New to the 45acp and need advice

EmptyHull · July 2, 2011, 05:50 PM

1911 5" barrel. I loaded 50 rounds of 230gr LRN with Wolf LP primers and 5.5 grs Unique and OAL was 1.249". I shot 3 rds and encountered a squib. I pulled a couple bullets and charges were 5.5 grs. Could it be the crimp? I am using a Lyman Spartan single stage with the 3 die Lee in 45acp. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Tim

zippy13 · July 2, 2011, 06:25 PM

Typically, squibs are the result of omitted/reduced powder. You may have been distracted while you were reloading. Better a no charge than a double charge!

Vartarg · July 2, 2011, 06:44 PM

Did the slide cycle and eject the spent casing?

Slamfire · July 2, 2011, 06:47 PM

I am also inclined to believe that you short charged a case.

In my 5" barreled Kimber Custom Classic, with a 230 LRN I got an average of 827 fps with 5.5 grains Unique.

I would be very surprised if that did not activate your pistol.

Code:

Kimber Custom Classic

230 LRN Valiant 5.5 grs Unique lot UN331 1989 Mixed brass WLP (brass)
16-May-09	 high 83  °F		OAL 1.250" taper crimped 0.469"
Ave Vel =	827.4				
Std Dev =	17.63	 	 		 
ES =	85.68				
High = 	871.6				
Low =	785.9				
N =	31				
					
230 LRN Valiant 6.0 grs Unique lot UN387 6/21/93 Mixed brass WLP 	
18-Mar-07	T = 62 °F		OAL 1.250" taper crimped 0.469"
Ave Vel =	898				
Std Dev =	21.44				 
ES =	75.58				
High = 	944.3				
Low =	868.7				
N =	25				
					
	about 4" high	accurate	lots recoil	15' foot ejection

wncchester · July 2, 2011, 06:59 PM

Neither the press, dies, crimp or OAL matters for powder errors; under and over charges do.

Advice: Batch process your cases and put them in a loading block for charging. When they are ALL charged, hold the block up under a strong light and eyeball each one for a consistant powder column before seating starts.

OldShooter · July 2, 2011, 07:07 PM

Having had a squib, I now batch load and carefully inspect my loads prior to seating the bullets. The primer has enough power to launch the bullet but it likely won't make it out the barrel. It did cycle the action however. Be very careful.

TXGunNut · July 2, 2011, 09:03 PM

Only one? Could be four, maybe nine more if you got distracted and skipped a whole row on a loading block. Take a squib rod on your next trip to the range.

EmptyHull · July 2, 2011, 09:06 PM

The squib was unbeknown to me at the time. I thought I had missed the target so I aimed again and pulled the trigger. Nothing happen so I cycled the action, aimed again and was greeted by a "kaboom"! Apparently the next shot meet the previous shot in the barrel and bulged it and broke the barrel bushing. I had looked at all the cases in the reloading block prior to beginning bullet seating and then on to applying the proper crimp for an auto cartridge. I started reloading 38 spl in 1981 and also reload 45 Colt and 12 ga. These were my first auto loads. Just trying to figure out what went wrong. Tim

dunerjeff · July 2, 2011, 09:11 PM

ANYTIME I have to cycle manually that means stop!!!! and check and recheck EVERYTHING thats my #1 law when at the range
Thank someone upstairs that the gun was all that was harmed

TXGunNut · July 2, 2011, 09:28 PM

Sorry to hear about the ruined barrel. It's quite easy, as you may know, to miss an entire row when loading .38's using a loading block. I ruined a Douglas match revolver barrel exactly the same way, lost 20 points in a Texas State PPC match as well. 45acp is a bit harder to overlook a missed powder charge but I feel confident I could pull it off.
Squibs are almost always light or missed powder charges but occasionally other things, including primer failures or bad powder, can and do happen. If powder fails to ignite you'll notice unburned powder in the action after the squib.

doug66 · July 2, 2011, 10:03 PM

I keep a flashlight at the bench to check powder or the lack there of.

theycallmeingot · July 2, 2011, 11:36 PM

i had a squib once. the gun still recoiled and loaded the next round. i couldn't detect any difference in blast with my muffs on. guy next to me could, but couldn't stop me in time. next shot locked back on the bulged barrel.

craziest thing is, i was shooting through a chrono, and the squib registered... must have been too close and gas/powder flew through it instead.

the cause ended up being a partially clogged flash hole. was range brass and there was some mud in the case. i ALWAYS check the inside of my cases now.

