M1 Garand goes boom
- Thread starter lupothebutcher
- Start date
pearcetopher
CGN Regular
- Location
- Abbotsford BC
sqib indeed hesienberg
RAYdiation
Regular
- Location
- Toronto, ON
Sorry, but I am a total newb to the Garand. What is a squib?
From WIKI:
A squib load, also known as a squib round, pop and no kick, or just a squib, is a firearms malfunction in which a fired projectile does not have enough force behind it to exit the barrel, and thus becomes stuck. This type of malfunction can be extremely dangerous, as failing to notice that the projectile has become stuck in the barrel may result in another round being fired directly into the obstructed barrel, resulting in a catastrophic failure of the weapon's structural integrity.
A squib load, also known as a squib round, pop and no kick, or just a squib, is a firearms malfunction in which a fired projectile does not have enough force behind it to exit the barrel, and thus becomes stuck. This type of malfunction can be extremely dangerous, as failing to notice that the projectile has become stuck in the barrel may result in another round being fired directly into the obstructed barrel, resulting in a catastrophic failure of the weapon's structural integrity.
Burrrrrr, this is why I shoot Enfield's.
I don't know the exact terminology, but basically it works like this:
The firing pin has a tab that sticks out below the bolt. There is a matching slot in the receiver. In theory, the slot is located such that firing pin tab should only be allowed to pass through that slot allowing the firing pin to move fully forward when the bolt is rotated into the closed position.
The firing pin has a tab that sticks out below the bolt. There is a matching slot in the receiver. In theory, the slot is located such that firing pin tab should only be allowed to pass through that slot allowing the firing pin to move fully forward when the bolt is rotated into the closed position.
The safety bridge if the receiver which interacts with the tail of the firing pin could become excessively worn to a point where this could happen. This is one of the perils associated with re-welding cut/de-militarized Garand receivers. You can actually check how this works by removing the barreled action from the stock, removing the op rod spring and then cycling the action by hand and observing the bolt from the rear as it rotates into the locked position. It is important to use a serviceable firing pin where the tail that interacts with the receiver's safety bridge isn't excessively worn or broken and where firing pin protrusion is not excessive.
It's tough to say what happened in this case, but there are several possibilities incl an out of battery detonation due to an improperly sized reload or a broken firing pin becoming stuck in the forward position and then detonating the primer as the round is being fed into the chamber. The face of the bolt detonating a primer seated above flush with the case head is another possibility as is a bullet from a previous round being lodged in the barrel.
Training is important. Note that the shooter did not unload and lock the action to the rear for a visual check of the action, chamber and bore before resuming firing.
It's tough to say what happened in this case, but there are several possibilities incl an out of battery detonation due to an improperly sized reload or a broken firing pin becoming stuck in the forward position and then detonating the primer as the round is being fed into the chamber. The face of the bolt detonating a primer seated above flush with the case head is another possibility as is a bullet from a previous round being lodged in the barrel.
Training is important. Note that the shooter did not unload and lock the action to the rear for a visual check of the action, chamber and bore before resuming firing.
What's also worth noting is how the failure played out...
The energy "dumped" mostly though the mag well, blowing out the floorplate and the stock around the magwell.
If she had placed her fore-hand further back, supporting the magwell (as some people do actually hold these guns), she would have lost her hand.
With a lot of modern "black" rifles, mag, and magwell holds with the fore-hand is really common. It is no less a bad idea with modern rifles than it is with a Garand. Structurally, all semi autos with dump their energy down the magwell in the case of an out-of-battery discharge.
Proper holds and shooting stances matter. Her stance was awful, but her hold was correct, and that allowed her to keep both her hands.
The energy "dumped" mostly though the mag well, blowing out the floorplate and the stock around the magwell.
If she had placed her fore-hand further back, supporting the magwell (as some people do actually hold these guns), she would have lost her hand.
With a lot of modern "black" rifles, mag, and magwell holds with the fore-hand is really common. It is no less a bad idea with modern rifles than it is with a Garand. Structurally, all semi autos with dump their energy down the magwell in the case of an out-of-battery discharge.
Proper holds and shooting stances matter. Her stance was awful, but her hold was correct, and that allowed her to keep both her hands.
Kayser Sose
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Van Isle
Yes! Her stance. She was getting pushed over, I couldn't believe it
Can anyone say, why is it women tend to hold rifles like that? I suspect it might be the difference in upper body strength.
Can anyone say, why is it women tend to hold rifles like that? I suspect it might be the difference in upper body strength.
Whenever I introduce a new shooter to a self-loading firearm, I advise them to 'try and break it' when handling it. I say - 'Pull that charging handle back as though you are trying to pull it off the gun - let all the bits go forward by themselves, do NOT help or otherwise assist the loading sequence in any way. With a .308Win/7.62x51 there's around 20 tons per square inch going off right there - do you think that you are going to hurt it by letting the bits work for themsleves?.
weimanjack has it right - let the moving bits work the way they were intended to do, with a degree of force and velocity that no hand could duplicate.
tac
weimanjack has it right - let the moving bits work the way they were intended to do, with a degree of force and velocity that no hand could duplicate.
tac
She is pretty slightly-built, and is leaning back to counteract the 10# plus weight hanging out there in front of her. I have to note, as well, that for a Garand being operated by a gal, that is is not kicking up much of a fuss. Are these handloads, I wonder? Do we know anything about the actual circumstances?
tac
BTW, in the original SVT-40 manual checking that rifle won't fire on the bolt carrier not completely closed is the part of regular check-up. There should be something in Garand manual on this. A lot of ppl are too exited about shooting and forget about servicing their rifles. Amount of wisdom on this planet is constant value, while population keeps growing.
