Averted a KABOOM!

[Dusty Stevens]

I just posted a week or two ago about excessive pressure and discovered that it was my 505. Everything was zeroed but when I pushed the pan all the way down and released it it read about 3-4 tenths higher. Now if I load 40 grains I use 40 grains of check weights to zero it and always push the pan down and let it come back up. I'll do that twice as long as that needle goes where it's supposed to.

Get with @BoydAllen and do the pencil lead trick on your scale. In the meantime go by academy and buy one of those $50 digital scales and check every once in a while to see if youre still going good. Frankford and mtm make scales good enough for what you need- the mtm is originally made to be an arrow scale and is well under $50. Itll be good enough to catch a sticky scale like you experienced and is good to have another check

 

[Rustytigwire]

Plinker here.
Static spray cloth kept in empty powder dispenser, wipe RCBS electronic scale, funnel, bench, everything.
Powder in dispenser. Test weigh couple cartridges.
Zero scale. Drop 4 loads in pan, adjust, drop 2, pour back.in hopper.
Drop 4 (25 gr x 4 = 100 etc) dump in the hopper.
Charge 20 primed cartridges in loading block.
Look at powder level as a group. Weigh any look different.
Weigh 2, 3 or 4 random just for sure.
First setup and random subsequent digital weights confirmed on a beam scale.
Measure twice. Trust but confirm.
You guys are all great!

 

[Evan]

I was taught to prime all 50, and turn them mouth up. Measure out a charge, dump it, tap funnel, visually inspect, then seat bullet. Charging a hole bunch before seating seems to invite mistakes.

 

[Charles]

Stuck in the funnel. Happens all the time

Had the same thing happen

 

[Metal God]

Charging a hole bunch before seating seems to invite mistakes.

Maybe not . If you have all 50 charged you have something to compare them all to ( one another )

 

[Sixgun]

Get with @BoydAllen and do the pencil lead trick on your scale. In the meantime go by academy and buy one of those $50 digital scales and check every once in a while to see if youre still going good. Frankford and mtm make scales good enough for what you need- the mtm is originally made to be an arrow scale and is well under $50. Itll be good enough to catch a sticky scale like you experienced and is good to have another check

I talked to Boyd today and he got me all squared away with my scale....and as always your expertise and advice is much appreciated. Thanks Dusty....and Thank you Boyd I'll keep you posted.

 

[KY_Windage]

You want no ka-booms from powdering when running a single-stage press? Very simple.

1. Make absolutely certain your scale is set to the correct powder weight. Re-check occasionally and CAREFULLY if you ever bump it, hang a shirt-sleeve on it, etc. If your dropped charge does not weigh close to the same as the others, DO NOT suspect that your powder tube suddenly got "off" -- suspect you bumped the scale.

2. Watch the powder go thru the funnel into the case. SEE that it ALL went. Tap the side of the funnel with the scale pan you just emptied if the powder hangs up in the funnel. Remove funnel, look into the case and verify it looks to have the correct amount of powder in it.

3. DO NOT set that charged case into a block. Do NOT set it down on your bench. Do NOT do ANYTHING with it except to put it DIRECTLY into your press followed immediately by a bullet, and seat it. There is NO REASON to do it any other way.

About a year ago I was about 15 feet away from a rifle that KA-BOOMED. If the shooter had not had glasses on he would have been blinded in both eyes (from bits of brass). If his bolt had not had a third lug on it the bolt, which had both front lugs sheered off, would have come back into his mouth causing very serious injury. I am pretty sure it was a barrel obstruction, but he had been shooting for half an hour when it happened. I think he put a round in with NO powder, pulled the trigger and, with ear plugs in, did not hear the primer go off. When the bolt went "click" he opened it, saw the spent case and assumed he had forgotten to load and loaded in a new round. No problem chambering it because the primer had pushed the bullet a couple of inches into the barrel.

I saw this exact, same scenario play out just a few days ago. The guy was just about to load another round when the guy beside him told him to check his bore. Sure enough . . . And he just couldn't believe he had failed to powder-charge a case, until his next round did the same thing.

Everybody talks about over-charging a case to produce a ka-boom. Yeah, it could happen, but the far more likely cause is not charging a case at all. Remember, you will NOT hear the primer go off. If you EVER pull a "click" DO NOT think you somehow worked the bolt on a spent case -- assume you did not hear the primer push the bullet 2 inches into the barrel.

 

[qwk]

You want no ka-booms from powdering when running a single-stage press? Very simple.

1. Make absolutely certain your scale is set to the correct powder weight. Re-check occasionally and CAREFULLY if you ever bump it, hang a shirt-sleeve on it, etc. If your dropped charge does not weigh close to the same as the others, DO NOT suspect that your powder tube suddenly got "off" -- suspect you bumped the scale.

