BULLET STUCK IN BBL in the field

[hera200]

I don't know if this would work but it takes very little effort with a cleaning rod. What about just carrying a 6" or so section of rod that has a little heft. Drop in in the muzzle till it knocks the bullet out. Alternatively you could mortar the stock to unstick it.

Either way, I've always found a load that's in the lands and a marginally worse load with some jump. Sometimes it's a big jump. I would take an 1/4 moa accuracy hit to have reliable ammo.

Yes ROBPIAT, I know what you mean We always carried a brass cylinder in one of our shooting jacket pockets on the trap range. It was just a bit smaller than the shotgun bore and about 4 inches long. Dropped in the muzzle with a little speed it would dislodge almost any stuck shell. THANKS for the response.....BUD

 

[James Pearson]

Got a friend that now puts a break on every rifle he has. He made a fitting with a grease fitting that he can thread on the muzzle break threads, removing the break first of course, then takes a grease gun and slowly pushes whatever is lodge right back out the chamber end.

Might be more than most wanna do but it seams safe. Another tool in the box for those "What-if's"!

 

[Spinner]

On a similar topic, if you get a cloth patch stuck in a rifle bore get a piece of HEAVY copper wire a little longer than the barrel. Heat the tip of the wire red hot (I used my gas kitchen stove but a propane torch would work just as well). Gently insert the red hot end into the muzzle to contact the stuck patch. Remove the wire and re-heat it and do it again. Two or three cycles and the patch will be loose ashes and you can clean the bore normally. This will not damage the bore.

 

[Seandradamus]

If the bullet is stuck just barely in the lands from loading long you can carry a heavy bullet one caliber under your hunting rifle hold the bullet at the muzzle tap the butt on the ground releasing the bullet , it will act like a slide hammer and pop it out. Squibs need a rod

 

[JustMe2]

As I inderstand how you qualified your question is:
1- you are hunting and not at home with tools
2- you don't have a rod, dowel or cleaning kit
3- you didn't bring a back-up rifle
4- you want to keep hunting and not go home

To be blunt, you are not prepared for the hunt. If you already know you have a problem with jammed bullets, why wouldn't you carry a compact military cleaning rod/kit on you while hunting? Second, if you know you are jamming bullets, why don't you put a crimp on your cartridge? It reminds me of the guy driving too fast on ice and hoping he doesn't crash. Stupid is, stupid does.

 

[hera200]

I just came up with a better solution than carrying a cleaning rod!!!
######DO NOT TRY!!######
#####THIS IS MEANT AS A JOKE####

Carry some firecrackers (something like a BlackCat). Light it, drop it in from the muzzle, and hold your finger really tight over the muzzle. The blast from the firecracker should dislodge the bullet back into the chamber. This will save you precious space and weight of not needing to carry a cleaning rod, but instead, you could carry extra bandages that you will need. Lol.

WINCHESTER 308, it's a good thing you said it was just a joke because I was just about to try your idea but I couldn't find the bandages. THANKS.....BUD

 

[azsugarbear]

Couldn't help but smile at all the responses. As I read the OP, it was regarding a possible procedure to dislodge a bullet out in the woods where other options were non-existent. Lots of advice given on how to avoid it, or what to take with you for future situations, but no other real alternatives to be used in that particular moment.

Anyone who shoots a cap & ball muzzleloader knows the procedure for loading a rifle: powder, patch, ball. Simple, right? And yet, if you shoot one long enough there will come a time when you forget the powder. When you touch off, the sound will not be right. You will know something is wrong. A brief inspection will reveal that the pressure created by the cap (primer) was enough to start the ball down the barrel, but not enough to push it all the way through. You will have a lead ball lodged tight somewhere in your barrel. One of the easiest ways to dislodge the bullet is to remove the nipple, pour in as much black powder as you can behind the ball, screw the nipple back in, place a new cap on the nipple and fire! It generally clears the barrel the first or second time it is done.

What the OP asked was whether or not this would work in a rifle using minimal powder. If you have no back-up gun and no tools to dislodge the bullet and are unwilling to go home and start over, then the procedure first mentioned will work. Please understand, I am not recommending this procedure and it may not be ideal, but it is a viable solution. You just have to be careful and remember that black powder 'explodes' while modern gun powders 'burn' thereby having the capacity to create higher pressures.

