Wtf happened yesterday?

[HKMadness]

Took my 2.75" ruger police six .357 wheel gun out yesterday, was shooting some 158gn Molly bear creek lswc's on mixed brass with 5.5gn of BE. I took about 150+ rounds and towards the end, had one that felt hotter than all the rest. I stopped immediately with one live round left to clear the weapon, it took some force to slide out the cylinder and the ejector wouldn't work. I unloaded all the other 5 cylinders except the one that obviously was jammed in there. Forced it Out with a rod, and noticed it had a line around the circumference of the case, near the base that was crowned all around, and was evidently the point where the case was wedged. I thought "over pressure/over charge", inspected the gun thoroughly and all looked fantastic, no visible cracks or damage, she was just a dirty little whore fired the last 20 rounds flawlessly as before.

Wachoo think? With my setup, an overcharge is a double charge, unlikely to be a 1.5 charge (lee pro 1000 with disk). Maybe she was too dirty in the cylinder or barrel thus causing a pressure spike? What would a double charge (11grains) of be done to this steel framed gun? I think I would've at least had some broken parts or more case damage. Thoughts?

[24Sailor]

Was all your brass the same length when you crimped.....If one was too long and you squashed it just enough to deform the case walls ...but not enough to keep from chambering....that may be the culprit. Otherwise check your dispenser for continuous accuracy....Then again you were using BE.....you can almost put three charges of that stuff in a case

[HKMadness]

It was mixed brass and I think you may be right about the length. I was always anal about length with bottleneck rifle cases (as you should be), not so much w straight pistol. The bulge/crown/wedge resembled a slightly squashed case perfectly now that you point it out. No issues chambering like you said, your suggested answer does line up with the evidence. Thanks. Im convinced you nailed it.

[Bill Steele]

I have never used one but from what I know about how they work, I would think it pretty hard to do a double charge on a Pro 1000. Plus, I think a double at that level would have been a KB, not a "hot round".

Having loaded a lot with Lee Auto Disks in the past, I have found them to be as reliable as a powder drop can be and wehn they don't work it is always less to zero not too much powder.

I had a similar thing happen a long time ago with my Model 29 loading #9. I knew it wasn't a double charge but I also knew something really hot happened, something in the twilight zone, not a KB but close. Never did figure it out.

[HKMadness]

[bruceflinch]

I've never measured pistol brass. If the round fits in the case gauge, I shoot it. Usually they don't gauge for some reason beside OAL. Maybe 5 out of 100 using multi loaded range brass.

[Fishslayer]

I think 11gr of BE under a 158gr pill would have had you diggin' yer top strap out of the ceiling.

But it's a Ruger. It mighta just asked "Is that all ya got?"

[HKMadness]

Ha ha. Overall, it's a little battle tank. That top strap is the weakest part though.

[24Sailor]

I had a similar thing happen a long time ago with my Model 29 loading #9. I knew it wasn't a double charge but I also knew something really hot happened, something in the twilight zone, not a KB but close. Never did figure it out.

Funny you bring this up. I bought some on sale Ultramax bulk boxed 44 mag. from Cabelas a few years back. Finally dug it out of storage a few months ago. Got out my Model 29 and went out to shoot a few. Bang bang bang BANG click......hmmm. still had 2 live ones in the cylinder. Well everything looked ok so I fired the last 2, ejected the brass and reloaded. Happened again on the first shot BANG, click. Five live rounds w/o a firing pin dent on #2.

I found the production lot # in the box and called Ultramax (they keep good records). The tech I talked to said the cartridges I had were loaded with #9 which they quit using several years ago for this very reason. He said they experienced weird incidences of occasional HOT ONES when testing which they couldn't explain. Coincidently their test firearms include Model 29's. I asked him if they were safe to shoot and he said yes, but expect occasional inconsistent pressures but nothing will be off the scale. Apparently this was just the nature of #9 in a 44 mag. cartridge back then. I have since replaced the cylinder lock lug spring with a heavier one to prevent the cylinder from releasing and backing up under recoil. And now I flinch whenever I shoot the the Ultramax loads.

[Bill Steele]

Funny you bring this up. I bought some on sale Ultramax bulk boxed 44 mag. from Cabelas a few years back. Finally dug it out of storage a few months ago. Got out my Model 29 and went out to shoot a few. Bang bang bang BANG click......hmmm. still had 2 live ones in the cylinder. Well everything looked ok so I fired the last 2, ejected the brass and reloaded. Happened again on the first shot BANG, click. Five live rounds w/o a firing pin dent on #2.

I found the production lot # in the box and called Ultramax (they keep good records). The tech I talked to said the cartridges I had were loaded with #9 which they quit using several years ago for this very reason. He said they experienced weird incidences of occasional HOT ONES when testing which they couldn't explain. Coincidently their test firearms include Model 29's. I asked him if they were safe to shoot and he said yes, but expect occasional inconsistent pressures but nothing will be off the scale. Apparently this was just the nature of #9 in a 44 mag. cartridge back then. I have since replaced the cylinder lock lug spring with a heavier one to prevent the cylinder from releasing and backing up under recoil. And now I flinch whenever I shoot the the Ultramax loads.

Thanks for the insight. I load a lot of number 9, for my .44's and also now for my 10mm. I have always loved it as it seems to be one of the best magnum powders I can take it right up there to H110 levels but back it down to 1000fps for these old hands. The best loads I have chronographed in .44 have always seem to deliver low SD's.

I am about to Chrony a bunch of different 10mm loads using #9, it will be interesting to see how the SD's turn out.

Sorry for the hijack.