Cartridge Detonation Story

[Kevin Rohrer]

Lots of shooters are curious as to what happens when a cartridge detonates outside a handgun; I found out.

I use a tumbler brass cleaner and dry the brass in the oven at 300F for 2-hours. Occasionally I will find a loaded cartridge lying among the brass before drying, but on rare occasion, afterwards. Yesterday I was drying several hundred rounds of .45ACP brass on a 9"x14" cookie sheet in the oven when I hurt a loud "pop" that sounded like a Lady Finger going off. Never heard that sound before in the house, so I instinctively knew what it was.

Upon checking the oven I saw 30-40 pieces of brass lying underneath the cookie sheet. The ruptured case was still on the cookie sheet with the 230gr lead RN bullet laying immediately in front of it, so there was no danger of it exiting the oven. The primer had backed out of the casing and I did not find it, so I am guessing it was the powder (Unique) that overheated and burned. The pressure generated by the burning powder caused the case to aggressively fail.

I'll have to do a better job of inspecting my brass before cleaning, and I will cut the heat to 275F. ;)

268824

[smithnframe]

Phil Sharpe used to cook off 30/06 cartridges in his experiments. Nothing new!

[cp1969]

I wouldn't think 300F would set off the powder. I'd think it was the primer.

[nhyrum]

I had a similar experience. Somehow, a loaded 454 casull round, probably that I meant to discard because it was crushed, or something similar, made it into my scrap lead bucket. Which was found when I dumped said bucket into a big pot I use to melt down scrap lead to pour into ingots. Luckily I was far enough away, and everything was outside, in the open. It sounded about like what today's "m80's" sound like, which are just slightly larger than normal firecrackers now. All I found was the torn open case, no more than 3 feet from the pot. Seeing what those rounds do, in a gun, to a watermelon, I would not have guessed it was one of those that got in

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[Baltimoreed]

Mythbusters tried that experiment too. Only if its in a handgun chamber or cylinder is an oven cooked off round dangerous of course that doesn’t take account of the extremely dangerous reaction of the Mrs when she ‘cooks off’....’you did WHAT to my oven!’. Keep your head down.

[nhyrum]

I don't remember who did the video, bit I remember watching a video where they set a whole semi trailer "full" of ammo on fire. With pieces of drywall set up, I believe 15 feet was determined to be the safe distance, and they had someone, in protective gear, stand there.

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[1006]

I had 10mm pop off while clearing a jam in my Delta Elite. The primer hit the ejector while I was racking the slide to clear it. I learned never to look into the ejection port while clearing a jam.

[Wayne Smith]

I don't remember who did the video, bit I remember watching a video where they set a whole semi trailer "full" of ammo on fire. With pieces of drywall set up, I believe 15 feet was determined to be the safe distance, and they had someone, in protective gear, stand there.

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That video was posted here somewhere. It was made by the ammo companies to circulate to fire departments to prove that a fire with ammo in it is not dangerous, especially to someone with protective gear.

[ReloaderFred]

That video was posted here somewhere. It was made by the ammo companies to circulate to fire departments to prove that a fire with ammo in it is not dangerous, especially to someone with protective gear.

It's right here: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?222635-Dispelling-Some-Myths-SAAMI-Video

I've found exploded rounds near old campfires in the past that looked like Kevin's round. I also had a .357 round fall off the top shelf in my shop and land just right on a piece of angle iron and go off at my feet. No damage, but I never found the primer.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[Hick]

I don't remember who did the video, bit I remember watching a video where they set a whole semi trailer "full" of ammo on fire. With pieces of drywall set up, I believe 15 feet was determined to be the safe distance, and they had someone, in protective gear, stand there.

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I believe it was a video produced by SAAMI-- saw it too. Very impressive!

[Land Owner]

https://i.postimg.cc/qR5M5SMY/FRONT.jpg

https://i.postimg.cc/0QBXKdcD/END.jpg

Here are two pictures of a 12 gauge shell from my son's shotgun that went off "semi-seated" in the chamber (action did not lockup due to an unforeseen broken part). This shell did not explode and discharged safely down the barrel, but the slamming open of the action was an eye opener! I do not understand the striations on the brass case that would have been in contact with the smooth chamber. Any ideas?

[Jedman]

ODD ? The only thing I can think of is the plastic case looks to have the same ribbed pattern and being the gas pressure pushed the shot load down the barrel and the shell case out of the chamber at the same time the pressure was reduced and didn’t expand the case head against the chamber as it normally would and just left the impression of the ribbed plastic tube on the brass ?

Jedman

[jmorris]

I did that experiment as a kid when I was stoking a campfire one morning, with a shirt pocket full of .22’s.

[TNsailorman]

In my 1963 NRA Illustrated Reloading Handbook, there is an article complete with picture s of several cartridges being cooked off and it shows how little the danger is of a serious accident from them. james

[Slugster]

I found the video to be extremely informative and mirrors my campfire cookoff (as a kid) with a pocketful of .22's. Have to admit to cringing when they said they destroyed over 400,000 rounds of ammo.

Question to ponder: Many folks store ammo in 30 & 50 caliber steel ammo cans, so what would the effect be on having cooked off rounds being contained in these cans?

[1hole]

Question to ponder: Many folks store ammo in 30 & 50 caliber steel ammo cans, so what would the effect be on having cooked off rounds being contained in these cans?

