S&W .44 magnum accident.

[Dino]

Holy Chit.
I've been witness to millions of rounds from working on the range and I've even seen a tired old model 36 .38 let its top strap go simply due to age and lack of proper inspection.
But I have never seen a blow up like that. The two outer cartridges blew as well ? Many factors but it seems he built a bomb and not a cartridge ?
Whoever fired that thing wound up in the hospital. No way they walked away with just a lump.
I have seen Casuls and other big bore handguns bury their front sight in folks forehead.
I have seen many more 'scope eyes' though !

Thanks I was trying to think of what that might be called. Looking at the pictures did the other two rounds cook off or did the cylinder just split, so what you are seeing is just different pieces of the same casing? I can't tell.

I don't know any more about this than what I posted and the guy who sent it has not followed up.

 

[ibified]

One had already been fired and the other cooked off.

 

[Dino]

One had already been fired and the other cooked off.

I looked at it again and I think you are right.

 

[Blanca BusaLess]

A cook off is a heat related incident which pertains to select-fire weapons mostly.
You would have to put that thing in the oven and then shoot 500 rnds continously to even hope to get it that close to 'cookin' something off.

LOOK CLOSELY AT BULLET PROTRUDING FROM EXPLODED CYLINDER CLOSEST TO US IN PIC.
THE VIOLENCE FROM THE INITIAL ROUND FIRING WAS SO POWERFUL IT DISLODGED BULLET AND MOVED IT FORWARD.
IF THIS ROUND WAS NOT PROPERLY CRIMPED THAN THIS CAN HAPPEN BUT THEN THE OTHER ONE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN TIGHT ENOUGH TO CREATE ENOUGH PRESSURE TO BLOW LIKE THAT...

I think like I said there are many, many factors that go into making a proper round.
It aint easy. More easy to kill yourself or another than to do it right.
I still stink one of these-wrong powder- wrong powder+double charge-wrong powder+too tight of crimp on case-right powder+double charge-right powder+too tight of crimp- !

The outer two rounds simply were obliterated by the explosion.

 

[mjrfd99]

He's lucky to be alive! Don't re-load if you don't know what you are doing.

I believe the same.

 

[ibified]

Blanca: on closer inspection, I think you are correct. Thanks!

 

[Blanca BusaLess]

Another possible theory is the one round where you see the bullet sticking out of could have upon top round firing dislodged and moved forward due to lack of a proper crimp.
The first round could have been perfect but upon dislodging its sister round that round could have lost its powder charge during the still ongoing explosion created by first round.

This could have been like a....BOOM...BOOM..in quick succession which could have blown the gun up...???

 

[Dino]

Blanca: on closer inspection, I think you are correct. Thanks!

Ditto...I guess "Cook off" was a poor choice of words.

 

[macon454]

Wow that hurt

 

[zukracer]

it wasnt clearing the tweetie birds, it was sandblasting the crap from his pants....wow, thats a pretty impressive fail

 

[Haya01B]

Hot Load! That was in more ways than one! Nice steamy pile!

 

[djsin]

ouch

 

[dmrowe]

He's lucky to be alive! Don't re-load if you don't know what you are doing.

+1 I have been reloading for years and this shid scares the crap out of me. I check every 5th to 10th throw on the powder scale and then check each cartridge in the tray with a flashlight to make sure that all are of the charged cartridges are apprently equal (no light or double charges). This guy is lucky to be alive, it makes no sense build +P+ loads....I load for accuracy. Of course if you don't hit them with the first shot you might set them on fire with the muzzle flash.

 

[Darth Z]

Ouch! Yep, definitely lucky he survived this one!

 

[Rev. 6:5]

The physics of this are easy. When the lead went down the barrel, followed by WAY too much powder, it blew the barrel upwards. The force created by that explosion was much higher than the bursting of the cylinder. Either way, he's lucky to be alive.

 

[Twobrothersbusa]

Reloading is a hobby to save money and work on custom loads. Never ever to save time. Weigh the reloads, every single one. The shooter of that weapon is a lucky man.

 

[Fastfrog007]

Nice hot load

Somebody had to say it.

 

[StromBusa]

That was a VERY hot load

 

[Pardini]

Lots of possibilities. Wrong powder, double charge, too light of a charge, no charge and the previous bullet stuck in the forcing cone, crimp too light and bullet set back. Too much crimp is unlikely as it would be almost impossible to crimp so tight as to cause that much damage. Could have loaded the wrong ammo. Cylinder didn't index. Too heavy of a bullet for the powder charge. Barrel obstruction.

It blew up and out so his hand was ok. The top strap broke at the front of the frame, peeled back and broke off at the rear. That's what hit him in the face.

I load on a progressive, don't weigh every charge, but I do look in the case as I seat the bullet. Have loaded several hundred thousand rounds with out incident. Did blow up a .22 in Jr. High School but that's another story.


Have fired a .40 S&W out of my Les Baer target .45. Blew the mag out and the grips off. Have had case failures in my IPSC gun when it had a barrel in it with an unsupported chamber. That was common when the .40 first came out.

 

[busaMD]

Nice hot load