Cleaning Rod in Barrel Causes Catastrophic .338 LM Kaboom!
Discharging a .338 Lapua Magnum round with a cleaning rod in the barrel — that’s a recipe for disaster. What happens when a fired .338 caliber bullet and a cleaning rod try to occupy the same place at the same time? Well you get a catastrophic kaboom, with metal pieces flying all over the place, and a shooter very lucky to escape without serious injury. This incident occurred recently in Manatee, Florida, as reported by Sniper’s Hide member Queequeg. We thank SnipersHide.com for granting permission to publish these revealing images in the Daily Bulletin. CLICK HERE for more Kaboom info on the ‘Hide.
This story should serve as a chilling reminder to follow proper safety practices whenever you are at the range. Always check to make sure there is no obstruction in the bore BEFORE loading a live round.
.338 Lapua Magnum + Cleaning Rod + Inattention = Kaboom!
Click to zoom image
Kaboom at Manatee!
Sniper’s Hide member Queequeg recently published shocking photos of a catastrophic kaboom involving a .338 Lapua Magnum (Savage action). The action was blown off the rifle, shrapnel went through the roof, and the barrel split at the tenon before taking an excursion downrange. The action did crack in the front but the lugs remained engaged so the bolt did not slam to the rear (luckily for the shooter).
Here’s the report: “This happened [January 20, 2014] at the Manatee Gun and Archery Club. Al, Ren and myself were there with a couple other folks. Ren was at bench 12, I was at 13. The fellow at 11 was running a Savage .338 Lapua. He had a very bad day! He damn sure could have killed himself and quite likely Ren as well.”
Queeqeg added: “After the boom, I heard Ren ask ‘Are you alright’ and then turned to look in time to see the fellow reacting in total shock — literally stunned. Ren and I went over to him and could not see any major injuries. Ren was uninjured as well but had a lot of fiberglass splinters on him. The barrel nut is what I presume punched the two holes in the roof. The shooter is a regular there[.] He had been having a problem with sticky cases though he said he was certain the loads were mild. That’s why he was content to knock the sticky ones out with the rod. He simply forgot to remove the rod after knocking out the last stuck case. You can see what happened next.”
To learn more about this incident, go to the original Snipers Hide Forum Thread. There you’ll find more details and over four pages of related discussions.
The Important Lesson Here
What did the .338 LM shooter do wrong here? You will say — “Well that’s obvious, he left a cleaning rod in the barrel and then shot a round.” Yes, that was a potentially fatal error. But that was his second mistake — one that occurred only because he made a more fundamental judgment error first.
The FIRST mistake was not acknowledging the problem with his ammo. Had he heeded the warning signs, he would still have a rifle (and an unsoiled pair of trousers). When he first observed that he was having problems with extracting cases, a warning light should have gone off in his head. Presuming his extractor was not broken (and that the chamber was cut properly) he should have been able to extract his brass if he was running safe loads. The lesson here we all need to learn is that if you observe a serious ammo-related issue, it is time to stop shooting. Don’t try to invent work-arounds just to extend your range session, when there are clear signs that something is wrong, very wrong.
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Tags: .338 LM, Cleaning Rod, Kaboom, Manatee, Obstructed Bore, safety, Snipers Hide
Another reason to clean from chamber end.
He wasn’t cleaning, he used the rod to extract a stuck case, and apparently forgot to remove it afterwards.
well i wonder who is ging to fix the hole in our roof? never trust other peoples reloads in someone elses long range rifle.
This scares me to death just looking at the pictures. I have been near AR15s that have blown up. I can’t imagine a .338 LM blowing!!!
Not the first time a cleaning rod got fired out of .338 Salvage barrel at Manatee.
Some of you guys just don’t get it. It has nothing to do with “other people’s reloads” or “clean from the chamber”. This is simply a very common mistake of allowing emotions (as in disappointment in load performance – here, it’s sticking cases) to over-ride total concentration on each step of the load/aim/fire/unload/reload sequence. I’m always troubled when shooters make light of these kinds of accidents, knowing that someone could have easily turned up dead as a result.
better be glad he still has a face and no one else around him was injured. Why I like shooting by myself at the range
It is amazing that the action remained mostly in one piece. A great testimonial for Savage.
Was his extractor ring broke or was he lifting the bolt then using the rod? Goes to show, don’t get mad when you are trying to get a gun to shoot good. Been there. Savage action saved the day.
I have had same sticking case in savage 110 ba . so far I have reduced powder / full length sized and trimmed . This so far seems to have corrected problem. components are Hornady once fired brass/ Hornady 285 bthp/R-22/Fed215
Nothing a little well placed duct tape can’t fix!
Really though all those around much less the shooter himself is lucky to be okay. That was a close call to be sure.
Also why I check the barrel is clear before I insert the bolt to start shooting each time. Just in case something got left in there I didn’t notice when cleaning. Although I usually check it when done cleaning and putting it away too. Can’t be too careful!
@Aaron Berg:
If Hornady brass or ammo is being used that may be the issue. I witnessed a friend shooting Hornady 338LP and every factory loaded round stuck. He contacted Hornady and they reimbursed him for both boxes. There was an issue with a batch of Hornady 338 ammo (the casings in particular).
Best regards,
DF
It never ceases to amaze me how reading forums like this one is like the party game where you tell the first person a story and by the time it comes around to the last person, its a completely different story.
Could it be the Chinese Super Sniper scope been dial in wrong?