Reloading Accident

[Limbic]

I'm sure this happens more than we realize. IMO I wouldn't call this guy a moron from what I can discern from reading the post. I'm not even sure what happened other than it sounds like it was on the verge of being bad.

I didn't know a soul who reloaded when I started. I had no one to help and the only people I could bounce question off of were the folks on here and other sites. I read a ton and started slow. If something would have happened I would have to put the burden on my shoulders.

Bottom line. If he is humble and has a good excuse then he might be trainable. If he is arrogant and an obvious idiot by saying "180vld is 14g heavier than 168 so I added 14 more grains of powder " then run

 

[kcebcj]

I know this is a serious thread and have commented earlier but when I read this from Limbic's post I just started laughing. Would someone actually do that? Makes my head hurt just thinking about it.

 

[Limbic]

Can't ever underestimate stupidity.

 

[snowpro440]

YOU CANT HELP STUPID ! I would tell him to take a friend to the range with a cell phone that has 911 on speed dial... I had a buddy that wanted to reload his own ammo he pulled pretty much the same stuff ... he got impatient an went an reloaded some 357's with the wrong powder an they went boom but ended up cracking the cylinder on the second shot an it jammed , He called me and wanted to know what to do....

 

[Exitwound]

OK. I just have to share this story. I drive 300 miles to down east Maine to hunt, and was scouting a few weeks ago and met a gun smith who just opened shop there. Real nice guy relocated from NC.

So as best I can recall, a guy comes into his shop and says his gun isn't ejecting right. Now I didn't ask if it was a pistol or rifle. But the owner failed to mention to the smith he had recently started reloading himself. So the smith gets hold of the gun and eventually test fires it with provided ammo. firs shell ejects but he can't locate it. So he fires another, and either the bolt or the slide blows apart and all but severs his thumb completely off.

He decides he won't stay conscious to drive to the hospital so calls a buddy for a ride, and the guy asks why on the phone. He says "I blew my thumb off" and his buddy says "I'll be there in a while." Evidently he thought the smithy was kidding. While waiting for his ride he got bored and took a picture of his thumb.

So a few days later he's all stitched back together and has a cast on his hand all the way to the elbow, and decides to do some light duty work. So he's grinding a small part on the bench grinder holding it in an extremely awkward position, and smells something burning. Investigating, he finds the sparks lit his cast on fire. Which he promptly tore apart to get it off his arm.

I don't care who ya are. THAT'S funny!

 

[eddybo]

Sounds like he tried to load some subsonics that did not work out. Probably an internet recipe Your friend should only expect help on your terms.

Your health should be your main concern right now....I am in the same boat. Try to keep busy and keep your spirits up. Right now I am taking a blood thinner that causes every joint in my body hurt like hell. I cannot stop taking them and refuse to take any more pain meds. I just do what I can and try to keep going. Prayer helps and you have mine.

 

[Limbic]

Sounds like he tried to load some subsonics that did not work out. Probably an internet recipe Your friend should only expect help on your terms.

Your health should be your main concern right now....I am in the same boat. Try to keep busy and keep your spirits up. Right now I am taking a blood thinner that causes every joint in my body hurt like hell. I cannot stop taking them and refuse to take any more pain meds. I just do what I can and try to keep going. Prayer helps and you have mine.

medicinal weed

 

[436]

I'd go with the under loaded, using the wrong powder, failed to seal the chamber wall with the brass cartridge, sticking the bullet in the barrel.... allowing gas to come back and sooting up the case.
I don't believe anyone mentioned what model of rifle and whether the rifle was one capable of being fired out of battery in conjunction with the aforementioned, like from high primer.
What it really comes down to in this case is; People that play stupid games'..., win stupid prizes.
436

 

[eddybo]

medicinal weed

Considered and ruled out. I have the munchies too often already and am lazy enough. Besides if I tried it I would probably be found wrapped around the chuck of my lathe with my head sucked into that space between the ways. Dope and 8 HP electric motors do not mix.

Almost called you yesterday for some advice. Pharmacy switched my 15mg script from three 5 mg pills to two 7.5mg pills without saying a word. Of course I just continued to take 3 pills as I never read anything. A two week long accidental overdose.

 

[zoeper]

This guy needs someone to show him the ropes and to establish a good safe attitude towards loading. What would you do if you bought your first reloading setup and someone says they will help you but you have to wait indefinitely?
There is very little logic about what happens when the pin strikes and unless we were told or thought differently, 99% of us would also have thought a heavier bullet requires more powder.
Someone please help this guy and he might one day pass on your good reloading practice to a youngster.

