ALWAYS Double Check Your Ammo

[PredatorDown]

Had a bit of a reminder last weekend about always checking your ammo, even when it's factory loaded.

I randomly decided to check concentricity on a box of factory Hornady 123gr Amax I had recently got, and noticed something looked a little off on one of the rounds. At first glance, it just looked like a blemished tip (discolored), but then I noticed it had a cannelure. I figured ok, maybe a 123gr SST got mixed in with the Amax somehow. I grabbed a 123SST bullet and another of the factory loaded rounds, and set them all side by side to compare.



Seeing them all side by side is where I really noticed something was different. Notice the different necks? Sure enough, different caliber bullet.



It was loaded with what appeared to be a .277 110gr Vmax. The case was still headstamped 6.5 Grendel, so it's not like it got switched somehow with a 6.8SPC round.

I doubt it would have been able to chamber, but at the least it would have resulted in one hell of a stuck case.

The next day, I grabbed a different box of factory ammo (same lot #) to use as a baseline to check some of my hand loads with. I went out and shot a quick ladder with BL-C(2), then decided to chrono some factory rounds to see where they shot before moving to my AR-Comp and CFE ladders.

Something felt off after firing my first factory round, and I checked and saw I had a stuck case which resulted in a double feed. I dropped the mag to clear the live round, noticed that the extractor still seemed to be intact, and slammed the bolt home in hopes of grabbing the spent case and being able to pull it free.

Bad mistake.

I wound up breaking the extractor in the process of trying to free the stuck case, which ended my day at the range. All because I didn't want to take the time to drive home and get a cleaning rod to knock the brass free.

Once I got home and tapped the brass out, I noticed severe primer flattening/cratering as well as a pretty bad ejector swipe. And the kicker? The round only chrono'd at 2460 from my 22" barrel!

I contacted Hornady the next day and told them everything that happened, and they seemed surprised that the .277 cal bullet didn't crush the brass when it was seated. I explained to them that I had 5 boxes of their factory ammo that I deemed unsafe to fire (I've shot probably 200 rounds of their ammo before without problem), and they sent me a prepaid shipping label to send it all back to them for testing. They asked how I would like them to make it up to me, and I responded that I just wanted projectiles back that I could load myself.

Moral of the story: just because it came loaded from the factory, at least do a quick visual check before firing it. Don't just assume it's safe to shoot.


As a side note, JP Enterprises stepped up and got me a new extractor in no time. I explained to them exactly how it broke, that the cause was in no way their fault, and that I would be more than happy to pay for a new one instead of it being covered under warranty (this extractor had approximately 1700 rounds under it). They said not to worry about it, and sent one out that day. All they asked is that I email them the serial number on my broken one for record keeping.

[LRRPF52]

I bought a box of .270 Winchester ammunition one time that had a .30-06 cartridge in it. There were no signs of it having been opened at the store.

When I was running a shoot house a few years ago, someone found something funny with their Remington 9mm ammunition. The side of the case had been smashed in and powder was leaking everywhere when they removed it from the tray.

I'm with you. "Uh, just send me some tips and I'll take care of the rest."

Good call. As soon as I saw that picture, it looked like fatter .277" blem VMAX due to the tip color.

[PredatorDown]

Yeah, I'll definitely be strictly sticking to my hand loads from here on out. I was thinking about using their ammo for a 1 mile shoot at North Springs this upcoming weekend due to the added velocity, but this made me choose otherwise. I haven't been able to match their velocities with my loads, but they'll still (barely) get me there.

I tried working up the cfe, but for whatever reason the velocities are really poor with moderate to poor groups. I worked all the way up to 31.8gr and only got to the 2530's.

Hell, I was able to get to the 2520's with 28.1gr of AR-Comp with 5/8" groups. I'm hoping to do a little more testing tomorrow, then I'll post a full range report. So far it's looking good, with 5 shot ES usually being in the single digits!

[kmon]

Good catch, have seen a few factory screw-ups over the years a few of the best ones
Primers inserted backwards
Wrong crimp applied to Winchester 264 win mag, made the shoulder look like a Weatherby but with the 4 ripples like found on a factory crimp
22 Hornet with a crease in the case at the neck.

