10mm Failure with Damage

I highly doubt a bulge buster caused that, though running loaded ammo through a bulge buster might have contributed a small amount. Looks more like an out of battery issue than anything a bulge buster could directly cause.

I wonder if this is due to the cartridge wall “sticking” a la MP5 fluted chambers...

Hogdon Longshot data lists 8.2gr as the max with a 10mm 180gr FMJ. https://shop.hodgdon.com/reloading-data-center
Closest bullet I could find in the data

Who’s data are you using?

Look at the max data on Hogdon and the max data on Lee —something does not add up.
Hope you figure it out!

Lee used to have a warning with the Bulge Busters about the bulged areas not being as strong as new brass, and that the old bulged area could end up over the feed ramp again and be a potential hazard.

Your other spent rounds look fine, at least the primers.

Bulge buster = gun buster IMO.

As much as it pains a skinflint like me, maximum loads from my Glock 20 get left where they land. I could probably get a second full power loading from the ones fired in my S&W 1006, but they get tossed into a box that gets fired one more time at low 40 S&W speeds and then left behind. Having a Glock frame split in my hand is an experience I don’t wish to have again.

What’s the head stamp?

I've had a KBoom with a G20 using brass that was resized 3x. The Lee Factory Crimp Die was used to remove the bulge. But, as best of what I remember, stress marks were already showing from discoloration even though I resized the brass. It short, the case should have been tossed. I hope you still have your fingers. I do. If I see a brass that shows excessive wear and can split, I toss it.

Mixed range pick ups of unknown origin? Sort of rare for 10mm for the most part. Anyhow, that was a spendy toy to dynamite and you have my sympathy.

FYI, that load is also 1.3 grain above my Hornady manual max.

Many years ago, I came close to a similar experience and never did figure out why. Was a low end 9mm load out of Speer #10. Made my Hi-Power shoot like a 357. Pot bellied the brass and the pistol never shot "right" or as accurately afterwards. Pulled charges were correct. Brass was once fired, good tension (no set back). Just lucky.

Looks to have failed from firing out of battery. I had a slam fire with an M1 Garand that looked like that, except writing on case head was flattened.

So what are you doing different next time?

does the possibility exist that that a different powder from a previous cartridge loading had accumulated in the drop tube of your measure and that the mix of the two types of powders caused a high pressure spike?

My sympathies, but it could have been worse of course. I came to a place in reloading semi auto pistols
where someone came up with Bulge Buster as an option for 45acp when I was having doubts about the
standard resizing due to the way the cases were obviously out of shape.
It was about that time I handed all 9mm-40cal-45acp over to my Son, he uses the Bulge Buster & has
never had a problem with it that I know of, but my 2 cents, if you have to use a bulge buster, there
must be a case reaction that weakens it in some way.
I just never could make a semi pistol accurate enough, I was into just mass numbers of loads then shoot
them away in no time.

I buddy had his Kriss blow up on him a few years ago. The issue was with the gun firing out of battery and Kriss sent him a new one. Maybe he'll chime in with info on his experience.

**Brian19** said:

The reason I was always suspect about the bulge buster was I always felt if the brass was weakened by a bulge, the bulge buster is not going to fix that weakness. I can’t say for certain I ran it through loaded or unloaded. 95% of what is run through is yet to be loaded because I usually gauge the brass before loading so I can bulge bust the empty cases. But some get through and I bulge bust them loaded

Click to expand...

I agree, an excessive bulged case might have weakened it but it would have to be super bulged and even then I have a hard time seeing a case head separation like this if its in a fully supported chamber and the bolt locked in battery. Brass is a very ductile metal and the bulge would only weaken a part of the web. Your picture especially the later one still looks like it was not fully in the chamber when it went off. The way the web of the case is splayed out on the face of the barrel seem to indicated it was not fully in the chamber. I might be wrong from the limited pictures this seem possible.

Did you do a load work-up over a chronograph?

Kabooming Vectors are absolutely nothing new. You didn't cause this, they regularly do it with factory ammo. My 9mm Vector blew up on Factory Federal HSTs. Just normal plinking. Wasn't bump firing, wasn't even rapid firing. Personally, I think their design isn't quite ready for prime time. I RMA'd mine, and they rebuilt it without complaint. I told them it fired out of battery, they said ok, we'll repair it. When mine went, I was glad I had a foregrip on it....or I would have lost some fingers. I sold mine after it was repaired, and it's on the list of things I'll never own again.

Edit: After looking at your pics....yours was clearly an OOB fairlure, the same as mine. Sure, if your brass wasn't plunking, it could have failed to fully seat in the chamber...but that does NOT excuse the gun design. Yours also was not even close to as dramatic as mine. When mine went, the bolt blew apart, the magazine blew apart, and the mag spring went through my boot. I also had pieces of polymer embedded in arm. Kriss has known their guns have a problem for at least a decade and continue to sell them without any warning. If you google "my Kriss Vector blew up" or "My vector fired out of battery" you'll find hundreds and hundreds of posts. There are basically two kinds of Vector owners: Those who's guns kaboomed, and those who's guns haven't kaboomed yet. The root cause is that they cannot tolerate any ammunition problem, or feed problem. If anything causes that round not feed completely, the gun will fire out of battery every time. Basically every Vector out there is a grenade waiting for that inevitable bad round, whether factory or reload...if you shoot it enough, it will eventually happen.

I have noticed in general that when Lee data seems to indicate a higher max charge than most other data that the OAL in the Lee data is quite a bit longer.