Robbie Wheaton Jr Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 A friend of mine had the barrel split in half where the chamber and barrel meet. He was shooting a local USPSA match in Prod. division; about halfway through the stage he noticed a weird recoil and sound. He stopped and racked the slide back to check for a case head separation everything looked ok so he closed the slide. when he did the barrel fell out of the slide. the chamber and locking lugs were still in place and locked up with the slide and locking block. 129pf loads no issues there. He stuck a storm lake barrel in the gun and finished the match without any issues. Has anyone else had a problem with the barrel breaking off from the chamber? The barrel looked like it had a milled ring just forward of the chamber. The backup gun and barrel had the same ring just forward of the chamber. It looks like the chamber and barrel are two piece like the Springfield 1911 barrels. Does anyone know if the barrels are one or two piece. I will post some pics as soon as he brings them by the shop; both of the split barrel and the backup gun barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twodownzero Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 A friend of mine had the barrel split in half where the chamber and barrel meet. He was shooting a local USPSA match in Prod. division; about halfway through the stage he noticed a weird recoil and sound. He stopped and racked the slide back to check for a case head separation everything looked ok so he closed the slide. when he did the barrel fell out of the slide. the chamber and locking lugs were still in place and locked up with the slide and locking block. 129pf loads no issues there. He stuck a storm lake barrel in the gun and finished the match without any issues. Has anyone else had a problem with the barrel breaking off from the chamber? The barrel looked like it had a milled ring just forward of the chamber. The backup gun and barrel had the same ring just forward of the chamber. It looks like the chamber and barrel are two piece like the Springfield 1911 barrels. Does anyone know if the barrels are one or two piece. I will post some pics as soon as he brings them by the shop; both of the split barrel and the backup gun barrel. It would seem that the place where the barrel meets the hood is the stress riser, and thus the most likely place for it to break. What load was he shooting in the gun? Clays powder? Bullseye? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-ManBart Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 Was it a 9mm gun? Which version? I think I recall reading that one of the LASD guns that failed was some sort of barrel/chamber split. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 My PRO barrel has the ring you describe. Looks like a weld to me? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Wheaton Jr Posted December 27, 2009 Author Share Posted December 27, 2009 It was the 9mm M&P L 5inch model. He replaced the locking block in the pistol last week because the gun would not shoot accurately; ie 4 to 5" at 25 yards. His load is Clays or Solo with 124's at 129 pf. He has never shot anything over a 130pf through the gun. He does all his loading on a 1050 with a low powder sensor. He is a M class shooter in several divisions. The RO said the round sounded just like his other poof loads! He said it looked like the barrel broke from the top down. Smoke poured out the ejection port like he had a case head separation which is why he stopped to check the chamber before proceeding. He has never had a case head seperation in 9mm but has had several in 40 due to worn out brass. The case had ejected during the firing cycle. There was no round stuck (ie SQUIB) in the barrel or chamber. I can't wait to see the barrel and take some pics of it. Still wondering at this point what happened, but it looks like the seam is a weak point in the design. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twodownzero Posted December 27, 2009 Share Posted December 27, 2009 Power factor does not matter. Clays is subject to pressure spikes. Do not assume that just because his loads are light, that they are within specs for pressure. I'm willing to bet it's the reason that his gun is broken. A little too much Clays or a little too short or a combination of both. