First 9mm BLOWOUT !!

[Walkalong]

was unaware that a case gauge can help reveal cracks and

I gauge them so bulged cases that might get jammed up barely sticking out of the chambers are culled. I also figure if they don’t respond to sizing like other cases that they may have been subjected to too much pressure, either way, I cull them. I don’t look for cracks, but pay attention to what cases look like, and have never seen one either.

My post was .... yes, I gauge 9mm cases too.

It’s a Wilson case gauge.

 

[Walkalong]

 

[Tempus Tom]

That makes a lot of sense. If the brass didn't respond to the sizing and FCD dies, something is wrong. And the way to test that is to drop each round into a case gauge.

(just looked at the pic and it looks like you put the case in the gauge BEFORE its a full cartridge. I was imagining it was a test done on completed rounds. Do you also test the completed cartridge?)

Looks like I need to buy some case gauges now.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Walkalong]

I copied an old post of mine to this thread, but the date put it at the beginning of the thread.

Dang phone.

I only do 9mm pistol cases, no other auto cases, but should probably get one for .40.

I only gauge sized cases, but the run and gun pistol game folks gauge loaded rounds

 

[Bat Rastard]

My guage is a set from Midway I bought long ago. I think Lyman makes a very attractive block with several different cartridges milled into it.

 

[Tempus Tom]

Walkalong, I just read your post that ended up at the beginning of the thread. Big thank you for the pics and explanations.

I am very fortunate and live in a location where I can (and have) go pickup literally thousands of 9mm, 223 and 556 brass out in the desert. So I have no shortage of once fired brass in those calibers.

Now I have more knowledge about how to test that brass and keep my family safe.

Thank you!

 

[BreechFace]

This thread got me reevaluating. I just ordered an Armarov 100 round case checker for 9mm with the huge demand commercial ammo will be MIA for a while so I'll be relying solely on reloading so it'll get put to good use the next year. Expensive yes, but something I've been considering.

https://usa-shop.armanov.com/products/case-gauge-bundle-3-in-1

It allows one to load 100 rounds in and test chambering then it is simply placing an MTM P100 case over the top and turning it over to unload directly into the MTM case. Something to look into for those interested.

 

[JJFitch]

As a competition shooter, shooting a zillion rounds of 9mm annually I can say that from my experience with a few "blow outs" as you mention, the sting I felt in my hand and the extra loud report indicated nothing other than an overcharge. I had one in a Glock 17 that looked a lot like that. Blew the extractor into the next county.
I returned it to Glock to get repaired. It was fixed under warranty with a note to "stop using reloads"!

I had this experience 2-3 times in 20+ years. I was able to relate it to having issues with the primer mechanism flipping primers on my D-550. Clearing this stoppage required stopping and clearing the machine and starting over. I'm sure that changing the rhythm and sequence allowed for a double charge going unnoticed! Even though I swear I double checked everything twice.

Smiles,

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

Walkalong, I just read your post that ended up at the beginning of the thread. Big thank you for the pics and explanations.

I am very fortunate and live in a location where I can (and have) go pickup literally thousands of 9mm, 223 and 556 brass out in the desert. So I have no shortage of once fired brass in those calibers.

Now I have more knowledge about how to test that brass and keep my family safe.

Thank you!

---
Something to keep in mind: If you're picking them up in the desert, how are you really sure they're only once-fired?

I recommend adopting a scrupulous and highly rigorous routine for inspection and evaluation of your brass. You got very lucky ... this time.

 

[FROGO207]

507 Reloader, did that case have an internal step in the case? It could have caused the problem but the powder cop should have caught that.

 

[Tempus Tom]

---
Something to keep in mind: If you're picking them up in the desert, how are you really sure they're only once-fired?

I recommend adopting a scrupulous and highly rigorous routine for inspection and evaluation of your brass. You got very lucky ... this time.

Yes, I agree. Some of the cases I pickup may be reloads. I do try to keep that in mind.