 

[Autorotate19]

Honestly in this day and age with the internet and shoot, what about reloading manuals there is so much information out there its crazy. Most reloading manuals give details step by step on how to reload and what to do and not to do. There is no excuse for accidents like this. I mean we are literally playing with fire! I myself just over a year ago had never reloaded or been around it. A good friend taught me the basics and I mean basic reloading. I later bought my own stuff and started doing it myself cautiously to say the least, and after countless hours on this sight and the internet I know ten times more about reloading than my buddy now! Tell this guy to visit this website, at least that will be a start. People seize to amaze me! Be careful though this guy could be a liability to you and who know there are lots of people out there that shouldn't be able to play with stuff like this.

Good luck to you and hang in there you will be up and running before you know it!
gun)

 

[ZombieHitman]

My neighbor started the shooting sports last year he bought a .308 for deer hunting, he asked me to spend some time to teach him..I have no time at this moment so I told him not to do any till he starts to read as much as he can.,till I can get some time to come over and help him.

Well he just did'nt listen and loaded a few rounds, he called me all upset telling me he fired one(a reload) and it through flash in his face a it did'nt go boom!one old man pulld his bolt the brass was burned from soot and the Bullet was stuck 10 inches into his barrel.

what can I tell this guy?

I dealt with a similar situation a little while back.
Younger gentleman, very capable shooter, all sorts of gung-ho and excited about reloading.
I told him initially that the best thing he could possibly do was to buy a couple different reloading manuals and books on reloading, and start there.
I suspect he blazed through the literature at light speed, as it wasn't but a few days later I saw him on the range, all sorts of proud of his "reloads".
While it wasn't his first shot that did him in, it was the third or fourth (I wasn't paying attention to him, I was working on my own with my new rifle at the time).
Needless to say, an obnoxiously loud "BOOM" comes from his bench. You know the one I'm talking about. That sound that just screams "nothing good can come from this" and "I hope everyone is OK" type boom...
Thankfully, he was no worse for wear, but his rifle took one for the team.
His load had cracked the action and bent the bolt. That rifle was "dunfer"...
He admitted to having loaded hot in the first place, and when he saw that there was a little space in the top of the case where he could get a little more powder in there, he went for it.
Whoops.
Just goes to show one thing....
There's many things we can fix, but you can't fix STUPID.

 

[BigSkyGP]

About a year ago, I was in the local High End (same stuff higher prices) Sporting Goods store. Eyeballing reloading manuals, when I bumped into this young man looking for 224s for his 223 reloading.

Don't know exactly how, but started a friendly conversation. Somehow he mentioned he'd loaded over 1000rds, and never worked up, checked for pressure signs.

I explained as best I could, in the time alotted, about changing components, even powder lot#s and the need to check for pressures, etc. To the range of failures, of firearms under high-extream pressures. I think I scared the crap out of him.

His wife/girl friend was there, her eyes got wider and wider, as I talked. Hope I didn't ruin it for him. I also hope he bought a good manual, to read and study.

 

[Buano]

I have "adopted" a family who over the last few years have gotten heavily into shooting & hunting. Turning them from idiots shooting up the woods into responsible hunters has been challenging but interesting. I have been making progress but sometimes the progress has been slow since the two teenagers already know all they need to know.

As I reload they eventually asked me to reload some .270 WSM shells for them. I said OK if they paid for the components. Instead of paying for the components I had they showed up with the components the salesman told them to use. They weren't optimal, but I did find recommended load data for that combination so I said I would load about 20 at minimum recommended powder charge so they could check for accuracy and signs of excess pressure. I TRIED to explain why this was important & how it's only safe to gradually work up to maximum loads. They nodded & went off to shoot their new shells.

I got a call that these "duds" hit the 100 yard target about 4" lower than the factory loads they had been using — and this wasn't acceptable. They wanted shells with AT LEAST the maximum recommended load! I again explained why we had to gradually work up towards maximum recommended to see what the maximum is for this rifle unless we wanted to risk blowing up a rifle in someone's face. They said they understood.

Next time I saw the boys they were talking about buying their own reloading equipment "so they could load to maximum". I pulled their dad aside & BLUNTLY explained that these boys were in no way ready to safely reload ammunition. Next time I talked to the family they had just been to Bass Pro & had been looking at reloading equipment.

Since they wouldn't accept my safety argument I pitched economics: I itemized & priced all the reloading equipment I have & pointed out how much ammunition they would have to reload to justify that cost. Then I offered to reload occasionally for them.

Hopefully, this way they won't be blowing up a gun with something they shouldn't have put into it.

Sometimes it's very hard to keep idiots from doing something STUPID — but I'm trying!! It is however very frustrating knowing we can't cure stupid!