Had couple of squib rounds

Iamjustifyd · Jul 28, 2018

Hi all,
I've been told and read that these are caused by no powder in the rounds. I go slow at reloading and can't see how this would happen. I wasn't distracted when reloading this batch. I will say that my powder and primers are a few years old and kept outside in the garage in a cabinet, not airtight, where it is not climate controlled. It catches the heat and humidity. Is there a chance the powder and/or primers was the cause? If so, how to dispose of the powder and primers?
Thanks!

john17427 · Jul 28, 2018

I think it’s unlikely that it’s the primers, but you can seat 10 or so and snap them in the gun to see if they pop with consistent energy. I’ve used primers that were in the conditions you describe for almost 30 years and they all worked fine. My understanding is that bad powder has a different and frequently bad smell rather than the normal formaldehyde smell. The only bad powder I ever had was obviously clumpy so I didn’t smell it. I just poured it in a line in the yard and burned it. Don’t make a pile if you burn it, make a good sized line so you don’t lose your eyebrows.

Bmash · Jul 28, 2018

More details? Did the bullet exit the barrel of just enter the barrel?
Any unburnt powder?
My only experience was a round with no powder that lodged in the forcing cone.
I googled how to get rid of primers and basically discovered they are tough components!!! I had fun and threw them in a fire! A few at a time btw...

Gus McCrae · Jul 29, 2018

A squib is where the bullet leaves the casing but doesn't have enough power to get through the rifling on the barrel. This means the primer had to go off.

If you had a squib, but you had a complete bullet before firing, then I would expect to see a good bit unburned powder in the barrel or in the casing. If you don't see more than a couple of flakes, then you probably didn't have powder in the case.

Reloading can be monotonous and easy to miss a step.

Iamjustifyd · Jul 29, 2018

Thanks for the info. It was stuck in the barrel of my .38 and I couldn't get it out so brought it to a local gunsmith, not sure if there was powder left or not. Not sure if the powder smells bad or not, never smelled it before. I'll have to pay more attention and make sure there is powder in all my ammo...thanks again!

Had couple of squib rounds

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