Anybody ever had a Powder Explosion?

[DLT]

True story. About a week ago I was going through my small powder stash and noticed something sticky with a rank smell on one of my caps, enduron 4166 powder. I took the cap off and about gagged, once the fume was gone I looked inside and the powder had turned a gold color not like varget, or xbr but bright gold. The seal was in pieces so I took it outside and put in bed of my truck until I could dispose of it. It’s rained a lot since it was on the truck bed but powder was sitting up and capped. Weather has been in the mid 70s during the day and high 50s at night. Today temp got into the 80s and as I was walking out of work I heard a loud boom as I rounded the building turns out the powder had exploded and blew it everywhere !!!! The bottle was very hot and deformed I have pictures of it and the work camera caught the fireball coming up from the truck bed. No doubt it could have caused a house fire Glad I noticed it when I did. Be careful out there. Don’t know how to post videos if I figure it out I will

 

[CJ6]

It's hard to believe a powder made as recently as 4166 went bad that soon (obviously it did), but dang. I use some powders that are from the 80s and are still good.

 

[DLT]

It's hard to believe a powder made as recently as 4166 went bad that soon (obviously it did), but dang. I use some powders that are from the 80s and are still good.

It’s hard to believe. One of the foam seals was split but it’s been stored in my house. I have heard of powder going bad but not spontaneously combusting

 

[6MMsteve]

Maybe one of the experts or more Knowledgeable will chim in....I have no clue but I'm very interested and concerned about this episode...glad you found it and got it away from buildings

 

[TTE]

True story. About a week ago I was going through my small powder stash and noticed something sticky with a rank smell on one of my caps, enduron 4166 powder. I took the cap off and about gagged, once the fume was gone I looked inside and the powder had turned a gold color not like varget, or xbr but bright gold. The seal was in pieces so I took it outside and put in bed of my truck until I could dispose of it. It’s rained a lot since it was on the truck bed but powder was sitting up and capped. Weather has been in the mid 70s during the day and high 50s at night. Today temp got into the 80s and as I was walking out of work I heard a loud boom as I rounded the building turns out the powder had exploded and blew it everywhere !!!! The bottle was very hot and deformed I have pictures of it and the work camera caught the fireball coming up from the truck bed. No doubt it could have caused a house fire Glad I noticed it when I did. Be careful out there. Don’t know how to post videos if I figure it out I will


View attachment 1556999

why didn't you just put it on the lawn and water it in ? That's what I have always heard to do with bad powder (or any powder, bad or not).

 

[jsn]

Was it in the sun when it blew up?

 

[Bc'z]

Lot#??
I got a few pounds of this

 

[DLT]

Was it in the sun when it blew up?

At the time no. Yesterday it was all day. But today I parked beside the building. It starts getting shaded about lunchtime there

 

[Cecil S.]

Following this as I have a good amount of powder.

 

[Acyr]

Lot#??
I got a few pounds of this

Me Too!

 

[DGP4]

I always heard that you should check your powder containers from time to time to check for a change in color or smell. As smokeless powder breaks down, it releases nitrous and nitric acids which accounts for the change in color and smell. Some of the additives in certain powders are the cause of the deterioration. Flash reducers, in particular, are very corrosive and can lead to premature breakdown of the powder.

 

[Cecil S.]

I have followed this site a long time and I have read many posts on old powder going bad. If I recall correctly powder going bad begins to turn into a type of Nitro Glycerin this is very unstable. Guys I could be very wrong on this but I do recall reading this. Some one bail me out on the details of this.

 

[DLT]

I always heard that you should check your powder containers from time to time to check for a change in color or smell. As smokeless powder breaks down, it releases nitrous and nitric acids which accounts for the change in color and smell. Some of the additives in certain powders are the cause of the deterioration. Flash reducers, in particular, are very corrosive and can lead to premature breakdown of the powder.

I know the seal wasn’t any good but didn’t think it could have caused what it did if that was indeed the reason. How many of us had tore the seal opening a new container ? I have numerous times even being careful. I have had this power a long while and only tried it a few times in 22-250 there was a little over a half pound left in it. I was on the phone with a shooting friend when i discovered it in the closet and told him he wouldn’t believe the color gold it had turned to so I threw it on back of truck to show him and of course I never thought about it when we was shooting

 

[209jones]

More likely gassing off and just building enough pressure to blow the lid, not really anything actually combusting. Maybe why they took the Enduron powders off the market, could be inclined towards that if not properly stored.

