rottenit Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Had a bad day at the range yesterday, my Brazos HP Edge went Kaboom I had just finished up doing some 50yd groups and switched to a dot torture drill at 21ft. On shot #29 I felt a sharp jolt in my hand and it felt like someone threw a bunch of sand in my face. I looked down at the gun and the chamber was split open and in multiple pieces. The slide would not operate due to the chamber being bent out of the cut-out. Dropped the mag top round was damaged and the feed lips looked a little beat. Looked down the barrel and it appears that a piece of the case tried to make its way through the rifling. I am 100 percent positive that this wasnt an obstructed barrel (squib) then fresh round situation I saw the shot hit the paper before the kaboom. Im guessing a double charge? This was remanufactured ammo from a company. I was wearing safety glasses and am very happy about that. I am not the 1st owner, by the previous owners account there may be up to 2 others in the chain of ownership. The ammo company wants documentation for the gun, I contacted Brazos they confirmed that the gun was theres and it was sold in 2010 but thats all they will say which I get, although Ididnt need the attitude I got from the person. Anyone ever have an issue with factory ammo like this? How does it work out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul-the new guy Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 WOW! glad you are ok. The rest can be fixed. Looks like you glasses may have done their job, could have been bad! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toothguy Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 A local shooter had something that looked exactly like that. He was shooting his own reloads using plated lead without a tight enough crimp. We were able to push the rounds into the case with moderate thumb pressure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EEH Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Was this factory or reloads you bought from someone ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi-Power Jack Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 From the photos, I'd say you were Extremely Lucky you didn't get hurt - that's a bad kaboom. I can't imagine it's the gun's fault - most likely the ammo mfgr. They should be a little more responsive, I'd think. Was that .40 minor or major load? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandbagger123 Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 i suspect double charge. if you are lucky it might just require a new barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 The ammo is factory "Remanufacture" They list there 180 JHP at 1000 fps so 180PF if I did the math right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 i suspect double charge. if you are lucky it might just require a new barrel. Slide is bent under the cut-out, so i'm thinking slide too. Not sure if any other internals are damaged cant get the gun apart in its current condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 It was very surprising I shot around 600 rounds of this stuff with no issues all the ammo looked good, no weirdness with the cases, no feed issues etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 Think metal fatigue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Think metal fatigue? Nah. That is ammo related for sure. You said you had fired 600 without issue. The lesson here is that it only takes one bad round to do a number on a gun. About the only remanufactured ammo I would use, other than my own, would be Atlanta Arms. I won a box of another brand at a match once and half the box didn't even have the bell removed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 17, 2014 Author Share Posted September 17, 2014 Now im wondering if I should use the 3k rounds of new ammo I have from them... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy Neill Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 If the company that produced the ammunition is as they should be, they will have you send the gun to them and they should repair/replace it, along with any remaining ammunition from that production lot. That includes anyth8ng else damaged, such as the magazine and glasses. I'm not certain what "documentation" the ammo company is seeking with respect to the gun. They have the evidence of the gun, and remaining ammunition to test. What else is needed? Brazos can give them the cost to repair/replace either directly or via letter to you. Glad you weren't hurt, though most pistol blow-ups do not result in serious injury - mostly minor hand injuries. Keep us posted on progress with the ammo company taking care of things. Guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gransport Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Really sorry this happened and glad you're ok. Just want to say thanks for sharing! That pic of your safety glasses is sobering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cajunautoxer Posted September 18, 2014 Share Posted September 18, 2014 Who was the ammo company Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EkuJustice Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 Ya they should feel LUCKY that all they have to pay to fix the gun and not you. I hope it was At least an ammo company you bought from hopefully and not just a gun shops reloads they sell for the range or bubbys gun show reloads sold in a ziplock bag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 20, 2014 Author Share Posted September 20, 2014 So until I get some sort of resolution I dont want to post the ammo mfr name. There is also the possibility that it was just metal fatigue. I am ay least the 3rd owner of the gun so no clue how it was treated before me. So far I got a quote from STI for and the ammo company told me to send it to them. They also sent a prepaid label to ship that lot back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EkuJustice Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 That's ammo related. Metal fatigue will not have a chamber let go like that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 21, 2014 Author Share Posted September 21, 2014 Thats my guess as well. I'm a bit puzzled how ammo from a mid to large sized mfr can get double-charged, isn't there some sort of controls to prevent that? They list the "Ammo Load Mark X" as there pistol press and it has station function: "Powder Check: A switch stops the machine in the event of an over or under charge. This serves as a check on the accuracy of the powder load and can be adjusted for different powder charges." Someone just have a "bad day" at the machine? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ming the Merciless Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 That was probably caused by bullet setback caused either by mechanical forces or jacket/case material ring left in the barrel throat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 21, 2014 Author Share Posted September 21, 2014 That was probably caused by bullet setback caused either by mechanical forces or jacket/case material ring left in the barrel throat. I guess i'm not able to visualize what you mean, something prevented the bullet from fully seating into the chamber and in essence it fired too soon so the chamber could not support the case? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ming the Merciless Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 (edited) Either the bullet was pushed back into the case during normal chambering or a round left part of of the jacket or part of the case in the chamber throat pushing the bullet back into the case. Edited September 21, 2014 by Ming the Merciless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitvpr Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 Really sorry this happened and glad you're ok. Just want to say thanks for sharing! That pic of your safety glasses is sobering. Agree! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 That was probably caused by bullet setback caused either by mechanical forces or jacket/case material ring left in the barrel throat. I guess i'm not able to visualize what you mean, something prevented the bullet from fully seating into the chamber and in essence it fired too soon so the chamber could not support the case? Bullet setback means the bullet somehow got pushed much deeper into the case. This in turn drastically reduces case volume which results in ultra high pressures. Not that this happened in your case but if it did it is still probably an ammo fault. just one round of ammo that is not sized correctly, overcrimped, etc could allow a bullet to push into the case quite easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rottenit Posted September 22, 2014 Author Share Posted September 22, 2014 Ah thanks got it, didn't consider that a bad crimp and something in the barrel could alter the setback. Gun goes off to STI tomorrow so hopefully ill have some sort of resolution in the next few weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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