Federal Ammo - Near Disaster

A

ALFREDS

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My friend and I were out shooting handguns yesterday when something unexpected nearly ruined our days. For that matter, it may have ruined his life.

My friend was firing his CZ Shadow in 9 mm. He was firing Federal American Eagle factory ammo. He was getting to the last round of the magazine when something strange happened. I was not more than three feet away watching.

When he pulled the trigger, the report of the pistol was muffled. The volume of the shot was half the norm. Thick black smoke came out of the pistol. I tapped him on the shoulder and told him to put the pistol down on the table. I feared that this might be a hang-fire, so I waited two minutes. I picked the pistol up and racked the slide. A blackened cartridge case ejected. There was a terrible rotten egg smell. My friend wanted to keep shooting but I told him to cease firing until I checked the gun. When I looked, I found a bullet lodged in the barrel, around an inch from the breach. What a shock seeing that.

My friend phoned Federal and left message on their answering machine. He has gotten no reply. I am finished with Federal ammunition. So is my friend. We will never buy another product from this company again. I am also concerned that there has been no response from his complaint. I suspect a problem like this may mean an entire lot of ammunition is defective.

Does anybody know what would happen if some poor unfortunate person fires a pistol with a bullet lodged in the barrel? Is there something we can do to alert the public, since the company does not return phone calls?
 
Try email stating your problem, cal, bullet weight and lot number on the box. Wait for a response and don't throw out the rounds you have left.
 
Had a similar thing happen with Winchester Personal Protection ammo. Good luck getting anyone like Federal to give a s**t, unfortunately...
 
A squib load can happen even with factory ammo. I'd be more concerned about a friend's desire to continue shooting after such an obvious malfunction, that's basic firearms safety.

You handled the situation perfectly.
 
ALFREDS said:
My friend and I were out shooting handguns yesterday when something unexpected nearly ruined our days. For that matter, it may have ruined his life.

My friend was firing his CZ Shadow in 9 mm. He was firing Federal American Eagle factory ammo. He was getting to the last round of the magazine when something strange happened. I was not more than three feet away watching.

When he pulled the trigger, the report of the pistol was muffled. The volume of the shot was half the norm. Thick black smoke came out of the pistol. I tapped him on the shoulder and told him to put the pistol down on the table. I feared that this might be a hang-fire, so I waited two minutes. I picked the pistol up and racked the slide. A blackened cartridge case ejected. There was a terrible rotten egg smell. My friend wanted to keep shooting but I told him to cease firing until I checked the gun. When I looked, I found a bullet lodged in the barrel, around an inch from the breach. What a shock seeing that.

My friend phoned Federal and left message on their answering machine. He has gotten no reply. I am finished with Federal ammunition. So is my friend. We will never buy another product from this company again. I am also concerned that there has been no response from his complaint. I suspect a problem like this may mean an entire lot of ammunition is defective.

Does anybody know what would happen if some poor unfortunate person fires a pistol with a bullet lodged in the barrel? Is there something we can do to alert the public, since the company does not return phone calls?
Click to expand...
Depending on the caliber and load, two things are likely to happen:

1. The second bullet pushes the stuck one out and the barrel ends up with a bulge and it's toast.

2. The barrel splits and damages the slide and/or frame. Worst variation, the gun blows up and is totally ruined and the shooter suffers injury mostly around the hands.
 
I had a similar experience with Hornady... They were SUPER helpful and understanding and absolutely mortified that I had an issue with their "custom" ammunition. Two phone calls, apologies and a week later, a couple boxes of new-lot ammunition arrived at my door free of charge :). Hopefully federal does something for you...
 
Miltiades said:
Depending on the caliber and load, two things are likely to happen:

1. The second bullet pushes the stuck one out and the barrel ends up with a bulge and it's toast.

2. The barrel splits and damages the slide and/or frame. Worst variation, the gun blows up and is totally ruined and the shooter suffers injury mostly around the hands.
Click to expand...

