Kabooms and rumors of kabooms...

Yesterday I heard talk of a man at a local range who was shooting a .30-40 using "reloads" which "exploded" and injured the left side of his face so badly 911 was called.  That's it.  No mention of which rifle model or any other details.

Of course we'd like to know the details.  More than likely, since reloads were used, there was an error on the part of the person who made them.  Part of that error may have been in underestimating the strength of the firearm.  Most firearms chambered for this round, I think all but the Ruger #3 or #1s, are old guns, using old metallurgy.  Instead of using the least pressure load to duplicate the old factory stuff, there are those who want to maximize the round's/gun's performance.  They push pressures too high.  Even the U.S. military discovered that in trying to up the performance of the .30-40 round.  They had problems with the service rifles in which they used that "improved" ammunition and so they withdrew it and went another way in firearms development.

However, we have no idea exactly what happened and this is usually true in such cases.  Perhaps, sooner or later, the shooter will do a mea culpa in an on-line forum and post photos of his damaged/destroyed firearm and/or his wounds.  Maybe, he will have figured out what likely happened and admit to it.  Until he does we are left wondering and with a renewed commitment to safe and sane reloading practices.