Let’s Talk About Squibs…
There is a near unfathomable amount of ammo manufactured on a daily basis. I don’t even want to estimate the number but I’m sure it’s pretty big. Ok, I’ll estimate it. Right now, the manufacturers are in full production and they average about 12 billion rounds per year which comes out to just short of 33 million rounds a day.
Now, quality assurance at the manufacturers is impressive. The problem is, it’s not foolproof. I’ve been researching for a while but I haven’t found any solid estimates on how many bad rounds get out. Admittedly, if I was a manufacturer, I sure as heck would keep that number close to my chest. Knowing what I know of other manufacturer’s, I’m going to give an estimate of .001% of those rounds make it past quality assurance (keep in mind, that is purely an estimate pulled off the top of my head). That means that, on any given day, 329 bad rounds could make it out into the market.
Sometimes, those rounds are easy to spot. I’ve seen some where the bullet was seated way too far into the casing and I’ve seen bullets seated the wrong way. Other times it’s a faulty primer or, in really bad cases, inadequate amounts of powder.
The less than ideal amount of powder is where problems happen. If there isn’t enough powder, the bullet won’t make it out of the barrel. Interestingly enough, if there is absolutely zero powder in the cartridge, the primer has enough power to get the bullet about 25%-50% of the way into the barrel where it will get stuck. There is a term for this kind of situation: “squib”. Technically it’s called an obstruction but pretty much everyone calls it a squib. I should note that a squib is far more likely to happen with hand reloads than in the mass produced stock. They are possible, however, in either so constant diligence is necessary.
A squib, in and of itself, isn’t a big deal as they are easy to repair so it’s not the end of the world. All you have to do is take the barrel out then hammer the bullet out the rest of the way using a wood dowel. Make sure you hammer it out in the direction it would normally go (breech to bore) because pushing it out the way it came could damage the barrel.
The danger of a squib comes in when a shooter doesn’t realize they’ve got a squib. In most cases, they’re shooting and shooting. Then they get a super weak round. “That’s odd”, they think as they manually cycle the spent brass. They aim, pull the trigger again and BOOM!!!!1!1!! Notice it said “BOOM!!!!1!1!!” and not “Bang!”. The gun flies into many pieces. The shooter’s hands and face are cut up. The gun is no longer usable unless you want to throw shards of metal at something.
What happened is the first bullet got lodged in the barrel as discussed earlier. Then the second round started to push its way in. Not just the bullet, mind you, but all the gasses as well. Now, if you’ve ever over-inflated a balloon, you know what happens. All those gasses are going into the barrel. They’ve got to go somewhere. They can’t push the bullet out…which is where the gasses normally escape. With nowhere else to go, the barrel pops like a balloon. I’ve tried and tried to find high speed footage of a catastrophic failure but I would bet that it would look very similar to a balloon popping at first. It would inflate past its engineered tolerances and as it blows it takes the other gun parts with it.
So how does one prevent this? Simple: pay attention. If you’ve shot for more than 3 or 4 rounds, you’ll have a pretty good idea of what a particular caliber feels like in the gun you’re shooting. It’s going to have a pretty recognizable profile every time you pull the trigger. If you get a shot that’s noticeably weaker, stop shooting immediately. Render the gun safe then field strip it. Look into the barrel. Do you see light? Good news! The bullet cleared the barrel. Just make sure there isn’t any residue and go back to what you were doing. If there’s no light at the end of the tunnel, well, unless you have the tools with you at the range you’re probably done shooting that gun for the day. Keep in mind, a lot of ranges have the tools necessary to clear that out so ask a Range Safety Officer for help.
Other things that can cause squibs: shooting un-jacketed bullets through barrels that aren’t meant to have them. Glocks are the biggest culprit in that case. Your gun’s manual will tell you if it’s ok to use that kind of ammo. Dirt and debris as well as pocket lint can also obstruct the barrel so regular cleaning is a must.
Just make sure you’re paying attention to more than just your target while you’re shooting and you’ll be ok. If something doesn’t feel right, stop and figure out why. Shrugging things off is how people get injured.
Image screenshotted from YouTube Video: http://youtu.be/fLk5ykGPDsU
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