What's your worst experiance reloading ?

[d-o-k]

We've all had one (or more ) Embaressing little mishaps whilst reloading share them here & who knows we may prevent somebody making our mistakes ?


Dave

[kg42]

One day my best buddy, a very talkative man, decides to shoot Blackpowder with me next time at the range.
We also agree that I will prepare the loads for his yet unfired Navy '51 so that he doesn't have to buy a pound of powder he will never use (he had gotten caps n balls with the gun).

On the shooting day at the range, I handle him the little tubes and after the crowd is done checking on our guns I coach him for the first cylinder which goes fine. Then I more or less mind my own stuff next line (did I mentioned we are good buddies and we like to chat and check on each other's targets?).

After a while, the shooting session being well advanced for me, said buddy finishes loading his third cylinder (did I mentioned they were a lot of people to chat with that day?).
He then proceeds to shoot it, which goes like boof! boof! boof! boof! BANG!... I couldn't tell the difference between that last sound and my 357, which was a surprise as I was pretty sure he was still on that '51 Navy...
As a matter of fact he was holding that gun and looked quite surprised with an interrogative look toward me.

Well that WAS embarrassing as I had provided the loads. So we went through what could have gone wrong... His first explanation being that i had mixed the tubes for the two guns...

"Noohh...! Mines have a different color and anyways you can't put 30grs of Blackpowder in a single '51 Navy's chamber; are you sure you didn't load two balls in that chamber...?"

"No, no, YOU must have inadvertently loaded one tube with H110 or something like that.........!"

So in short we didn't agree on the answer as I was quite sure I had double checked his stuff and he was almost quite sure of his loading procedure (and a bit shaken); but I still felt bad despite perfectly remembering him blabbering and loading at the same time.
My take of the story is that talking and loading don't go together. Black powder guns always bring attention on the range and you need extra concentration to use them. It can help to prepare just enough components for your immediate need: five loads and five balls in that case.

-----------------------------
An other one for the road; have you heard of that guy who loaded 300 rounds of pistol ammo on a progressive press with upside down primers? I'm glad I wasn't watching TV with him the following week because that's when he pulled them out with a kinetic hammer .

kg

[Cynical]

LOL
300 rounds ?
I usually quit after 3 or 4

[Baldy]

Well now if I am honest I did the same thing, but I caught mine a little sooner than him. I'd say between 15 and 20 rounds. I also forgot to put the crimp die in my SDB Dillon one time. After that I bought a gauge and everything I load for our 1911/.45s goes through it. I have had 2 .38s with no powder. Yep I have made some mistakes.

[d-o-k]

300????? That's got to be a Ouch ! One that will never leave my mind (or my Mother's for that matter ) Was when I was about 15-16 (a life time ago ) I was given a Lee shot gun reloading kit ! Now my Father who is a great man ,with a eye for Murphys law ! Warned me load one round at a time ! Of course i did'nt see any reason to do this & would prepare 25 shells at a time & then crimp them ! I was doing this in my bedroom of all places on a small table ! I had 25 shells full of 10 shot & was getting ready to crimp em when my Mother came in unanounced to see what I was doing ! I turned to see what she wanted & yes Murphys law took over ! I knocked the lot over ! Yep 25 rnds of 1 1/8 loads of 10 shot ,all over the floor !

Dave

[kodiak1]

Many many years ago I didn't have the tools to reload 410 shotgun so I just made a few home made ones. Knocked out the primers and reprimed about 100 Winchester Hulls and went on to do some Imperials that I had about 40 of them.
Well I got all the primers knocked out and was putting the new primers in.
I had a bolt about 3/8" X 6" long that I had drilled the end out that a 209 primer would fit up in. I would start by hand starting the primer then set the primer and hull on a flat piece of steel insert the bolt and tap and the primer would set right in, well on the winchesters but the head of an Imperial 410 shot shell is thinner than that of a Win about two taps and BANG Scared the ever livin Crap out of myself and two of my kids that were down stairs playing.
Down comes the wife with the 400 questions of what are you doing are you okay are you hurt are the kids hurt what are you doing are you okay are you hurt are th kids hurt? If you have ever made a big bang in the basement you know the drill.
That is in all honesty the only screw up reloading I have had. Man I have pulled some lulu's doing other things though.

Ken.

[Bullshop Junior]

Just shows why I check them after I load them. I think my worst was having my powder measurer running out less then half way through a box of 50 223, but I am not going to give you too msny details, but just to you I was glad I had just bought a bullet puller.
DANIEL/BS JR.

[d-o-k]

Man I have pulled some lulu's doing other things though.

Ken ! trust me your no Robinson Caruso ,in that deptment !

Dan ! Where would we be without bullet pullers ????

Dave

[versifier]

One of my hunting buddies dropped off two boxes of fired .257Roberts cases yesterday as he was down to one magful for deer hunting, so I set up quickly to crank them out for him. I charged the cases and was lifting the first one from the loading block when I noticed a little line of powder flakes between block and press. My daughter looks up with a big smile and says, "But Daddy, they won't work very well without primers, will they?"

[Baldy]

Ouch! Versifier I know that one hurt.