1st squib ever. Now what????

[joem1945]

If you reload and shoot alot you are going to have a squib load. I've had a few with bad primers or powder that just fizzeled out with little or no pressure. I carry a alum rod and a small hammer in my range bags.

 

[ReloaderFred]

From where the bullet is lodged in the barrel, I would say there wasn't any powder at all in the case. The primer alone will push the bullet that far. In matches, I see a few squib loads once in awhile, and that's where the primer normally pushes them to.

Most of the squibs I see are on manually indexing presses. The operator gets distracted, either physically, or mentally, and forgets to move the shell plate one time, and that's all it takes.......

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Ccctennis]

I pulled the last 4 rounds and they were on the money. Exact powder weight. Since I reloaded on my dillon the rounds aren't in any particular order. I am going to have to assume based on everyones opinion that it had no powder. Problem is will a primer offer enough force to simulate normal rounds? These were pretty solid upper range for lead loads. Not sure why i still had noticeable recoil?

 

[Lost Sheep]

Not wood

For tapping (not pounding) the bullet out of the barrel, a brass rod is best. Soft metal won't scratch your bore when it touches the sides of the bore. luminum may not be stiff enough to transmit the force, but will do in a pinch.

Why not wood? If the wood splits on the nose of the bullet, the wood fibers may get wedged between the sides of the bullet and the bore. This will give you a bullet stuck in the bore AND locked in place by fibrous material.

Solution then will be to get a drill, put a hole in the center of the bullet 1) large enough to relieve the pressure or 2) so that you can thread a long screw into the center of the bullet and bull it out.

The screw in the bullet was often used in the days of muzzle-loaders to unload a gun that could not be fired for some reason.

Best is a brass rod and light taps with a heavy hammer with the flat face of the breech of the barrel against soft wood. (Or. if you have joem1945's light hammer, medium taps). Some people also lubricate (as best they can) the bullet with a drop of two of Kroil or a penetrating oil of some kind.

Good luck,

Lost Sheep

 

[Potatohead]

A lock out die will work with undercharge/no charge conditions, if adjusted properly. I load about 24 pounds of Bullseye per year for matches, etc. It's a great powder, but you do have to watch to make sure there's enough of it in the case, or use a properly adjusted lock out die... I finally bought one when I had my first squib load in a large match after 50 years of reloading, and over 750,000 rounds loaded successfully. You can't get lax with reloading, and I found out my squib was caused by a sticking powder measure that I didn't notice wasn't cycling all the way.

Hope this helps.

Fred

Hey Reloader Fred, I appreciate you posting that in #16, especially since I consider you part of THR's "elite council" (not to mention our resident headstamp guru).

Sometimes there's a pressure around here that makes people feel like they're the only ones who've made a mistake.

 

[ATLDave]

The no-charge is certainly the easiest/simplest explanation. There are others, though, such as some sort of contaminant getting into that one case before loading and greatly reducing the powder's efficacy. But one might expect some clumps of unburned powder - at least that's what I've seen in the one instance where a friend had managed to contaminate his cases with something.

In any event, allow me to humbly suggest that the no-charge squib (or the double-charge bomb) is something that can be guarded, to a limited extent, against by sorting brass by headstamp, selecting a bullet with small weigh deviations, a powder with a not-tiny charge weight, and then check weighing the finished rounds. Is it a substitute for looking in every case? No, it isn't. Is it a way to possibly find one that you deviated on? Yes, it is.

 

[gamestalker]

So far as the stuck bullet, I've never had one, but I suppose you could knock it out with a brass rod or wood dowel.

As for squibs, they should absolutely never happen. I hear a lot of reloaders claim that if you reload long enough, you'll eventually experience a squib, I don't buy into that. Squibs are preventable.

As for the OP, I would reevaluate my process, 1 squib in 25 is a very high percentage, 2.5% actually.

GS

 

[anothernewb]

It'll take more force than you'd expect to dislodge the bullet. A 3/8 dowel with some tape on it to build it up to fit the barrel will work fine. put tape on both ends to strengthen them. I had a 45 squib once too. I just set the barrel breech end on a wood block, careful to support it as fully as possible, and then used a rubber mallet on the dowel. took a couple whacks to get it out, but worked well, and did not damage the barrel at all. Steel's a little harder than wood.

 

[Sunray]

Brass rod(NOT WOOD), a padded vise and a plastic mallet. Then pull the rest of that batch and reload 'em.
The primer alone will push the bullet more than half way into a standard Government Model barrel. Had to replace it, but no damage otherwise.

 

[Ccctennis]

Its not my 1st squip in 25. I have reloaded close to 5-10K rounds so far. This was a powder charge development group. I reloaded about 300 last week that worked. I will continue to work on my safety checks.

 

[Ex]

Friend of mine had same quib in his ruger. In about the depth of the bullet, past the chamber.
Came out very easily with a wood dowel. Two light taps and it was out.

At the depth in the photo, it sure sounds like a primer only charge. Primers themselves make a fair pop.

OP, to test this, prime one piece of brass. No powder, no bullet. Hand feed the brass into chamber. Pop it. It will make more noise than you think just for a primer.