All those would chamber but I would not have wanted to pull the trigger. Each were a one of and gave them to a Hunter Education instructor for use as examples of things to look for stressing safety in the classes.

Agree with you about just get the bullets to load myself. Trust my loads more than factory fodder.

[NugginFutz]

It was loaded with what appeared to be a .277 110gr Vmax. The case was still headstamped 6.5 Grendel, so it's not like it got switched somehow with a 6.8SPC round.
...
I contacted Hornady the next day and told them everything that happened, and they seemed surprised that the .277 cal bullet didn't crush the brass when it was seated.

Seating a .277 projectile in a 6.5 neck isn't any different than sizing up a case as the wild-catters do, so it shouldn't be surprising at all that it could be done.

If I were Hornady, I would be much more concerned about how their process is allowing bullets from entirely different lots and lines being mixed at their loading machinery, than why a case wasn't crushed.

As much as I enjoy Hornady reloading equipment and supplies, I'm becoming quite leery of their loaded ammunition. Over the last year, I've read several instances of loaded 6.5 Grendel ammunition having issues. Problems ranged from being loaded hot (popped/pierced primers) to rounds not chambering in tighter chambers due to distorted cases. And now this. It really calls into question the effectiveness of their quality control practices.

I agree with PD. Give me the components and a keg of good powder, and I'll continue to hand load all my own. It's a shame they are using a powder blend which is unavailable to the general public. The few boxes of the Hornady loads I've shot have always run in the mid 26's from my 22" bbl. I wouldn't mind having access to some of that powder to see where I could take it, myself.

[davidj]

This should be a sticky.

[SDguy]

crazy mistakes do happen

Keep your guard up w factory ammo or while reloading. Must say I was a lot dismayed early late last year when I opened a box of .172 cal 25 grain HP bullets to find a 110 grain .270 cal HP bullet in the mix. Hornady sent me a replacement box of bullets for that one. I asked for a load manual as well and was turned down. seemed like the time and place to share.

[Buster]

Good catch and thanks for taking the time to share.
Yes this should be a sticky

[mike garus]

I once bought a box of Speer 243 bullets and half of them were .308 caliber.

[sneaky one]

Yeah, load with an error upon caution. I bought some Blemm 120 gr. Gmx .264 a while back, 3- .308 pills were inside, plus a .224 55 Grn. Vmax. Midway shooting sports . com


Nothing is perfect, it seems.

[PredatorDown]

Just a quick update on what has happened.

Hornady got back to me and said they shot 5 rounds through one of their test barrels, and the average pressure was only 45k so the ammo itself was "good to go". They said all they'd be able to do since they tested it as good was send the remainder back. I told them I didn't want the ammo back, I wanted unloaded projectiles in return. After arguing for a few minutes, he connected me with his manager. The manager said that since it was a 2016 lot# that they would be able to circulate them back into inventory and send me the unloaded projectiles I was wanting.

Wait, what?!

They didn't even mention the case with the .277 bullet in it! From the sound of it, they only opened one of the 5 boxes I sent back and didn't even bother to check any of the others.

And then to top it all off, I just received 4 boxes of unloaded bullets to replace the 5 boxes of ammo I sent them. I can buy loaded factory ammo for the same price as unloaded projectiles locally, so their production costs should be at least similar. I would think they would have at least made it square with me, as I really wasn't looking to get ahead here. And it's not like that $20 would have affected a company the size of Hornady in the least. They lose more than that in lost production anytime an employee takes a shit!

Instead, with how this whole ordeal went down, they have lost an extremely loyal and vocal supporter. I will no longer buy anything Hornady if I have a choice with the exception of modified cases to check length.

My only regret now is that I have over 2k 123gr amax at home. If there was anyone that would trade for any of the other 123gr pills (Nosler, Sierra, Lapua) I'd do it in a heartbeat. It really is a shame, because their bullets have always shot so well for me.

I know my not buying any of their products won't do anything for them, but this has left such a bad taste in my mouth that I just can't continue to support them

[ricsmall]

Pm sent