 

[NZ_Fclass]

I still have a few pounds - but I checked them and they are OK. I do remember that another type of Enduron powder did have "recall" (was it 4005?) and IMR paid out on powder that had to be destroyed for just this reason. 4166 was never mentioned.

I will burn all my remaining stock, 28.5g at a time in my 6BR.

 

[jepp2]

I have heard of powder going bad but not spontaneously combusting

That was exactly the reason for the IMR 4007 SSC recall. I had a keg and was involved. Here is a cropped portion of the release waiver.

I also had a 1 lb. can of Dupont IMR 4350 that went bad after about 8 years of proper storage. I had some 280 Remington handloads made up using that lot. I wasn't too worried, thinking as the powder went bad it would lose strength. I found that wasn't the case and it actually increased pressure substantially.

 

[Dimner]

True story. About a week ago I was going through my small powder stash and noticed something sticky with a rank smell on one of my caps, enduron 4166 powder. I took the cap off and about gagged, once the fume was gone I looked inside and the powder had turned a gold color not like varget, or xbr but bright gold. The seal was in pieces so I took it outside and put in bed of my truck until I could dispose of it. It’s rained a lot since it was on the truck bed but powder was sitting up and capped. Weather has been in the mid 70s during the day and high 50s at night. Today temp got into the 80s and as I was walking out of work I heard a loud boom as I rounded the building turns out the powder had exploded and blew it everywhere !!!! The bottle was very hot and deformed I have pictures of it and the work camera caught the fireball coming up from the truck bed. No doubt it could have caused a house fire Glad I noticed it when I did. Be careful out there. Don’t know how to post videos if I figure it out I will


View attachment 1556999

Okay so I'm not saying this is what happened.

But when I was a kid, me and my brother would get up to all kinds of trouble. Through the years our very old now father had figured out quite a few baffling mysteries were actually me and my brother being boneheads. We would do something stupid, hide as much evidence as possible and/or put things back as if we never touched it and then never spoke of it again.

Parents both worked late often around 7pm so on weekdays we would be left on our own from 230-7pm. Dad was in the reserves so on many weekends he was gone.

Anyway, I have no science or facts to back this up, but it just feels like the mysterious and incomprehensible destabilizing of your powder would be something my brother and I would have been involved in

 

[DLT]

More likely gassing off and just building enough pressure to blow the lid, not really anything actually combusting. Maybe why they took the Enduron powders off the market, could be inclined towards that if not properly stored.

Could be right as to why. But I got a fireball on camera let me try and post a link. Was not just pressure building as popping lid. WATCH THIS

https://imgur.com/a/ZNjhxHw

Watch this !!!

 

[209jones]

I don't remember ever seeing 4007 mentioned as being an Enduron powder, recall on it was long before they were released, as I remember. It was certainly a troublesome powder for IMR, last one wasn't the first recall on it. Lil Gun has had a few issues over the years as well. Really the only ones that I remember off the top of my head as having more than one recall.
Having vid of a fireball would be interesting, ceratinly worth sending to Hodgdon and seeing what they think or say about it.

 

[DLT]

Okay so I'm not saying this is what happened.

But when I was a kid, me and my brother would get up to all kinds of trouble. Through the years our very old now father had figured out quite a few baffling mysteries were actually me and my brother being boneheads. We would do something stupid, hide as much evidence as possible and/or put things back as if we never touched it and then never spoke of it again.

Parents both worked late often around 7pm so on weekdays we would be left on our own from 230-7pm. Dad was in the reserves so on many weekends he was gone.

Anyway, I have no science or facts to back this up, but it just feels like the mysterious and incomprehensible destabilizing of your powder would be something my brother and I would have been involved in

I’m as honest a guy you will find on these forums I’m not looking for attention just asking a question if anybody ever seen or had heard of this happening. I did not tamper with the powder in anyway or make up any wild tales. If storing it with a shredded seal caused this, after all this time and roughly 1 week in the rain and outdoor elements on the back of my truck then I’m guilty but I certainly didn’t tamper with or mix or light a match to get the results I’m asking about today. If you don’t believe it happened I don’t know what to tell you.