 

[dds51968]

A few weeks back on my first 20 9mm reloads, I had a squib. I was at a friends house who is very knowledgeable with reloading/weapons, he was able to remove the bullet and the rest fired as they should, I was a bit dismissive about the squib initially (ignorant about the true danger) When I got home, quick research of squib got my attention big time.

I now have an anal/slow process to ensure that I will never injure myself or my weapon. After the priming stroke on my Lee classic turret, I put the case on my digital, zero it out, throw my charge and re weigh it. Yes, I've added a few extra steps, but I know I will never worry about squibs again.

It's a hobby, I've got time to make bullets, I'm not a munitions plant during war time.

Better safe than sorry for me.

David

 

[jmorris]

Problem is will a primer offer enough force to simulate normal rounds? These were pretty solid upper range for lead loads. Not sure why i still had noticeable recoil?

Recoil comes from the "equal and opposite reaction" Newton law. From the photo you posted I would not have guessed any recoil. 0 fps to 0 fps in 1/2" doesn't create much energy and as it slowed and came to a stop in the barrel it should have been pulling it away from you, with a force so small you couldn't feel it.

 

[Potatohead]

So far as the stuck bullet, I've never had one, but I suppose you could knock it out with a brass rod or wood dowel.

As for squibs, they should absolutely never happen. I hear a lot of reloaders claim that if you reload long enough, you'll eventually experience a squib, I don't buy into that. Squibs are preventable.

As for the OP, I would reevaluate my process, 1 squib in 25 is a very high percentage, 2.5% actually.

GS

Gamestalker, he said he was going to overhaul his procedures.

It shouldn't happen and it is preventable, but mistakes do happen in this life of ours. Wise is the man who learns from them, and it sounds like he has.

 

[gamestalker]

Potatohead, I feel like I / we sometimes tread too lightly when it concerns serious safety issues, mishaps like this. I would rather someone be ticked off at me for a while, than to find out later they blew a finger off, or lost their eye sight forever, all because I was afraid I might unintentionally offend them. Sorry, but that's just not me, and certainly not how I approach a hobby that involves high pressures, and the potential of flying chucks of steel.

And further in my defense, not that I need one, the OP didn't clarify how this happened until after I suggested preventive measures, so how was I to know, I couldn't have, and therefore addressed the most important aspect of this, safety first. And it all honestly, this doesn't sound at all like a light powder charge, sounds like a case that was entirely void of powder.

GS

 

[Ccctennis]

It's all good guys relax. I understand that there are more things to learn as I have moved to a progressive press. I was so used to single stage and shining a light into all my cases while they sit in the trays. I have experienced a few challenges with my Dillon and will continue to work through them. Most importantly I am reviewing my situational awareness on the range. I have seen lots of pistol competition videos where there are malfunctions and how they address them. I need to recognize and look for these clues before something bad could happen.

 

[Bullseye25]

Which dillon press were you loading on?

 

[Potatohead]

Potatohead, I feel like I / we sometimes tread too lightly when it concerns serious safety issues, mishaps like this. I would rather someone be ticked off at me for a while, than to find out later they blew a finger off, or lost their eye sight forever, all because I was afraid I might unintentionally offend them. Sorry, but that's just not me, and certainly not how I approach a hobby that involves high pressures, and the potential of flying chucks of steel.

And further in my defense, not that I need one, the OP didn't clarify how this happened until after I suggested preventive measures, so how was I to know, I couldn't have, and therefore addressed the most important aspect of this, safety first. And it all honestly, this doesn't sound at all like a light powder charge, sounds like a case that was entirely void of powder.

GS

GS,
I knew where you were going with it, and know you like to communicate it, and I don't disagree with it- "it" being the premise that it should be (often) mentioned and made known that squibs aren't a "rite of passage", and that they can be avoided.

Just trying to avoid a pile on here, on someone who may or may not have just began their handloading career.

 

[gamestalker]

Sorry about that, I know I get carried away.

Just don't want anyone getting hurt.

I also tend to forget that not everyone loads on a SS.

GS

 

[jmorris]

Which dillon press were you loading on?

550 per post #7, so he can't add a powder check/ lockout die unless he seats and crimps at #4 (would be a PITA too as he would really need two right arms to pull it off).

 

[Ccctennis]

I loaded another 100 last night and took my time to visually inspect each case as I rotated the shell plate. I'm a Tekkie so I will be creating some sort of tiny webcam and putting it in the center hole of my tool head. Once I add led lights and run my webcam to my tv monitor I will always have an eye on my powder charges. Yes my dillon is 550 so I don't really want to combine seat and crimp in one stage.

 

[Ex]

Ccctennis, haven't heard yet what you got the bullet out with or just how stuck it was...

Details please if you've gone there yet?

 

[mboylan]

It is extremely dangerous not to check the powder level before seating the bullet. The powder check is just a backup. You got lucky.

 

[oldreloader]

This is how I see in cases on my LCT.

 

[Ccctennis]

I used a wooden pencil to get it out. A light isn't helping me see inside the case very well. I will try a webcam setup later this week. I already found a few that wirelessly stream to you ipad!