CLICK HERE to zoom the image. This story was first published a few decades ago. Republishing this story today is a reminder to readers that safety at the range should be their primary concern. Avoid distractions, and always check the barrel for obstructions prior to chambering a round or pulling the trigger. Unbearing can lead to a catastrophic explosion. A.338 Lapua magnum round fired with a cleaning rod inside the barrel is a recipe for disaster. What happens when you have a.338 caliber round and a cleaning rod in the same location at the same time. You get a catastrophic explosion, with metal fragments flying everywhere, and the shooter is very lucky to have escaped without serious injury. According to Sniper’s Hide member Queequeg, this incident happened recently in Manatee. SnipersHide.com has granted permission for us to publish these revealing pictures in the Daily Bulletin. CLICK HERE to get more Kaboom information from the ‘Hide.
This story should serve to remind you to always follow safe safety practices when you are on the range. Check to see if there is an obstruction in the bore BEFORE you load a live round. .338 Lapua Magnum + Cleaning Rod + Inattention = Kaboom! Kaboom at Manatee!
Sniper’s Hide member Queequeg published shocking photos recently of a catastrophic kaboom involving a.338 Lapua Magnum (Savage Action). The action was blown from the rifle. Shrapnel went into the roof. And the barrel split in half at the tenon. The action cracked in the front, but the lugs were still engaged and the bolt didn’t slam backwards (luckily for him). Here’s what the report says: “This occurred [January 20, 2014] at Manatee Gun and Archery Club. Al, Ren, and I were there along with a few other people. Ren was on bench 12, and I was on bench 13. The guy at 11 was shooting a Savage Lapua.338. He was having a bad day! He could have killed Ren and himself. Ren and I went to him, but we could not see any serious injuries. Ren was also uninjured, but had many fiberglass splinters all over him. I assume the barrel nut punched two holes in the ceiling. The shooter is there regularly[.] He was having problems with sticky cases, even though he claimed to be certain that the loads were mild. He was happy to knock out the sticky cases with the rod. He forgot to remove his rod after removing the last stuck case. You can see the next thing that happened. To learn more, visit the original Snipers Hide Forum thread. You’ll find four pages of discussion and more details. The important lesson here
What did the.338 LM gunner do wrong? You may say, “Well, that’s obvious. He left a cleaning rod inside the barrel, and then fired a round.” That was a potentially deadly error. This was his second error, and it only happened because he had made a fundamental mistake first. The FIRST mistake was to not acknowledge the problem with his ammunition. He would still have his rifle (and a pair of clean trousers) if he had listened to the warning signs. When he noticed that he had problems extracting cases, an alarm should have gone off. If he had been using safe loads, and his extractor wasn’t broken (and the chamber was properly cut), he should have easily been able extract his brass. We all need to learn that if there is a serious issue with ammo, it’s time to stop. When there are clear signs of something wrong, stop shooting.
