Thread: Casual

Well I've lost no teeth but did lose $200 and a hunting trip due to using a mates reloads in my .308.

A military round with the FMJ removed and replaced with some unknown (to me) soft point. Had to open bolt with a 4X2 and only half the case came out . Gunsmith had to remove barrel to retrieve the rest.

I got into reloading myself after that, and now will only ever fire factory ammo or my own hand loads.

Greeting All,
As mentioned above the cartridge is the cheapest part of our hunting kit and its reliability and safety need to be our first consideration. The use of other peoples handloads or our own where we stray from pressure tested data in our own handloads is bound to bite us on the bum sooner or later. Of particular concern are the handloaders who believe they can divine pressure from the appearance from the appearance of the primer. This practice was debunked decades ago but we still see it promoted. There are enough traps in pressure tested data with variations in case capacity, powder burning speed and hardness of projectiles without flying blind beyond that data. Let's all take care.
Regards Grandpamac.