Reloading Kaboom Yesterday - Please Learn From This

[froglives]

Glad you are ok, and thank you for sharing, you can never have to much information when it comes to safety.
I have to say though I have been in the market for a re loader for a while. The fact that Dillon talked to you after you informed them of the accident floors me in today's litigious society. The simple fact that they did that, and showed more concern for you then there bottom line made my decision for equipment easy.

[SID45]

If you still want to reload, check out the RCBS APS priming system, its on a strip and its not stacked on to of each other, so if it blows, only one would blow. I hope your hand is better, its been 3 years now right?

[grant22]

Um, no. It's been 4 months.

And to one of the above posters, I'm sorry to say, but dillon was very hands off and was not concerned in the least. They're not willing to redesign the pickup tube nor issue a warning in with the instructions.

In this litigious society, I'd say they were very typical.

[chris_m90731]

Holy crap. Thanks for the heads up, I'm about to start reloading myself.

[SID45]

I use the rcbs pro 2000 with the aps priming system, its very good, no problems with it. check it out at rcbs.com

[HKMadness]

Always a good idea to be reminded of the potential dangers of our hobby.

In my case, full face shield every time I handle primers, no exceptions. Glad you turned out OK.

I've been known to wear a faceshield over safety glasses

[tchostler]

I have been looking for a steel tube to sleeve the ppt, but haven't found one as yet. However, in the mean time I have sleeved the tube with a piece of high pressure rubber spray tube. Should prevent a rupture should a detonation occur.
tc

[fguffey]

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Froglives said:

Glad you are ok, and thank you for sharing, you can never have to much information when it comes to safety.
I have to say though I have been in the market for a re loader for a while. The fact that Dillon talked to you after you informed them of the accident floors me in today's litigious society. The simple fact that they did that, and showed more concern for you then there bottom line made my decision for equipment easy.


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Grant22 said:

Um, no. It's been 4 months.

And to one of the above posters, I'm sorry to say, but dillon was very hands off and was not concerned in the least. They're not willing to redesign the pickup tube nor issue a warning in with the instructions.

In this litigious society, I'd say they were very typical.
__________________
Reloaders: Stay safe, even the things you don't see may bite you. Read more here: http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...d.php?t=495909

[grant22]

All very interesting. And why would a person bend a primer tube full of primers? Also, there is soot at the top of my low primer alarm, so how and why would I have folded my tube in half while placed on top of my alarm/primer magazine?

Also, I'd like to be clear on this again: I do not think Dillon caused a catastrophe here, I simply think they had a real world R&D incident occur that they can also learn from and minimally change their design/literature, and they simply chose not to. When I asked them why, their reason was even more weak.

All I've stated to this point are the facts. Nothing more, nothing less. I understand everyone needs to be objective here, but deliberately folding a tube in half with primers? Seriously dude?

[scarville]

I'm glad your injuries are relatively minor.

Static electricity is not a big problem hereabouts but when I load the primer magazine on my Dillon, I am careful to ground myself to the frame as I position the tube but before I pull the pin. I keep that contact until the primers have finished dropping. I also wear safety glasses religiously but that is a habit from my years of working around high speed milling machines and lathes in my misspent youth.

[fguffey]

Why would someone bend the primer tube? I said when handling a tube full of primers do not drop it, I said if a reloader should drop a primer tube full of primers do not grab or reach for it, reaching for it could fold the tube, and I said when the tube folds primers in the tube at the fold will be crushed, crushing the primers in the tube pins/locks the primers, and in my opinion there is enough energy in the primer to open the side of the tube, and if your hand is at the fold and there is more than one primer at the fold it is possible all the primers involved did not go off at one time.

Meaning I am more concerned about a reloader grabbing for a dropped primer tube than I am about static electricity. Again, electricity will travel the tube.

F. Guffey

[SmokingSam]

Glad you are healed well and thx for sharing.

I have two theories about this: just before you placed the tube on the 550 and while wearing rubber shoes, you may have been charged with ESD (Electrostatic charge Discharge) particles and your dillon machine was at what is called ground level, ie zero ESD. As you placed the primer tube on the 550, its plastic head still acted as an insulator, BUT, as you tried to pull the pin, you touched the machine's metal parts and now the Negative Electron charge on you discharged into the dillon and caused the spark to ignite the primers. The problem is that you had to be charged by over 8000 volts and while it is very possible to happen in our environment it is not that easy to do unless you are in a low 30% humidity and many other factors have to play in. Also, if you had ESD on you, it may have discharged while you were filling the primers. Again, all is possible, I have done ESD testing for years while designing Cisco computers and the variables are huge to cause ESD and to discharge it!

So as a precaution, before you place the primer's tube on the machine, touch the press with your free hand. This will discharge any ESD on you and will make you, the primer's tube and the press at the same ESD potential voltage level (ie "0") and there will be no discharge. Also, bare feet on non carpeted floors will keep you basically discharged. Connecting the press to ground level is OK too, but make sure that electric power is not close to the press just in case there is a short circuit. A grounded press, a human body and a short electrical circuit is a bad combo!


The other theory I have is that one of the primer's charge was faulty and primer's material was sticking out of its brass cup and/or two primers were facing each other at the charged end, and as the pin was removed, they rubbed against each other and caused ignition.

Dillon will not do anything about it, they have thousands of units out there and it costs too much to redesign anything for such a low incident case.

I am just starting to reload my self, and I hope to learn from this and I will be extra careful re: ESD since it is winter now and the humidity is low...

[AEC1]

This is one reason why I still like my red machine. It is not as expensive or flashy, but it is inherently safer then the dillion design. I have seen 5-6 primer tube booms posted here in the 3-4 years I have been a member....

[fguffey]

[SmokingSam]

"my other theory" was made thinking the primers ignited inside the tube due to faulty quality control/manufacturing when the tube was moved to be put on the press..

The ESD theory is based on the operator and the primer's tube who was wearing rubber shoes was negatively charged as he moved around the shop (at negative potential). The press was at a stable ground level, ie zero potential, as he touched the press, now the electrons will discharge and spark over to equalize the voltage potential thru the press.