Len_in_Phoenix
Member
Actually ka-boom-boom is a better description.
Four friends and I decided to stick around after the club meeting tonight and do some low-light/no-light shooting with our handguns and flashlights. Due to the lighting conditions (none), we were taking turns shooting so that we didn't have to worry about "line creep" in the dark. The last shooter (Moose) ran a few magazines through his Springfield mil-spec .45 and then, half way through his last mag, he had a very peculiar sounding round and was completely shrouded in smoke.
I'm not sure if the others noticed, but his loads were producing quite a bit more muzzle flash than anyone else's.....up until the last "shot." His last "shot" produced no flash, a huge cloud of smoke, and quite a bit of recoil. After determining that Moose was not injured, Paul and I reconstructed the event as follows......
Ka-boom #1 was on the 4th shot of his last magazine and resulted either from an over pressure reload, an excessively weak case, or a combination of both. The front half of the case separated and remained stuck in the chamber. The rear half of the case ruptured in the unsupported area just above the feed ramp, venting downward into the magazine. The primer completely exited the primer pocket, leaving the pocket with a distinct oval shape. The rear half of the case was extracted and ejected normally.
Ka-boom #2 was an out-of-battery slam-fire caused by a large piece of KB #1's primer that was stuck in the firing pin channel. The bullet was still on the feed ramp when the primer was struck by the piece protruding from the firing pin channel and fired INTO the feed ramp. The case ruptured from the mouth to the web and vented out the ejection port. The rim of the case is bent into a V due to not being square to the breech face upon ignition. If the primer from KB#1 hadn't lodged in the firing pin channel, KB#2 would have simply been a nose-dive jam instead of a ka-boom.
The magazine follower was jammed at the bottom of it's travel, and the magazine contained the following: 1 undamaged live round (probably #7), 1 live round with a large divot on the side of the bullet and with the bullet set back into the case approximately 1/4 inch, the bullet from KB#2 (complete with a perfect impression of the top of the feed ramp), the ruptured case from KB#2, and a primer anvil. The piece from KB#1's primer that was stuck in the firing pin channel was observed and removed, but fell into the dirt and was lost. The front half of the first case was still stuck in the barrel.
Other than an excessive amount of powder fouling, the 1911 appears to still be functional.
The slide moves freely, and (in the dark, using a flashlight) there doesn't appear to be any damage to the barrel, frame, or slide. This is all pending a complete examination, however. Paul took it home with him to remove the split case and to do a thorough check of the gun. Moose was a little shaken up but was not injured.
Very interesting...........I have quite a bit of respect for the strength of the 1911 platform after this. The shooter had both hands on the gun in a classic Weaver stance, yet he was not injured in any way. Way to go JMB.
Moose took the pieces of ruptured brass and the bullet home with him, but I'll try to get some pictures the next time I see him. When I do, I'll post them here.
Len in PHoenix
Four friends and I decided to stick around after the club meeting tonight and do some low-light/no-light shooting with our handguns and flashlights. Due to the lighting conditions (none), we were taking turns shooting so that we didn't have to worry about "line creep" in the dark. The last shooter (Moose) ran a few magazines through his Springfield mil-spec .45 and then, half way through his last mag, he had a very peculiar sounding round and was completely shrouded in smoke.
I'm not sure if the others noticed, but his loads were producing quite a bit more muzzle flash than anyone else's.....up until the last "shot." His last "shot" produced no flash, a huge cloud of smoke, and quite a bit of recoil. After determining that Moose was not injured, Paul and I reconstructed the event as follows......
Ka-boom #1 was on the 4th shot of his last magazine and resulted either from an over pressure reload, an excessively weak case, or a combination of both. The front half of the case separated and remained stuck in the chamber. The rear half of the case ruptured in the unsupported area just above the feed ramp, venting downward into the magazine. The primer completely exited the primer pocket, leaving the pocket with a distinct oval shape. The rear half of the case was extracted and ejected normally.
Ka-boom #2 was an out-of-battery slam-fire caused by a large piece of KB #1's primer that was stuck in the firing pin channel. The bullet was still on the feed ramp when the primer was struck by the piece protruding from the firing pin channel and fired INTO the feed ramp. The case ruptured from the mouth to the web and vented out the ejection port. The rim of the case is bent into a V due to not being square to the breech face upon ignition. If the primer from KB#1 hadn't lodged in the firing pin channel, KB#2 would have simply been a nose-dive jam instead of a ka-boom.
The magazine follower was jammed at the bottom of it's travel, and the magazine contained the following: 1 undamaged live round (probably #7), 1 live round with a large divot on the side of the bullet and with the bullet set back into the case approximately 1/4 inch, the bullet from KB#2 (complete with a perfect impression of the top of the feed ramp), the ruptured case from KB#2, and a primer anvil. The piece from KB#1's primer that was stuck in the firing pin channel was observed and removed, but fell into the dirt and was lost. The front half of the first case was still stuck in the barrel.
Other than an excessive amount of powder fouling, the 1911 appears to still be functional.
The slide moves freely, and (in the dark, using a flashlight) there doesn't appear to be any damage to the barrel, frame, or slide. This is all pending a complete examination, however. Paul took it home with him to remove the split case and to do a thorough check of the gun. Moose was a little shaken up but was not injured.Very interesting...........I have quite a bit of respect for the strength of the 1911 platform after this. The shooter had both hands on the gun in a classic Weaver stance, yet he was not injured in any way. Way to go JMB.
Moose took the pieces of ruptured brass and the bullet home with him, but I'll try to get some pictures the next time I see him. When I do, I'll post them here.
Len in PHoenix