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Wheaton Jr Posted December 27, 2009 Author Share Posted December 27, 2009 Power factor does not matter. Clays is subject to pressure spikes. Do not assume that just because his loads are light, that they are within specs for pressure. I'm willing to bet it's the reason that his gun is broken. A little too much Clays or a little too short or a combination of both. Nah. 1.150 oal with all the same headstamp once fired Win. brass with just enough Clays to make minor. Over pressure would not be an issue. If he had any concerns about pressure he would have changed loads. Even if the bullet had telescoped into the case enough to cause a huge pressure spike the case would have separated prior to the barrel breaking off just forward of the chamber especially since the case is not fully supported. There had to be a problem with the factory barrel prior to the failure. I also wonder if replacing the locking block was a factor in the failure. He shot about 250 rounds through the gun after replacing the block prior to the barrel failure. The accuracy did improve after he replaced the locking block but I wonder if it was a factor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-ManBart Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Power factor does not matter. Clays is subject to pressure spikes. Do not assume that just because his loads are light, that they are within specs for pressure. I'm willing to bet it's the reason that his gun is broken. A little too much Clays or a little too short or a combination of both. From the LASD safety bulletin: ANOTHER OF THESE PISTOLS EXPERIENCED A BARREL FAILURE IN MID-APRIL OF THIS YEAR. AFTER FIRING LESS THAN 10,000 ROUNDS OF TRAINING AMMUNITION. THIS PISTOL BARREL BROKE INTO TWO PIECES JUST AHEAD OF THE FIRING CHAMBER. Sounds familiar..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twodownzero Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Power factor does not matter. Clays is subject to pressure spikes. Do not assume that just because his loads are light, that they are within specs for pressure. I'm willing to bet it's the reason that his gun is broken. A little too much Clays or a little too short or a combination of both. From the LASD safety bulletin: ANOTHER OF THESE PISTOLS EXPERIENCED A BARREL FAILURE IN MID-APRIL OF THIS YEAR. AFTER FIRING LESS THAN 10,000 ROUNDS OF TRAINING AMMUNITION. THIS PISTOL BARREL BROKE INTO TWO PIECES JUST AHEAD OF THE FIRING CHAMBER. Sounds familiar..... Well if it's going to break, it's definitely going to break there. That is the weakest point of the entire barrel (stress riser between chamber and barrel). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-ManBart Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Power factor does not matter. Clays is subject to pressure spikes. Do not assume that just because his loads are light, that they are within specs for pressure. I'm willing to bet it's the reason that his gun is broken. A little too much Clays or a little too short or a combination of both. From the LASD safety bulletin: ANOTHER OF THESE PISTOLS EXPERIENCED A BARREL FAILURE IN MID-APRIL OF THIS YEAR. AFTER FIRING LESS THAN 10,000 ROUNDS OF TRAINING AMMUNITION. THIS PISTOL BARREL BROKE INTO TWO PIECES JUST AHEAD OF THE FIRING CHAMBER. Sounds familiar..... Well if it's going to break, it's definitely going to break there. That is the weakest point of the entire barrel (stress riser between chamber and barrel). It's only a stress riser if they didn't radius that area properly....hard to imagine Smith isn't aware of how that works, but it is possible that the barrel wasn't made properly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itchy Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 The LASD barrel that broke was in a 4 inch gun. It was friend of mine and I believe it had less than 2000 rounds of Winchester 115 grain WinClean ammunition through it. On another note, he broke a Beretta barrel a couple weeks after his M&P. (I don't let him shoot any of my guns anymore ) Seiichi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-ManBart Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 The LASD barrel that broke was in a 4 inch gun. It was friend of mine and I believe it had less than 2000 rounds of Winchester 115 grain WinClean ammunition through it. On another note, he broke a Beretta barrel a couple weeks after his M&P. (I don't let him shoot any of my guns anymore )Seiichi Yeah, I wouldn't let him shoot mine either! I would suspect that other than the length, they're making the barrels the same way for both 4" and 5" guns. R, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b2alpha Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 (edited) A friend of mine had the barrel split in half where the chamber and barrel meet. He was shooting a local USPSA match in Prod. division; about halfway through the stage he noticed a weird recoil and sound. He stopped and racked the slide back to check for a case head separation everything looked ok so he closed the slide. when he did the barrel fell out of the slide. the chamber and locking lugs were still in place and locked up with the slide and locking block. 