Steel shot rusted together ?

huntingike

huntingike

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pulled the trigger today and after the bells stopped ringing , i found this in the chamber of my 870 supermag , my guess is the steel pellets had rusted together causing all the force to come out the breech . my head still aches from the boom . any other ideas on what could have been wrong with the shell ?
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Is it a reload by any chance almost looks like a Cheddite primer?? In the early days of steel shot the rusting was an issue not not in years most shot now is plated. Also even when rusted together nevr gave an issue back in the chamber. My guess incorrect powder or excessive amount of powder. If that is not a reload I would be contacting kent with the batch number.
Would not be the 1st time factory ammo was released with incorrect powder etc. Winchester a few years ago blew a pile of guns apart before admitting incorrect factory ammo was the issue. I would not fire any more until I cut a few open to check them out.

Almost forgot so what is the goose hunting like over there this year. Have not been over in a couple of years now but was a yearly visiter since 1984 with my old lot 16 buds.. Some years spending three weeks pounding them
 
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3macs1 said:
Is it a reload by any chance almost looks like a Cheddite primer?? In the early days of steel shot the rusting was an issue not not in years most shot now is plated. Also even when rusted together nevr gave an issue back in the chamber. My guess incorrect powder or excessive amount of powder. If that is not a reload I would be contacting kent with the batch number.
Would not be the 1st time factory ammo was released with incorrect powder etc. Winchester a few years ago blew a pile of guns apart before admitting incorrect factory ammo was the issue. I would not fire any more until I cut a few open to check them out.

Almost forgot so what is the goose hunting like over there this year. Have not been over in a couple of years now but was a yearly visiter since 1984 with my old lot 16 buds.. Some years spending three weeks pounding them
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Grouser said:
Definitely a Kent Hull.
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Both kind of correct. Cheddite supplies the hulls and primers to Kent. They do the same for the Challenger Ammunition and a few other companies throughout the world.

It would be nice to see some pics of the shotgun too. It would be hard to believe that it hasn't been damaged.
 
Had a tunsten iron load a few years back, the pellets were rusted together, didn't know it at the time and shot at a flock of geese. I did get a goose but when i tried to clean the gun and get the choke tube out of the barrel, it was stuck. Sent the barrel to a gunsmith and it was bulged and ruined where the choke tube screwed in.
 
By the bulge in the brass, it looks as though the gun fired out of battery where only the first 1/4" of the brass fit into the chamber before it went off. Hard to believe it went off that far out of battery, but I wouldn't rule it out. Possible?

Hard to imagine no other damage was done to the gun or yourself. Aren't you glad for the 870 all steel receiver in such an instance?
 
VLT79 said:
Both kind of correct. Cheddite supplies the hulls and primers to Kent. They do the same for the Challenger Ammunition and a few other companies throughout the world.

It would be nice to see some pics of the shotgun too. It would be hard to believe that it hasn't been damaged.
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Thanks for the clarification. I have been reloading all of my own steel loads for over 12 years now and only use remington hulls in 12ga and federal in the 10ga. Have never fired or bought any factory KENT so am not up to speed on their manufacturer.
 
easy said:
By the bulge in the brass, it looks as though the gun fired out of battery where only the first 1/4" of the brass fit into the chamber before it went off. Hard to believe it went off that far out of battery, but I wouldn't rule it out. Possible?

Hard to imagine no other damage was done to the gun or yourself. Aren't you glad for the 870 all steel receiver in such an instance?
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Funny you mention that EASY. When I first looked it reminded me exactly of a 16ga hull I seen that was fired in the 12ga by mistake but I seen the 12 on the back so knew it wasn't something like that. Could not imagine it would actually fire in a 870 that far back out of the chamber but if you look at the different diameter bulges in the brass sure looks like it did doesn't it.
Rosek I agree on the normal area of damage being the choke area. When we 1st started reloading steel there was a canadian manufacturer, it was unplated and just coated with graphite. Man did it give us trouble with the rusting. We would wax the shell ends and put finger nail polish on the primers which helped but may guys lost a good barrel as a result but always on the choke end.Some blew the end of the barrel right off, some split others just bulged.
That being said the steel shot we have used for probally the last 8 years or so is all plated so I don't see the rusting up issue any more and haven't waxed or sealed a shell in years. I would still contact KENT and cut a couple open to see what the rest look like.
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The gun took some damage as the shell ramp is now sticking out the bottom so that the forearm hangs up on it when the action is worked . i feel i am damn lucky but i still have a numb sensation in my right ear , likely finished off what hearing i had left on that side .

and it was a factory load 12 ga 31/2" BB . i have used kent for years and loved them but this makes me nervous of them now .
 
