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Range report - Revised 1/29

4K views 24 replies 10 participants last post by  gvw3 
#1 ·
It has been about three weeks since I had been to the range last. It is supposed to rain tomorrow so I thought I would pop off a few today, while it was nice.

I started out with a SMLE Mk. III* that I brought home from my brother's house. The bore was pretty dark so I thought I would put a few rounds down it to loosen up what ever was in the bore. I only shot 10 rounds at a 50 yard target.
Yellow Line Amber Slope Orange

I wish I had stuck a target at the 100 yard line after those 10, but I accomplished what I set out to do. When I got home the very first thing I did was scrub the bore down with some Hoppes #9 and it did lighten up a little bit.

After the .303 I went over to the pistol range and put another 100 rounds through the Sig 1911. That makes a total of 500 rounds and I do think it is broken in now. The trigger lightened up a bunch since the first round and I had a couple of flyers when the I pulled the trigger when wasn't quite ready. I shot 50 rounds at 7 yards then moved a couple of steps back and shot the other 50.
World Pattern Parallel Indoor games and sports Square


I took my Ruger GP100 Match Champion with me since I have only put 18 rounds through it since I bought the thing. I did not get much more than that today when I had an abrupt halt to my shooting with it.

I had three partial boxes of .357 ammo that I had loaded several years ago that I wanted to "get rid of" so I shot about 20 rounds of home cast 150 grain Keith Type bullets, and about another 10 rounds of 158 grain Round Nose Flat Point Berry's bullets, and 10 rounds of 125 grain Berry's HP bullets. I was shooting at 25 yards with these bullets. I emptied two of those partial boxes. and then I had problems!! I did not take pictures of any shots with the Ruger.

When I got rid of all those bullets, I thought I would get serious so I loaded up 6 rounds of 125 grain XTP bullets with H110 powder and put up a new target so I could see how the XTPs shot. I used the same target as the one above.

I went up to the seven yard line and fired. I heard that dreaded little "POOF" and that ended my range session. The bullet went about 3/4 inch into the barrel, I had a short pistol cleaning rod with me but could not get the bullet out of the barrel using it. I loaded everything in the car and came home. I stopped at Wally World and bought a 5/16 wooden dowel to hammer the bullet out.

Here a couple of pictures of the gun, taken right after it happened:
Metal Steel Iron Revolver Tool
Bicycle accessory Nut Steel


Evidently I must have gotten some thing in the case that contaminated the powder. I loaded these long long before I started wet tumbling, so I can't blame it on water in the case! Whatever it was made the powder into a "pellet", here are pictures of the bullet and the powder pellet. The pellet fell out of the cylinder as I was hammering the bullet from the barrel. You can see the end of the bullet where the cleaning rod did a number on it.
Pattern
Pattern Circle Macro photography Sphere


Even with this happening, I will still say "A bad day at the range is better than a good day anywhere"
 
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#3 ·
Sounds like you hadd a great time. Thanks for the report.
 
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#6 ·
Good shooting George!
 
#7 ·
Sounds like you had a great time despite the mishap with the Ruger. Like Todd51 said it's still to cold, (at least for me) to go shooting around here anytime soon. You southern boys have it made!
 
#10 ·
I suppose the Ruger is good and unharmed. How did it go with it at the range today? (Your return visit) Now that hunt season is over (until the turkeys start talking) I'm planning on getting my MC to the range for some serious fun and confidence building. Like you I haven't shot it a lot but I really like it.
 
#11 ·
I finally got around to pulling some of those rounds and the ones I pulled were OK. I am taking the .357 back out to the range tomorrow. We will see what happens with the rest of them!
I just love your new Ruger revolver.I handled one over at sportsmans warehouse for a minute or two.I liked it a lot.They seem built tough and solid.That's strange your powder did that.
 
#13 ·
All right, here are the pictures that I mentioned above and range report from today!

I had ordered a 1/2 riser for my 7.62x39 AR and I received it earlier this week. I put it on yesterday so went to the range to sight it in. I took no pictures of that event. I had it sighted in with four shots, I only raised the scope 1/2 an inch but the first shot was about 16-18 inches high (100 yards), second about 12 inches, third about 4 inches, and the fourth dead center bullseye. I decided not to move it any more, I shot another 14 shots at the 100 yard and kept them all in black with only another 4 bullseyes. I had put a target at 200 yards so I took two shots at it, I am happy to say that they both were in the black. Both 100 and 200 yard targets were 8 inch targets.

I also took my VZ2008 Sporter (AK wannabe) and put 15 rounds through it, again no pictures but I put 13 rounds at 100 yards with all of them in the black and took 2 shots at the 200 yard target but only put 1 in the black with that one.

Now we are going to get some pictures.

