As a general rule I don't shoot other people's reloads.  Today I was testing a new SAA-type revolver at Koko Head.  My 19 year old .45 Colt loads shot OK (255 gr swc over 8.1 grains Unique).  I brought along some reloads a friend gave me when he moved to the mainland--250 gr. swc over 6 grains of Trailboss and sure enough the 12th round (more or less) was a squib.

The primer blew the bullet into the forcing cone and tied up the gun.  A few whacks with the RO's range rod and hammer jammed the bullet back into the case and I was able to clear the gun then put it away.  Guy then showed me a pic of a S&W 1917 that blew up this past Thursday.  A bullet stuck in the barrel and the next round split open the barrel about 2" from the muzzle.  Unfortunately a shooter next to the 1917 caught a bit of shrapnel in his upper left arm and lost a little blood.

I hope that the firearms "trainers" who use KHSC brief their students about the possibility of squib rounds and the danger they present--it's bad enough to have to put up with newbie gun handling.

If I see Guy again next week I'll try to remember to get a copy of that picture to post here.

As a general rule I don't shoot other people's reloads.  Today I was testing a new SAA-type revolver at Koko Head.  My 19 year old .45 Colt loads shot OK (255 gr swc over 8.1 grains Unique).  I brought along some reloads a friend gave me when he moved to the mainland--250 gr. swc over 6 grains of Trailboss and sure enough the 12th round (more or less) was a squib.

The primer blew the bullet into the forcing cone and tied up the gun.  A few whacks with the RO's range rod and hammer jammed the bullet back into the case and I was able to clear the gun then put it away.  Guy then showed me a pic of a S&W 1917 that blew up this past Thursday.  A bullet stuck in the barrel and the next round split open the barrel about 2" from the muzzle.  Unfortunately a shooter next to the 1917 caught a bit of shrapnel in his upper left arm and lost a little blood.

I hope that the firearms "trainers" who use KHSC brief their students about the possibility of squib rounds and the danger they present--it's bad enough to have to put up with newbie gun handling.

If I see Guy again next week I'll try to remember to get a copy of that picture to post here.

Just out of curiosity was there powder in the squib cartridge? Trail Boss is known as one of the easier powders to ignite.

I don't think so--I heard the pop from the primer and there was a bit of smoke that came out but the bullet only made it into the forcing cone.  I had to pound it back into the case to be able to free up the cylinder and remove the cartridge.  I don't know why but I gave it to the RO.  At the time I wasn't thinking about posting it on 2a so no pic.

As a general rule I don't shoot other people's reloads.  Today I was testing a new SAA-type revolver at Koko Head.  My 19 year old .45 Colt loads shot OK (255 gr swc over 8.1 grains Unique).  I brought along some reloads a friend gave me when he moved to the mainland--250 gr. swc over 6 grains of Trailboss and sure enough the 12th round (more or less) was a squib.

The primer blew the bullet into the forcing cone and tied up the gun.  A few whacks with the RO's range rod and hammer jammed the bullet back into the case and I was able to clear the gun then put it away.  Guy then showed me a pic of a S&W 1917 that blew up this past Thursday.  A bullet stuck in the barrel and the next round split open the barrel about 2" from the muzzle.  Unfortunately a shooter next to the 1917 caught a bit of shrapnel in his upper left arm and lost a little blood.

I hope that the firearms "trainers" who use KHSC brief their students about the possibility of squib rounds and the danger they present--it's bad enough to have to put up with newbie gun handling.

If I see Guy again next week I'll try to remember to get a copy of that picture to post here.

good info about squib loads
very dangerous when its not recognized

I don't think so--I heard the pop from the primer and there was a bit of smoke that came out but the bullet only made it into the forcing cone.  I had to pound it back into the case to be able to free up the cylinder and remove the cartridge.  I don't know why but I gave it to the RO.  At the time I wasn't thinking about posting it on 2a so no pic.

I would have to think then that there was little to no powder (most likely) or contaminated powder. If there was normal amount of powder in the case that didn’t ignite you would have seen it all over inside the chamber and barrel and probably all around the forcing cone, and every where else. And Trail Boss has a very unique look to it. It looks like little doughnuts. So unless you noticed unburned powder every where I would think it contained little to no powder at all. Thanks!

No powder.  As I mentioned, the bullet probably got stuck in the forcing cone and I had to drive it back into the case with the range rod.  The really dangerous part is that if a shooter doesn't recognize the squib, a following shot could burst the gun and shrapnel could fly anywhere/everywhere.

About 2 years ago a guy had a S&W 500 about 8 stations down from me.  His gun was shaving jacket metal and I got hit in the leg by a piece--it drew blood but it was quickly staunched.  I found out later that he had to send the gun back to S&W for a new barrel.  I'm just glad that no one was blinded--not hard to imagine with a gun that spits.

