Squib problem

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Roddy

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I was shooting some .38 rounds this weekend and I had a few problems. These were from a box of reloaded ammo I bought from a company that sells reloaded ammunition. I loaded six rounds in my Ruger and was blasting away when I noticed my fourth shot had very little recoil. I was wearing my new electronic ear muffs so the initial shot sounded about as loud as the previous three but I didn't hear any echo or crack.

I hadn't shot my wheel guns in a while and figured I had accidentally loaded mostly .357 rounds and that the last one was a .38 as I had both with me. That didnt seem quite right so I thought I had better check. I emptied the gun and being a revolver me not having a cleaning rod I had to look directly down the barrel. What I saw was a little disturbing.

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I know what squibs are and I warn people I take shooting that if the gun makes a quiet pop you need to stop, clear it, and check the barrel. Two things things made this a little worrisome. First with the sound equalizing of the ear muffs the shot didnt sound too different than the last one and with different loads on hand some have much less recoil. Second was being a wheel gun this did not produce a stoppage and the gun would have fired with the next pull of the trigger.

Well I realize these things happen and not wanting to waste a trip out shooting I figured I could still shoot my 686. What are the odds of getting two squibs in one day? I had never even had one before in thousands of rounds of shooting. Well the odds were better than one in six apparently.

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This put put both of my revolvers out of commission and I took a picture of the Smith and Wesson right away to send to the ammo manufacturer.

After that I packed up my things and went home. I put a screwdriver down the muzzle of the 686 and managed to whack the bullet out with a hammer. The GP100 I don't know what to do about. I would have to whack that round back the whole length of the barrel. Oh well. At least I caught it before something really bad happened.

I just thought I would post this a warning to people as I never really thought of squib as a real thing that actually happened but I guess they are. Be safe.
 
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I had a number of them when I began loading 9mm. I think the powder measure was sticking now and then before it got broken in. Annoying and now I don't go to the range without a hammer and steel cleaning rod. At least with an auto loader you can field strip and just work with the barrel when clearing it.
 
If you reload, just throw a primer and a couple grains of powder in a case and seal it off with a paper disc. DO NOT LOAD A BULLET IN THE CASE. Then fire the gun and the lodged round will un stick.
It worked for Brandon Lee.

Otherwise knock it out with a brass rod and a mallet.
 
I don't reload so I think a mallet and punch may be the way to go. I wish I could hit that bullet from the breech and knock it out the muzzle but I don't know of a way to do that. The hollow points make it easier because the punch or screwdriver stays centered and doesn't mark up the rifling I noticed.

If this had been an IDPA match and I had my Sig I worry I might have just tap, racked, and kaboomed.
 
Cut a length of brass rod short enough to drop in the chamber end, then another on top of the first, .....until you can tap on the end of one. Put a 20* bend about 1" or so from the end of a brass rod then insert it into the breach end, the bend will alow the end of the rod to be clear of the frame to facilitate tapping with a mallet. The bend should be above the barrel with the 1" side towards the muzzel the longer end is for tapping on. If you run out of rod before the bend then will need to bend another rod more than 1" from the end.

Alternatively you could turn the end of a brass rod down to fit inside the hollow point so you can drive the bullet out backwards with out swaging it in there. Just make sure that the skinny portion is longer than the HP is deep
 
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What are the odds? Well, I guess that once you have the first squib load, the odds of finding another one in that batch of ammo probably go 'way up...the sloppy reloading technique that produced the first one was used throughout the batch, so watch out! It's like the odds against being eaten by a shark: they are astronomical...but if you jump out of a boat in shark-infested waters after doing some chumming, they get much better! :)

Congratulations on your safety awareness and gun smarts...this could have been a much sadder story. If it were me, I think I would find another source for my ammo.
 
How does one remove those squibs?
I would think the one in the Ruger is an easier fix, but the one in the 686
looks like it is going to be a challenge.
Brass drift from the muzzle( on the 686) and back in the direction from whence it came?
Guess your going to start up reloading and be the QC in your process now.
Please post some pics of those offending bullets(if you can recover them) when they are out.
I know I would like to see them .
Really hate to see that and hope it works out for you.
Rob
 
I got the one in the 686 out. The bullet looks normal except the hollow point is no longer round it is now square like a Robertson screwdriver tip. I might still have it around so I can post. The Ruger seems like a harder fix because I can't hammer from the breech with the frame in the way.
 
Just push it all the way back to the breech end, the same way you did with the other one. Protect the crown while you do it.
 
Did anyone else cringe when the OP said he put a screw driver down his barrel?

Roddy said:
I got the one in the 686 out. The bullet looks normal except the hollow point is no longer round it is now square like a Robertson screwdriver tip. I might still have it around so I can post. The Ruger seems like a harder fix because I can't hammer from the breech with the frame in the way.
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Put some oil in the barrel from both sides of the stuck bullet. Unfortunately you will have to hammer it the whole length of the barrel. Get a brass rod and slowly work at it, putting it in the freezer might help with removal.

I've had 4 squibs in my 586 and it's not fun removing them, but it's still alive and has a good barrel.
 
Spawn-Inc said:
Did anyone else cringe when the OP said he put a screw driver down his barrel?
Click to expand...

Why? He used a Robbie-tip that fit nicely into the hollow-point, preventing any scratches or barrel contact at that end. As long as the crown is also protected, he should be golden.
 
jjohnwm said:
Why? He used a Robbie-tip that fit nicely into the hollow-point, preventing any scratches or barrel contact at that end. As long as the crown is also protected, he should be golden.
Click to expand...

I realized that after but I was just imagining a bore sized flat head for some reason.
 
Spawn-Inc said:
Did anyone else cringe when the OP said he put a screw driver down his barrel?
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I cringed :)

I carry a hammer and a chop stick with me to range because I've had a couple squibs. I reload at work and must of got busy so probably forgot to put powder in a bullet. I find these powder measurer's very inconsistent so it could also be too little powder came out
 
Spawn-Inc said:
Did anyone else cringe when the OP said he put a screw driver down his barrel?
Click to expand...

Well I hope I didn't screw it up. I will take a look at the crown when I get home. The screwdriver was quite straight and almost filled the bore so I don't think I could have damaged it much. For the Ruger I will use a wood dowel. I just didn't have one in the shop at the time.
 
Roddy said:
Well I hope I didn't screw it up. I will take a look at the crown when I get home. The screwdriver was quite straight and almost filled the bore so I don't think I could have damaged it much. For the Ruger I will use a wood dowel. I just didn't have one in the shop at the time.
Click to expand...

Unless you hammered it while inserting it, it's very likely fine as jjohnwm said, with the hollow point and robby combo, it was a perfect match.
 
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