I moved over to the pistol range and started out with the Ruger Match Champion. Last week I had that load that did not fire but today everything went smooth (at least with the .357). I shot everything at the pistol range from 10 yards, sitting in a folding chair. I fired a total of 50 rounds. Most of them at a silhouette style target, with most shot at the chest and some shot at the head. There was a little 1 inch orange dot about a foot above this target so I shot 6 round at it (hit it once).
Yellow Art Illustration Still life photography Paint


Then I had some real fun!! I took my Ruger SR1911 since I had only put about 200 rounds through it since I bought it and wanted to get another 100 shot today. This target has 48 rounds through it:
Circle Araneus


On my 48th round, I had a slight KABOOM. That ended the 1911 shooting, to say the least
Wood Brown Gun White Hardwood
Wood Gun Brown Firearm Trigger
Finger Photograph Thumb Black Nail


Finger Skin Thumb Wrist Glove
Eyewear Facial hair Nose Glasses Vision care


The slide was pretty well locked up on it. As you can see it blew the left grip slab in two and it jammed the follower and magazine spring at the bottom of the magazine. I had to pull pretty hard to get the mag out of it.

After I got over the little accident I shot my everyday carry piece, the Sig Sauer P938. I put three magazines through it using Critical Defense, Silver Tips, Gold Dots, and plain ball ammo. Still shooting at 10 yards sitting down. For some unknown reason I kind of cringed every time I pulled the trigger.:rolleyes:
Green Yellow Colorfulness Circle Precision sports


When I got to my buddy's house, I disassembled the 1911 to inspect it. Took the barrel bushing off and removed the spring and plunger, then I used his brass hammer and hit the slide a couple of times until it went to the rear. The piece of brass that kaboomed fell out. I expected to see a bulged barrel and maybe a slight bulge in the slide. NOTHING, the thing looked fine. I wiped some of the "soot" off of it, sprayed a little lube on the rails and loaded it up with 5 rounds and went out in his front yard and fired it. No problems at all.

Here is that piece of brass:
Wood Brown Hardwood Wood stain Amber


I won't speculate what happened. I am pretty sure what caused this, but just hate to say it out loud. I will suffice it to say I will be a whole lot more careful when I check powder charges from now on!!!!
 
#14 ·
Well I was just enjoying the heck out of your range report and the pictures until I got to the Kaboom. Dang if I was you I don't think I would take a Ruger to the range on your next trip. Very glad it was not worse. Very nice shooting until :eek::eek::eek:
Plus one on the powder charge checking. I turned 76 this month and I am very concerned that my attention to my reloading will one of these days slip. You can't use the age excuse yet, ha. The day I sense my attention to detail slip is the day I will have to give up the reloading I love.:(
 
#15 ·
I will probably take it back next week! I have a few sets of grips laying around here somewhere that I can put back on it. I have about 10 magazines, I'm just glad that it wasn't one of mt expensive Chip McCormick magazines that got busted.
 
#17 ·
That's a bummer on the 1911, George - but glad you're OK.

Reading about your SMLE with the dark bore, way back when I got mine, the bore was really 'frosted'. I scrubbed the daylights out of it with solvent, brushes and even JB Bore Paste. Must have went thru 100 patches doing this, and the bore still looked frosted.

Finally sent off for a bore lapping set in .303. I think it was Midway who had it. You may already know about these, but they are bullets coated in some sort of lapping compound, and you load them up with starting charges and fire and clean between shots. The bore improved by at least 75% after all was done.

Final note - about that time I read somewhere as how the bores on those SMLEs were generally 'good' because British NCOs kept after the Tommys about keeping their rifles clean. This sure wasn't the case with mine. The bore wasn't pitted - just frosted with a silvery-dull fuzzy coating.
 
#18 ·
Thanks for the report. Glad you're OK after the KB, and that everything (both you and the gun) still works.
 
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#19 ·
Glad to hear you're OK, stuff happens to the best of us! You did right, fall of the horse, get right back on!
 
#21 ·
One thing that's unique to reloading 9mm is that normal mid-range powder loads almost fills the shell to the top with powder.In a 357 or 38 special reload you can easily put a double powder charge in it by accident.I know you were shooting 45's and I don't know if a double charge will fit.I'm glad you shared your experience because this could happen to any of us.Another thing I was wondering,what if the gun was polymer and not steel.It could have hurt your fingers really bad.
P.S.I bet Ruger will replace your grips.They have great customer service.My Mini-14 bolt blew by cracking the bolt from shooting reloads and they fixed the gun for free and put a sticky note on my gun and said don't shoot hot reloads in this gun.When I sent it in I didn't say what happened just it broke.
 
#22 ·
One thing that's unique to reloading 9mm is that normal mid-range powder loads almost fills the shell to the top with powder.In a 357 or 38 special reload you can easily put a double powder charge in it by accident.I know you were shooting 45's and I don't know if a double charge will fit.I'm glad you shared your experience because this could happen to any of us.
I load 4.6 grains of Titegroup in my .45 ACP, I can tell you that it would be pretty easy to get a double charge in the case without it being easily noticed.

Here are two pictures, the first one is 4.6 grains and the second one is 9.2 grains which is a double charge. You can see that there is still plenty of room in the case. You can actually put 4 charges in the case but that is terribly obvious.

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Plywood Varnish
Wood Liquid Fluid Hardwood Wood stain
 
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