Blown Up Anaconda
C&P. If you have seen this before, I apologize.
http://iris.nyit.edu/~bithead/anaconda/
29-JAN-2005
Greetings all.
A shooter for 10 years, I'm a relatively new reloader having purchased a Dillon RL550B about a year ago. To date, I've made and shot perhaps 3000 rounds without incident. Recently, however, I learned a most valuable lesson from what could have been a life-altering experience. I'll share this first-hand account with you hoping to educate reloaders and shooters about the potential dangers of our sport. I realize that this incident was most likely caused by inexperience and carelessness, so there's no need point it out
I was the proud owner of a Colt Anaconda 6-inch .44 magnum with a nice red-dot sight. Reloading was the only way I could afford to shoot it on a regular basis. Several days ago, I was at the indoor range terrorizing unsuspecting sheets of paper as I usually do: mostly .45ACP's through my 1911 and an occasional cylinder or two with the Anaconda.
Both guns were shooting great. About 30 minutes into the evening's activities, I once again load up the revolver and step to the line. First shot was a bullseye, as was typical for this rig. Second shot - KABOOM. I felt an unbelievable recoil and was pelted all over my face, chest and arms by fragments of metal and glass. An incredible pressure wave stunned me as if I were punched in the head. I shook it off and looked around. The scope was on the floor. The gun was still in my hand, but didn't look as it did mere seconds ago. A friend rushed over and with clear presence of mind, checked me for injuries. Whew. I emerge without so much as a scratch. Miraculous, considering what just happened. The shooting stall contained the flying shrapnel. Approved safety glasses, without a doubt, saved my vision. Long sleeves, a cap and good ear protection also prevented certain injury. I hate to say it, but dumb luck played a part as well.
At this point I gather up the pieces and attempt to make sense of this catastrophe. It's not good. My second shot violently exploded, splitting the cylinder into three pieces and causing chambers one, two and three to be blown wide open. The shock caused a chain reaction, immediately setting off rounds three and four. The bullet from round three was recovered on the floor near my feet. It was severely mangled because it's exit path was partially blocked by the frame of the gun. Unsupported by the cylinder, the brass case blew open as if it were made of paper. Luckily, both bullet and case didn't fragment too badly and perforate surrounding humans, including me. Round four went off cleanly down range, though not through the barrel. Round five was somewhat damaged - the bullet was pressed into the case by about one-eight of an inch. A little more and it may have detonated as well. Round six was in perfect condition.
The rest of the gun was equally distorted. The top strap was nearly separated from the frame. Seams between the various metal parts were wide and uneven. I thought "Damn, it's completely destroyed".
Here's where my education begins: Lacking any sophisticated test instruments, the load I was using felt comparable to any factory ammo I had used in the past. 9.0gr of Titegroup behind a 240gr SJSP. This was 10% below the maximum load as published in the Hogdon manual. It shot with consistent accuracy and was economical because it was the same powder as I had used in the .45. I now realize my quest to economize reloading may well prove to be the source of this misfortune.
Titegroup is a very fast, clean powder requiring low charge weights for large calibers. Prior to this event, I reasonably assumed this to be an ideal situation. Less powder, less fouling, less cost = more trips to the range. That is until you realize a few things. 9.0gr in a .44 magnum case is, more or less, a drop in a bucket. In subsequent tests I've recently performed, it's all too possible to double charge a round and have it go unnoticed in a progressive loader. That is not to say that I've been loading with a casual attitude. I cannot, for the life of me, recall a moment of distraction where I could have possibly doubled one up. Nevertheless, I now own several fragments of stainless steel that were once a finely crafted firearm. Happily, none of those bits are lodged in my forehead. For all those interested, you can view high resolution photographs of the beast's mortal remains here.
It is my hope that sharing this horror story will inspire folks to take an extra bit of care while enjoying their sport. I've since sent the gun to Colt for expert analysis. While it's my speculation that a double charged round caused this, perhaps a post-mortem by the factory will render an alternative conclusion. Unlikely as it may seem, I'll post an update if the latter is true.
1-MAR-2005 UPDATE
I spent a good half-hour on the phone with the Colt engineer that performed the post-mortem. Their metallurgical tests showed no problems with the grain structure or hardness of the steel. In a nutshell, the gun was not defective. Unfortunately, Colt would not officially speculate on the cause of the failure. Off the record, the engineer did say it was most likely a double charge.
http://iris.nyit.edu/~bithead/anaconda/
29-JAN-2005
Greetings all.