The story is that GI ammo boxes are designed to release pressure at a low level so it usually won't become much of a bomb. Given the very real hazards of fire in combat I accept that story as true.

[Winger Ed.]

The story is that GI ammo boxes are designed to release pressure at a low level so it usually won't become much of a bomb.

True. It has to do with the spring wire part of the latch failing before the steel can can burst/fragment.
Like throwing ammo in a camp fire- they don't all go off at once.
It'd be pretty exciting if you're close, but the ammo can will pop open and stay together.

Same with the seams on spray cans, they pop open to release their pressure without fragmenting.

[Winger Ed.]

I was drying several hundred rounds of .45ACP brass on a 9"x14" cookie sheet in the oven when I hurt a loud "pop" [/ATTACH]

I had a live .45ACP go off in the oven too. No big deal, but it was sort of startling.
After it happened the second time,,,,,, I was banned from all reloading activities in 'her' kitchen.:bigsmyl2:

Now all my case drying is confined to the shop or the picnic table on the patio.

[gwpercle]

I watched the Myth Busters cook off some different rounds on a hot plate .

You need to check your oven temperature and lower it while drying those cases ... a food dehydratoer will dry cases and it doesn't have to be 300 degrees to dry them...
The Myth Busters did one test with a lead bullet handgun round and the lead bullet was just starting to melt then the powder went off .

This is not Detonation ... this is cooking off a round with heat .

Why do you people keep putting live ammo in the oven ...can't tell loaded form live , no wife to supervise you ...use that old dehydrator , you don't make jerky any more and the wife wont care if you blow it up ! :smile:
Gary

[Walks]

This is another reason why I keep my brass/ammo in cartridge boxes. Instead of the pickle & peanut jars so many are using these days.
Regardless of size, be it 20, 50, 60 or 100 capacity boxes, I know those cases are empty and a "dud" if I have one doesn't go back in the box.
Case inspection was beaten into my head as a kid.

[M-Tecs]

What you guys never taped a marble to the base of a 12 gauge shell and threw it to a concrete surface? One of the guys I grew up with in a small town did it all the time. Same for hitting a 22LR in a vise with a hammer during shop class. I never did anything silly like wasting ammo in that manor. I was much more of filling balloons with a oxygen/acetylene and shooting them with a tracer type kid.

[Mk42gunner]

I've never yet set off a round in the oven, probably won't since I don't wet tumble.

I did however set off a 12 gauge shell with a riding lawnmower one time. Honestly, it was less exciting than when the pressure plate blew up and came through the steel floor in my 57 F-100.

I do wonder about it every time I get on my new mower though, somehow I don't think the plastic discharge chute cover is as safe as even a thin piece of steel.

Robert

[joatmon]

You guy's can't be tellin the truth!! I know it shoots right out! Didn't you'all ever watch Larry,Moe and Curly throw those rounds in the wood stove ?

Aaron (hehe)

[Gewehr-Guy]

So what happens with the marble and the shotshell ?

We used to pull a bullet from a 22 shell, and spill a small trail of powder leading to the primed case, and light it with a bic lighter. They would go a long way down the school hallway. Teachers made us quit that stunt

[2A-Jay]

I dry my tumbled Cases in my Food Dehydrator that I bought for just that purpose. I do all my reloading and casting in the garage/Man Cave.

[M-Tecs]

So what happens with the marble and the shotshell ?

We used to pull a bullet from a 22 shell, and spill a small trail of powder leading to the primed case, and light it with a bic lighter. They would go a long way down the school hallway. Teachers made us quit that stunt

If you can get the marble to hit first it will set the primer off. The case head would rupture but the front half the the shotshell moved very little. I haven't seen it done since the mid 70's and I always kept my distance but the kid doing it never got hurt.

[blackriver]

Hatchers notebook is a great read. Good section of him intentionally setting off many different calibers underneath a cardboard box.
Very interesting and educational.

[monkey wrangler]

We used to pull a bullet from a 22 shell, and spill a small trail of powder leading to the primed case, and light it with a bic lighter. They would go a long way down the school hallway. Teachers made us quit that stunt[/QUOTE]

I did that as kid too mom was not very happy about the experiment either.

A 22 also fits quite nice into drinking straw then throw the straw up and it will land on the primer end. Never thought about that one till later then did not have the nerve.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4FQgrU2fYk

[Lloyd Smale]

well ive got a story that flys in the face of some of that advice. I had my pole barn burn down. In it was probably a couple hunded thousand rounds of ammo. I was gone 45 minutes and came back to the fire dept and one partial wall still standing. Fire was so hot (Many Many lbs of powder primers ect) that the steal of the barn actually melted and my two 4 wheelers were melted globs of aluminum. That partial wall standing was FULL of holes. I mean hundreds. I found cooked off ammo 50 yards from the fire and even found cases on top of my house. Now for the most part im talking rifle rounds and a good many of them that went the furthest were wolf 762x39. But i learned that day that the old storys about the bullets staying next to the case arent allways the facts. Takes some velocity to push an empty case through pole barn steel and if will go through that my t shirt and skin are no problem. It is NOTHING TO PLAY WITH. Now you can believe the internet or go by your one time cooking off a light loaded 38 special but i actually saw what the real results can be and it made me nervous enough that when i built the new barn it had a dedicated loading room with 8 inch poured concrete walls. If it happens again im not risking the life of some firefighter or my familys.