EmptyHull · July 3, 2011, 10:53 AM

Thanks for all the advice. I did make a squib rod that I will bring with me in the future. Happy Fourth of July, Tim

**44 AMP** · July 3, 2011, 12:28 PM

There is one other possibility, although less likely, and thats a bad primer.

If you checked all the cases while loading, and you are sure they all had the right amount of powder, then a bad primer is the only other possible explanation. Primers are the only part of the ammo we must take on faith, and today, it is extremely rare to have a bad one. But is is still possible.

I have never used Wolf primers, so I can't say anything from personal experience about them. I only use primers from major US makers, Rem, Win, CCI, Federal. In 40 years of reloading, I have never had a bad one from them.

I have had bad primers, (very, very rarely) but it always turned out to be something I did wrong.

Not doubting your word, but the most likely explanation is that you under charged a case, and failed to catch it during your inspection. The squib has got nothing to do with it being an autoloader round. What happened after it squibbed does. Any time the slide comes back, but fails to chamber the next round, its time to stop, and check everything!

grubbylabs · July 3, 2011, 01:28 PM

I had a squib in my 444 a couple of weeks ago and I only load those 5 at a time. Still not sure how it happened, but I pull 5 pieces of brass out put them on the counter then use my uniflow to charge the scale pan, then put it on the scale and trickle up to weight or dump back in the hopper and start over if over weight. After powder is right I use a funnel and charge one piece of brass and put it in the loading block. When I get all five finished I seat and crimp the bullets.

Seems like a simple process and hard to mess up but somewhere along the way I obviously did.

EmptyHull · July 3, 2011, 02:54 PM

Ok, so I shot the rest of my reloads without a hitch in my new 1911. I believe that I must have not charged one case even though I looked at the block and "saw" all cases charged. A costly lesson learned. Someone told me to place all cases upside down, then when I charge one, I place it right side up. I think that is some great advice! Happy Fourth of July, Tim

July 2, 2011, 06:44 PM	#3
Vartarg Member Join Date: April 7, 2007 Location: Monroe, LA Posts: 47	? Did the slide cycle and eject the spent casing?

July 2, 2011, 09:03 PM	#7
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	Only one? Could be four, maybe nine more if you got distracted and skipped a whole row on a loading block. Take a squib rod on your next trip to the range. __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

July 2, 2011, 09:06 PM	#8
EmptyHull Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2009 Posts: 145	The squib was unbeknown to me at the time. I thought I had missed the target so I aimed again and pulled the trigger. Nothing happen so I cycled the action, aimed again and was greeted by a "kaboom"! Apparently the next shot meet the previous shot in the barrel and bulged it and broke the barrel bushing. I had looked at all the cases in the reloading block prior to beginning bullet seating and then on to applying the proper crimp for an auto cartridge. I started reloading 38 spl in 1981 and also reload 45 Colt and 12 ga. These were my first auto loads. Just trying to figure out what went wrong. Tim __________________ uva uvam videndo varia fit

July 2, 2011, 09:28 PM	#10
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	Sorry to hear about the ruined barrel. It's quite easy, as you may know, to miss an entire row when loading .38's using a loading block. I ruined a Douglas match revolver barrel exactly the same way, lost 20 points in a Texas State PPC match as well. 45acp is a bit harder to overlook a missed powder charge but I feel confident I could pull it off. Squibs are almost always light or missed powder charges but occasionally other things, including primer failures or bad powder, can and do happen. If powder fails to ignite you'll notice unburned powder in the action after the squib. __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

July 3, 2011, 10:53 AM	#13
EmptyHull Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2009 Posts: 145	Thanks for all the advice. I did make a squib rod that I will bring with me in the future. Happy Fourth of July, Tim __________________ uva uvam videndo varia fit

July 2, 2011, 05:50 PM	#1
EmptyHull Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2009 Posts: 145	New to the 45acp and need advice 1911 5" barrel. I loaded 50 rounds of 230gr LRN with Wolf LP primers and 5.5 grs Unique and OAL was 1.249". I shot 3 rds and encountered a squib. I pulled a couple bullets and charges were 5.5 grs. Could it be the crimp? I am using a Lyman Spartan single stage with the 3 die Lee in 45acp. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Tim __________________ uva uvam videndo varia fit

July 2, 2011, 06:25 PM	#2
zippy13 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2008 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,442	Typically, squibs are the result of omitted/reduced powder. You may have been distracted while you were reloading. Better a no charge than a double charge!