129pf loads no issues there. He stuck a storm lake barrel in the gun and finished the match without any issues. Has anyone else had a problem with the barrel breaking off from the chamber? The barrel looked like it had a milled ring just forward of the chamber. The backup gun and barrel had the same ring just forward of the chamber. It looks like the chamber and barrel are two piece like the Springfield 1911 barrels. Does anyone know if the barrels are one or two piece. I will post some pics as soon as he brings them by the shop; both of the split barrel and the backup gun barrel. I'm the one that the barrel broke in the M&P Pro. Tried to upload some photes. Edited December 31, 2009 by b2alpha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b2alpha Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 (edited) A friend of mine had the barrel split in half where the chamber and barrel meet. He was shooting a local USPSA match in Prod. division; about halfway through the stage he noticed a weird recoil and sound. He stopped and racked the slide back to check for a case head separation everything looked ok so he closed the slide. when he did the barrel fell out of the slide. the chamber and locking lugs were still in place and locked up with the slide and locking block. 129pf loads no issues there. He stuck a storm lake barrel in the gun and finished the match without any issues. Has anyone else had a problem with the barrel breaking off from the chamber? The barrel looked like it had a milled ring just forward of the chamber. The backup gun and barrel had the same ring just forward of the chamber. It looks like the chamber and barrel are two piece like the Springfield 1911 barrels. Does anyone know if the barrels are one or two piece. I will post some pics as soon as he brings them by the shop; both of the split barrel and the backup gun barrel. I the one that the barrel broke in the M&P Pro. Tried to upload some photes. Here's another Edited December 31, 2009 by b2alpha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 A friend of mine had the barrel split in half where the chamber and barrel meet. He was shooting a local USPSA match in Prod. division; about halfway through the stage he noticed a weird recoil and sound. He stopped and racked the slide back to check for a case head separation everything looked ok so he closed the slide. when he did the barrel fell out of the slide. the chamber and locking lugs were still in place and locked up with the slide and locking block. 129pf loads no issues there. He stuck a storm lake barrel in the gun and finished the match without any issues. Has anyone else had a problem with the barrel breaking off from the chamber? The barrel looked like it had a milled ring just forward of the chamber. The backup gun and barrel had the same ring just forward of the chamber. It looks like the chamber and barrel are two piece like the Springfield 1911 barrels. Does anyone know if the barrels are one or two piece. I will post some pics as soon as he brings them by the shop; both of the split barrel and the backup gun barrel. I the one that the barrel broke in the M&P Pro. Tried to upload some photes. Here's another That's not good. The M&P can't afford too many more issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty whiteboy Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 I think I would just order another Storm Lake barrel, maybe keep the factory barrel that S&W replaces as a back up, to your back up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b2alpha Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 I think I would just order another Storm Lake barrel, maybe keep the factory barrel that S&W replaces as a back up, to your back up. Think I'll do that. Ordered another Storm Lake barrel yesterday. Not one hour after I did Kevin, from KKM barrels, called me to let me they have barrels for M&Ps now. Got one of them on the way too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Wheaton Jr Posted December 31, 2009 Author Share Posted December 31, 2009 Much better pics than the ones I took at the shop. As you can see the barrel just broke off. It looks like the barrel had been cracked for some time and finally failed. The failure point was about a 1/2" into the rifling; which seemed to be a strange place for a barrel to fail. The interesting thing about the location where the barrel failed was it was right in the middle of the machined groove on the barrel. Why is this cut there in the first place? Ken, let us all know what Smiths answer is about this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RH45 Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 I think I would just order another Storm Lake barrel, maybe keep the factory barrel that S&W replaces as a back up, to your back up. Think I'll do that. Ordered another Storm Lake barrel yesterday. Not one hour after I did Kevin, from KKM barrels, called me to let me they have barrels for M&Ps now. Got one of them on the way too. Maybe when you get them all, you could post what you think of them all, and which one seems to be more accurate?? Thanks, in advance!