Messed up Big Time #2

[Ron S]

As some of you know I accidently shot the ram rod out of my Savage. I sent it in and they promptly replaced the barrel for me(great service). I was shooting the gun last weekend,and had the misfortune of buldging(or swelling) the barrel again! Upon firing the gun I expericenced Horendous recoil,and recieved a cut from the scope over my right eye! I couldn't believe what had just happened! I had used one vial of premeasured powder(N110 42grs),One T/C Shock Wave 250gr. bullet,and one MMP HPH-24sabot. Pressed the ram rod down to the witness mark seating the load. What I have now found out is,the ram rod/bullet seater attachment,which was knurled was .458 inches in diamenter. When I seated the bullet with around 40lbs. pressure I drove the seater between the bullet,and the sabot like a wedge effect, Sort of like sticking your finger in The O'l Orental finger hand cuffs. When I pulled the ram rod out of the barrel,it had pressed itself so tight inside of the sabot that it pulled the sabot/bullet off the powder charge! The reason this accident happened was,1. I was shooting a short bullet(250 Shock Wave) in a long Sabot(MMP HPH-24) 2. I was using a bullet seater attachment that was.458 inches with a .452 bullet. It actually grabbed the Sabot tighter than the bullet did. I guess there is a reason for everything! This taught me a lesson about using a sabot with long petals protruding past the ogive of the bullet. Also if I had taken the time to check the diamenter of the bullet seater,I would have known it was larger than the bullet,(this will work as long as the sabot petals aren't longer than the ogive on the bullet. If it can't get inside the sabot,it can't pull it off the charge! Also you will see in the following pictures,that the amount of pressure is very high,per square inch while seating a load at 40lbs. pressure on the ram rod. It actually crushed the seater down to .440 inches,and this is brass! I hope this mistake will help prevent anyone from having this happen to them. Some say that not having a sabot/bullet seated on a powder charge,won't cause this. Some say it will! I'm not willing to try this again to find out! Maybe those thinking the bullet not being seated on the charge will cause this to happen! I wouldn't hold the gun in MY hands with the bullet/sabot not on the powder charge trying to prove,or dissaprove that point. Like the old saying(BEEN THERE,DONE THAT) once,and that was plenty! Ron :?

 

[Nic_58]

:d'oh!: Wow Ron, you're sure having a seige of bad luck that's for sure! You oughtta try some Harvester short black sabots with those Shockwaves next time, they shoot great and the petals are shorter so that couldn't have happened with them.

 

[SW]

Ron,
If you need the long term loan of an excellent blued barrel, let me know and I'll ship it ASAP.

 

[dwhunter]

The problem I see is not long petals of the sabot but the bullet seater your using. This is the same type seater in my opinion that is to large and can damage the bore. Try the XSsights power rod tip, it was made for bullets like the SST and is the diameter of the ramrod instead of bore size.

 

[doggzoe]

Sorry to hear about your mishap ,and hope things turn around quickly for you again.
Ron just curious but could you post a picture of the bulged barrel?
Kind of would like to see where the bulging occurs. How bad and the like.
Was the rod tough to pull up on when removing it from the barrel? By the look of your bullet seater,I have the same kind. If I continue to use mine with long petals and short bullets I think I will start trimming my sabots.

_______________
Don

 

[Savage Shooter]

The very reason I use a .45 cal loading jag and trim sabots.

 

[Ron S]

Don,the barrel looks ok. You really can't see the bludge,but you can feel it when pushing a sabot/bullet down the bore. SW thanks for the offer! I really appreciate it,but I'm going to send the gun in again shortly! :lol: A friend of mine just came over,and had the same tip he used on his Omega,after explaining what happened to me,he removed the tip and threw it in the trash can! If I had used this tip,this would have never happened it is .440 in diamenter and non knurled. I have to say once again,the Savage saved my butt! Being built like a tank,has it's advantages! Notice how the right tip almost matches the factory ram rod end perfectly. Ron

 

[black3]

Amen on trimming the sabots! I'm glad you are all right, and thanks for bringing this to everyone's attention.

black3

 

[Ron S]

black3,your welcome! If it keeps one person from being hurt,it is worth it. It could have been a real ugly mess because of two small oversites,1 too long sabot,and 2 the wrong(oversize bullet seater). Ron

 

[Nic_58]

I believe trimming sabots is just another unnecessary step IMO. Like Darrell said above, just use the proper seating jag like the XS Powerrod tip or one of the excellent nylon jags that come packaged with PR Bullets (which are the ones I use on my rangerod and short starter). Or just use a short MMP or Harvester sabot if either will shoot for you. There just doesn't seem to be a need to sit and trim sabots with a toenail clipper, at least for me!

 

[Doohan]

Also you will see in the following pictures,that the amount of pressure is very high,per square inch while seating a load at 40lbs. pressure on the ram rod. It actually crushed the seater down to .440 inches,and this is brass!

My SST jag came machined just like the one in your pic... I don't think seating the bullet crushed it..


Other than that, sorry to hear of your misfortune! Good thing those 10ML's are built so tough! You have certainly had some bad luck!

 

[Admin]

The difference is that the top one is also designed to be used as a jag for a patch and the bottom one is just for loading. It's an easy mistake to make. I prefer to use either an XS Sights rod tip or a CVA Powerbelt starter tip. The bottom picture looks like one of the ones that come with the CVA Powerbelt bullet starter.

 

[Ron S]

Yes it did! Ron

 

[dwhunter]

Ron sorry your going to have jump through hoops again with your barrel but like you said thank goodness it was a Savage. I think your buddy did you a big favor throwing the old bpusher in the trash. You really shouldn't have to get into trimming sabots unless you want the hassel. Good luck!

 

[big6x6]

Ron...I think you are SNAKE BIT! :lol:

I have that very bullet seater you were using. I used it one time and didn't like it. Need a spare? :lol:

I had forgotten about the CVA loading jags! I have some of those too and they are great as well. Actually that CVA short-starter/loading jag kit is a good product!

 

[Ron S]

Chuck,I'm beginning to wonder about that myself! :? From NOW on I will make sure that I use a 45cal. bullet seater,with a 45cal bullet/sabot. :wink: We checked the ones out for 45cal. guns,and they measure.440 inches. This will give you the clearance you need,even if you use long sabots with short bullets. John stated last night that,it didn't matter what cal. rifle you are shooting,get the right size seater attachment,for the BULLET you are shooting. He said a good rule of thumb is.012 smaller than the bullet diamenter. He said this was the standard for patching clearance(and long sabots now).452-.440= .012! He said that he thought I could shoot the HPH-24's with the proper bullet seatet. Ron