 I would guess that most new shooters don't know about squibs or revolvers that spit. so I'm usually very cautious around them.

No powder.  As I mentioned, the bullet probably got stuck in the forcing cone and I had to drive it back into the case with the range rod.  The really dangerous part is that if a shooter doesn't recognize the squib, a following shot could burst the gun and shrapnel could fly anywhere/everywhere.

About 2 years ago a guy had a S&W 500 about 8 stations down from me.  His gun was shaving jacket metal and I got hit in the leg by a piece--it drew blood but it was quickly staunched.  I found out later that he had to send the gun back to S&W for a new barrel.  I'm just glad that no one was blinded--not hard to imagine with a gun that spits.

 I would guess that most new shooters don't know about squibs or revolvers that spit. so I'm usually very cautious around them.

did the cylinder rotate?

No powder.  As I mentioned, the bullet probably got stuck in the forcing cone and I had to drive it back into the case with the range rod.  The really dangerous part is that if a shooter doesn't recognize the squib, a following shot could burst the gun and shrapnel could fly anywhere/everywhere.

About 2 years ago a guy had a S&W 500 about 8 stations down from me.  His gun was shaving jacket metal and I got hit in the leg by a piece--it drew blood but it was quickly staunched.  I found out later that he had to send the gun back to S&W for a new barrel.  I'm just glad that no one was blinded--not hard to imagine with a gun that spits.

 I would guess that most new shooters don't know about squibs or revolvers that spit. so I'm usually very cautious around them.

When I started reading the part about the S&W 500 my first thought was that you were going to say it blew up! 😂 I have a S&W 627 and the first lead boolits I loaded for it I didn’t know what I was doing and it spit lead pretty bad. It was purely my fault. Most of my reloading life I have almost always had access to cheap FMJ and JHP bullets as I lived 20-25 minutes from the Sierra factory in Santa Fe Springs, CA. Once a week they opened up their store and sold blems and seconds by the pound. The factory is no longer there but I lived off my stash of bullets for many many years. After I moved to Hawaii I tried loading lead in my 357 and the boolits I bought were too soft and I drove them too hard. The spitting was pretty bad. And accuracy was terrible. I went back to jacketed from Montana Gold Bullets for a while until I figured out what I was doing wrong. Eventually I figured it out and like Stang I load a lot of lead. And one of my fav loads in 357 are hard cast SWC or RNFP that are powder coated. Now I load for almost all my pistols except hot magnum loads. I even load lead for most of my military rifles. I just don’t push them hard. Now I cast my own.

I have been hit by shrapnel from revolvers before. Never hurt other than being small cuts. Lucky I guess. Though I was almost hit by a piece of a friend’s revolver when he blew it up. I saw it go right past within a few inches of my face.

did the cylinder rotate?

uhh...no--that's how I knew the bullet was stuck in the forcing cone.

I have been hit by shrapnel from revolvers before. Never hurt other than being small cuts. Lucky I guess. Though I was almost hit by a piece of a friend’s revolver when he blew it up. I saw it go right past within a few inches of my face.
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even a small bit of shrapnel can blind you--always wear eye protection!

uhh...no--that's how I knew the bullet was stuck in the forcing cone.

"The really dangerous part is that if a shooter doesn't recognize the squib, a following shot could burst the gun and shrapnel could fly anywhere/everywhere."

OK Mac, I guess I see the point you were trying to make.  I knew it was a squib because of the little "pop" noise and the fact that I couldn't advance the cylinder to the next round.  Had the cylinder turned however, I still would have stopped and checked the bore for a squib. 

A less experienced shooter may have pulled the trigger on the next round (or two or three) if the bullet had lodged further down the bore--the forums are full of threads/pictures of multiple bullets stuck in barrels.  I also believe that some with he "run and gun" mentality would treat a squib as a dud or an FTE, chamber a new round and possibly blow up their gun with the next shot.

BTW, this squib was maybe the second reloaded one I've experienced (and this one came from someone else's reloaded ammo).  Two others were with FACTORY rounds--one was from a .38 Blazer promotional pack when Blazer first came out in the mid-80s.  The primer failed to ignite and the round looked all the world like a dummy cartridge.  The other was a .38 factory wadcutter--I ended up ringing/bulging my barrel on that one.

i had 1 squib load bc some crushed walnut was stuck inside the bottom of the brass so the powder did not fully ignite
bullet was stuck up in the barrel, but i did recognize the pffft sound and felt the absence of recoil so i knew it was a squib load
i shined a light through the barrel from the back and no light came out the front so i knew the bullet was stuck in the barrel.
if i did squeeze the trigger again would've been a catastrophic failure
i left the gun how it was so i could take it home and inspect it.  thats when i saw the walnut stuck in the brass with the powder still there
that's what lead me to start cleaning with the ultrasonic cleaner. no media to get stuck inside
i still use the vibrating tumbler but i make sure i inspect inside the brass and double check it