Savage Kaboom at Angeles

[kendog4570]

Using Accurate No 7 instead of Relodr 7 will do this. 23.5 grains in a 7.62X39 will do exactly what you see has happened to the Axis.
This I KNOW.

[thegiff]

The brass is there, spread all over the bolt!

[Fjold]

Savage makes one of the strongest commercial actions, it takes a lot to grenade one like that. A simple case rupture/separation will not do it.

The only Savage failure that I've seen detonate the front ring of the action similarly was when a guy chambered a 308 cartridge in his 270 Win rifle. The case head fit the bolt and on chambering, the 308 bullet seated against the shoulder/neck of the 270 chamber (the 270 case is 1/2" longer than the 308 case). Upon firing, the .308 bullet swaged down to .277 diameter and actually hit the target about 2 feet low at 100 yards. But, the action failed at the front ring, the stock exploded and the scope took off vertically.

[sigstroker]

Wow. That's what scares me somewhat about owning 5.56 and .300 Blackout AR's. I think somebody should create a .338 Blackout using the 6.5 Grendel case. It should hopefully get 1000 fps with 270 gr bullets, and be so crappy with supers that nobody would use it that way. That case is so much bigger in diameter than a 5.56 it shouldn't get anywhere near closing the bolt on a 5.56 chamber.

But not me, I don't wildcat.

[golfish]

Welp, there's your sign that this guy had no business handloading. Pistol rounds I could see just working up a pet load and then batching them out into bulk storage... but rifle rounds? No. You carefully document and label everything that you've got.

So, to be clear, I'm not saying that this rifle asploded because the guy couldn't remember what load it was; I'm saying that the fact he couldn't remember what load it was demonstrates that he is an inattentive reloader and that he's bound to make more serious mistakes than just forgetting to write down his load data.

End of the day: User error. Nothing to see here.

It could be that the guy was so shook up he just didn't care to remember.

[stormvet]

Darn for lack of a better word, that was Savage!

[Ki6vsm]

It could be that the guy was so shook up he just didn't care to remember.

Still though. The fact that he didn't seem to have documented it. Hadn't labeled the data on the container. And if the guy was a new reloader, he should have been starting with workups, and those had darned well better be ID'd thoroughly.

I know some people who bring their reloads to the range in a ziploc baggie instead of a nice little box. But they still throw in a post-it or scratch sheet with the vital info on it.

[JackEllis]

I know some people who bring their reloads to the range in a ziploc baggie instead of a nice little box. But they still throw in a post-it or scratch sheet with the vital info on it.

When I do this it's with test loads. The load data is marked on a slip of paper that goes in the baggie. All of my hand loads are in boxes that have a label on the outside with the date, power and charge, OAL, primer and bullet.

I've learned that reloading is pretty safe and it's not terribly difficult, but you do have to pay attention.

[Rogerbutthead]

So, what were the results of taking apart the unfired reloaded rounds?

Pretty sure anyone with half a brain won't be firing them.

[beerman]

Back in the 80s I witnessed my brother have a similar kaboom while sighting in anWeatherby MKV. He took it back to Weatherby. Roy W asked if he was shooting reloads and when my brother said yes, Roy told him to pound sand. Rifle and scope were complete loss as was the shooting bench, his glasses. Took a few
Stitches to the face. This was a rifle malfunction ( said Roy) which was not real uncommon to the early, German MK Vs. But because it was reloads, Weatherby had a legal out.