[Justang]

I recently cleaned my HK for the first time after like 2000rds. Today I went shooting and there was sparks/flames coming out after I shot it.

Is this normal? I'm a newb to this stuff. :(

[stealthmode]

was there oil in the barrel

[Justang]

no. I cleaned it with Hoppes 9, dried it, and that was it.

did I do wrong?

[Fumbler]

sparks coming out from where?
What kind of ammo?
You need to be a lil more specific when asking questions.

It's probably just unburn powder coming out of the muzzle that burns as it exits and you just didnt notice before.

[Justang]

coming out of the muzzle end of the barrel. It did with with Winchester fmj, and Remm jhp. Which is what I normally feed it.

It was cloudy today. Maybe that amplified the sparks. But I'd never seen them before.

[ccw007]

When it is lower light you can see muzzle flash easier. I think that is what you seen and it is normal. It should be just a quick flash that is gone as fast as the bullet just about.

[Sheldon]

It is good to see what a load will do in low light situations just so you know how bright it can be. It can be so bright as to ruin your nightvision or impair it. Something to consider when picking out a defense load, but not a big deal for plinking ammo. Shorter barrelled pistols will tend to do that as well due to the shorter burn time available to the powder. I used to have a shorty S&W 669 (9mm) that was really bright in the indoor ranges!! Some manufacturers select their powder combinations to try to minimize the flash.

[gbelleh]

Small sparks within the muzzle flash are normal.
Otherwise, it could be the ammo. When shooting WinClean ammo, I noticed it produced a shower of strange looking sparks from the barrel.

[10-Ring]

I would think it was an ammo related issue...might be cool if you can duplicate & take pics tho

[LynnMassGuy]

I've seen unspent powder do that when I've handloaded with slower powders and shot out of short barrles.

John
LMG