2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

[daburrrninator]

First pistol:

Walther P22, part of the slide was blown into pieces (I don't know how many since I couldn't recover a big chunk). I had shot about 100 Federal Auto Match ammo and had just started shooting my first magazine of CCI Mini Mags. Maybe the 4th round or so I get the end result pictured below. I felt some small pieces hit my eye protection (I'm so glad I was wearing it) and I don't know where the rest went. I thought it was because the slide is made out of pot metal. I did find the base of the cartridge, which I thought was odd and had never seen before. The pistol was sent to S&W for repair, still waiting to hear back from them.

Second Pistol:

Brand new S&W 22a that I bought YESTERDAY. Of course I don't want to use lead ammo in my brand new shiny gun so I decide to use CCI Mini Mags (brand new box). Maybe the 50th round and the gun explodes. End result pictured below. Again, I recovered the base of the cartridge pictured below. This time no obvious parts flying off but the inside looks pretty bad.

Has anybody else seen this and if so how frequently? When it happened to the Walther I kept wondering if I had done something wrong then I figured it was the pot metal that had had enough. But a brand new out of the box pistol.

Any advice?

 

[rrflyer]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

are you supposed to be using the "hyper velocity" ammo in those?

 

[daburrrninator]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

The Mini Mag is recommended by Walther to be used in the P22. I don't know about the 22a, the only specification listed in the manual is that ammos used meets SAAMI standards.

 

[exmr2sw]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

Shit... glad your OK. Were you possibly shooting rapid fire and one projectile was lodged in the barrel the your tried to fire another and BAM? Maybe you just got the worst luck...

 

[macthknife]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

Damn! Well...at least they are under warranty. S&W is usually pretty good about fixing or replacing defective stuff.

 

[noahmercy]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I hope this doesn't come across as flip, but my advice would be to purchase a Ruger. I've gotten "hot" rounds before and my Ruger 22/45 just bucked more than usual and kept on running with no ill effects.

Did you give the 22A a good detail cleaning and lubing before shooting it? S&W has a habit of leaving lots of machining crap in their guns. If the slide/bolt wasn't going fully into battery it could certainly cause the problem you experienced. As to the Walther...they're not the most durable of pistols (and I'm being kind), and if it fired out of battery, it could disintegrate quite easily.

As to not shooting lead in your 22...all 22 LR ammo feature lead projectiles. Some have a copper wash to act as lubricant, but that gets cut by your rifling, so you're still putting lead in contact with your barrel. The "unwashed" (black) bullets use a paraffin lube...as long as you keep them in the original packaging prior to shooting, they won't pick up any debris and will treat your guns well. Consider this; the guys shooting the multi-thousand dollar Anshutz rifles?...they're likely shooting unwashed bullets down those barrels.

 

[Former0302]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

Buy a lotto ticket...with your recent run of freak bad luck you should be due for the equivalent in good luck?

 

[427Cobra]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

You have a ammo problem, SW which is also Walther has no dog in this fight.

 

[50-140]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?


Did either of the rounds that kaboomed your guns seem sharp, or with a bit more recoil?

If it were me, I'd be running some of the remaining rounds through a .22 rifle, chronograph the velocity, then compare them to factory specs.

I'm pretty sure it's a ammo issue.

 

[Veer_G]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

Might be a good reason to get your money back on the pistols, if at all possible, and look into a S&W 617. I've seen too many issues with flyweight .22 SA pistols to trust anything less than a Ruger Mark X or a S&W 617. It might be ammo issues, but who wants to pay so much for pot metal?

 

[TCA4570]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

Simple KISS question.
Did they both happen with the same lot, or box of ammo?
If so maybe contact CCI.
I saw wild spikes in 5.56 ammo several years ago.(Win) but not in .22.
CCI has been my first choice for about 30 years.

 

[JRose]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I'm shocked a .22 can even has enough ass to do that kinda damage!

 

[fox5]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I'd have to agree with the ammo issue vs and unsupported chamber.

 

[Shady_Jay]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

dirt dobbers

 

[daburrrninator]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I'm leaning towards ammo too. The more I think of it, it doesn't make sense how the base of the shell just blew off like that. If it was a problem with the gun, wouldn't the shell stay in one piece as it should?

