Had a mis fire yesterday

sodflyer · April 3, 2006, 10:11 AM

My first one on my .38 special loads.... it was the last one in the revolver and it sounded kinda odd so I went to eject and could not move the wheel. I got home and used a screwdriver to smack the bullet back in the case... I did not tear it apart yet to see what happened to the round but I am thinking that I missed a powder charge on that one...... I can see where I could being that they don't have hardly anything in the case. Jeff.

Leftoverdj · April 3, 2006, 10:44 AM

It happens. I've even seen it happen with factory ammo. Get a brass or aluminum 5/16" rod to go in your range box. You don't wanna risk messing up your bore with a screwdriver.

It's easy to prevent if you load on a single stage press. Primed empties go in a bucket on one side of your measure, charged cases go in a loading block on the right. Inspect the cases in the loading block under a bright light before you seat the bullets.

Some of the high end progressives offer a powder checking feature. I ain't a high end guy, and that's all I know about it. The cheaper progressives don't, and checking can be difficult to impossible. If you cannot visually check, you want to be mighty sure that your measure is 100% reliable with the powder you use. With some powders and some charging systems, it's quite possible for a charge to hang up in the drop tube and to be jarred loose by the next charge. That'll give you one shell with no charge and one shell with a double charge.

Ball powders don't hang up, which is a good reason to use them.

**Mal H** · April 3, 2006, 11:21 AM

"Get a brass or aluminum 5/16" rod to go in your range box. You don't wanna risk messing up your bore with a screwdriver."

Very good advice. All reloaders need one on a just-in-case basis. Hopefully, you'll never need to use it again.

Oh, and BTDT.

caz223 · April 3, 2006, 11:24 AM

I had exactly one round that went ppfffffffff.
Turns out it was a compressed load of blue dot in a 10mm case.
Shooting in bloody cold weather.
I have since switched to magnum primers for blue dot.

Tom Matiska · April 3, 2006, 04:48 PM

Probable missed charge, but "last round" is the first place you'll see hints of possible crimp failure. Stiff loads in a light snubbie can be a pretty good bullet puller, and 4 or 5 bangs can do a number on the last crimp.

Next time you fire those loads, inspect the last one before firing and see if it grew any. You may just need more crimp.

Donaldo · April 3, 2006, 07:20 PM

+1 on what leftoverdj said. I use the same strategy. Then again I'm only loading like 50 rifle cases at a time (like 5 or six weeks), not huge volumes.

geronimo13 · April 7, 2006, 07:04 PM

I loaded my first 100 .223, first reloading also. I ran out of powder (didn't see any around the neck and stopped- pulled the 2 that didn't show powder and added more powder to the container. Before going to the range I decided to use a cheap digital scale and spent 2 minutes measuring the loaded bullets-found 3 that weighed light. Shaking I couldn't hear the powder so I figured I saved myself the agravation of cleaning the barrel. One of my good moments read above "overpressure .223..." for my bad moments.

April 3, 2006, 10:11 AM	#1
sodflyer Senior Member Join Date: March 15, 2006 Posts: 122	Had a mis fire yesterday My first one on my .38 special loads.... it was the last one in the revolver and it sounded kinda odd so I went to eject and could not move the wheel. I got home and used a screwdriver to smack the bullet back in the case... I did not tear it apart yet to see what happened to the round but I am thinking that I missed a powder charge on that one...... I can see where I could being that they don't have hardly anything in the case. Jeff.

April 3, 2006, 11:24 AM	#4
caz223 Senior Member Join Date: May 15, 2002 Location: Michigan Posts: 1,429	I had exactly one round that went ppfffffffff. Turns out it was a compressed load of blue dot in a 10mm case. Shooting in bloody cold weather. I have since switched to magnum primers for blue dot. __________________ I'm not just a gun. I'm YOUR gun. (Hold me.)

April 3, 2006, 07:20 PM	#6
Donaldo Senior Member Join Date: November 8, 2005 Location: Southern Commiefornia Posts: 220	+1 on what leftoverdj said. I use the same strategy. Then again I'm only loading like 50 rifle cases at a time (like 5 or six weeks), not huge volumes. __________________ Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. - Isaiah 1:17

April 7, 2006, 07:04 PM	#7
geronimo13 Member Join Date: April 7, 2006 Posts: 41	squib load I loaded my first 100 .223, first reloading also. I ran out of powder (didn't see any around the neck and stopped- pulled the 2 that didn't show powder and added more powder to the container. Before going to the range I decided to use a cheap digital scale and spent 2 minutes measuring the loaded bullets-found 3 that weighed light. Shaking I couldn't hear the powder so I figured I saved myself the agravation of cleaning the barrel. One of my good moments read above "overpressure .223..." for my bad moments.

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April 3, 2006, 10:44 AM	#2
Leftoverdj Senior Member Join Date: October 15, 2004 Posts: 934	It happens. I've even seen it happen with factory ammo. Get a brass or aluminum 5/16" rod to go in your range box. You don't wanna risk messing up your bore with a screwdriver. It's easy to prevent if you load on a single stage press. Primed empties go in a bucket on one side of your measure, charged cases go in a loading block on the right. Inspect the cases in the loading block under a bright light before you seat the bullets. Some of the high end progressives offer a powder checking feature. I ain't a high end guy, and that's all I know about it. The cheaper progressives don't, and checking can be difficult to impossible. If you cannot visually check, you want to be mighty sure that your measure is 100% reliable with the powder you use. With some powders and some charging systems, it's quite possible for a charge to hang up in the drop tube and to be jarred loose by the next charge. That'll give you one shell with no charge and one shell with a double charge. Ball powders don't hang up, which is a good reason to use them.

April 3, 2006, 11:21 AM	#3
Mal H Staff Join Date: March 20, 1999 Location: Somewhere in the woods of Northern Virginia Posts: 16,947	"Get a brass or aluminum 5/16" rod to go in your range box. You don't wanna risk messing up your bore with a screwdriver." Very good advice. All reloaders need one on a just-in-case basis. Hopefully, you'll never need to use it again. Oh, and BTDT.

April 3, 2006, 04:48 PM	#5
Tom Matiska Senior Member Join Date: April 12, 2000 Location: Wilkes-Barre, Pa Posts: 1,029	Probable missed charge, but "last round" is the first place you'll see hints of possible crimp failure. Stiff loads in a light snubbie can be a pretty good bullet puller, and 4 or 5 bangs can do a number on the last crimp. Next time you fire those loads, inspect the last one before firing and see if it grew any. You may just need more crimp.