xuxupecheur Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 (edited) I've been shooting ammo my friend reloads for me. I've gone through thousands of rounds with no problems whatsoever. In the last two months I've had three incidents too many. Two weeks ago a squib at the range. I noticed it, got the bullet off the barrel, continued shooting. A month ago at an IDPA match, a FTF. When I tried to reload noticed the bullet just fell off its brass. Unburnt powder under the star. Couldn't close cylinder, went to the safety area, cleaned the gun and they allowed me to reshoot the stage. My friend claims it was a very undersized bullet. OK! Yesterday one round did not sound kosher although it did go downrange. When reloading I had to actually hit the ejector rod hard for the moonclip to come out. Again, unburnt powder under the star, could not close cylinder. I did not stop this time, blew the powder off with my mouth and finished the stage. I'm using 230gr Rainiers FOI. What do you think it happened yesterday? Lack of pressure due to an undersized bullet? Defective Federal primer? Poor crimping? I know my buddy is very thorough, things happen however. Any thoughts? Julio (accomplished USPSA shooter) Edited May 8, 2006 by xuxupecheur Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waltermitty Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 I've been shooting ammo my friend reloads for me. I've gone through thousands of rounds with no problems whatsoever. In the last two months I've had three incidents too many. Two weeks ago a squib at the range. I noticed it, got the bullet off the barrel, continued shooting. A month ago at an IDPA match, a FTF. When I tried to reload noticed the bullet just fell off its brass. Unburnt powder under the star. Couldn't close cylinder, went to the safety area, cleaned the gun and they allowed me to reshoot the stage. My friend claims it was a very undersized bullet. OK! Yesterday one round did not sound kosher although it did go downrange. When reloading I had to actually hit the ejector rod hard for the moonclip to come out. Again, unburnt powder under the star, could not close cylinder. I did not stop this time, blew the powder off with my mouth and finished the stage. I'm using 230gr Rainiers FOI. What do you think it happened yesterday? Lack of pressure due to an undersized bullet? Defective Federal primer? Poor crimping? I know my buddy is very thorough, things happen however. Any thoughts? Julio (accomplished USPSA shooter) Generally speaking, you pack your own parachute, tie your own climbing knots, and reload your own ammo. While I suppose everybody has done it at sometime in thier shooting career, using somebody else's reloads is little like using somebody else's toothbrush. If you already have evidence of missing teeth and bad breath, that should be enough to convince you; whether your buddy is a pretty good guy or not. Some of us are even a little sqeamish about the "commercial" reloads people sell at the gun shows. You should either be doing your own reloading with components you understand and have verified, or you should shoot commercial ammo. No offense to your buddy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skywalker Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 IIRC, there was a forum member's tag line that read along the lines of "handloads are like underwear, be careful who you swap with" ... Seriously, reloading is like shooting: when you're totally focused, you can call your mikes and make up shots, but there can be times when your focus is taken away from from other stuff, and you don't even know you've missed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xuxupecheur Posted May 8, 2006 Author Share Posted May 8, 2006 I wish I had time to reload and do other things I'd like to. Not feasible for now. When I said I've shot thousands of rounds from this guy, I mean 40 K at least. Never ever a problem before. We use Federal primers, Federal brass, Rainiers and Clays for my 45 reloads. Has anybody experienced problems with Rainier bullets? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffwalsh Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 This will be my 4th year using rainier bullets and I love them. I have never had an undersized bullet or any other trouble. I use the 230's and the 200's in 45. It is easy to blame the bullet for a problem; but if it was, the loader should have caught it during the process. If you can't load your own, you have to take what you get.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubber Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 xuxu, You might want to look at your brass. I have had trouble with my 45 doing the same thing. Mostly it was my fault (well ok it was all my fault). Putting a heavy crimp on an udersized bullet will not help it. If the brass is cracked or toooo thin the bullet will not remain in the case under firing. I have had the bullet stick in the cylinder as I ejected the moon clip. Your buddy might have an idea or two also if he is aware of the symptoms. Does he use the same ammo in a Revo also? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xuxupecheur Posted May 8, 2006 Author Share Posted May 8, 2006 Thanks Cliff and Bubber for the replies (I like when you call me xuxu -pronounced shushu- as my wife does) He does not shoot 45ACP revos. I'll take your suggestions to him, and needless to say next strike he's out. Julio Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimberkid Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 40K and you got 3 bad ones? I'd say you are well ahead of the game. If I found a source, even factory ammo, that was that reliable, I'd never buy anywhere else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPM8shot Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 Many years ago, I ran through a batch of ammo like you describe. In my case, I had 200 squibs. This was in my early days. Federal and Rainier are reputable companies. But, niether are perfect. You are bound to get a bad bullet or primer or two in over 40K rounds of ammo production. As stated 40K rounds with three bad ones, you are WAY ahead of the game. Consider those outside the curve and move on. You are probably not doing anything wrong. Your friend may want to clean his press. In my case I found a bunch of what looked like grease and wax fouling some of the passages (powder charge passage) on my press. It's worth a try. DVC Renny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pskys2 Posted May 9, 2006 Share Posted May 9, 2006 Sounds an awful lot to me like he missed sizing a case on the loose bullet load. The others sound like too light of a powder charge or maybe he's handling things with oily/sweaty fingers, the powder/primers can be contaminated. Maybe his press hangs up, and he doesn't get a full powder charge, then tries to advance it by hand. I'd be "Really" Worried that the next time will be a double charge and you'll be out a gun. And hopefully with all your fingers/eyes intact. Spend the money on the new Ammo you can buy thru USPSA. Or go to WW whitebox, Wolf or some other commercial ammo, but quit playing roulette. Good Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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