 

[thwatson2]

Don't shoot empty case with primer! Bullet will only get stuck further Shoot with powder or drive it out

 

[hera200]

As I inderstand how you qualified your question is:
1- you are hunting and not at home with tools
2- you don't have a rod, dowel or cleaning kit
3- you didn't bring a back-up rifle
4- you want to keep hunting and not go home

To be blunt, you are not prepared for the hunt. If you already know you have a problem with jammed bullets, why wouldn't you carry a compact military cleaning rod/kit on you while hunting? Second, if you know you are jamming bullets, why don't you put a crimp on your cartridge? It reminds me of the guy driving too fast on ice and hoping he doesn't crash. Stupid is, stupid does.

JUST ME 2, I think maybe you misunderstood that the hunter knew he had had problems with stuck bullets but I did not mean to insinuate that. You wouldbe be absolutely right if he did know and was not prepared. Personally, I always take 2 rifles on a hunt unless on long climbs in mountains.

 

[J E Custom]

Got a friend that now puts a break on every rifle he has. He made a fitting with a grease fitting that he can thread on the muzzle break threads, removing the break first of course, then takes a grease gun and slowly pushes whatever is lodge right back out the chamber end.

Might be more than most wanna do but it seams safe. Another tool in the box for those "What-if's"!

Now , That's a great Idea !!!! Why didn't I think of that.

J E CUSTOM

 

[baldhunter]

I personally don't load any bullets into the lands.One reason it can cause a pressure spike and also the reason this post was started.I usually have no problem getting a rifle with a decent barrel to shoot starting at .025-.030 off the lands.Another problem you can encounter is bullets and powder can vary from lot to lot.Seat bullets into the lands,then switch to a different lot of the same bullet you could be jamming into the lands instead of just touching.To me it just isn't worth it.

 

[Huggy]

I have seen references on this forum to getting a bullet stuck in the bbl when the bullet has been seated out to far into or touching the lands. I have never had this happen to me even though for many years I carried my BDL REM 22-250 in the field while searching for brave groundhogs that lived along railroad tracks out in the country. I always seated my silver tips touching the lands and never thought about getting a bullet dislodged and stuck. Maybe just lucky.The point of my post is to mention a technique that was brought to my attention a while back and get opinions on whether or not it works and would be a safe procedure. If no rod to dislodge a stuck bullet while hunting, remove a bullet from one of your spare rounds and trickle a small amount of powder into the chamber of the opened rifle. Now SPILL OUT THE REMAINING POWDER FROM THE CASING ONTO THE GROUND. Insert the EMPTY, live-primered ,CASING back into the chamber if it will fit. CLOSE the bolt and fire the rifle< This should dislodge the bullet to clear the end of the barrel. DOES THIS WORK?? Could save a hunt!.....BUD

Not to put too fine a point on it, but.....
GREATGOBSOFGOOSEPOOP!!
I'd NEVER dump powder from a case and try to dislodge a stuck projo in this fashion!
NOSIREE!!
Just place a normally charged case into the chamber, ensuring no powder is spilled out, close the bolt, aim in a safe direction and fire the case/round, thereby dislodging the stuck bullet.
To use a lesser charge of powder COULD be asking to stuff the projo DEEPER into the bore complicating matters ls even worse.
As Edd mentions above, use a FULL and NORMAL LOAD of case/powder/primer to dislodge the front bullet and proceed as jimbires mentions...don't chamber a round until ready to actually shoot at an animal.
It won't cost you much extra time to operate the bolt (assuming a bolt gun) and the piece of mind would be worth it.
Otherwise you "might" be courting disaster, Sir!

 

[Will Gray]

I carry two bronze rods in my car all the time. TAP TAP and out comes stuck bullets, complete rounds or brass. I know I know a completed round might fire. The bolt open so there is nothing but powder to push on the primer: anyone compress loads, ever have one fire when compressing the powder? Now THAT would be messy... Primers fire from impact when the material is crushed against the anvil inside the primer, otherwise nothing happens.

 

[hera200]

Now , That's a great Idea !!!! Why didn't I think of that.

J E CUSTOM

This was my first post on this site and it has been really interesting and educational to see all of the ideas put forth. I think I will try to think up another one. THANKS BUD