your reloading DOH'S?

troy_mclure · November 19, 2009, 01:26 PM

the first time i took up reloading i walked into the shop, picked up a Dillon square deal b, .40 and .44mag dies, and a tumbler. set it up at the house, went back, bought 5k sp, and 5k lp(m) primers.

i picked my powder, and bullets by the fact that it had the loads listed on the bottles.

i loaded over over 20k .40 S&W, and 1500 .44 mag & spc.

the bad part is i was having problems with the powder measure in the press, it was throwing random +/- up to 1gr off.

but i still kept shooting, even having unburned powder blown in my face when shooting my cx4.

the whole time i was reloading all i had was the instruction manual for the press, and the loads listed on the bottles of powder.

i dont know how i didnt blow my self up!

what are your DOH! reloading moments

jimbob86 · November 19, 2009, 01:41 PM

I loaded up 100 .270 Win prairie dog loads that were insufficiently neck sized..... press links had developed cracks and collet did not squeeze them completely....... got all done and noticed that one of the bulets appeared short than it's brothers........ bullets were loose on all of them..... got out the bullet puller and started over.......

kle · November 19, 2009, 01:51 PM

I bought my Little Dandy off ebay, used, with a crack in the tube that had been taped over. The tape-job was fine, but this meant the tube was a bit loose on the rotor housing...which meant that when I went to unload the Little Dandy, the tube separated from the housing, spilling powder all over my bench. Luckily, my bench was clean enough that I could recover the powder with little contamination.

Aside from that...maybe forgetting that my RCBS .44 SPL/.44 MAG dies are set for .44 Special and forgetting to use the spacer ring for the Magnum-length cartridges on flaring the case. My first two cases out of that batch had case mouths like trumpets and pulling the handle on that operation was way tougher than I remembered before I realized that I needed the ring.

Whoops.

Inspector3711 · November 19, 2009, 01:58 PM

Resized 300 .223 cases for my bolt action one time. THEN I made sure they fit my chamber which they did not! Adusted and resized them all again.

Other than that I've always caught my errors immediately or before making too many cases in a row.

FrankenMauser · November 19, 2009, 03:02 PM

I needed to load some 9mm in volume, so I went to my dad's house to use his 550B. (I usually load low volume, and only have a Rock Chucker.)

So... he tells me it's ready to go for 9mm, I check his tool head label, "9mm" it reads. The 9mm die box is in it's place in the "in use" stack (meaning the dies are installed in one of his presses).

Everything was ready to go. All I had to do was change my powder charge, adjust seating depth, and tweak the crimp.

I grabbed my bag of brass labeled "9mm, WSP primer, -date-" (stored at his house), and started loading.

I cranked out 250 rounds, and took a break for some home made chicken noodle soup.
When I came back, there was a problem.

Well... wouldn't you know it.... I didn't check anything. I assumed our labels and methods were correct, and it was a wonderful reminder of why I you always double check.

I had just loaded 250 .380 Auto cases with a charge weight almost 2.5gr over maximum, capped with a 124gr cast bullet.

The dies were .380 Auto, the shell plate was .223 Rem (fits .380 Auto), and the brass was .380 Auto. I don't know why I didn't notice, and don't remember what distraction there may have been. I can tell a .380 Auto by touch, about 95% of the time. Apparently not that night.
At least I had the right powder and bullet for the load I intended on putting together...

Needless to say, I spent some quality time with the kinetic puller.

Rusty W · November 19, 2009, 10:55 PM

I probably shouldn't tell on myself, but I'm sure I'm not the only one this has happened too. When I first bought my LNLAP I noticed the powder dispenser had a quick and easy way of emptying the hopper. I pushed the button over, tugged on the adjuster and out she came. Along with a half of pound of H414. In my lap. And in the floor.

Sevens · November 19, 2009, 11:12 PM

Aww hell, I've done a number of dumb things. Fortunately, my checks and balances keep me from doing DANGEROUS things. They don't stop every dumb thing, however.

A good one I won't ever forget was when I got the bright idea a number of years ago that I would send some cast DBBWC (full wadcutters) out of .357 Mag at a pretty damn good clip.

