I get to the range with my two sons late this morning, and when we get to the entry I notice all the RSO's are huddled down at the far end of the 100 yd. section. Lots of commotion, I question a few guys near the entry (they wouldn't let us in , yet) and find out that an M1A had apparently just blown up.
FORTUNATELY, the shooter was not seriously injured. He sustained shrapnel wounds to his right arm which they were bandaging, but he declined an ambulance and was going to the ER after the rest of the staff got his vehicle loaded back up. The mag was completely blown apart according to my son (I didn't see the rifle). I spoke with the head RSO after the range closed down to get his take on what happened. I'll mention that I just completed my very FIRST foray into handloading last night- so the timing of this accident was, well...let's just say "disconcerting". I was almost too freaked out to take our rifles outta their cases.
According to the RSO, when he picked up the rifle it was in full battery- although the owner denied that was the case. In his opinion, it was case failure- he said the brass looked a bit "crappy" (his word). However, the shooter told him that he had just gotten it back after sending it to Springfield- although he didn't elaborate on why he sent it to them or what work was done. The RSO also mentioned that he had heard of a similar incident with an M1A recently, and was going to look into it.
For me, this was kind of an omen. Although I know handloading is a dangerous activity, getting a "glimpse" of what can happen really drove the point home. I took a painstaking amount of time with reloading last night- as I should have. Even though I bought a progressive press, I painstakingly weighed nearly every charge and put the calipers on every second or third round. Four different bullets, for two different guns (both .223, but one a Rem. 700 and other a Mini) and a total of sixteen bullet/powder weight combinations. Took me five hours to do 150 rounds.
So, in speaking with the RSO at the end of the day I showed him some of my brass from the Mini, just to get his opinion. He said the primers (CCI) looked a bit flat- nothing serious, but he asked if I was shooting hot loads. I told him no- that I followed Sierra's advice, and started at 8% under max for the bullet/gun (semi or bolt per the manual)and then two more loads each increasing by 1/2 grain. Wasn't loading anywhere close to max. So, now for the questions...
1) I saw what he meant by "flat" primer, but don't understand what the cause could be, if it's not a hot load.
2)He asked about the powder (Varget), and I explained that I was a bit frustrated in that I was often getting a .2 gr variation with the case-activated powder drop. What's the point in doing .5 grain test loads if they can be "off" by half of that? He said that Varget's a great powder, but suggested I might want to try the H335 as it will feed more precisely. Opinions?
3) If it was indeed case separation as he suspects, it scares the hell out of me to be re-using brass. Can someone please detail (and, pics would be GREAT) of the danger signs to be looking for? As a newb, I try to understand the physics here...I know the cases stretch, and need to be trimmed. Obviously, if the case is stretched, the case wall has become thinner. So, how do you know when you've reached the point when the case wall thickness is insufficient?
4)I was getting a variation of a couple of thousandths with the bullet seating die, as well. With this, do you err on the short, or the long, side of COAL? I may have been wrong, but I figured with powder- better less, than more...and figured I'd be better off if the overall length were a couple thousandths short, rather than long. Is this correct? How close, is close enough- what are the tolerances? This question is geared more for an answer from a safety perspective first, with accuracy second.
Sorry about the long-winded post. Any info and insight you guys can provide to help make this a safer experience is very much appreciated. BTW- our handloads shot great- far better than factory ammo we'd been using...
FORTUNATELY, the shooter was not seriously injured. He sustained shrapnel wounds to his right arm which they were bandaging, but he declined an ambulance and was going to the ER after the rest of the staff got his vehicle loaded back up. The mag was completely blown apart according to my son (I didn't see the rifle). I spoke with the head RSO after the range closed down to get his take on what happened. I'll mention that I just completed my very FIRST foray into handloading last night- so the timing of this accident was, well...let's just say "disconcerting". I was almost too freaked out to take our rifles outta their cases.
According to the RSO, when he picked up the rifle it was in full battery- although the owner denied that was the case. In his opinion, it was case failure- he said the brass looked a bit "crappy" (his word). However, the shooter told him that he had just gotten it back after sending it to Springfield- although he didn't elaborate on why he sent it to them or what work was done. The RSO also mentioned that he had heard of a similar incident with an M1A recently, and was going to look into it.
For me, this was kind of an omen. Although I know handloading is a dangerous activity, getting a "glimpse" of what can happen really drove the point home. I took a painstaking amount of time with reloading last night- as I should have. Even though I bought a progressive press, I painstakingly weighed nearly every charge and put the calipers on every second or third round. Four different bullets, for two different guns (both .223, but one a Rem. 700 and other a Mini) and a total of sixteen bullet/powder weight combinations. Took me five hours to do 150 rounds.
So, in speaking with the RSO at the end of the day I showed him some of my brass from the Mini, just to get his opinion. He said the primers (CCI) looked a bit flat- nothing serious, but he asked if I was shooting hot loads. I told him no- that I followed Sierra's advice, and started at 8% under max for the bullet/gun (semi or bolt per the manual)and then two more loads each increasing by 1/2 grain. Wasn't loading anywhere close to max. So, now for the questions...
1) I saw what he meant by "flat" primer, but don't understand what the cause could be, if it's not a hot load.
2)He asked about the powder (Varget), and I explained that I was a bit frustrated in that I was often getting a .2 gr variation with the case-activated powder drop. What's the point in doing .5 grain test loads if they can be "off" by half of that? He said that Varget's a great powder, but suggested I might want to try the H335 as it will feed more precisely. Opinions?
3) If it was indeed case separation as he suspects, it scares the hell out of me to be re-using brass. Can someone please detail (and, pics would be GREAT) of the danger signs to be looking for? As a newb, I try to understand the physics here...I know the cases stretch, and need to be trimmed. Obviously, if the case is stretched, the case wall has become thinner. So, how do you know when you've reached the point when the case wall thickness is insufficient?
4)I was getting a variation of a couple of thousandths with the bullet seating die, as well. With this, do you err on the short, or the long, side of COAL? I may have been wrong, but I figured with powder- better less, than more...and figured I'd be better off if the overall length were a couple thousandths short, rather than long. Is this correct? How close, is close enough- what are the tolerances? This question is geared more for an answer from a safety perspective first, with accuracy second.
Sorry about the long-winded post. Any info and insight you guys can provide to help make this a safer experience is very much appreciated. BTW- our handloads shot great- far better than factory ammo we'd been using...