BULLET STUCK IN BBL in the field

[nmbsniper]

My first attempt to reloading was with a 50 BMG. I had never loaded any ammo in my life so this was very exciting and scary at the same time. I mean it, loading 210 plus grains of powder for the first time, WOW!

Anyways, onetime I drove the 60 minutes to shoot at 1000 yards from home and a bullet got stuck and I had no way of removing it. Done for the day!

I wouldn't use a cleaning rod or a wooden dowel if it was my choice. I purchased a solid piece of rod aluminum from Home Depot. Something close to caliber size. Drilled a small concave hole on the end, tapped the bullet out with 1 light hit. Now I travel with a rod for the caliber I'm hunting with. Aluminum is soft enough to not damage the barrel but hard enough to get the job done

A friend used a cleaning rod with a flat jag, cleaning rod split and both were no stuck in his very expensive AI 338 LM.

 

[nmbsniper]

Insert the EMPTY, live-primered ,CASING back into the chamber if it will fit. CLOSE the bolt and fire the rifle< This should dislodge the bullet to clear the end of the barrel. DOES THIS WORK?? Could save a hunt!.....BUD[/QUOTE]

I wouldn't do this either. You can induce a squib round. Now the bullet is further up the barrel because it didn't exit the barrel.

 

[CVCOBRA1]

Remove the bolt from the action of stuck bullet rifle
Shoot a 22 down the muzzle of stuck rifle barrel blowing bullet out the back of action

Now, for all of you that believe everything you read on the internet. This will hurt you and probably ruin a good rifle. On the good side, you will have removed the stuck bullet and should have a perfectly good bolt to work with.

Note: I have not tried this but heard it will work.....

 

[hunter0528]

It works with a couple of cautions
#1 know the bullet is tHe right calibar!
#2 dont dump any powder! A detonation could happen or the bullet not clear the bore

Also make sure the load that caused the bullet to stick is the same powder charge (and bullet) are the same. A heaver charge for a lighter bullet could cause problems too. Also Make darn sure it is just stuck in the chamber and no further down the barrell!!!!!!!!!

 

[Wraith Hunter]

I have seen references on this forum to getting a bullet stuck in the bbl when the bullet has been seated out to far into or touching the lands. I have never had this happen to me even though for many years I carried my BDL REM 22-250 in the field while searching for brave groundhogs that lived along railroad tracks out in the country. I always seated my silver tips touching the lands and never thought about getting a bullet dislodged and stuck. Maybe just lucky.The point of my post is to mention a technique that was brought to my attention a while back and get opinions on whether or not it works and would be a safe procedure. If no rod to dislodge a stuck bullet while hunting, remove a bullet from one of your spare rounds and trickle a small amount of powder into the chamber of the opened rifle. Now SPILL OUT THE REMAINING POWDER FROM THE CASING ONTO THE GROUND. Insert the EMPTY, live-primered ,CASING back into the chamber if it will fit. CLOSE the bolt and fire the rifle< This should dislodge the bullet to clear the end of the barrel. DOES THIS WORK?? Could save a hunt!.....BUD

I believe the problem is the overall bullet/cartridge length is longer than the allowable length. When this occurs freebore becomes less than 0 inches and the bullet can become clamped by the barrel lands, resulting in bullet extraction from an unfired cartridge upon bullet extraction from the chamber.

While reloading, some reloaders attempt to increase accuracy by reducing freebore to zero inches. This can result in a sharp rise in chamber pressure before the bullet jumps free of the case especially when the powder charge is near the maximum. There are a few cartridges, Weatherby Magnums for example, that actually require significant freebore to control chamber pressure and pressure rise curves.

So, I believe one should never reload a cartridge to a length where a bullet is pressed into the lands with enough force to cause the bullet to become unseated upon cartridge extraction. Secondly, I believe a bullet that becomes stuck in a barrel for any reason should never be cleared from a barrel by firing a blank charge into the barrel. If we are serious shooters and reloaders we should equip ourselves with the correct tools to reload, maintain and repair our firearms.

