January 21, 2023This is a sad story. A man nearly lost his right hand and suffered severe injuries to his fingers. He accidentally bought the wrong powder from the shelf. This story has been told before and we will continue to tell it every year as a warning to our readers. This is a common mistake, but it can have serious consequences. Before you begin hand-loading, make sure to double-check your powder labels. You may not have a hand to load next time if you don’t.
Denny K. was assembling rounds for his 7mm-08 Savage hunting rifle. He thought he was loading Hodgdon Varget. He had actually filled his powder measure instead with Hodgdon TiteGroup. This is a fast-burning pistol dust. The labels are identical, so it is easy to see why. The results were disastrous. Here’s what 41 grains TiteGroup can do with a 7mm-08: Denny posted on the Firing Line in a thread called “Lucky To Be Alive”: “This is the most difficult post to post. It’s obvious that I would have commented on it a week ago if I had seen it. Everything was perfect except that I accidentally poured the wrong powder into the powder measure. I type slowly with my left arm, embarrassed, but it may save someone else a tragedy. Click HERE to see a larger, more graphic image of the injury.
The Varget Still-Sealed Bottle
Denny didn’t understand why the kaboom occurred at first. He thought it was his new Savage rifle. On his return to home, he found something. Denny wrote: “The seven hour period it took me to go to ER and transport to Trauma Center made me believe it was a Savage rifle problem. New rifle, new brass, triple-checked loading information. I was shocked to discover that Varget powder was still sealed the next day. I knew exactly what powder I wanted. I thought Varget was what I used. It wasn’t until the next day that I realized Varget was still sealed. Denny realized that the accident was caused by operator error. He realized he had to warn others about using the wrong powder. “I knew I had to share my mistake, even if it is embarrassing, just so people would be reminded. I’ve been reloading for over 30 years Editor’s Comment: Denny wasn’t a novice reloader. This is a mistake that any hand-loader can make, even one with decades of experience. Take your time loading your ammo. After loading, remove powders from the measures (pistol powders may look very similar to rifle powders). Also, make sure to check the label on the jug. According to the TiteGroup label, “A little goes far.” It is a good idea to separate your pistol powders and your rifle powders or even load for pistols in a separate area of your workshop.
