I see cases like that all the time; that is what happens to every single pistol case if you reload it enough times.
These were reloaded zero times.
Either bad cases or a bad chamber.
I see cases like that all the time; that is what happens to every single pistol case if you reload it enough times.
I agree with calling Horndays. I had 5 boxes of 308 165gr SP that was well over loaded. Caused my bolt gun to lock up the bolt to the point I ad to beat it open, and it also messed up my extractor. They will send you a box to return the ammo in, and will cover any cost of repairs once they test and agree the ammo was bad. In a 20" barrel I was getting over 2800 fps with those rounds. Way too hot for a 165 308. Good luck.Id suggest notifying Hornady, www.Hornady.com .
Let them know the lot # or item code(check the boxes).
Hornady had a big safety notice last summer for the Critical Duty +P 135gr 9mm.
Hornady & the other major firms: Corbon, Remington, Federal, Buffalo Bore, Black Hills, etc need to know about the poor quality or problems.
I've never encountered "brittle brass." As far as I know, brass does not become embrittled. It can be subject to stress corrosion cracking, but only when subjected to an environment high in ammonia, such as a horse barn, for long periods. This problem was encountered by the British Army in India in the 19th century. During the rainy season they would store ammo stocks in horse barns. They had a problem with case cracks. Took a long time to figure that one out.
Brass does sometimes become "work hardened," becoming less ductile and prone to the odd case mouth split, which I do see. Some reloaders anneal their case mouths occasionally to restore ductility. But this is not embrittlement.
That brittle brass has been discussed on THR doesn't mean it's a fact. Research elsewhere.
I don't see a video.
But, absolutely, brass that is not properly annealed can and will crack under stress. But it cracks because it's too hard, not because it's brittle. "Work hardened" case necks crack because the brass becomes too hard. Re-annealing restores the softness and the case can be reloaded many times again.
This is looking like a terminology issue.
Back to my post #4. Possible (likely) oversized chamber. The brass discussion sort of went over the river and through the woods.
Even if the brass in the Hornady cases were "brittle," it wouldn't have a thing to do with the Double Tap bullets keyholing.
The common denominator for both problems is, of course, the barrel.