M1 Garand KABOOM!!! Reloads ...

Take a look at this thread on the CMP Site.

http://forums.thecmp.org/showthread.php?t=51917

WOW, that aint good.

A very lucky man.

wow

Sounds like one detonated another...another reason I like Bolt rifles..easier to load one at a time....

I bet that hurt when He shot it it

Cap - I'll still shoot your reloads

Receiver/Barrel doesn't come close to headspacing after I removed the bolt and cleaned it.

I wonder if it did before he shot the bad round?

The unburnt powder looks like Varget which is a popular powder for the .308. It said he accidently used pistol powder in the rifle round, how does that happen? If I am reloading rifle I dont even touch the pistol stuff, and I always check my equipment before I start anything.

holy cow, wonder hes around to tell about it. a good rifle rurnt. ill stick with my bolt rifle.

savageshooter wrote:holy cow, wonder hes around to tell about it. a good rifle rurnt. ill stick with my bolt rifle.

Garand tested his action to 120,000 psi and never had one fail. A bolt action is not a stronger action. Guns are designed to handle catastrophic failure by dumping high pressure gas down the mag well, it's pretty rare for a shooter to be seriously hurt from a kaboom. FWIW the only one I can recall being killed by a kaboom was a bolt gun, a Lee Navy 6mm straight pull. The bolt launched rearward through his eye and into his brain.

PhillipM wrote:The bolt launched rearward through his eye and into his brain.

ouch

I've heard that Unique will do that in a rifle case pretty much every time. Doesn't matter what you're shooting either. Be safe all.

Glad you suffered only slight injuries. I'm sure your friend is sick over the accident. This is a reminder to personally, to focus,focus, focus on what I am doing. It scares me just to look at it. Seriouly glad you only have scratches. I have given away some of my reloads, and then worry about it. I'm going to rethink passing out anymore of them.

Just so happened I was looking through some papers and discovered an article that came with a Springfield SOCOM I bought a few years ago addressing a similar problem. It was entitled "The Mysterious Slam-Fire" by Wayne Faatz. This article was a reprint from the October 1983 Rifleman describing what happened to this guys rifle and the exhaustive testing that was incurred, attempting to duplicate the condition in a closed environment.



It was a long read for what was gained, though a good one I feel, for anyone using a M1 or an M1A. They are obviously aware that a problem like this could and has happened before, or I doubt this article would have been enclosed with the rifle, and be included as a supplement to the warranty. I am sure if a person was interested they could find it in the archives of the Rifleman. I imagine it could be of interest to some of the readers here.

Lots of good "don't do's". The tip about not having more than one powder out at a time will stick with me after seeing the the results. That was a H*** of an explosion. Glad no one was hurt badly, looking at the parts I would have thought a visit to the E.R. at the least.

Phillip, that was a terrible way to go. It would have been horrific to see it. Hope none of his loved ones witnessed that.