1st Squib

[TrooperKbC]

I think "squib" is the term I've heard when referring to a bullet that leaves the case, but not the barrel. This weekend it happened. I have no idea why or what it means, but it scared the crud out of me (especially since I handed the gun to a friend to shoot). He couldn't get the first round to chamber, which I discoved was because there was a fired bullet in the barrel (it's a 3.4" barrel). I'm not sure if it was the original squib, or a subsequent round which forced out the actual dud.

I used a Rainier 230gr HP bullet, Starline brass, 4.6gr IMR 700-X (definately will try something else next time; not good for autoloader), and Winchester primers. I weighed and poured each powder charge by hand due to the unreliability of the flake powder through my autoloader. Brass was all never before fired. Primers were bought less than a month before loading.

Please tell me what you think happened (bad primer, bad powder, human error, bad bullet diameter, etc.). What are the potential dangers of this issue?

 

[robin303]

When I reload I put all my brass with powder in those plastic load trays. Once I have 50 then I eye ball them to tell if I have a double charge or no powder.
Sounds like you had no powder and it was the primer that caused the squib. 700X is one of my favorite powders. Don't feel bad I have had four in the last 15,000 that I reloaded. A squib has a unique sound and I don't let anyone shoot my reloads ever.

 

[TexMex247]

Scary, did the round not sound different when it went off ? It should have been unable to eject the brass or feed the next round in. As a precaution, I would measure the diameter of the bullets just to see if they are too big. They should be no more than .452". If there was any ignition of powder you should have felt the pressure escape through the magwell or slide somewhere. Take some pictures of the spent brass and post em'. How hard was it to remove the stuck slug from the barrel ?

 

[Texas1911]

More than likely it was a case that didn't get any powder. If you look at the base of the bullet, the pellet in the primer tends to leave a white residue whereas the powder will leave a black residue. If all you see is white, then you just got a primer only firing. If you were lubing the brass or had anything like oil, sweat, etc. that got on the powder it is entirely possible to make the powder inert. You can tell when the powder doesn't burn completely because you'll have flakes of the powder everywhere in the gun.

 

[TrooperKbC]

You are wiser than me to not let people shoot your loads (at least not without some paperwork *haha). The back of the bullet was almost completely black. I noticed one shot with "less" muzzle flare, but the little I saw could have very well come from the breech. That should have been an obvious red flag. It took a few knocks with a hammer and screwdriver to get the bullet back out the half inch it traveled. I'm not sure if it should have been that difficult to remove. As far as the sound goes, I didn't notice anything unusual out in the open field with my ear plugs. You would think I would have noticed a difference in the kick, but to me this load is extremely manageable until you get to 4.7gr and start to feel a little kick. I will definately be more weary of kick, sound, view of target, and flash in the future. I am also considering replacing my scale because you can put the same thing onto it and it gives readings of about +/- 0.075gr (it was advertised to measure down to 0.02gr increments).

 

[Texas42]

What scale do you have?

btw, I've had real good luck with 700x powder. I eyeball every round I load. I'm glad nothing really bad happened.

 

[TrooperKbC]

The scale is an AWS DIA-20.

 

[Mikewood]

Well you learned something. You got to be careful. Lots of good advice here. I select powder in part that fills the case 50% or more. That way a double charge is obvious. A half charge or no charge is as scary if not more so.
All I can say is load enough and you will get an education. Shoot open bolt machine-guns long enough and you will get a ND.
Learn newer safer ways and move foreword.

 

[skinman]

My one and only squib showed up in one of my first reloads. I was not using any kind of powder loader, just the Lee measure that came with my dies. There is no doubt in my mind that it was the result of something distracting me and me forgetting to put a powder charge in. The recoil was all wrong and my "Baby" Eagle did not fully eject the spent case. I used a brass cleaning rod section to tap out the bullet (I wouldn't advise using a metal screwdriver in my barrels...too easy to do damage). The experience was enough to motivate me to get a Lee Auto Disk powder measure and a digital scale. Part of my reloading cycle is to visually verify that the powder level is correct before seating the bullet and to weigh and re-weigh until I get the correct weight I want and to spot check to make sure the powder measure is metering accurately as I go.

I have used 700-X and still have about a pound but I find that it meters inconsistently and leaves a lot of residue and unburnt powder. I usually use 4.8-5 grains with 230 gr RNL with 1.260 OAL

 

[scap99]

Honestly, this is one of the biggest reasons for using a progressive press. In the countless thousands of rounds loaded on my Dillon XL650; since 1996, I have not loaded a squib to date.

 

[sirrah243]

The two squibs I've had both made a distinct pop and no recoil and the brass did not eject. Both squibs were completely my fault due to me not charging the case with powder. The bullet lodged in the first inch or so of rifiling and had to be pounded out with a cleaning rod and mallet. I noticed that the extracted bullet was completely black on the end but did not smell of burn powder. You live and learn.

 

[TrooperKbC]

Honestly, this is one of the biggest reasons for using a progressive press. In the countless thousands of rounds loaded on my Dillon XL650; since 1996, I have not loaded a squib to date.

I have a Lee Auto Disc Powder Measure, which basically does the same thing, but IMR 700X is significantly inconsistant for automatic measurements including most progressives according to my experience and everyone I've chatted with whom used 700X. Now I'm just tempted to buy a different powder.

I used a brass cleaning rod section to tap out the bullet (I wouldn't advise using a metal screwdriver in my barrels...too easy to do damage).

I would agree, but it was a hollow point making the phillip's head stay snug in the center.

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Anyway, I finished off the rest of my reloads today without problems. Apparantly there was only the one bad round. I will certainly be more careful in the future. Live and learn I suppose. I'm just glad it wasn't a double charge or something that could have put shrapnel in my head.

 

[scap99]

are you loading .45acp? I'm guessing since it's a 230 grain bullet.

You may try Titegroup or Clays.

Dunno where you are, but I have some TG I'd be willing to give you if you are close to Cypress.

 

[Texastransplant]

Reloading is like carpentry or metalwork. Measure twice cut once. I might be a slow reloader but I check and recheck and try to do the same thing each time. In 40 years not a problem not saying it won't happen. Keeping a clean and orderly bench is the first step. If your gun ever fires differntly in sound, recoil makesure you check it out. Glad it wasn't worse for you.

 

[sirrah243]

Titegroup is my go to pistol powder followed by Unique.

 

[WestFork]

I've had the same thing happen with a .223, Primer but no powder. Made no noise and did not cycle the weapon. Bullet was lodged barely in the lands and fell out with the drop of brass cleaning rod.

 

[OLDVET]

If you reload this will happen to you sooner or later. It could have been bad primers, light hit from the firing pin (broken?), or contamination as described previously. The important point is the fact it would not function after the squib. A couple of months ago I was at a local rifle range shooting my ARs. A couple of guys came to the adjacent position and set up their gear. Along with their gear thay had chronograph. We got to talking and I found out they were new to reloading. They had brought the chrono to check the speeds of several different reload formulas they had reloaded. Some time pasted with all of us shooting. During a period when I has loading my bullets into my AR magazine, I noticed an odd sound when one of them fired his rifle. They proceeded as if nothing had happened. I mentioned that they might check their rifle barrel since the last round sounded funny. They looked at me like I was crazy. After an inspection, they found that indeed there was a round in the barrel. It stopped about half way down the barrel. With their bolt action rifle they would have been able to load a second bullet and fire the rifle. The results would not have been pretty for any of us. They were really appreciative and I was glad I didn't get a face full of hot metal.