ron flint when he showed off the first glock race gun with the floppy comp attached later it was a tad better with the barrel/slide ported still they was't as good as the 1911 type guns only good thing was cleaning you could used the dishwasher the 40cal was horrid to use :doh:

only ever casual club stuff , good fun though !

of the six handguns I owned when they were stolen from us I used to love my glock , I think it was the brute simplicity of it ?

did you ever shoot at broomhills at markyate ?
 
only shotgun if this is the same place ! i also used to shoot at AA grade clays back then and PSG P/Rifle around the uk , my old pal Francis lovel now owns the clay ground, now he also was a very good ukpsa shooter and still has a 38 super race gun as he is lucky to be a sec 5 dealer, I was only sec 1 back in the day as i made race guns back then.



only ever casual club stuff , good fun though !

of the six handguns I owned when they were stolen from us I used to love my glock , I think it was the brute simplicity of it ?

did you ever shoot at broomhills at markyate ?
 
I find it hard to believe that a normal reload that works in ones mans rifle would lead to such a catastrophic failure in another, i would say there is more to it, like an obstruction in the barrel.
Another expaination would be a drastic undercharge of powder resulting in detonation of the charge.

Ian.
 
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