Never never fire unknown reloads....

[Flymph]

I assumed the only thing damaged was the rifle, but glad anyone wasn't too hurt by that.
Depending on his injuries, I might still want some help getting a new rifle tho...

 

[Mygrainman]

Sad day ... the rifle did look pretty cherry.
It is now at a friends house , he is a retired gunsmith , to be checked out.. but not sure what can be saved... What with a cracked receiver , maybe twisted barrel , split stock , who knows what else...

Luckily for everyone ( but the rifle ) the Remington 03A3 series of rifles have a strong action and are well built.
Andy

Ya in a case like this you always say:" The important thing is nobody was hurt". but sombody was hurt! Guns are people too! especially WW2 era surp guns!
Maybe a bright side... Lots of heartless americans hacked em up, and recievers can be found shamefully mounted in monte carlo stocks fairly cheap. you might have an opertunity to bring one of those poor bastardized ,I mean sporterized 1903's back to its original glory!

 

[Boboclown]

I'm weeping. Always liked the Springfield 1903s, the A3s to be specific.

This is why during the rare occasion I let people shoot my guns, its my ammo! Especially the more collectible ones.

 

[Certaindeaf]

I imagine this is a case of throwing the wrong powder rather than an over-loaded round. Most .30-06 loads fill the case fairly full. To get the pressure necessary to crack a nickel steel 03a3 receiver, my best guess would be wrong powder.

Again

I'm no ballistician but I think if say the primer jams the bullet hard into the throat (giggity) before the main charge is ignited for some reason, it'll act like an obstructed barrel and let loose also.

 

[Mygrainman]

It would be interesting to take the rest of those gunshow reloads apart and inspect/measure/weigh the components. I'm quite curious. It's 4am, I have to report for jury duty in 4 hrs, and I'm wide awake thinking about bad reloads....

 

[Certaindeaf]

It would be interesting to take the rest of those gunshow reloads apart and inspect/measure/weigh the components. I'm quite curious. It's 4am, I have to report for jury duty in 4 hrs, and I'm wide awake thinking about bad reloads....

If the reload fits, don't quit!

that one was for @Oregon Quartermaster

 

[Mygrainman]

If the reload fits, don't quit!

hopefully I don't get selected tomorrow, and can concentrate on my own reloads.... but my luck I will get picked for an OJ length trial.

 

[jsparks747]

Ya in a case like this you always say:" The important thing is nobody was hurt". but sombody was hurt! Guns are people too! especially WW2 era surp guns!
Maybe a bright side... Lots of heartless americans hacked em up, and recievers can be found shamefully mounted in monte carlo stocks fairly cheap. you might have an opertunity to bring one of those poor bastardized ,I mean sporterized 1903's back to its original glory!

Great! Another few genders! Ar-15, bolt action rifle, semi auto rifle, single shot rifle, break action rifle, etc.

 

[etrain16]

I imagine this is a case of throwing the wrong powder rather than an over-loaded round. Most .30-06 loads fill the case fairly full. To get the pressure necessary to crack a nickel steel 03a3 receiver, my best guess would be wrong powder.

Again

Hmm, maybe 50+ grains of Titegroup?

 

[etrain16]

It would be interesting to take the rest of those gunshow reloads apart and inspect/measure/weigh the components. I'm quite curious. It's 4am, I have to report for jury duty in 4 hrs, and I'm wide awake thinking about bad reloads....

I was kind of thinking the same thing - pull those bullets and see what's going on. I would be tempted to tell him to go back and find that vendor and let him know what happened - maybe they should be paying for the damage - to him and to the rifle.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Do you have any rifles more modern than that one?

I have a Marlin 36 ... but my Daughter uses it.... A few .22 rifles

Yeah after we go over the rifle... The re-loads will be pulled and checked out as well.
I do think the wrong powder was used ... but will find out
I really don't think there is any bringing this Rifle back , from the dead.
Andy

 

[RVTECH]

maybe they should be paying for the damage - to him and to the rifle.

This could be a slippery slope - especially because of this part

So I went shooting this afternoon with a friend and his buddy.
Friends buddy brought ammo to shoot in my rifle.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Well we see , the injured shooter has insurance ... so hopefully he is covered there.
As for a rifle replacement ... again we will see , he said he get me a replacement.
Trying to find one that was a nice as the one wrecked will be tough ... again we will see...
Andy

 

[etrain16]

This could be a slippery slope - especially because of this part

Perhaps, but since the guy was injured, shooting the ammo he bought, he may want to at least speak with them about their reloads. Seems some liability may be at play here. If you're going to sell commercial reloads, I would think there is some level of responsibility and liability that comes with doing that. Replacing the rifle may be a different story (possibly), but manufacturers can sometimes be held liable for damages caused by their products.

Plus if other cartridges may have this problem, they need to pull those batches before someone else gets hurt. Not the time to stay quiet.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

It seems that the ammo in question was sold in a "lot" of used military field gear ... in this case a mixed lot of WWII-VietNam era US field gear.
The ammo came with the bags and web gear as part of a package deal... it wasn't some dealer in ammo.
So the dealer , if found may have no idea about ammo....
Will try and find him for sure.
Andy

 

[Mistman]

Anyone can shoot my guns as long as I load them with my ammo 1st.

Hope it works out w/the '03. I hate it when something of mine gets messed up at the hands of another, most times the outcome isn't the desired one.

 

[tac]

Andy, I'm having a hard time figuring out what you mean by 'twisted the barrel'. How does that work?

tac

 

[Andy54Hawken]

tac , the barrel is now canted to the right ... is may just be "twisted" or loose at where it is threaded at the breech.... The rifle is being looked over by a retired gunsmith friend ... we will see what he says about it later.
Andy

 

[Husker1935]

Need more details before this story can be used by others. Double load(blown primer) brass used too many times (where split) reloading is serious stuff and not for everyone.

 

[Flymph]

Well we see , the injured shooter has insurance ... so hopefully he is covered there.
As for a rifle replacement ... again we will see , he said he get me a replacement.
Trying to find one that was a nice as the one wrecked will be tough ... again we will see...
Andy

All matching, even the stock?
I only ask because I'm just assuming...
(Enough to make ya cry...)