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Blew Up an XDM40 Today

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SemperFiGuy:

--- Quote ---Appreciate the update, all too often these kinds of events pop up with no follow up and just leaves us all wondering,,,,

--- End quote ---

Kinda my thinking, too.  Which actually prompted the follow-up here on the Forum.

The XDM40 is still at the gunsmith until the scarce-extractor situation gets resolved in some manner.  Or until I go pick it up and put it on the shelf.   Either way, it won't shoot until it gets a new extractor.   (Hmmmm.... maybe convert it to blowback mode.  Or get a little 5-inch poky-rod for extraction purposes....)

However, I've got buckets of reloads in .40S&W caliber.   

So the next issue is what to do with them.  Like:

1)   Just scrap them; throw them away.  (Where?)
2)   Pull the bullets; check powder loads.  (Groan...............  Makes me weary to think of it.)
3)   Go ahead and shoot them, THWI.  (Kinda scary.  Certainly would develop a serious flinch.)
4)   Come up with rational plan to recover them incrementally.   (Professor-talk.)
5)   ?

I'm kinda at a sticking point right now.   I do have other handguns that will shoot or can be converted to shoot .40S&W cartridges.   

Currently pondering the next move.

sfg

Gary:
As I said, I do not reload, so I am just asking a basic question.  If all the cases and primers and lead weigh the same, by weighing each round, can you tell how much powder is in each one? 



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altheman2:
ok.....I cant sleep....its late at night....should be sleeping but I have an idea to share. Not sure of what type of scale your using but rather than pulling bullets, what would happen if you weighted them all, the fully loaded rounds, throw them on a scale and see what each one weights, I would think you would end up with a high, low and average. Pull the highest and get an exact powder measure, know what your dealing with. It seems my el cleapo Rcbs 505 scale is + - 2 grain before it pegs high or low. My thoughts are it would narrow down your ice cream buckets of ammo to "suspect rounds".  Its a thought, I don't reload much for pistol but a lot of rifle, big difference in powder charges. Just a thought based on many many variables.

Best thing I can think of is eat more ice cream.

altheman2:
The 556 reloads I have seem to be within a grain or each other , sorted by headstamp trimed and full length sized.
But most importantly I am very  glald your ok

SemperFiGuy:
It appears that some Good-Think is going on here:


--- Quote ---......what would happen if you weighted them all, the fully loaded rounds, throw them on a scale and see what each one weights
--- End quote ---


--- Quote ---If all the cases and primers and lead weigh the same, by weighing each round, can you tell how much powder is in each one? 
--- End quote ---

Following the above reasoning, here's what I'm doing:

1.  Sorting the reloads by headstamp.
2.  Segregating within headstamp by total cartridge grain weight.
3.  Bagging the weight-segregated results for shooting at the range.

For example, I've got Winchester White Box reloads in these weight ranges:

Grains
226.0 - 226.9
227.0 - 227.9
.....
.....
.....
233.0 - 233.9
234.0 - 234.9

As you can see, the result is a whopping 8 grain weight range.  [Very unlike altheman2's 1-grain M/L variation].   However, if you weigh the empty cartridge cases, bullets, and unfired primers independently, a significant weight variation also results due to the natural statistical distribution of stuff.   Even within the same headstamp.

I'm going to the range today and start with the lighter rounds [226.0 - 226.9gr.] being shot first.  And work my way up the scale, being very alert to any signs of increasing chamber pressure.   And will follow altheman2's suggestion to pull some of the higher rounds to measure powder charge weight.   First.

We'll see.

sfg

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