A shooter for 10 years, I'm a relatively new reloader having purchased a Dillon RL550B about a year ago. To date, I've made and shot perhaps 3000 rounds without incident. Recently, however, I learned a most valuable lesson from what could have been a life-altering experience. I'll share this first-hand account with you hoping to educate reloaders and shooters about the potential dangers of our sport. I realize that this incident was most likely caused by inexperience and carelessness, so there's no need point it out
I was the proud owner of a Colt Anaconda 6-inch .44 magnum with a nice red-dot sight. Reloading was the only way I could afford to shoot it on a regular basis. Several days ago, I was at the indoor range terrorizing unsuspecting sheets of paper as I usually do: mostly .45ACP's through my 1911 and an occasional cylinder or two with the Anaconda.
Both guns were shooting great. About 30 minutes into the evening's activities, I once again load up the revolver and step to the line. First shot was a bullseye, as was typical for this rig. Second shot - KABOOM. I felt an unbelievable recoil and was pelted all over my face, chest and arms by fragments of metal and glass. An incredible pressure wave stunned me as if I were punched in the head. I shook it off and looked around. The scope was on the floor. The gun was still in my hand, but didn't look as it did mere seconds ago. A friend rushed over and with clear presence of mind, checked me for injuries. Whew. I emerge without so much as a scratch. Miraculous, considering what just happened. The shooting stall contained the flying shrapnel. Approved safety glasses, without a doubt, saved my vision. Long sleeves, a cap and good ear protection also prevented certain injury. I hate to say it, but dumb luck played a part as well.
At this point I gather up the pieces and attempt to make sense of this catastrophe. It's not good. My second shot violently exploded, splitting the cylinder into three pieces and causing chambers one, two and three to be blown wide open. The shock caused a chain reaction, immediately setting off rounds three and four. The bullet from round three was recovered on the floor near my feet. It was severely mangled because it's exit path was partially blocked by the frame of the gun. Unsupported by the cylinder, the brass case blew open as if it were made of paper. Luckily, both bullet and case didn't fragment too badly and perforate surrounding humans, including me. Round four went off cleanly down range, though not through the barrel. Round five was somewhat damaged - the bullet was pressed into the case by about one-eight of an inch. A little more and it may have detonated as well. Round six was in perfect condition.
The rest of the gun was equally distorted. The top strap was nearly separated from the frame. Seams between the various metal parts were wide and uneven. I thought "Damn, it's completely destroyed".
Here's where my education begins: Lacking any sophisticated test instruments, the load I was using felt comparable to any factory ammo I had used in the past. 9.0gr of Titegroup behind a 240gr SJSP. This was 10% below the maximum load as published in the Hogdon manual. It shot with consistent accuracy and was economical because it was the same powder as I had used in the .45. I now realize my quest to economize reloading may well prove to be the source of this misfortune.
Titegroup is a very fast, clean powder requiring low charge weights for large calibers. Prior to this event, I reasonably assumed this to be an ideal situation. Less powder, less fouling, less cost = more trips to the range. That is until you realize a few things. 9.0gr in a .44 magnum case is, more or less, a drop in a bucket. In subsequent tests I've recently performed, it's all too possible to double charge a round and have it go unnoticed in a progressive loader. That is not to say that I've been loading with a casual attitude. I cannot, for the life of me, recall a moment of distraction where I could have possibly doubled one up. Nevertheless, I now own several fragments of stainless steel that were once a finely crafted firearm. Happily, none of those bits are lodged in my forehead. For all those interested, you can view high resolution photographs of the beast's mortal remains here.
It is my hope that sharing this horror story will inspire folks to take an extra bit of care while enjoying their sport. I've since sent the gun to Colt for expert analysis. While it's my speculation that a double charged round caused this, perhaps a post-mortem by the factory will render an alternative conclusion. Unlikely as it may seem, I'll post an update if the latter is true.
1-MAR-2005 UPDATE
I spent a good half-hour on the phone with the Colt engineer that performed the post-mortem. Their metallurgical tests showed no problems with the grain structure or hardness of the steel. In a nutshell, the gun was not defective. Unfortunately, Colt would not officially speculate on the cause of the failure. Off the record, the engineer did say it was most likely a double charge.
0
-
He didn't need to send it to the metalugists at colt, I could have told the guy it was a double charge!
Thanks for posting it.0 -
Nunn,
Sorry to hear about your .44 but really appreciate your sharing the tale.
Reminds me of what my old man used to say to me,
"When the day comes that a gun goes off when you don't expect it to, make damn sure that no one gets hurt."
The operative word for him was "when", and not if.
Sooner or later, if you shoot enough, things will happen.
For the record I'll only add that , yes, the double charge sounds right.
