Axe Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Having viewed a thread recently which mentioned that dismantling of cartridges is actually illegal, it made me wonder as to what the correct procedure should be when dealing with a misfired cartridge. At the moment I leave the misfired cartridge in the rifle with it pointing at a safe back stop for 2 minutes. After which the cartridge is removed but, what should then be done with the faulty round? I just assumed that removing the bullet and powder from the casing was the best solution. But if it is illegal, then what is the correct and safest way to deal with it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 things are only illegal if you get caught, I'd still carry on doing what you are doing as the best way of ensuring they're safe and you can do it in the field so you don't end up having to carry them round Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new to the flock Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Axe you should be able to drop them off at any Police station to be disposed of. I have an ammo locker that they go into until I have a couple of dozen, then I take them in and let them know why I am dropping them off. Never had a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Geordie Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Normally if i get a misfire i tend to try a second and third time before i dispose of the cartridge. If it wont fire when the primer is struck 3 times i would use a puller to remove the head and dispose of the 2 halves seperatley. Pref after soaking the charge in a liquid. LG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Many moons ago when I had a .22 Hornet, I had a poor batch of ammunition and took about 10 misfired cartridges to the Police Station , which they accepted without question. The Gun Shop got the balance of the box back and replaced them. I'm not sure how the Police would react nowadays, perhaps someone has some recent experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergeant Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Well i got a rimmy that didnt go pop sitting in a box on its own with a couple of dents in the rim. I got no idea what to do with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunganick Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 rimfire can be broken up by hand into the shell, bullet and powder, powder is easily tipped onto something wet (ground or puddle) then bullet binned, and the case is easy enough to put on a fire etc. obviously i would only do this after several days of the bullet having not fired after being stuck several times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axe Posted March 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Thanks for the replies, I think i'm gonna contact my FEO to see what shee suggests. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergeant Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Nick, Its been in there since i last went out shooting, which was near xmas, so i guess its safe.. ish. I havnt heard anything twanging around inside the safe... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 (edited) If a bullet does go off, it will shoot the case off, not the bullet, as the bullet is hevier then the case, the case will leave first as it takes the least amount of energy. I really do not reccommend chucking an empty .22 case into a fire.. they shoot off pretty fast and far on just the primer.. You can try this, by breaking a .22 bullet, empty the powder out, place the EMPTY .22 casing over a barrel rod, and hold it over a candel. The casing will go POP and wiz off the rod If you have pulled the trigger, and the bullet does not fire, It really isnt necesary to wait 2 mins. If the primer doesnt fire, it wont. It wont be smouldering inside, as gunpowder does not work like this.. hold it in a safe direction for a few seconds, then unload the bullet and keep it seperate from the other rounds. (so you dont use it again). In the case of it being a .22 rimmy bullet, I would say snap it in half, and pour out the old powder and dispose of the tiny bits left by chucking them somewhere safe. Otherwise put the bullet in in a secure container, and hand it over for police disposal. If you are a re-loader, then im sure its safe enough to un-reload the round using the CORRECT tools for this purpose. Tampering with bullets can be both dangerous and illiegle, but will be perfectly safe if you know what you are doing. (no hack-sawing the center fire case in half!) Personally, I would just keep a small box inside the safe and put all misfires into it. Then bring them in for police disposal every once in a while. Will look less suspicious if you bring in a variety of miss fired cassing then one missfired centerfire round. Bring your licence with you when you bring them in, in case they start asking qeustions. Edited March 30, 2006 by Hunter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunganick Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 (edited) If a bullet does go off, it will shoot the case off, not the bullet, as the bullet is hevier then the case, the case will leave first as it takes the least amount of energy. I really do not reccommend chucking an empty .22 case into a fire.. they shoot off pretty fast and far on just the primer.. You can try this, by breaking a .22 bullet, empty the powder out, place the EMPTY .22 casing over a barrel rod, and hold it over a candel. The casing will go POP and wiz off the rod If you have pulled the trigger, and the bullet does not fire, It really isnt necesary to wait 2 mins. If the primer doesnt fire, it wont. It wont be smouldering inside, as gunpowder does not work like this.. hold it in a safe direction for a few seconds, then unload the bullet and keep it seperate from the other rounds. (so you dont use it again). In the case of it being a .22 rimmy bullet, I would say snap it in half, and pour out the old powder and dispose of the tiny bits left by chucking them somewhere safe. Otherwise put the bullet in in a secure container, and hand it over for police disposal. If you are a re-loader, then im sure its safe enough to un-reload the round using the CORRECT tools for this purpose. Tampering with bullets can be both dangerous and illiegle, but will be perfectly safe if you know what you are doing. (no hack-sawing the center fire case in half!) Personally, I would just keep a small box inside the safe and put all misfires into it. Then bring them in for police disposal every once in a while. Will look less suspicious if you bring in a variety of miss fired cassing then one missfired centerfire round. Bring your licence with you when you bring them in, in case they start asking qeustions. 