 

[Skgreen]

And once fired and fired only once are 2 different things,,,

 

[Dudedog]

You can repeat this test a few times with the same round, measuring and recording your COL each time to show how repeated loading affects your COL. Then do the test again with a few more rounds and you should see if any problems (such as lack of neck tension) appear.

A quick check I do is just the tap the nose of the loaded round on a piece of 2X4, I don't baby it, but I don't try to drive it into the board.
If it has bad neck tension sometimes you can tell just by looking at it after the test.

I shoot matches so I case gauge all my loaded rounds.

 

[Caplock]

I push loaded rounds bullet first into the edge of my reloading desk before they go into the box.
Seems like I always find one or two that push into the case with not a lot of force.

40 cal seems the worst. Big ol' Glock chamber. They get resized but spring back.

 

[lordpaxman]

A quick check I do is just the tap the nose of the loaded round on a piece of 2X4, I don't baby it, but I don't try to drive it into the board.
If it has bad neck tension sometimes you can tell just by looking at it after the test.

I shoot matches so I case gauge all my loaded rounds.

I do try to drive it into the board. I make sure there are nice dimples in soft pine before I measure again to check the amount of setback. It’s hard to figure out what kind of stress a round endures coming out of the mag, up the ramp and into the chamber, so, I figure if I can whack it three times, leave a dimple and no measurable setback that’ll work. Depending on how everything is running that’s about one out of a hundred.
Kudos for you all that inspect every 9mm case, but I don’t. An out of battery detonation is bad news for any brass, regardless of any inspection procedure. I suspect even weakened brass in a mostly supported chamber will not catastrophically fail. I do run all my rounds through a Hondo 100 gauge but have yet to see any fail the gauge due to what I would label as a defective brass issue. I don’t want a failure to chamber in match. Good luck.

 

[rfwobbly]

Looks like that area of the case was not supported by the chamber. Like said above, out of battery.

I believe the group has sorted out the need for a cartridge gauge, which can detect cartridge construction errors. But we should get back to the "Why ?" of the matter.

9x19 Luger belongs to a very small, select group of cartridges, and as such constitute a special situation not found in most other handgun cartridges. The root cause is that the 9x19 Luger cartridge is not a "straight wall case", it is a tapered cartridge case. It's that taper that can allow bad things to happen more often; bad things that don't usually show up with other common American cartridges.

Suppose you have a cartridge flaw in 38Spcl, 38Super, 40S&W or 45ACP. As shown below, the chamber will not begin to accept a cartridge with common issues (say for instance incorrect taper crimp)...



Compare that to the tapered chamber of the 9x19 Luger. The 9mm's tapered chamber actually makes the problem worse by allowing a faulty cartridge to enter. In this way common issues, such as incomplete taper crimp or blown out case head diameter, can partially enter the gun's chamber and then allow the gun to fire in an out-of-battery condition...



Therefore 9x19 Luger needs to include extra quality checks to scan the exterior of the finished cartridge. It's not "harder" to reload 9mm, it simply requires more process steps in order to obtain the same level of safety found in other cartridges.

Hope this helps.

 

[507Reloader]

Looks like that area of the case was not supported by the chamber. Like said above, out of battery.

You didn't say what grain bullet you used. I run Berry's 115gn plated RN @1.1" COAL with 5.0gn CFE Pistol (middle charged load based on Hodgdon's online data). Works well in my PPQ. I went higher on the ladder, but 5.0gn shot really well. When I got to 5.5gn it was really booming.

Using 115 grain superior plated round nose.

 

[507Reloader]

Do you use a case gauge to check your loaded rounds?

Case gauge every piece of brass before loading and case gauge every round after loading. I use a Lee APP to deprime and resize every case before loading. Don't want all the primer gunk in my Dillon. Case gauge each piece, and throw into the ready-to-load bin. I've went thru my process 3 times since. Only thing I don't do is sort my brass. Just starting sorting thru 12K pieces last night. Talking to S&W this morning.

