A catastrophic rifle action separation/destruction/ "Explosion". Still light on details, shooter was patched up Ok enough. Bolt was found, scope cut in two, stock ruined. First shot went according to plan. second shot BOOM! that is all I have for details right now. Others on his bench say it was a case head separation. I'm thinking wrong cartridge inserted. What say ye learned gentlemen of our forum. mikeinct
Can Case-head Separation Cause Kaboom?
- Thread starter mikeinct
- Start date
46and2
Silver $$ Contributor
No, head separation tends to release gasses out of the vent holes in the action.
Unless the case with head separation left the bullet in the first couple of inches into the rifling. , then he fired another bullet.
My bet is a squib load left a bullet lodged in the bore or wrong caliber bullet fired.
6.5 forever
Silver $$ Contributor
My bet is a squib load left a bullet lodged in the bore or wrong caliber bullet fired
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shoot4fun
Gold $$ Contributor
NOT MY RIFLE!!!!
This, I believe, is an ARC Mausingfield action. It appears to have held up well under extreme pressure.
I don't remember the exact cause but, if you look carefully, you will see the brass casing with most of the case head blown out. It's obviously not a case head separation but a massive overcharge. It could have been caused by careless use of the wrong powder, accidental mixing of very different burn speeds or a very light charge. I was shooting with a friend one day when his Terminus action blew out the extractor. He had loaded 100 rounds of 6.5 Creedmoor in a session and had already fired several when the problem arose. My thoughts were that he had mistakenly overcharged a round or (even though he said impossible) had the wrong powder in that round. I told him to go home and pull a few, weigh the charge and inspect the powder. Turns out he had loaded a different caliber with H4895 before switching to H4350 for the 6.5 and FORGOT to clear the hopper. Always make sure the Autothrow hopper is empty before switching powders. Yup, he had a couple rounds that were stoked with 42 grains H4895 instead of H4350 and it's a testament to the strength of the Terminus that kept him from certain destruction.
So, while I wasn't a party to what happened to the rifle mentioned by the OP these are things that must be considered.
This, I believe, is an ARC Mausingfield action. It appears to have held up well under extreme pressure.
I don't remember the exact cause but, if you look carefully, you will see the brass casing with most of the case head blown out. It's obviously not a case head separation but a massive overcharge. It could have been caused by careless use of the wrong powder, accidental mixing of very different burn speeds or a very light charge. I was shooting with a friend one day when his Terminus action blew out the extractor. He had loaded 100 rounds of 6.5 Creedmoor in a session and had already fired several when the problem arose. My thoughts were that he had mistakenly overcharged a round or (even though he said impossible) had the wrong powder in that round. I told him to go home and pull a few, weigh the charge and inspect the powder. Turns out he had loaded a different caliber with H4895 before switching to H4350 for the 6.5 and FORGOT to clear the hopper. Always make sure the Autothrow hopper is empty before switching powders. Yup, he had a couple rounds that were stoked with 42 grains H4895 instead of H4350 and it's a testament to the strength of the Terminus that kept him from certain destruction.
So, while I wasn't a party to what happened to the rifle mentioned by the OP these are things that must be considered.
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joshb
Gold $$ Contributor
No, unless part of the brass stayed in the chamber and he managed to crush the next round into it. That would take a really strong arm.
Sorry to hear but glad the guy is OK.
My thoughts exactly
NorCalMikie
Gold $$ Contributor
Head separation, front section stayed in the chamber, next round crammed into the chamber and fired??
Emmett Dibble
Gold $$ Contributor
It’s a result, not a cause… if anything it would lower the the pressure instead of increase it. Squib or wrong powder to destroy an action. Glad no one was hurt other then the shooter and that they are not missing any body parts. Mikes match?
DaveTooley
Gold $$ Contributor
It would take a big hammer to achieve that.
It would take somewhere around 100K+ PSI to cause this. The question is what caused those kind of pressures. Case head separation. No that happens every day. Squib load. Probably not. Stuck bullet. Probably not as they said the first round functioned properly. That leaves wrong powder or a gross over charge.
Had a couple JR's fight several case head separation Saturday, I have had it happen.....it's annoying, but not catastrophic.........something else went wrong.....I have seen a second shot with a squib, bulges or splits the barrel.......rifle blows up....way over charge of powder.....
Hope more information on this failure is forth coming.
The incident described sounds to me more like a significant overcharge / wrong powder or a round fired with an obstruction in the bore.
I've only ever seen one gun blown up; it was a 45 ACP 1911. A guy was shooting next to me in a match. The magazine was blown out the bottom, the stocks splintered, and the action immobilized.
Seen only a few head separations and none of them blew up the rifle.
As far as I know, and I may be incorrect on this, but a head separation does not create an explosion per se. Instead, it vents gases through the action vent hole and sometimes through the back of the bolt which can harm the shooter and firearm.
The incident described sounds to me more like a significant overcharge / wrong powder or a round fired with an obstruction in the bore.
I've only ever seen one gun blown up; it was a 45 ACP 1911. A guy was shooting next to me in a match. The magazine was blown out the bottom, the stocks splintered, and the action immobilized.
Seen only a few head separations and none of them blew up the rifle.
As far as I know, and I may be incorrect on this, but a head separation does not create an explosion per se. Instead, it vents gases through the action vent hole and sometimes through the back of the bolt which can harm the shooter and firearm.
Emmett Dibble
Gold $$ Contributor
Wrong Mike…
The clue that a previous round had left something in the chamber, was the fact I could not get the bolt closed. Probably not even with a hammer.
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