Take care,0 -
The possibility of double charging is one of the main reasons I stayed away from progressive presses. I know the chances are very small of this happening, but I have been loading for about 48 years and have not blown up a gun with a double charge. I have ruptured a couple of cases with hot loads, but I knew what I had put in them. I still use a loading block and after I put the powder in the cases, I look at each one to see that the powder charge looks right. I have a Lee 1000 that I used for a while till I had a couple of rounds with no powder in them. I am retired and have the time to make sure I am do it right. 0 -
I would have to agree with you Pearyw. Although I have been reloading for only 3 years I have been skeptical of the progressive presses from day one. If I am gonna blow something up it's gonna be due to my stupidity or lack of attention, not a machines. I know it's highly unlikey, but still possible as this case shows. I am sorry to hear about your gun nunn, but glad to hear everybody in the area was uninjured. 0 -
I have probably loaded over 250,000 shotgun shells on my RCBS grand. I never reload when I am in a hurry, i.e. run out to the garage when I have 1/2 an hour before it's time to do something else. I go out there, make myself comfortable and take my time. Attention to detail is all it takes to load alot of rounds quickly. I have found that those people who will only load on a single stage press it is because they are so attention oriented, in my opinion these are EXACTLY the people that should be using a progressive. 0 -
I had basically the same thing happen with a Ruger Super Blackhawk with factory ammo and have photos!!!!
My 5 year old son and I were shooting on my property down at the creek with some new factory rounds I had bought for the .44 and was inspecting impact spots in the mud for S&G!! I had just walked back across the creek and loaded another fresh cylinder full and began to unleash unholly havoc on a chargeing mud bank again when all heck broke loose!!
I remember pulling the trigger, next thing I know I was trying to focus and figure out why my hand was behind/beside me!!! I brought my hand back and could not focus on anything and felt like someone had tied a rope to the weapon and tried to pull it out of my hand from behind me. The top strap was gone, as well as the rear sight, top 3 cylinders and the threads of the barrel in the front strap were exposed!!! The brass from the side cylinders were peeled open like they were made out of bannana skins and the top one was completely gone. I could not even turn the cylinder.
My son had to walk us back to the house which was approx. 1/2 mile away. By the grace of god he was standing back about 25 feet sitting on a log by a stump watching wearing eye and ear as I always teach and preach. I called Ruger later that day and the very first thing the rep. wanted to know was I injured and did I need medical attention!! He stated that he had my name on caller ID and could possibly dispatch 911 using that.
I told him I was fine except for a small ringing and the cartoon characters running around my head!! Iwas told to package the weapon up, send it back. 2 weeks, 1 day to the day I shipped it, I received another one in the mail ( I had my FFL then) with the same serial numbers!!!!!!!!!!!
I contacted the ammo company and they also wanted to know if I was hurt, I said no. The sent me a box to ship the ammo back and 1 month later sent me a coupon for 5,000 free rounds of whatever they made at any place of business.
To date, that was 8-9 years ago and no problems except needing a new pair of BVD's then and one very thankful individual for using eye and ear for had it not been for them I would more than likely lost my hearing for I had both plugs and muffs on at the time. I was not hit by any debris to my knowledge. No parts were ever found.0 -
I had what I believe to be a double charge in a 22 LR, while shooting a Weatherby Mark 22. I don't think it hurt the rifle, except where I dropped it, and broke the stock. Sent it back, and they sent me a new one, and CCI sent me a case of ammo. This was in about 1979. 0 -
That is why I load one cartridge at a time. Early in my reloading hobby(1965) I was in a hurry to get some loads completed and was using a powder measure to load .357mags thinking that the adjustments were tight on the powder measure I was loading up a storm and decided to check one out, loaded up my Ruger, stepped outside(lived on the farm and the back door was my shooting range)fired one and it tested that Ruger for any stress that it might have had. Since then I always never reload in a hurry or if I'm destracted. and I load one at a time, weighing each charge then seating a bullet before doing the next. 0 -
had a similar experience. a friend and i were shooting a 44mag ruger
sbh. the first round sounded a little louder than usual. the second
round went off and the ejector rod flew off. the shooting there. we
went back to the house and examined the rounds. pulled one. found it
contained 18.1 gr-unique. the speer manual said max was 13.5 gr.
should have been 11.8 gr. had shot hundreds of this load using 240gr
speer half jacket. friend never shot that gun again. sent pistol to
ruger to be fixed. i bought it from friend. shoots great. no half
full case loads. just the way ole ELMER intended. 240gr swc 22gr-2400
zb0 -
That's why easily distracted folks shouldn't reload on a single stage OR a progressive.
The 550B only drops powder when a case is present.
I wonder how he didn't get 2 primers and seat 2 bullets.
A close friend of mine destroyed his Taurus 85 with a double charge from my 550B; adequate caution on my part, total inattention on his.
He wanted to speed things up when I went to the john and cranked it once while I was out of the room-nuff said.0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
10 comments