I made a mistake...

[6MMsteve]

I'm glad your ok but it was serious.. I have almost done the same thing a few times it scared the S%%T out of me

 

[Forum Boss]

I am glad the OP is doing well.

Sadly, this is a common mistake (chambering the wrong cartridge). Other folks have loaded pistol powder in a rifle round by mistake. Result -- big Kaboom.

For this and other reasons we always recommend protective eyewear. We know many Palma guys and even some F-Classers don't wear protection... but they should. It only takes one ammo-related failure to lose an eye or worse.

 

[Bully]

I can't answer about the rifle in question being safe or not but I'm darn glad you got through it with just some scabs.

Best.

 

[shortgrass]

I don't think he's gonna' take that rifle back to the range and shoot it, not wit the stock having a crack in the wrist, not 'till that's repaired or a different stock fitted. It showed good, common sense to wear those safety glasses. Common sense says don't shoot a rifle with a cracked stock.

 

[Shrek]

If it makes you feel any better you have a good way to catch up with me. If you look closely at the right of the photo you can see the end of the barrel.

 

[Puzzaz01]

View attachment 1057978 If it makes you feel any better you have a good way to catch up with me. If you look closely at the right of the photo you can see the end of the barrel.

Dang it boy, what happened here?

 

[gambleone]

View attachment 1057978 If it makes you feel any better you have a good way to catch up with me. If you look closely at the right of the photo you can see the end of the barrel.

Holy Hell.

 

[Ggmac]

View attachment 1057978 If it makes you feel any better you have a good way to catch up with me. If you look closely at the right of the photo you can see the end of the barrel.

Hope your OK
That's a serious one . I hope all are ok . I'm sure parts flew .
That poor scope

 

[Shrek]

It was a chain of mistakes that ended with the total loss of the rifle and scope. It started on the Wednesday before when I went to load for my 7-08. I kept my powder in a drawer with the powder in order of slowest to fastest. It’s a deep drawer and at the back I kept spare powder that wasn’t in use. I went looking for H4350 and discovered I only had a tiny bit in the bottle I was using. I went to get another bottle I was sure I had. I took every bottle out looking for it. I was out and super pissed off about it. I halfassed threw the powder back. Next it’s Saturday and I’m trying to find a load for my 7 WSM. I’m leaving in just a couple of weeks for my first elk hunt and this is the rifle. I load a half dozen different loads and head the 38 miles to where I shoot. I worked all morning and came down to two loads. I head home to load some more of the two for a final shootout. I stop at my favorite Chinese restaurant and get my usual Triple Delight extra spicy. At home I grab the powder and start to eat and load. I do the first five with one powder and then grab the second. It’s about empty. About this time I’m out of water and I’m on fire. I’ve never gotten food this hot before. Way hotter than normal ! I mean Thai chili hottest on the tray hot ! I go get water and then rush back to load. I grab the spare H1000 with the identical price tag on the lid that I had placed right next to the almost empty bottle I had just exhausted. I placed it there a couple of weeks before in anticipation of running out while working up loads for my elk rifle. Notice I say a couple of weeks before , not Wednesday. Without really looking I dumped it into the hopper and loaded five and headed out to shoot again before it got dark. Rush rush rush ! First group looks ok but not spectacular and I’m hoping the second load is better. First shot isn’t right !! I gather myself and see what you see ! My only physical injury was a tiny scrape on left index finger from hitting the table. Turns out it’s the wrong powder.
All of my powder is now stored on shelves at basically eye level where I can see the labels not the lids. I never eat or do anything else while loading. No distractions ! I never let myself get into a rush loading. If I don’t have time I don’t have time. If I hadn’t gotten pissed off and not kept to my system. If I hadn’t been in a rush. If I hadn’t been distracted. IF , IF , IF ... bottom line is that one missed step or mistake can kill you ! Arrogance , overconfidence , assumptions , and distractions leads to mistakes that can kill. Be safe !

 

[Shrek]

BTW , the scope objective was found twenty feet behind me. Swarovski didn’t replace it but they sure helped me out ! Only reason I sent it back to them was a friend who’s a Swarovski rep suggested I do so not because I thought they owned me a scope or anything. My friend knew they’d help me out and I think he wanted them to see it and hear the story. That action sits on my loading bench to this day as a reminder.

 

[Shrek]

To the original OP. I’m pretty sure your action is fine. It shouldn’t have built much pressure , just popped the unsupported case and blew hot gasses out. Glad you didn’t get hurt worse.

 

[ratbuster]

To the original OP. I’m pretty sure your action is fine. It shouldn’t have built much pressure , just popped the unsupported case and blew hot gasses out. Glad you didn’t get hurt worse.

Looking closely at the brass tells a story. The 30-06 brass stretched all the way forward to meet the 300 WM chamber, fireforming the shoulder from the shallow 17.5 angle to the 25 degrees of the300 WM. The longer neck of the '06 must have been stuffed into the throat as the end of neck is ragged like it was torn off. The pinching of the case neck/bullet in the throat must have created the excess pressure. Enough pressure to crack the stock at the pistol grip.

 

[hpshooter]

Dave and Ratbuster
Thanks for sharing your first hand experiences. These things can happen to the most experienced of shooters. A close friend, and 40 year reloading and shooting veteran, destroyed a very nice '03 Springfield that had won a good number of local matches. Most plausible cause, based on the target and number of rounds fired in his rapid string was a squib that left an obstructed bore. He chambered another round and had a major Ka-Boom. Had on safety glasses but will carry some small scars for life.

I compliment you on sharing your experience. Many would never admit having a problem such as this. Speaks well of your character.

Sincerely,
T W Hudson

 

[ratbuster]

Mr. Hudson,

Thank you for the compliment. I realize everybody makes mistakes but nevertheless it is embarrassing when you're the one making one.

Phil

 

[ratbuster]

An update and questions. First of all I healed up very quickly. Scabs were gone in 5 days but it took a month or more for all the little powder particles embedded under the skin to express themselves. Looked like little black heads but thankfully they are gone.

After careful examination of the ruptured case it appears the over pressure was caused by the '06 case mouth getting pinched in the throat, preventing the bullet's immediate departure. The throat has been damaged so it either needs to be cleaned up by setting it back slightly (preferred) or have the barrel replaced. Is there a way to verify the structural integrity of the chamber?

Also can the action be effectively evaluated to ensure it's not harboring any weaknesses as a result of the explosion?

Thanks guys.

Phil

 

[Evan]

Better safe than sorry: I would be tempted to retire it. Xray might show something. Careful measurement to see if anything has yielded (stretched), although this may be impossible without accurate previous measurements to compare to.