Black Powder Accident #2

[Dphariss]

Had they pulled the breech they likely would have found a mass of fouling in the breech or fouling trap that held a spark/hot spot.
I am trying to figure how powder remained unburned in the barrel after firing.
Don't take much heat to set off BP and the inside of the barrel has a lot of heat present when the powder ignites.
I think he put powder in the barrel and it hit a hot spot and he got his face burnt. Has nothing to do with blowing. Had he been blowing in the barrel most of the damage would be someplace other than his eyebrows.
I could more easily believe he dropped a charge in the barrel and it landed on a hot spot and ignited.
Or he dropped the powder then tried to blow through it.
Believing what the victim says after something like this is often a mistake. IMO he screwed up and probably does not know what he actually did.
The only instances I have seen published concerning this showed heavy fouling in the breech that sheltered a hot spot. The shooter put to powder in and the gun fired as the projectile was being rammed.

Dan
Dan

[Daryl]

Had they pulled the breech they likely would have found a mass of fouling in the breech or fouling trap that held a spark/hot spot.
I am trying to figure how powder remained unburned in the barrel after firing.
Don't take much heat to set off BP and the inside of the barrel has a lot of heat present when the powder ignites.
I think he put powder in the barrel and it hit a hot spot and he got his face burnt. Has nothing to do with blowing. Had he been blowing in the barrel most of the damage would be someplace other than his eyebrows.
I could more easily believe he dropped a charge in the barrel and it landed on a hot spot and ignited.
Or he dropped the powder then tried to blow through it.
Believing what the victim says after something like this is often a mistake. IMO he screwed up and probably does not know what he actually did.
The only instances I have seen published concerning this showed heavy fouling in the breech that sheltered a hot spot. The shooter put to powder in and the gun fired as the projectile was being rammed.


Dan

While shooting yesterday, I mentioned this thread to Taylor about the 'residual fresh powder' left in the barrel after the rifle was fired - we had a chuckle over that - again. Sort of like the guy, years ago, who told me he got 2 firings out of CCI 250 mag. primers in his .300 mag. reloads and with RWS pimers, he'd get 3 firings per primer. He got really mad when we were rolling on the floor.

[northmn]

You can chuckle at it all you want but it happened on a firing line witnessed by several people and was the cause of a new range rule.    As I recall it is now not considered proper to blow down a bore at Friendshp or any major matches.  It does not sound like a full charge hit him in the face.  If you do not want to believe it that is your right I guess, but it did happen.

DP

[roundball]

"...I wonder about some of you who say they shoot 50 times without swabbing...I wish y'all no harm and good luck! ..."

 

My experience has been using Goex 3F and my lubes is that their just isn't anything left in the bore to speak of...and on the occasion I do run a wet patch down bore it comes out with not much more than a dark trace of color even after many shots...certainly doesn;t drag out "fouling" material.  And remember too...my range plinking is usually only 40-50grns of 3F...not hunting loads in the 90-110grn range.

Now this morning, I just ran 25 deer hunting loads through the new .58cal Virginia and I intentionally wiped between shots doing that...but it was really to ensure a reasonably clean/consistent bore condition because I was experimenting with POI changes using 90 then 80 then 70grns of 3F with the same sight picture.

[Dphariss]

You can chuckle at it all you want but it happened on a firing line witnessed by several people and was the cause of a new range rule.    As I recall it is now not considered proper to blow down a bore at Friendshp or any major matches.  It does not sound like a full charge hit him in the face.  If you do not want to believe it that is your right I guess, but it did happen.

DP

They were carefully observing every move he made? Never glanced away etc etc. This would not stand cross examination since people at matches just don't look that close. If they were distracted for 5 seconds he could have poured powder in the barrel.
Had he been blowing in the barrel when if fired he would not have singed his eyebrows.
He screwed up in some way. The incidents of this type that are really examined show that the breech is heavily fouled and trapped a hot spot. Powder was then dumped in and ignited at some point in the loading cycle. Of the 2 I knew of previous to this post one was on the trap range and the other on the pistol range when I was in my teens IIRC. This guy got the loading rod and ball through his wrist.
Powder does not fire twice. It just not going to happen. Then we have enough powder present to singe eyebrows etc. This would mean the load he just shot was a squib since a sigificant portion of the powder did not burn. Did the witnesses/victim report a abnormal shot??

Dan

[Dphariss]

People do really dumb stuff sometimes. A well known gunsmith/lockmaker/barrel maker was badly burnt when he sparked a lock too close to a pile of loose powder.
I walked down the hall into one of the modules at the housing at NRA Whittington years back to see a guy loading cartridges at the kitchen counter with an open can of powder etc with a cigarette in his mouth.
I pointed out this was really dangerous and he went into some explanation as I evacuated back the way I came.
Another friend followed me out he had been visiting, shooting the bull and did not even notice.
The perpetrator later apologised for the smart remark realizing he was doing something REALLY dumb.

Dan