 

[507Reloader]

Pull a round at random from your batch of 100, measure the COL and write it down, then load it into the magazine, load the magazine into the gun, then chamber it using the slide release. Measure the COL again and any difference is your amount of setback. I usually do this with a few dummy rounds when setting up my dies, although live rounds can be used with the usual cautions.

You can repeat this test a few times with the same round, measuring and recording your COL each time to show how repeated loading affects your COL. Then do the test again with a few more rounds and you should see if any problems (such as lack of neck tension) appear.

Can't offer anything more than the suggestions above for the "kaboom". Glad you are ok, your gun can be repaired or replaced easily enough, fingers and eyes not so much.

Stay safe and let us know what you find.

chris

Thank you. I will check a few rounds at the range before anything is shot. Not thought much about the gun, can get it replaced if need be. More concerned about the failure so I can prevent it going down the road. I want to keep all these fingers. Thanks again !

 

[507Reloader]

That makes a lot of sense. If the brass didn't respond to the sizing and FCD dies, something is wrong. And the way to test that is to drop each round into a case gauge.

(just looked at the pic and it looks like you put the case in the gauge BEFORE its a full cartridge. I was imagining it was a test done on completed rounds. Do you also test the completed cartridge?)

Looks like I need to buy some case gauges now.

Thanks for the info.

I case gauge every piece of brass after depriming/resizing and after completed. I have had more thrown in the trash before loading than after. You'll be surprised how many range brass has a bulge at the top.

 

[Charlie98]

extremely defective brass or a massive overcharge. the usual blowout in an unsupported area just blows a hole where it was not supported. your brass has blown that and destroyed the head too. it takes a huge amount of pressure to do that, or terrible defective brass. IMO.

If you think 9mm is bad, you should have a .308 blow out on you...





I think in instances like this, outside of an OOB detonation... it has to be the brass. There are a number of things that can weaken brass, and there is always the unseen quantity of a bad lot or piece of brass.

 

[WeekendReloader]

I case gauge every piece of brass after depriming/resizing and after completed. I have had more thrown in the trash before loading than after. You'll be surprised how many range brass has a bulge at the top.

Have you checked your case gauge vs your chamber dimensions?
I know some case gauges are tighter dimensions and others are a little more loose. I use a Hornady 9mm gauge and it is a little tighter than my PPQ chamber, which works well for me.

I also use the LEE Bulge Buster with a 9mm Mak LEE Factory Crimp Die and push all my fired brass through. I found that some brands of 9mm (IMI in particular) gave me problems by sometimes creating a little bulge at the bottom where the sizing die stops. This prevented the case from gauging and sometimes from chambering. Running them all through the bulge buster first before sizing solved this for me.

Another cause could be the press was slightly 'short stroked' when seating that bullet. The ogive of the bullet could hit the lands and prevent the round from chambering fully. Case gauges usually do not check for COAL, only chamber fitment of the case. I'm not sure what tolerance you have in your chamber for a slightly longer COAL with that bullet profile.

 

[Legionnaire]

... I think Lyman makes a very attractive block with several different cartridges milled into it.

That's what I use.

 

[Bartojc]

Walkalong got me. I spot check, but do not check every round. I have had exactly what he described with his EMP, oddly enough with my Springfield, where a round will not chamber. About 3 times now in the two years I've owned it, the last time a couple weeks ago. Every time a check would have caught it. I'm going to start checking every round before something bad happens. So much so I've ordered a multi holed checker from EGW for 9mm vs the one holed. Hoping it will go a little faster checking a few hundred at a time. Stay safe !

-Jeff

 

[tightgroup tiger]

I think Lyman makes a very attractive block with several different cartridges milled into it.

Or for 9mm you could get this Lyman gauge. It's what I use for my loaded rounds. This is a loaded .380 that got through my LNL-AP undetected.

All my loaded rounds go through this. As you can see you can also compare round to round because all eight holes are the same caliber.
My Grandson recently found a 9 Makarov among my loaded rounds last week end.

This is a 9mm Makarov which isn't as obvious. I like these gauges and all my loaded 9mms goes through it. Really speeds things up.