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lumpy McSoo Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Is this with the 9mm barrel? Is it with the .40 S&W as well? Is it with the .45 ACP? Sorry if I got lost in the details, but I look at .45 ACP and .40 S&W first. Now I do realize there are many 9 mm Self Defense loads now, my basement is currently stocked with the 40 and 45 and not the new 9 mm rounds. Thanks for your patience and understanding. Later, Lumpy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b2alpha Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Is this with the 9mm barrel?Is it with the .40 S&W as well? Is it with the .45 ACP? Sorry if I got lost in the details, but I look at .45 ACP and .40 S&W first. Now I do realize there are many 9 mm Self Defense loads now, my basement is currently stocked with the 40 and 45 and not the new 9 mm rounds. Thanks for your patience and understanding. Later, Lumpy. 9mm, just use it for USPSA(production) and IDPA(SSP). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kend Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 A friend of mine had the barrel split in half where the chamber and barrel meet. He was shooting a local USPSA match in Prod. division; about halfway through the stage he noticed a weird recoil and sound. He stopped and racked the slide back to check for a case head separation everything looked ok so he closed the slide. when he did the barrel fell out of the slide. the chamber and locking lugs were still in place and locked up with the slide and locking block. 129pf loads no issues there. He stuck a storm lake barrel in the gun and finished the match without any issues. Has anyone else had a problem with the barrel breaking off from the chamber? The barrel looked like it had a milled ring just forward of the chamber. The backup gun and barrel had the same ring just forward of the chamber. It looks like the chamber and barrel are two piece like the Springfield 1911 barrels. Does anyone know if the barrels are one or two piece. I will post some pics as soon as he brings them by the shop; both of the split barrel and the backup gun barrel. Robbie, if he hasn't sent the gun back or is preparing to do so, email me the serial number of the gun and I can get him a replacement it under warranty. They haven't let me know yet if they want that barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Wheaton Jr Posted January 5, 2010 Author Share Posted January 5, 2010 A friend of mine had the barrel split in half where the chamber and barrel meet. He was shooting a local USPSA match in Prod. division; about halfway through the stage he noticed a weird recoil and sound. He stopped and racked the slide back to check for a case head separation everything looked ok so he closed the slide. when he did the barrel fell out of the slide. the chamber and locking lugs were still in place and locked up with the slide and locking block. 129pf loads no issues there. He stuck a storm lake barrel in the gun and finished the match without any issues. Has anyone else had a problem with the barrel breaking off from the chamber? The barrel looked like it had a milled ring just forward of the chamber. The backup gun and barrel had the same ring just forward of the chamber. It looks like the chamber and barrel are two piece like the Springfield 1911 barrels. Does anyone know if the barrels are one or two piece. I will post some pics as soon as he brings them by the shop; both of the split barrel and the backup gun barrel. Robbie, if he hasn't sent the gun back or is preparing to do so, email me the serial number of the gun and I can get him a replacement it under warranty. They haven't let me know yet if they want that barrel. He talked with a rep from Smith today and they are sending him a barrel. He shipped the broken one back to them. Thanks for the offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b2alpha Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 I think I would just order another Storm Lake barrel, maybe keep the factory barrel that S&W replaces as a back up, to your back up. Think I'll do that. Ordered another Storm Lake barrel yesterday. Not one hour after I did Kevin, from KKM barrels, called me to let me they have barrels for M&Ps now. Got one of them on the way too. Maybe when you get them all, you could post what you think of them all, and which one seems to be more accurate?? Thanks, in advance!! Shot the KKM barrel yesterday, shot so good I called Kelvin and ordered one for my other Pro. With 124 Montana Golds pushed by Solo 1000 it shot great groups off hand(20 yds) and from rest(35 yds). The Storm Lake or stock barrel, in this gun, would not get close to the KKM. The same with 147 MGs and 135 Bayou Bullets. For some reason the other Pro(stock barrel) does good with these loads. Loaded up all three with Clays last night, if it gets warm enough I'll test them today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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