20sec to 2mins is the recomended time to wait. If you have a misfire and the range officer does not suggest you do this, then he is not in my opinion doing his job. I have seen rounds go off after a few seconds, and it scares the living daylight out of people. I know of one case where the chap opened the gun (O/U) and the case went off only just being caught by the action face. We all know which face it would have hit after that. It IS in my opinion nessicary to wait at least 10 secs (absolute min) (20 secs being better), these rounds can go off after a few secs, ive seen it happen. (albeit never in a .22rimfire) i have seen quite a few primers from dud shotgun cartridges (mainly D+J) put on fires and they just fizz loudly and dont do more than twitch. I might suggest that by holding the case on a stick you are providing a slight seal, enough for some pressure to build up. No disrespect to you hunter, your very knoledgeable, but you really cant recomend skimping on safety when it comes to a misfire. leave it a few seconds, if it has your fingers or face off you will wish you had left it 10secs longer :o Edited March 30, 2006 by dunganick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milo_05 Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 Too right duganick, at throckmorton shoot I had a misfire, waited a few seconds with gun in my shoulder, then started to unmount as I did it fired after 5-6 seconds. I will always wait a bit just in case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the last engineer Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 I totaly agree on the safety side with you guys, 30 second min for any miss/hangfire, one thing i will say though Nick if you like your fingers dont take any .22 rimmy apart with them, just beause it didnt fire from the pin in the area it hit dosent mean it wont ignite, static can cause a explosion just as easily, "in a million years" i hear say hmmm, remember that guy Murphy, use safe practices all the time , dump them in WD40 for a week or two, it wont hurt anyone, it pains me to see the misuse of ammunition at ranges, i called the RSO of the biathalon team on discarded 22 shells a few times, their dead he said as he threw them in the garbage can, so will the collectors be if they go off whilst handling the cans. safety all the way all the time Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunganick Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 one thing i will say though Nick if you like your fingers dont take any .22 rimmy apart with them fair point, became a bad habbit after a batch of dodgy rimmy, was told it was the best way to do it... i stand corrected. WD40 from now on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Does WD40 actually seep passed the bullet and into the powder? I wouldnt think that is reliable enough Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pavman Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Having viewed a thread recently which mentioned that dismantling of cartridges is actually illegal, it made me wonder as to what the correct procedure should be when dealing with a misfired cartridge. If it happend to me I would slip them in Highlanders bag when he is not looking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marlin.45 Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 (edited) Where did someone read that dismantling or cartridges is 'illegal'? I pull the bullets on home loads regularly - it is standard procedure and safe if you have the right equipment and know how. Spent nitro powder can be put on the lawn and acts as a good fertilizer. As long as the grass is damp (not recommended after a dry spell and you are planning a BBQ in the same area ) If you have a misfire on a nitro load then 2 minutes max should be fine if it is a BP load then at least 2 mins especially if it is a large charge. Edited March 31, 2006 by marlin.45 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axe Posted March 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Where did someone read that dismantling or cartridges is 'illegal'? http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/ind...showtopic=16429 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axe Posted March 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Ok, i've just got off the phone from my FEO at Sussex Police. The word is as follows: Hold rifle or shotgun aimed at the ground for at least 30 seconds. Carefully remove the round and remove pellets/bullet and empty and dispose of the the charge safely. The casing and its primer theoretically is now inert and can be simply disposed of in a bin. It not illegal to dismantle ammunition under these conditions, but is illegal to dismantle ammunition for any other purpose. Seems like another grey area, but that is the official word. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the last engineer Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Axe, maybe that should read "hold GUN pointing down range in a safe direction" as oposed to the ground, I always teach new shooters never point a loaded weapon at the ground, a gun goes off debris can blow back at you, just a thought. Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axe Posted March 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Your quite right Martin It was the way the conversation was worded but I interpretted it to mean the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nildes Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 My understanding is that the correct term is Hangfire, from the days when black powder sometimes burned slowly before exploding. Thirty seconds is the mininmum to wait 1-2 minutes is better. point the gun in a safe direction before unloading. keep the cartridge somewhere safe and pass it on to the police. What purpose is there in taking the cartridge apart? It just makes a risky situation riskier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axe Posted March 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Funny but when I said it had been suggested I take a dud cartridge into the Police Station the FEO gave a nervous laugh and said the bin will do fine! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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