2 case failures lately!

[erict]

I was shooting a few weeks ago and I noticed an extra loud "bang" while shooting. I felt a little spray of residue on my cheek too so I stopped to examine. The case split at the bottom and shot the primer out rearward and it fell into the magwell of my AR. I disassembled everything to double check and it was a-ok. I continued to shoot another couple of hundred rounds with no problems.

FAST FORWARD to yesterday. I was shooting my Savage 110fp and the same thing happened, loud bang, spray of residue from the bolt area, etc. This time it blew the extractor right out and the spring and ball (it pivots in the spring) went with it. Luckily I found all of the parts and got it running again.

Has anyone else had cases do this? I've been shooting Lake City 62 gr. with a 99 headstamp. the cases have a slight split at the bottom on the side and it's about 1/4" or so on each.

 

[1911 guy]

Is your AR also a .223 chamber?

The dimensions of a .223 and 5.56mm cartridge are identical, but the chambers are not. I can easily explain the Savage, it was overpressure due to 5.56mm ammo in a .223 chamber. If your AR upper is also chambered in .223, the explanation fits there, too. The pressure is higher in the 5.56 load and a 5.56mm chamber has more freebore to let chamber pressure drop before the bullet hits the rifling.

 

[erict]

Forgot to mention, the AR is a DSA and chambered for 5.56 and the Savage is .223 of course. I've put several hundred rounds through the Savage without a single issue though, but I can't figure out why this happened twice in 2 different rifles. I know it's the amoo but I hope it's not a common occurance.

 

[IMtheNRA]

If your ammo is original Lake City, then it is a military 5.56 cartridge and the wrong ammo for your .223 Savage

Are these reloads, by any chance?

 

[MD_Willington]

I have HSM reloads that are labeled .223, yet they are LC cases, a couple out of each magazine end up with tiny cracks in them I don't have them on hand ATM to see what date....

 

[eliphalet]

hmmm,, check your dies maybe?,your chamber?, something is up. I have been using military brass, mostly LC for almost 30 years in several 223 rifles and so far so good. I will have a neck with a slight split once in a while but I don't anneal like I should after a few firings.

 

[Onmilo]

that Lake City brass was probably fired in a squad automatic weapon,(machinegun) before being bought as surplus and reloaded commercially.
Vendor should have checked the brass more carefully before loading it.

Return the unused portion for a refund.

 

[erict]

WOW!!! MD Willington, you've had a couple out of each mag ? I've only had these 2 out of 1500 rounds or so. I thought it was a fluke thing until it happened twice in 2 seperate rifles within a couple hundred rounds of each other. Now I'm hesitant to shoot more.

Here is the only pic I have at work and it's not all that great. You can't see the crack in the case but you can see the discoloration and slight hole that burnt through at the bottom of the case. The primer blew out as well.

 

[alsaqr]

Onmilo hit it on the head. The stuff was probably fired in a SAW. You have to be careful of ammo that has been reloaded. These companies who make this stuff sometimes do not inspect their brass very well. It is my experience that they seldom, if ever, trim their brass. If you have a mike, check the overall length of that case.

 

[erict]

I'll check it better when I get home. I'll have to look up specs for reloading .223. I don't have any info on .223 because it's never been worth it to look into reloading for me. The ammo came loose packed in 1,000 round boxes @ the gunshop. I'll see if they have anymore info as well.

Thanks for the replies.

 

[MD_Willington]

Yeah mine happened in a Saiga .223 and in a LMT lower M4-gery.. I'll say that it was a lot easier to pick up and inspect the brass from the AR.. lol

The extraction from the Saiga is quite "vigorous".

The head stamps on some of my brass are from the 70's, pretty old ammo now, it is in 50 round boxes. I was given the ammo by a co-worker that had it stored outside in a workshop for who knows how long...