July 2, 2011, 06:59 PM	#5
wncchester Senior Member Join Date: December 1, 2002 Posts: 2,832	Neither the press, dies, crimp or OAL matters for powder errors; under and over charges do. Advice: Batch process your cases and put them in a loading block for charging. When they are ALL charged, hold the block up under a strong light and eyeball each one for a consistant powder column before seating starts.

July 2, 2011, 07:07 PM	#6
OldShooter Senior Member Join Date: March 28, 2006 Location: Maine Posts: 846	Having had a squib, I now batch load and carefully inspect my loads prior to seating the bullets. The primer has enough power to launch the bullet but it likely won't make it out the barrel. It did cycle the action however. Be very careful.

July 2, 2011, 09:11 PM	#9
dunerjeff Senior Member Join Date: March 31, 2011 Location: central Wisconsin Posts: 440	ANYTIME I have to cycle manually that means stop!!!! and check and recheck EVERYTHING thats my #1 law when at the range Thank someone upstairs that the gun was all that was harmed

July 2, 2011, 10:03 PM	#11
doug66 Senior Member Join Date: June 1, 2008 Location: Kansas Posts: 116	I keep a flashlight at the bench to check powder or the lack there of.

July 2, 2011, 11:36 PM	#12
theycallmeingot Member Join Date: February 3, 2011 Posts: 54	i had a squib once. the gun still recoiled and loaded the next round. i couldn't detect any difference in blast with my muffs on. guy next to me could, but couldn't stop me in time. next shot locked back on the bulged barrel. craziest thing is, i was shooting through a chrono, and the squib registered... must have been too close and gas/powder flew through it instead. the cause ended up being a partially clogged flash hole. was range brass and there was some mud in the case. i ALWAYS check the inside of my cases now.

July 3, 2011, 12:28 PM	#14
44 AMP Staff Join Date: March 11, 2006 Location: Upper US Posts: 28,833	There is one other possibility, although less likely, and thats a bad primer. If you checked all the cases while loading, and you are sure they all had the right amount of powder, then a bad primer is the only other possible explanation. Primers are the only part of the ammo we must take on faith, and today, it is extremely rare to have a bad one. But is is still possible. I have never used Wolf primers, so I can't say anything from personal experience about them. I only use primers from major US makers, Rem, Win, CCI, Federal. In 40 years of reloading, I have never had a bad one from them. I have had bad primers, (very, very rarely) but it always turned out to be something I did wrong. Not doubting your word, but the most likely explanation is that you under charged a case, and failed to catch it during your inspection. The squib has got nothing to do with it being an autoloader round. What happened after it squibbed does. Any time the slide comes back, but fails to chamber the next round, its time to stop, and check everything! __________________ All else being equal (and it almost never is) bigger bullets tend to work better.

July 3, 2011, 01:28 PM	#15
grubbylabs Senior Member Join Date: October 11, 2009 Location: Hansen Idaho Posts: 1,465	I had a squib in my 444 a couple of weeks ago and I only load those 5 at a time. Still not sure how it happened, but I pull 5 pieces of brass out put them on the counter then use my uniflow to charge the scale pan, then put it on the scale and trickle up to weight or dump back in the hopper and start over if over weight. After powder is right I use a funnel and charge one piece of brass and put it in the loading block. When I get all five finished I seat and crimp the bullets. Seems like a simple process and hard to mess up but somewhere along the way I obviously did. __________________ * (Swinging club) Whack! whack! whack! * Nope, the old nag's still dead . (Capt Charlie)

July 3, 2011, 02:54 PM	#16
EmptyHull Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2009 Posts: 145	Ok, so I shot the rest of my reloads without a hitch in my new 1911. I believe that I must have not charged one case even though I looked at the block and "saw" all cases charged. A costly lesson learned. Someone told me to place all cases upside down, then when I charge one, I place it right side up. I think that is some great advice! Happy Fourth of July, Tim __________________ uva uvam videndo varia fit