3. The next bullet pushes the stuck one out and nothing else happens, no damage, no injuries, maybe even no realization by the shooter that there was a potentially dangerous problem. It can happen this way, esp. when the stuck bullet is close to the breech.

I'm not suggesting that it would be wise to try to shoot out a bullet known to be stuck in the barrel.
 
More likely you would get a bulge ring in the bbl at the point of obstruction, but it would probably push both projectiles out without grenading in most cases. I would never do it on purpose though.
 
This warning issued 2/07/11
I know it's 45 not 9mm, but there are warnings issued, maybe you just found their next warning.

FEDERAL and AMERICAN EAGLE
45 AUTO PRODUCT SAFETY WARNING
Immediate Action Required
FEDERAL CARTRIDGE COMPANY • 900 BOB EHLEN DRIVE • ANOKA, MN 55303 • PHONE 763.323.2300 • Toll Free: 1-800-322-2342
Certain lots of recently manufactured 45 Auto ammunition may contain an incorrect propellant
charge. Use of product from these lots may result in firearm damage and possible
serious injury.

(then continues with lot numbers etc.)
 
this is NOTa squib, but the powder has decomposed; ie the rotten egg smell and the black smoke- what happened was the primer did it's job and TRIED to ignite a lot of bad powder -
 
After it was over, I thought that putting the gun down was also a mistake. At the time, my first thought was that it was likely a hang fire. I have had suspected hang fires many times before and I always held the gun pointed down range until a minute expired. I then racked the slide.

But in this incident, at the instant it occurred, the black smoke scared me. It sounds irrational but I thought the smoke meant that powder might still be burning and my friend's hand could suffer if he continued to hold the gun.

Also, at the time, I thought that ammunition in the magazine might explode from a fire. I did not know the magazine was empty. Perhaps this was silly, but this is what went through my mind. In truth, I have never seen this kind of thing happen before. I did not know what was happening, and I still do not know what really occurred. I decided the prudent course was to get the gun out of my friend's hand. The decision was made in approximately one to two seconds. Perhaps I was wrong. I do not know.

Please note that my friend was contacted by Federal Ammunition today. The local rep is supposed to call him tomorrow. My friend is happy now. But I will never buy another Federal product. Check out the Internet postings as to links between Federal ammunition and slam fires in M-14 rifles, as well as stories about thin brass that fails in semi-automatic action. 45 caliber ammo is being recalled, and I know from first hand experience there is something seriously wrong with their 9 mm ammo. I have never experienced anything like this with any other brand of aoomunition.
 
Federal is known for having the lightest primers available. For some people this is good, for others not so good. To condemn a brand because of this incident is ridiculous. I've had overcharge, undercharge, squib, no flash hole, no primer, you name it, with pretty much every brand of ammo available. Suck it up and move on.
 
Slavex said:
Federal is known for having the lightest primers available. For some people this is good, for others not so good. To condemn a brand because of this incident is ridiculous. I've had overcharge, undercharge, squib, no flash hole, no primer, you name it, with pretty much every brand of ammo available. Suck it up and move on.
Click to expand...

This is the best advice given in this thread. Move on to Winchester until you eventually have some sort of problem, then to S&B, CCI, Hornady, Prvi, etc. Sooner or later you've gotten away from all of them and are handloading. What do you do the first time YOU screw up - stop shooting altogether???

See how Federal sorts it out then move on....


blake
 
I have use Federal factory ammo for my .40 cal. Never had an issue but since I have started reloading I always expect an issue. Know your firearm, any change in recoil, sound, or feel requires a check.

My suggestion in this case is wait for the response from Federal. If they are not willing to replace the ammo then you have a couple of choices with the remaining ammo. Shoot it and expect squibs (I am pretty sure this is what I would do). Pull the bullets, check the powder weight, and re-seat the bullets and expect squibs (a lot of work, but will work for the cautious). Dispose of them properly at the ranges live ammo disposal (seems like a waste of ammo to me).
 
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