It's a strong possibility they were all the same lot. 4 out of 5 boxes have the same lot number, the 5th doesn't have a lot number at all. I was buying these 5 boxes at a time for a while whenever I could find them.

I thought about shooting some of the remaining rounds like 50-140 said, but I'm worried that would leave with a rifle that is also destroyed.

I wasn't doing any rapid fire either, both times it was slow shooting.

I did contact CCI. I will wait to hear back from both S&W and CCI and see what they find.

I was extremely surprised at the damage a 22 made, once I got over being upset my new gun just exploded I looked back and thought about how much worst it could have gone.

I can only imagine what would have been left of my hands had that been a bigger round, say a .45

 

[oubeta]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I have 3 P22's with a total of 10k+ rounds out of them with no issues.
They all run like champs even when dirty. Mostly WalMart Federal bulk packs and CCI's. That's crazy.

 

[Magstang1]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I always take a cleaning rod with me when I'm shooting. If I have any question about if the barrel is blocked for any reason ( squib ) I clear the gun and run the rod down the barrel.

There was a bit of a learning curve when I started reloading. I was a bit paranoid and double checked everything. Now it's just habit.

I've never had a kaboom ( yet ).

If you suspect anything, stop shooting.

I'm guessing ammo too.

 

[Handloader]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I think "firemarshall27" just had this happen to his p22 in the last few weeks....he had pics up.
Here is a quote from him<span style="font-weight: bold">...."So far Walther is sending a Fedex return label for me to send the pistol back. I guess its A pretty common problem for the P22 he said "its maid out of a light alloy meterial AKA(aluminium)that will crack and we will just prob put a new slide on it check it over and send it back" simple enough I just hope it goes smooth."</span>

 

[The Mechanic]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I have a S&W 22A and never had a problem. Shot every kind of ammo. Clean and dirty. My vote is ammo problem. Recalls happen. I would isolate any ammo. I would go as far as any ammo bought at whatever store and any ammo of the CCI brand until the problem is discovered.

 

[Boosted2.0]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Handloader</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I think "firemarshall27" just had this happen to his p22 in the last few weeks....he had pics up.
Here is a quote from him<span style="font-weight: bold">...."So far Walther is sending a Fedex return label for me to send the pistol back. I guess its A pretty common problem for the P22 he said "its maid out of a light alloy meterial AKA(aluminium)that will crack and we will just prob put a new slide on it check it over and send it back" simple enough I just hope it goes smooth."</span> </div></div>

Jeez - I'll pass on one of those thanks.

 

[Sgt. 0811]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

Stop shooting .22 semi autos... God doesn't want you to.

J/K

 

[sinister]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

I purchased a Walther P22 after their introduction because I liked the ergonomics and size. I attempted to fire several hundred rounds of ammo and returned the pistol to Smith and Wesson (Walther's US trading partner and customer service center) four times to correct problems with the gun.

Smith and Wesson eventually sent me a check for the full retail price and North Carolina pistol purchase cost. I explained that I liked everything about the pistol but I wanted it to work.

Apparently the pistols are built by Umarex (an airsoft company) in Germany, licensing the parent Walther company name and banner. They are built of pot metal (zinc?) castings and are not meant to be shot a lot.

 

[Veer_G]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Sgt. 0811</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Stop shooting .22 semi autos... God doesn't want you to.

J/K </div></div>

................................. ^^^ .................................

<span style="font-weight: bold">ZADZWON COMMANDS YOU!</span>

 

[pale horse]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

Big 10-4 on bad ammo two guns owned by the same person come on! I have 3 p-22,s and never a problem. I do now feel like they may be built a tad light & may dump all of them to be on the safe side. I agree a 22 lr revolver made by Smith & Wesson may be in order. I have a sig 22 also we love shooting the little guys with my 2 sons 10 & 12 years old. I am glad I ran into this post & hope we find out what the problem was Ammo or Firearms?

 

[cmh2007]

Re: 2 pistols exploded in less than a month. Advice?

that one of the case head looked like the shell was out of battery when it went off.