Cartridge exploded in chamber

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Oldly

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GunNutz
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It must of been a real hot load.it dislodged the firing pin and extractor as well as the whole back end of the cartridge blowing up.im not sure if it wrecked the chamber but I'm sure it did.first shot and boom.it was brand new nosler 223 brass.my inkling of what happend was the scale was zeroed with a breeze blowing on the scale so it probably got around 24+ of viht 133 instead of 22.that was to close for comfort because i have never even loaded a round close to max before,never even a squished primer.so does anyone think my tikka is salvageable or is it done.is it worth getting it fixed with 2 thirds of its barrel life used up.
 
Master Baiter said:
Oh #### bro...Your lucky! Chamber will be good.
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Ya it was not a peaceful easy feeling. Will try to rebuild the bolt and hope the headspace isn't damaged(i believe thats what its called)but I do feel lucky,I don't even like going close to max load,never have.it was an experience i don't want to do again.
 
I'd have a close look at the brass, particularly the case head and necks. There is something more at play than 2 grains over max., are you sure about the scale being off?
 
cosmic said:
I'd have a close look at the brass, particularly the case head and necks. There is something more at play than 2 grains over max., are you sure about the scale being off?
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This is what my first impression was. A 2 grain overload, while not a good thing, seems like it wouldn't be enough to do what you're describing unless you were already at the high end of the "safe" range to begin with.

Had the case been annealed since its last firing? If so, are you confident it was done correctly? Re-reading your post, I see it was new Nosler brass. Was that the first case of that batch that you've used, or was it a random occurrence?
Either way, I'd be pulling bullets from any remaining rounds loaded in that session and checking charge weights, as well as taking a hard look at any other variables you can think of.

I've had very limited experience with loading .223, so take this advice with a grain of salt. I've heard others say that small capacity cases like the .223 can be finicky to load compared to .308, for example.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, don't hang your hat on a 2 grain overcharge as being the sole cause of what happened until everything else has been ruled out.

I don't like playing with the high end of a particular load either, I'm more comfortable with a moderate load.

I take it the Viht 133 is part of a published load that you've used in the past?
 
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2 grains over will not cause such an issue, at least not that we have seen, but incorrect-faster burning powder will. We advise taking rifle this to a competent gunsmith to assist in finding cause.
 
Chilly807 said:
Had the case been annealed since its last firing? If so, are you confident it was done correctly? Re-reading your post, I see it was new Nosler brass. Was that the first case of that batch that you've used, or was it a random occurrence?
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I don't think annealing 223 is even required. I know my father loaded over 10 thousand rounds of 223 and I never seen a annealing machine, or heard him talk about doing it.

A shorter OAL, and tighter crimp, could have increased the pressure. But could be alot of factors.

OP how long have you been reloading, and is this your first time loading with this setup? Also what scale are you using?

Just seen that you reloaded when there was a breeze. That would throw your measurements off. I would pull everything you loaded on that day.
 
With a breeze blowing? Can you shut windows and doors when reloading to prevent such happenings? Good thing you did not hurt yourself.
 
It was brand new nosler brass never used before,my mistake could of been not resizing it(but did inspect them.i will try to download a picture,wont be able to add commentary with it because I tried with 22lr half inch challenge and failed.it could of been more then 2 gr thats why I said 2+ I have know idea of knowing.i only made 2 just for ballistic calculations, but the radars batteries died before that could happen.a few years back I was weighing and filling cartridges in the living room when the wife was working in camp and remembered doing 50 only to realize the ceiling fan threw all The weights into a mess.i took everything apart until 3 in the morning and found it has a slight notch out of the face of the chamber,and I need another extractor spring.but can only find were you have to buy the kit for $80.
 
track said:
With a breeze blowing? Can you shut windows and doors when reloading to prevent such happenings? Good thing you did not hurt yourself.
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I just moved my reloading bench downstairs and put a intake fan to bring in fresh air it goes on when I turn on the light,that got disconnected an hr ago lol.
 
The other thing is I mostly use varget and know by look when its on overload which is hard to do with varget.was trying out viht 133 because of shortages of varget so my eye were not accustomed to it.
 
Glad you are not hurt. I would send the gun to a gun smith and have them inspect it ( and hours fee to inspect, is better than a ER visit ) I shut down my dehumidifier when I start to reload. Plus I don't have any distractions, If I pause, I re do everything. Worse thing you can get is into a routine, or try and speed up. Because you get complacent.

Since it happened a couple times, maybe make a windscreen for your scale?
 
OkayShooter said:
Glad you are not hurt. I would send the gun to a gun smith and have them inspect it ( and hours fee to inspect, is better than a ER visit ) I shut down my dehumidifier when I start to reload. Plus I don't have any distractions, If I pause, I re do everything. Worse thing you can get is into a routine, or try and speed up. Because you get complacent.

Since it happened a couple times, maybe make a windscreen for your scale?
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The worst contributer was probably my 2nd vaccine shot Friday have been really sore and woozy, not the best time to reload.as for 2nd time it was different locations. But I forgot about the fan in New room going on when light turned on.its disconnected,now don't really need it.but its amazing how much a little wind will move those little scales.
 
What brand of primers?
Winchester had a problem with primers of certain lots, but I don't know if that included small primers. Rumour has it they were at one time even covering some costs in repairing bolts if I remember correctly.
 
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