I'm sure I have the load I used written down somewhere (Bullseye powder) but the bottom line was that I leaded the hell out of my barrel by pushing those bullets way too fast. I ended up hammering out the balance of 100 after seeing what a handful of rounds did to my barrel.

freakshow10mm · November 20, 2009, 10:19 AM

First time I set up the Dillon 550, I forgot to put the primer feed tube in the primer housing. Got all excited to start loading on it, dumped a whole pickup tube worth of primers straight into the housing. Rats!

**Mike Irwin** · November 20, 2009, 10:26 AM

Worst D'oh! was my first time using my Lyman T-Mag press. New press, back to using a loading block, which I hadn't for years...

End result was that I double charged one case with 9.8 grain of WW 231 behind a 230-gr. LRN out of my Springfield .45.

The gun survived, the magazine did not.

**Bud Helms** · November 20, 2009, 04:40 PM

I shoved a .30-30 case up into press and dropped the resizing die on the case. It was only half lined up with the die and crunched the hell out of it ... no shell holder ... DOH! Shell holder was lying on the bench right next to the press. Don't remember taking it out.

alwayspackin1 · November 20, 2009, 05:32 PM

i started working up a load for my .308 today.

i intended to start with 43gr of Varget, then load .5 grains higher in each batch, loading 5 rounds of each weight.

i (luckily only) got 7 rounds into the process when i noticed that i had instead started at 33gr, instead of 43.

got to go buy a bullet puller now i suppose.

champ198 · November 20, 2009, 11:19 PM

first loading setup i had was a Lee Pro 10000 for my sig 9mm...shot it a lot back then well i got it all set up and went to loading had everything set right so i thought....well at about round 500 i had noticed that the powder didnt look right...instead of using Win 231 i had some black powder for my muzzelloader in the hopper...prob wouldnt have been a lot of fun shootin them off so i went and got a puller and pulled 500 rounds of them...now i make damn sure what powder goes in what

chris in va · November 21, 2009, 12:38 AM

Let's see.

Dropping a powder charge on my Hand Press without a shell in the holder.

Loading 200 TC cast bullets only to find they were really 1.05OAL and having to re-seat them back to 1.04 so they chamber in my CZ.

Surprisingly, that's about it so far. But I'm new, so that will change.

wilkersk · November 21, 2009, 01:42 AM

Borrowed someone else's 9mm reloads. First couple of rounds went BANG. One went bang(soflty), and I didn't catch it.

Luckily, the next round didn't go all the way into battery.

I often wonder what would've happened if that bullet from the squib load had've made it just a fraction of an inch further and the next one had gone into battery.

I'd have have pulled the trigger and had a much more interesting story to tell.

benzuncle · November 21, 2009, 08:20 AM

I loaded my first round and in the process developed the "45ACP Short".

I forgot to set the bullet seating depth on the die and shoved the bullet so far down into the casing that it barely peeked out the top. That was when I also realized that it's a good idea to adjust the seating and crimp dies set where you want them BEFORE you prime and charge the round.

Blue Grass · November 21, 2009, 09:04 AM

I thought I didn't need to use my charging tray. I was charging .38spl cases and going directly to the bullet seating step. Had a squib load that jammed the cylinder on my Python. Now I use my charging tray. All cases get charged and placed in the tray. Then the bullet gets seated. Charge gets checked when I drop it in the case. Then all charges get looked at in the charging tray. They get looked at again when I seat the bullet.I shoot a lot of AA#2 which takes up very little volume in the case so it's important to triple check every charge. You can't be too careful.

November 19, 2009, 01:26 PM	#1
troy_mclure Senior Member Join Date: November 17, 2008 Location: gulf of mexico Posts: 2,716	your reloading DOH'S? the first time i took up reloading i walked into the shop, picked up a Dillon square deal b, .40 and .44mag dies, and a tumbler. set it up at the house, went back, bought 5k sp, and 5k lp(m) primers. i picked my powder, and bullets by the fact that it had the loads listed on the bottles. i loaded over over 20k .40 S&W, and 1500 .44 mag & spc. the bad part is i was having problems with the powder measure in the press, it was throwing random +/- up to 1gr off. but i still kept shooting, even having unburned powder blown in my face when shooting my cx4. the whole time i was reloading all i had was the instruction manual for the press, and the loads listed on the bottles of powder. i dont know how i didnt blow my self up! what are your DOH! reloading moments __________________ There is only one tactical principle which is not subject to change. It is to use the means at hand to inflict the maximum amount of wound, death, and destruction on the enemy in the minimum amount of time."

