Mine first. 30 years ago I got hold of some 60 gr bullets for my 25/06, but couldn't find any loading data. I had data for a 75gr bullet, so I just figgered out a load for the 60gr. Minor problem...I ha da can of 4350 sitting right nest to the powder thrower, BUT there was a much faster powder IN the hopper.

Got one loaded and went to shoot it to look at pressure signs. Glasses in ear muffs in place I touched her off. Loud BOOM, kicked like a 378Weatherby, and chitt flew back into my face. DAMN. Bolt wouldn't open. I stood on the gun and my bud kicked the bolt open. Primer was GONE, as in nottobeseen...case head was polished smooth, no writing that was there just minutes before. A little hot it seems.. I'd a like a slowmo of that bullet going down range.

Took a little while to figger out what stupid chitt I had done back at the bench. I figgered that load was something like 30% above max load. I was, however, impressed by the strength of that Rem 700 action.

Umm 3 squibs.38 special.ONE stuck .270 case. 4.3 grains of H4831 under a 200 .45 swc instead of W231,it Poofed stead of Bam! That's all i'll admit to publicly.

Dave, I didn't do it, but I saw a Ruger SuperBlackhawk with the top strap ripped open and peeled forward, top three cylinders gone. Guy swore it was factory load till we beat the cylinder out and removed one of the three remaining rounds. 22gr of BULLSEYE over a 240gr bullet!!!!!!!!!! No injuries except to the gun!!

Loaded some 264 win mag one time with mixed powder. Some sucker ended up with them

I think this should become a sticky thread. A lot of people got into reloading in the past few years with the ammo shortages, and many of them had no mentoring at all to get started. I started reloading with my father over 30 years ago, and i am still learning to this day.

I believe I have good, safe reloading practices, and have not had any major bad situations occur with my handloads. A few small hiccups, but nothing which caused an unsafe situation. Develop good procedures and ALWAYS follow them. Do not have any distractions in your loading room such as a TV, kids, etc.

Only have the can of powder you are loading on your bench, and always dump the extra from the powder measure back into the can when you are done. This is an often overlooked safety measure that will eliminate powder mix-ups. Powder mix-ups can cause the most disastrous results on the range.

I'm a newbie when it comes to reloading. I've only been doing it for 5 years. I have read 3 different books numerous times, watched numerous youtube video's and talked with a couple of men who have been doing it for many, many years. I can't report any screw ups yet. Oh, and I forgot, I have read this reloading thread on Aldeer. I start my loads low and work up from there. I guess I should thank you men for advice and pointers you've posted. It's helped me a lot. I'm always learning though. When one thinks they know it all, that's when Karma pays a visit. Always be careful.

Worst thing I've done is got in a hurry loading 40S&W on a single stage and didn't get my finger out of the way before I ran the ram up to size a case. Damn near took the end of my finger off between the case mouth and die.

they fast and and make some noise.....

Swapped range bags once,those .280 rem cases looked long for .260 dies.

Hahaha. Good deal. Was waiting on you to catch that!

A hunting buddy of mine took two rifles on a Wyoming trip, both 7mmRMs. Handloads, NECK SIZED, per each rifle. First shot with the Colt Sauer he head a case head seperation, stuck case. THen he took most of a box to sight in the second rifle, leaving him just a handful of rounds to kill two animals. He ended up borrowing a guides rifle and ammo to finish up.

Always make sure yer ammo will chamber in the rifle(s) you take on a long trip.

Had the same happen to me in MO on a hunt years ago. Alabama ammo made me some loads for my 280 but it had just been rebarreled. Bad feeling. On first Am to have the bolt lock halfway and not budge. I always take 2. Thank goodness I had my 257 wby for backup

Squib in 45ACP open bolt subgun that caused the next round to fire out of battery. That's why you NEVER let anybody stand on the ejection port side of an open bolt full auto weapon.

I know a very experienced handloader who has hunted every animal in North America and Africa. He told me a story about mixing up ammo on the shooting range one time. He loaded and fired a 7X57 cartridge in his 270 Win. Smaller case but bullet diameter is .007 greater than the 270. Bullet actually exited the barrel but it locked the action.

Yes sir watch thoes fingers. I deprimed and resizied one going too fast one time Ouch. You start to feel like a your a machine going as fast as you can, but thats what gets you in trouble. Haven't loaded anything hot yet or blowed one up. Did a batch of 45 swc that I couldnt get seated right lot of ftf's but makes for good training when shooting.

so far, so good... Been reloading for 30 yrs. No FU YET! Knock on wood (my hard damn head)!

Still haven't figured out what is wrong other than the powder. I bought it a long time ago. Never opened it until this load. Always stored indoors in cool conditions.

Still not convinced it's the powder for sure, but the other loads with other powders don't do this to the hulls.

Loads were all pressure tested for safety before I got the info.





8lb jug of Win 296



Man O man though, it shot a great pattern with that load though.


I just got some H110, so I'm going to load it the same as the burn rate is close to the same (slightly faster), and see what happens. 117 to 120.

If no primer is out on the H110, I'm positive the Win 296 powder is the culprit.









God Bless,
David B.

H110&W296 are quite close.(Made by same people)

The actual load I used for the above shell calls for either/or of both powders for the same recipe.

Both powders pressure tested as well.

If the H110 does well with the same lot of hulls, wads, etc. it's got to be the Win 296 powder.