 

[Alibiiv]

I have seen references on this forum to getting a bullet stuck in the bbl when the bullet has been seated out to far into or touching the lands. I have never had this happen to me even though for many years I carried my BDL REM 22-250 in the field while searching for brave groundhogs that lived along railroad tracks out in the country. I always seated my silver tips touching the lands and never thought about getting a bullet dislodged and stuck. Maybe just lucky.The point of my post is to mention a technique that was brought to my attention a while back and get opinions on whether or not it works and would be a safe procedure. If no rod to dislodge a stuck bullet while hunting, remove a bullet from one of your spare rounds and trickle a small amount of powder into the chamber of the opened rifle. Now SPILL OUT THE REMAINING POWDER FROM THE CASING ONTO THE GROUND. Insert the EMPTY, live-primered ,CASING back into the chamber if it will fit. CLOSE the bolt and fire the rifle< This should dislodge the bullet to clear the end of the barrel. DOES THIS WORK?? Could save a hunt!.....BUD

I'm thinking that you are asking for further problems when you talk about dumping powder out of the casing and then putting it back into the chamber and firing the round. If the charge was a proper charge to begin with, what reason would there be to dump some powder out. To me that only enhances exacerbating the problem of a stuck bullet by making a squib load and then driving that bullet halfway down the barrel, and NOW you have a real problem. Leave the load as is and fire the bullet out with it is my opinion. Dumping powder out doesn't sound like a good idea to me, and....could be a dangerous move.

 

[CVCOBRA1]

another one

 

[greenejc]

another one

Yep, Darwin Award hopefuls. Every gunsmith on this site that has answered this question has already said 'don't do it, its a BAD IDEA.'. They've got plenty of examples in their shops of why its a BAD IDEA. They don't really like making money by trying to repair rifles that have been done this way. Here's one of the reasons why you don't do this. When the casing is re-inserted, it has a nice air gap and probably less than 70% of the powder it had originally. It is jammed up against the bullet, thus forcing it further into the lands. Powder probably spills out into the chamber as this is done, so it isn't all contained inside the casing. An air pocket is created, and the bullet acts as a plug. You now have a classic plugged barrel situation. Pressure WILL spike. If it spikes enough, the gun will suffer failure. If the bullet is lodged further up the barrel, the air in the barrel gets compressed, pressure spikes and the barrel fails at the thinnest point, just in front of the bullet. Instant Darwin Award or Darwin Honorable Mention. Just take out your spare rifle and let a gunsmith handle this.

 

[CVCOBRA1]

Darwin Award hopeful.......I like that

 

[nvschütze]

Deleted

 

[Brasshog]

I wouldn't.

I retracted comment. Only could revise not delete

 

[Philward]

Well thats easy one if he loaded the bullet out past all of the free bore to touch the lands he chambered the round and it pushed into the lands instead of being pushed back into the case.to much neck tension.And it should be very easy to push out with a cleaning rod.

I had loaded some 7RM rounds for a friend for his rifle that had a long throat so the bullets were set out a bit more than normal. He got a new rifle, Browning HC LR in 7RM and the old bullets would not fit and told him not to use them in that rifle since I was loading for the new one. He tried one anyway and he remarked that it went in , to which I said "ya you just shoved the bullet into the case". The round extracted just fine and intact but much shorter than it was intended. Round was loaded with normal 0.002" neck tension. I still don't fathom how that bullet could be so jammed in that it wouldn't just fall out with a little bump of the butt of stock on ground.

 

[nvschütze]

I still don't fathom how that bullet could be so jammed in that it wouldn't just fall out with a little bump of the butt of stock on ground.

After all this discussion, I think it would be a good idea to carry a 12" brass rod that's an easy fit down the bore. Drop the rod down the bore and let its inertia dislodge the bullet. I carry a 36 x 3/16" brass rod with my .358-caliber mildcat rifle. The rifle has an M700 action and an overcharged round will stick to the point that no amount of bad language will allow the bolt to retract. To get back on-track I lift the bolt, insert the brass rod down the bore and tap-tap the stuck case right out. Has already saved two five-mile trips out to the desert...

 

[sw282]

l had a bullet get stuck in the barrel/cylinder of my 44 S&W revolver a few years back. Locked the gun up and was unable to open or unload the cylinder... Fortunately l was with a competent machinist on this range trip.. Back in his shop we were able to remove the bullet and ammo from the gun without damage to gun or selves using a piece of 3/8'' dia nylon rod... HE wrapped the barrel with a piece of thick leather before chucking into a vise. He then gently tapped the cast lead bullet back in the case... We were then able to open the cylinder and remove the rounds from the cylinder... There was unburned powder in the cylinder and barrel... To this day l still am not sure what caused the misfire/squib... Best guess was a piece of tumbling media lodged in the flash hole causing incomplete ignition of powder...
That stuck bullet caused me to check each flash hole with a decapping rod after tumbling brass... That nylon rod is also with me on each and every trip to the range...