November 19, 2009, 01:58 PM	#4
Inspector3711 Senior Member Join Date: February 9, 2008 Location: Puget Sound Washington Posts: 1,553	Resized 300 .223 cases for my bolt action one time. THEN I made sure they fit my chamber which they did not! Adusted and resized them all again. Other than that I've always caught my errors immediately or before making too many cases in a row. __________________ "If someone has a gun and is trying to kill you, it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun." The Dalai Llama (5/15/01, The Seattle Times) "That rifle on the wall of the labourer's cottage or working class flat is the symbol of democracy. It is our job to see that it stays there." George Orwell

November 19, 2009, 03:02 PM	#5
FrankenMauser Senior Member Join Date: August 25, 2008 Location: In the valley above the plain Posts: 13,424	I needed to load some 9mm in volume, so I went to my dad's house to use his 550B. (I usually load low volume, and only have a Rock Chucker.) So... he tells me it's ready to go for 9mm, I check his tool head label, "9mm" it reads. The 9mm die box is in it's place in the "in use" stack (meaning the dies are installed in one of his presses). Everything was ready to go. All I had to do was change my powder charge, adjust seating depth, and tweak the crimp. I grabbed my bag of brass labeled "9mm, WSP primer, -date-" (stored at his house), and started loading. I cranked out 250 rounds, and took a break for some home made chicken noodle soup. When I came back, there was a problem. Well... wouldn't you know it.... I didn't check anything. I assumed our labels and methods were correct, and it was a wonderful reminder of why I you always double check. I had just loaded 250 .380 Auto cases with a charge weight almost 2.5gr over maximum, capped with a 124gr cast bullet. The dies were .380 Auto, the shell plate was .223 Rem (fits .380 Auto), and the brass was .380 Auto. I don't know why I didn't notice, and don't remember what distraction there may have been. I can tell a .380 Auto by touch, about 95% of the time. Apparently not that night. At least I had the right powder and bullet for the load I intended on putting together... Needless to say, I spent some quality time with the kinetic puller. __________________ Don't even try it. It's even worse than the internet would lead you to believe.

November 19, 2009, 11:12 PM	#7
Sevens Senior Member Join Date: July 28, 2007 Location: Ohio Posts: 11,756	Aww hell, I've done a number of dumb things. Fortunately, my checks and balances keep me from doing DANGEROUS things. They don't stop every dumb thing, however. A good one I won't ever forget was when I got the bright idea a number of years ago that I would send some cast DBBWC (full wadcutters) out of .357 Mag at a pretty damn good clip. I'm sure I have the load I used written down somewhere (Bullseye powder) but the bottom line was that I leaded the hell out of my barrel by pushing those bullets way too fast. I ended up hammering out the balance of 100 after seeing what a handful of rounds did to my barrel. __________________ *Attention Brass rats and other reloaders:* I really need .327 Federal Magnum brass, no lot size too small. Tell me what caliber you need and I'll see what I have to swap. PM me and we'll discuss.

November 20, 2009, 10:26 AM	#9
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 13, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,390	Worst D'oh! was my first time using my Lyman T-Mag press. New press, back to using a loading block, which I hadn't for years... End result was that I double charged one case with 9.8 grain of WW 231 behind a 230-gr. LRN out of my Springfield .45. The gun survived, the magazine did not. __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

November 19, 2009, 01:41 PM	#2
jimbob86 Junior member Join Date: October 4, 2007 Location: All the way to NEBRASKA Posts: 8,722	I loaded up 100 .270 Win prairie dog loads that were insufficiently neck sized..... press links had developed cracks and collet did not squeeze them completely....... got all done and noticed that one of the bulets appeared short than it's brothers........ bullets were loose on all of them..... got out the bullet puller and started over.......

November 19, 2009, 01:51 PM	#3
kle Senior Member Join Date: July 30, 2007 Location: NoVA, USA Posts: 419	I bought my Little Dandy off ebay, used, with a crack in the tube that had been taped over. The tape-job was fine, but this meant the tube was a bit loose on the rotor housing...which meant that when I went to unload the Little Dandy, the tube separated from the housing, spilling powder all over my bench. Luckily, my bench was clean enough that I could recover the powder with little contamination. Aside from that...maybe forgetting that my RCBS .44 SPL/.44 MAG dies are set for .44 Special and forgetting to use the spacer ring for the Magnum-length cartridges on flaring the case. My first two cases out of that batch had case mouths like trumpets and pulling the handle on that operation was way tougher than I remembered before I realized that I needed the ring. Whoops.