God Bless,
David B.

Squib load in 45 acp. I found a load my Springfield XD liked and I was good to go. I found out real quick that you make sure the powder hopper is full and check it often when loading in bulk.

David I've thought a lot about that after you showed it to me and I'm not convinced it's the powder either but your next trial with the H110 will tell all. If it works out I'd send a good sample along with a lot # to be tested because you'll have a good bit of unusable powder on your hands and I know that aint cheap

Loaded a 5 gallon bucket of AA shotgun shells and had a couple three where I didn't throw the powder charge.... That was like 30 years ago.

There is always a risk but that's the only thing I have ever done. You just have to be careful and do things in order in batches and don't stop 1/2 way through one of your processes to go get a drink or something. One thing I do on a single stage is throw the charge and seat the bullet at the same time so I don't throw a double charge.

I do this also. All of the other procedures are done in batches until loading the powder and bullet. I think it is safer to do this.

DAY UM! Somebody shoulda been killed! Thank Gawd it was a SBH!!!!

Seen a Smith 57 missing one chamber&topstrap 17.8 of Unique instead of H4227. Oops!

Buddy of mine blew a supler blackhawk up in 44 mag. About 2 years ago. Using winchester auto comp. Powder. Long story short the the 2 rounds he loaded to see how they shot ended up getting double charged. Cylinder was no where to be found the top strap was bent up,the frame was bent. He was lucky he didnt even get a scratch on him

Super Blackhawks are some kind of tough guns....

I killed a deer with a 8mm fired out of a 30-06. I have since learned to pay more attention to sorting my reloads before deer season. Also fired a 8mm Nambu in a 7.62 Tokarev pistol. Again, I've learned to be more careful with rounds on the range.

There was a thread on here a couple years ago where a guy from another board posted his screw up. He had confused pistol powder for rifle powder and the first round from his brand new rifle, yielded horrendous results. The rifle was blown apart at the action, the sock and scope were blown in half and there was a pile of shrapnel. You can imagine was his trigger hand looked like too! I saved the link to the pic, but it was removed. I used it to show folks what could happen if you get complacent.

Very important to have a process.

I work from right to left. On a clean, uncluttered bench.
I also throw the charge and seat the bullet immediately before repeating the process for the next cartridge.

Back in the 90s I belonged to a Contender forum and we talked a lot about the various Ackley Improved rounds; many of them work well in a Contender. I found some old data where Mr. Ackley had given the recipe for a 30-30 Ackley Improved with a 150g bullet that produced a velocity of 2700 fps. Several people on there told me that was crazy and impossible.

Feeling that Mr. Ackley's integrity had been questioned, I decided I would do it with a carbine barrel. I found a 30-30 barrel and bought it and got Jimmy McCollough to rechamber it, then made up rounds increasing a half grain at a time until I reached the max that was supposed to give me 2700.

I carried them to the range and shot them over a chrony and watched the velocity rise with each shot. I got a flattened primer when I was still a grain below max, but shot the next round anyway. The gun broke open at the shot and it took some prying to remove the case, but the chrony read 2639. I didn't shoot the last one, but with a 26" barrel and a stronger gun I'm confident that 2700 was reachable.

I gotta admit it was foolish to push it that far. It may have stretched the frame, but I still have it and use it with the .22 barrel and it shoots fine. Most of my loading screw ups have just been recklessness more than errors.

My biggest screw up happened yesterday. I had loaded some 140 accubonds for my both my 7-08 and my 280 AI. I'd shoot a group with one, set it down to let the barrel cool and shoot the other one. Broke the rule about not having 2 different boxes open on the bench at the same time.
This is what a 7-08 case looks like after its fired through a 280 Ackley

Funny thing is I actually hit an 8" steel gong at 300 yards. Almost no recoil but the velocity had to have been pretty good to be that close at 300.

That's cool what it did to the brass, but not cool that it happened.

Thanks for sharing.

Glad it was the same diameter bullet.

God Bless,
David B.

Nice, I guess my worst would be having a few stuck cases due to not using enough case lube. Never have blown anything up yet. Be safe and pay close attention when y'all are loading and shooting.

buddy of mine was sighting in a 264WM and a 7mmRM some time. He loaded a 264 in the 7mm and fired it..keyholed the target and the brass blew out with a very short 7mm neck on it. Not good.

Just run into the 7-08 sizing die and everything will be OK! Hahahaha.

No powder in a 7 mag case once. Had to drive the bullet back out of the barrel with an oak dowel and a hammer.

My screw-ups at the bench have not been catastrophic yet. I once loaded 50 rounds of new 308 brass, only to notice the last two or three I could rotate with my fingers after seating. I went back and tested the whole batch and found nearly 20 that would turn. I hadn't neck sized the new brass, so I pulled the bullets and started over.

Also, after carefully weighing each charge of powder on some test rounds for my triple deuce, I found that I forgot to charge two of the darn cases. I usually charge all the cases before starting to seat the bullets. When I'm done with the powder, I always check the block of standing cases with a flashlight to make sure there's a charge in each. If I hadn't done that, I would have been dealing with a stuck bullet.

A friend of mine taught me how to reload. He had a very stringent step-by-step procedure that all but eliminated any careless errors. I find myself not quite as militant with it as he, but still have my game-face on while working up rounds.

Be safe out there!