should left hand shooters using right hand rifles be worried about case rupture

6.5x55swm

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I am a left handed shooter and had both left hand and right handed rifles and levers all my life, I have heard of a few case ruptures in the last few months with shooters getting hurt, one was pretty bad, lost some fingers. This has got me thinking because one of the case failures was a browning blr 81 and the other was Remington 7600, my main hunting rig is blr
 
Yes, you should make sure you have good quality eye protection, for this and other unlikely events. Mind you, losing fingers, I wonder how common that would be, good question.
 
It is a concern for sure, but as mentioned above, the use of quality ammunition and proper firearms maintenance practices will mitigate this risk. The other thing for handloaders is to never exceed published data, irregardles if you "think" you are not seeing signs of over pressure! In most instances, these signs will show up well beyond 70,000 psi.
 
Had the extractor of a CRF blow off at a 4 o'clock angle and punch through the door of my truck 20' behind me. If you were shooting it LH, would of been extra bad

Low pressure can be worse than high pressure
 
I think about that too and I feel better behind my remingtons than my Winchester with that extractor in front of my face. I’ve heard they are prone to blow out. Even if nothing actually breaks except the case my face is behind the port
 
I've been doing it for fifty years. Another ten or fifteen and I'll be good so I'm not going to worry.
 
Had the extractor of a CRF blow off at a 4 o'clock angle and punch through the door of my truck 20' behind me. If you were shooting it LH, would of been extra bad

Low pressure can be worse than high pressure

Yikes!

Ever determine the cause?
 
If I was shooting an unaltered factory 700 I wouldn't worry about left or right ... The original 700 extractor makes it the strongest most secure system of all 2 lug bolt actions ever made.

There have been a couple of serious instances in the US in center fire bench rest shooting... In both cases they were shooting altered 700 Remington's ... the stock extractors had been replaced with part of the Sako extractor system as some people do ... Hot loads and case failures blew the extractors out... one into an eye causing the loss of that eye, the other into a brain causing his death. These were right hand actions being shot left handed, but the problem was the alteration that had been done to the bolt.

That being said here is a picture of a right hand Sako that was being shot right handed and the shooter was not injured... I am sure a left hand shooter would have had some injuries. You can see how the 'bolt guide' is an integral part of the Sako extractor system and held and deflected debris quite well. Those who install Sako style extractors on Remington 700's do not install this deflector.

243-BLOW-UP-ACTION.jpg
 
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From a gas handling perspective, the majority of rifles will be safer with the user on the 'proper' side. Not that it matters most of the time. But when it does...

One of my good friends is also a southpaw. We hunt, shoot and compete together regularly. He shoots RH rifles, while I strongly prefer LH rifles. Depending on the scenario or shooting position, there are advantages for both, from a convenience/function stand point.
 
Shawn, why aren’t right handed shooters shooting left handed guns?

Because they are normally hard to find, not made and more expensive for one
Plus tons of individuals shoot left only because of eye dominance as in my case and to add many years 10,000 rounds plus and never an issue since the mid 60's
I could not cycle a left hand gun if my life depended on it since it is only my eye that requires left shooting and my arms just cannot do it
I would love to see you replace what I own and shoot in left hand models most are not even made
Cheers
 
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