3macs1 said:
Is it a reload by any chance almost looks like a Cheddite primer?? In the early days of steel shot the rusting was an issue not not in years most shot now is plated. Also even when rusted together nevr gave an issue back in the chamber. My guess incorrect powder or excessive amount of powder. If that is not a reload I would be contacting kent with the batch number.
Would not be the 1st time factory ammo was released with incorrect powder etc. Winchester a few years ago blew a pile of guns apart before admitting incorrect factory ammo was the issue. I would not fire any more until I cut a few open to check them out.

Almost forgot so what is the goose hunting like over there this year. Have not been over in a couple of years now but was a yearly visiter since 1984 with my old lot 16 buds.. Some years spending three weeks pounding them
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lot 16 is still holding lots of birds and yes we are still knocking quite a few , got a snow goose there last week also .
 
huntingike said:
lot 16 is still holding lots of birds and yes we are still knocking quite a few , got a snow goose there last week also .
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Cool. I have to get back over next year for sure. Miss it terrible. The last year I was there someone took a snow goose into the pluckers only one I have ever seen there.
The old days in lot 16, 20 minutes to limit out
take care
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huntingike said:
The gun took some damage as the shell ramp is now sticking out the bottom so that the forearm hangs up on it when the action is worked . i feel i am damn lucky but i still have a numb sensation in my right ear , likely finished off what hearing i had left on that side .

and it was a factory load 12 ga 31/2" BB . i have used kent for years and loved them but this makes me nervous of them now .
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Can understand that. Real glad you were not hurt more seriously, assuming the hearing loss in the the ear will come back. Would still contact KENT with the lot number and some pics. Would not hurt if it is their problem you may save someone else from god knows what damage or destroying their gun.
Take care

Something that just crossed my mind. Did you polish that chamber like many do on these guns???
 
I believe the ammo manufacturer has some liability here. I suggest you get off the forum and contact them as soon as possible with pictures of the ammo and the gun and ask them what they intend to do...
 
guntech said:
I believe the ammo manufacturer has some liability here. I suggest you get off the forum and contact them as soon as possible with pictures of the ammo and the gun and ask them what they intend to do...
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The ammo manufacturer is only liable if it was fresh, newly manufactured and purchased ammution. If it has been in the field, got wet and rusted then it is the user's problem. I have dis-assembled many steel shotshells in the past, because they got excessively wet from rain,snow and or the occasional dunking in the St-Lawrence River, and knew that by next season the shot would be rusted into a single projectile and be dangerous to shoot!
 
VLT79 said:
The ammo manufacturer is only liable if it was fresh, newly manufactured and purchased ammution. If it has been in the field, got wet and rusted then it is the user's problem. I have dis-assembled many steel shotshells in the past, because they got excessively wet from rain,snow and or the occasional dunking in the St-Lawrence River, and knew that by next season the shot would be rusted into a single projectile and be dangerous to shoot!
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Agree. Also have seen that in the early days but not since I switched to the zinc plated stuff in the bottles, Just another reason to roll your own
Have not cut a factory shell apart in years what are manufacturer's using today plated or just the plain annealed steel??
 
I dont believe rusted shot would cause any problems.
Consider this when the primer is struck, powder ignited the shot is forced back into the wad with considerable force "set back". Ive been able to break rusted shot apart with my hands, I doubt it would stay together through out the high pressures and force inside shell during set back.
 
huntingike said:
pulled the trigger today and after the bells stopped ringing , i found this in the chamber of my 870 supermag , my guess is the steel pellets had rusted together causing all the force to come out the breech . my head still aches from the boom . any other ideas on what could have been wrong with the shell ?
blownshell002.jpg
[/IMG]
Click to expand...

Look at the steel casing, see how from the rim to about 3/4 of the way down is buldged out more than the top of the casing. It almost looks like the shell wasnt completly in the chamber when it was fired. Im not sure if an 870 will fire with the bolt not the whole way ahead? The case is buldged almost to the same width as the rim.
If it was fired not completly in the chamber it would certainly cause the steel to come apart.
 
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