2. Watch the powder go thru the funnel into the case. SEE that it ALL went. Tap the side of the funnel with the scale pan you just emptied if the powder hangs up in the funnel. Remove funnel, look into the case and verify it looks to have the correct amount of powder in it.

3. DO NOT set that charged case into a block. Do NOT set it down on your bench. Do NOT do ANYTHING with it except to put it DIRECTLY into your press followed immediately by a bullet, and seat it. There is NO REASON to do it any other way.

About a year ago I was about 15 feet away from a rifle that KA-BOOMED. If the shooter had not had glasses on he would have been blinded in both eyes (from bits of brass). If his bolt had not had a third lug on it the bolt, which had both front lugs sheered off, would have come back into his mouth causing very serious injury. I am pretty sure it was a barrel obstruction, but he had been shooting for half an hour when it happened. I think he put a round in with NO powder, pulled the trigger and, with ear plugs in, did not hear the primer go off. When the bolt went "click" he opened it, saw the spent case and assumed he had forgotten to load and loaded in a new round. No problem chambering it because the primer had pushed the bullet a couple of inches into the barrel.

I saw this exact, same scenario play out just a few days ago. The guy was just about to load another round when the guy beside him told him to check his bore. Sure enough . . . And he just couldn't believe he had failed to powder-charge a case, until his next round did the same thing.

Everybody talks about over-charging a case to produce a ka-boom. Yeah, it could happen, but the far more likely cause is not charging a case at all. Remember, you will NOT hear the primer go off. If you EVER pull a "click" DO NOT think you somehow worked the bolt on a spent case -- assume you did not hear the primer push the bullet 2 inches into the barrel.

Yep, I’ve pulled more bullets from this mistake over the years than any other. It usually happens after many hours of consecutive reloading, which could be fatiguing. Overcharging a bottleneck case is nothing compared to the above case scenario.

 

[divingin]

This can't be that difficult, there are only four components to a loaded rifle or handgun round - bullet, brass, primer, & powder.

Look at the arguments about whether TP should unroll from the front or back...

 

[KY_Windage]

Yep, I’ve pulled more bullets from this mistake over the years than any other. It usually happens after many hours of consecutive reloading, which could be fatiguing. Overcharging a bottleneck case is nothing compared to the above case scenario.

My experience is that it happens to jabberboxes at the range. They are so busy jabbering they aren't paying any attention to what they are doing. They don't stop to wonder why they would have closed the bolt on a spent case (because how else could the firing pin have dropped when they pulled the trigger?). They see the spent case and just load in another, jabbering all the while.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

Ive had more than my share of primer powered loads over the years and i assure you that youre not going to load another round behind it and fire it with a bullet in the barrel.

 

[fyrewall]

And them there are problems with some people being unable to get through a "free lunch".

 

[rwj]

No doubt in a bolt action, but I’ve witnessed two occasions in semi-autos where there was sufficient energy to properly cycle the action and charge the next round into battery. They both occurred during rapid strings of fire and the shooter didn’t recognize and/or respond to the odd sound and the RO was unable to stop them. What happened next wasn’t pretty... fortunately, no one was injured

 

[rebs]

I have a press mounted light on my Hornady progressive press along with a powder check die I watch the check die and also look in every case to make sure the powder level is the same.

 

[338 dude]

Would like believe I am as careful as the next guy. Been handloading for close to 50 years with out incident. Earlier this summer one of my grandkids wanted to load with grandpa. I set up the loader and got everything ready. In my infinite wisdom, I put shot in the powder bottle and powder in the shot bottle. We were talking and I was not concentrating on my job. Loaded 3 shells before I figured something was not right. Riley learned how to salvage shotshells. We are all one false step away from an incident.

Doing that with your grandson took you out of your normal operations I call it feeling it if I am not feeling it when I go to load rounds I come back later

 

[Metal God]

Doing that with your grandson took you out of your normal operations I call it feeling it if I am not feeling it when I go to load rounds I come back later

Yep same here , the other night I was starting to load up some rounds and I kept making little mistakes . Doing things out of my usual order , not remembering if I had done this or that . I didn’t even get to charging anything and I thought to my self “I’m clearly not focused enough here “ . That’s when I looked at the time and noticed it was 2am and It was that I was simply to tired to focus . Stopped right there and came back to it the next day fresh .

The trick is recognizing your not on your game and be willIng to put everything down . There is no place for ego in anything firearms related.

 

[6MMsteve]

I always chk my scale before I reload. here goes

1. set scale to zero zero chk off
2. I have a 142 gr SMK that is my test wt, it is kept in a container with a moister bag chk off
3 have 1 lab scale 10 grams wt 154.3 or som ething like that I forgot.. chk off
when all these weigh like they should I start.. which is always when they are all weighing like they should..and I keep my scale covered and sitting on a marked area.. never moves

as far as dropping charges 2 pops downstroke.. if Im trickling tap funnel with pan 2x..
after that flashlight for even charges