by Hoot » Tue Jun 15, 2010 10:35 am
As an Engineering Technician since 1981, I have learned that the only thing worse than having an error occur during a test is not reporting it to protect one's pride and reputation. I have striven to maintain the highest scientific test standards I can possibly achieve, but the Human Factor caught up with me this past weekend. I have been as guilty as any number of other members when I've rolled my eyes when one of the members has strongly stressed, "Be careful and Be safe." Reloading and Amateur Smithing are serious pursuits and I have always approached them with respect for the hazards of both. I am not reporting a catastrophic error, if but only for the grace of God. I was spared serious injury and my loss is just the cost of 50 new .284 brass and the powder, primers and bullets that went into them.
What happened:
Last Friday, I picked up a bag of Winchester .284 brass to adapt to 450b. I spent Saturday evening and late into the night prepping them up to the point where I drop the charges and seat the bullets. I got up Sunday morning with the intent of getting them ready to go to the range as soon as it opened to fire form the brass. I had the powder dispenser still set up from a previous reloading session, so I dropped the charges, seated the bullets and loaded up the truck to go to the range. For the first time ever, I actually took my laptop PC and calipers with me to record the case length changes noted in my previous post right on the spot. With 50 cases to run through, I was too concerned with shooting and recording my length readings to notice what should have been several problematic indicators I usually inspect for. It wasn't until I read oldmanjeffer's post about his results, that I decided to audit my process that lead me to such different results.
I had briefly made a mental note of the strong recoil when I was shooting, but dismissed it as just being the newness of that load. I had noted the total lack of sooting on any of the cases, which up til then had never happened with my reloads, but again attributed it to the new load. I uncharacteristically did not notice the strong extractor and ejector printing into the heads. I even did not notice that I had to change my cheek weld to get the scope to open up, which turns out to be because the scope shifted position about 3/4 inch. Something that had not happened in the first 350 loads through the gun. This is all very embarrassing to report, but important to share with folks. It can happen to you. Distraction destroys.
At home, walking through the process, the cause was an enigma until I took the cap off of the powder hopper on my Lyman DPS 1200 and looked inside. In that flash of realization that makes your stomach fall, I realized the last reloading session was not Lil Gun, but Alliant 2400 for a 200gr FTX. A faster powder, who's pressure stacked up quickly with cool firing CCI BR4s from past experience. I had not taken the chrony to the range since I was using thin skinned Berry bullets for fire forming and didn't want to put a jacket shard into the display. So, I'll never know how fast they were actually traveling. I have only oldmanjeffer's results to compare mine with, but I now suspect my case shortening was the result of excessive pressure.
I hope you all don't discount any of my other work or future efforts. I have always believed in being up front with folks about my failures, not just heaping on the accomplishments. I think it gives validity to one's efforts. My penitence will be to pick up another bag and have at it again, albeit a little older and a little wiser.
Hoot
In Theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. In Practice, there is.