Federal .45 misfire

ZentetsukenVII · November 4, 2013, 02:49 PM

Not sure if this is called a misfire, but I was shootign at my land saturday and let my buddy put a few rounds downrange. After a few shots one round just went "POP" like a cap gun and I heard a sizzle sound. I told him to keep the gun pointed down range and had him hand it to me. I waited about a minute before racking the slide to remove the round. Finally I took a look at the round and this is what I saw:

(Btw this is federal .45 230gr roundnose fmj)

What should I do about this? Should I contact federal? I still have the boxes that I shot, i'm not positive which one the round was in.

ZentetsukenVII · November 4, 2013, 02:54 PM

i'd also like to add that the Federal .45 hardball I have seen mostly is slightly tarnished and does not shine like polished copper/brass. I bought a few boxes from walmart before I went up and one box was polished/shiny rounds, the other was the tarnished ones. I know for a fact that the misfired round was out of the tarnished ones.

car · November 4, 2013, 03:23 PM

I would assume the case of this round does not have the flash hole punched in it.

James K · November 4, 2013, 04:38 PM

Can you use a flashlight to check for a flashhole. I can't tell for sure from the pictures, but it might also have been a "flipped" primer (loaded upside down), something that almost never happens, but not totally unknown.

Jim

madmo44mag · November 4, 2013, 05:26 PM

The primer appears to have been seated in the correct orientation.
If the bullet never moved and the powder is unburned I would say no flash hole.

polyphemus · November 4, 2013, 05:34 PM

Quote:

I told him to keep the gun pointed down range

The right thing to do,hangfire flag up.
Contact Federal,they need to know this.

IdahoG36 · November 4, 2013, 10:07 PM

This type of stuff does happen, although it is rare. In the thousands of rounds that I have fired in my life, I have only had an issue with one round. It was a 9mm WWB round.

I suspect it is becoming more common as ammo companies scramble to produce as many rounds as possible.

I currently have four 100 round boxes of Federal bulk pack .45 awaiting the return of my XDs .45 from Springfield Wednesday. This is my usual range fodder because the 100 round packs are $38 at my local Walmart. I have never had an issue with Federal pistol ammo before.

If you can, try and remove the damaged primer if possible, or remove the bullet and dump the powder out. As others have said, see if a flash hole is present in the casing.

gyvel · November 4, 2013, 11:37 PM

I have had this occurrence several times with Federal ammo, but it was all back in the 1980s.

Also, out of that particular box of ammo, about 15 of them left the primer walls inside the primer cup when I tried to decap them for reloading. I assumed at the time that the primers themselves were too soft.

Have had other problems with Federal, notably rims that were too thick and out of spec on revolver cartridges, improperly sized rifle cases, and mass duds in .22 rf.

Since then, I avoid Federal ammo. YMMV

Dragline45 · November 5, 2013, 01:22 AM

Quote:

but it might also have been a "flipped" primer (loaded upside down), something that almost never happens, but not totally unknown.

I had this happen to me, I cant remember which brand it was but I know I put the round aside and I can take a look at it tomorrow.

November 4, 2013, 02:49 PM	#1
ZentetsukenVII Member Join Date: August 15, 2013 Posts: 36	Federal .45 misfire Not sure if this is called a misfire, but I was shootign at my land saturday and let my buddy put a few rounds downrange. After a few shots one round just went "POP" like a cap gun and I heard a sizzle sound. I told him to keep the gun pointed down range and had him hand it to me. I waited about a minute before racking the slide to remove the round. Finally I took a look at the round and this is what I saw: (Btw this is federal .45 230gr roundnose fmj) What should I do about this? Should I contact federal? I still have the boxes that I shot, i'm not positive which one the round was in. __________________ "All that is necessary for evil to triumph in this world is for good men to do nothing."

November 4, 2013, 02:54 PM	#2
ZentetsukenVII Member Join Date: August 15, 2013 Posts: 36	i'd also like to add that the Federal .45 hardball I have seen mostly is slightly tarnished and does not shine like polished copper/brass. I bought a few boxes from walmart before I went up and one box was polished/shiny rounds, the other was the tarnished ones. I know for a fact that the misfired round was out of the tarnished ones. __________________ "All that is necessary for evil to triumph in this world is for good men to do nothing."

November 4, 2013, 05:26 PM	#5
madmo44mag Senior Member Join Date: December 29, 2008 Location: Ft.Worth, Texas Posts: 1,522	The primer appears to have been seated in the correct orientation. If the bullet never moved and the powder is unburned I would say no flash hole. __________________ Texas - Not just a state but an attitude! For monthly shooting events in DFW visit http://www.meetup.com/TexasGunOwner-DFW

November 4, 2013, 11:37 PM	#8
gyvel Senior Member Join Date: August 30, 2009 Location: Northern AZ Posts: 7,172	I have had this occurrence several times with Federal ammo, but it was all back in the 1980s. Also, out of that particular box of ammo, about 15 of them left the primer walls inside the primer cup when I tried to decap them for reloading. I assumed at the time that the primers themselves were too soft. Have had other problems with Federal, notably rims that were too thick and out of spec on revolver cartridges, improperly sized rifle cases, and mass duds in .22 rf. Since then, I avoid Federal ammo. YMMV Last edited by gyvel; November 4, 2013 at 11:44 PM.

November 4, 2013, 03:23 PM	#3
car Member Join Date: October 20, 2012 Posts: 60	I would assume the case of this round does not have the flash hole punched in it.

November 4, 2013, 04:38 PM	#4
James K Member In Memoriam Join Date: March 17, 1999 Posts: 24,383	Can you use a flashlight to check for a flashhole. I can't tell for sure from the pictures, but it might also have been a "flipped" primer (loaded upside down), something that almost never happens, but not totally unknown. Jim

November 4, 2013, 10:07 PM	#7
IdahoG36 Senior Member Join Date: June 24, 2006 Location: Boise, Idaho Posts: 2,993	This type of stuff does happen, although it is rare. In the thousands of rounds that I have fired in my life, I have only had an issue with one round. It was a 9mm WWB round. I suspect it is becoming more common as ammo companies scramble to produce as many rounds as possible. I currently have four 100 round boxes of Federal bulk pack .45 awaiting the return of my XDs .45 from Springfield Wednesday. This is my usual range fodder because the 100 round packs are $38 at my local Walmart. I have never had an issue with Federal pistol ammo before. If you can, try and remove the damaged primer if possible, or remove the bullet and dump the powder out. As others have said, see if a flash hole is present in the casing.