November 19, 2009, 10:55 PM	#6
Rusty W Member Join Date: January 27, 2009 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 84	I probably shouldn't tell on myself, but I'm sure I'm not the only one this has happened too. When I first bought my LNLAP I noticed the powder dispenser had a quick and easy way of emptying the hopper. I pushed the button over, tugged on the adjuster and out she came. Along with a half of pound of H414. In my lap. And in the floor.

November 20, 2009, 10:19 AM	#8
freakshow10mm Junior member Join Date: January 23, 2008 Location: MI Posts: 1,398	First time I set up the Dillon 550, I forgot to put the primer feed tube in the primer housing. Got all excited to start loading on it, dumped a whole pickup tube worth of primers straight into the housing. Rats!

November 20, 2009, 04:40 PM	#10
Bud Helms Senior Member Join Date: December 31, 1999 Location: Middle Georgia, USA Posts: 13,198	I shoved a .30-30 case up into press and dropped the resizing die on the case. It was only half lined up with the die and crunched the hell out of it ... no shell holder ... DOH! Shell holder was lying on the bench right next to the press. Don't remember taking it out.

November 20, 2009, 05:32 PM	#11
alwayspackin1 Member Join Date: April 27, 2009 Location: Southeast Arkansas Posts: 99	i started working up a load for my .308 today. i intended to start with 43gr of Varget, then load .5 grains higher in each batch, loading 5 rounds of each weight. i (luckily only) got 7 rounds into the process when i noticed that i had instead started at 33gr, instead of 43. got to go buy a bullet puller now i suppose. __________________ *The glass is not half full, nor is it half empty. You simply have twice as much glass as you need.01/01/09*

November 20, 2009, 11:19 PM	#12
champ198 Senior Member Join Date: June 30, 2008 Posts: 217	first loading setup i had was a Lee Pro 10000 for my sig 9mm...shot it a lot back then well i got it all set up and went to loading had everything set right so i thought....well at about round 500 i had noticed that the powder didnt look right...instead of using Win 231 i had some black powder for my muzzelloader in the hopper...prob wouldnt have been a lot of fun shootin them off so i went and got a puller and pulled 500 rounds of them...now i make damn sure what powder goes in what

November 21, 2009, 12:38 AM	#13
chris in va Senior Member Join Date: December 26, 2004 Location: Louisville KY Posts: 13,806	Let's see. Dropping a powder charge on my Hand Press without a shell in the holder. Loading 200 TC cast bullets only to find they were really 1.05OAL and having to re-seat them back to 1.04 so they chamber in my CZ. Surprisingly, that's about it so far. But I'm new, so that will change.

November 21, 2009, 01:42 AM	#14
wilkersk Member Join Date: April 2, 2009 Location: Western Washington Posts: 57	Borrowed someone else's 9mm reloads. First couple of rounds went BANG. One went bang(soflty), and I didn't catch it. Luckily, the next round didn't go all the way into battery. I often wonder what would've happened if that bullet from the squib load had've made it just a fraction of an inch further and the next one had gone into battery. I'd have have pulled the trigger and had a much more interesting story to tell.

November 21, 2009, 08:20 AM	#15
benzuncle Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 2008 Location: Central Florida Posts: 357	I loaded my first round and in the process developed the "45ACP Short". I forgot to set the bullet seating depth on the die and shoved the bullet so far down into the casing that it barely peeked out the top. That was when I also realized that it's a good idea to adjust the seating and crimp dies set where you want them BEFORE you prime and charge the round.

November 21, 2009, 09:04 AM	#16
Blue Grass Senior Member Join Date: August 12, 2009 Posts: 398	I thought I didn't need to use my charging tray. I was charging .38spl cases and going directly to the bullet seating step. Had a squib load that jammed the cylinder on my Python. Now I use my charging tray. All cases get charged and placed in the tray. Then the bullet gets seated. Charge gets checked when I drop it in the case. Then all charges get looked at in the charging tray. They get looked at again when I seat the bullet.I shoot a lot of AA#2 which takes up very little volume in the case so it's important to triple check every charge. You can't be too careful.