Reloading safety reminder

Just speculating here, but to injure both hands, I doubt he was working the press. My first reaction was he was pouring primers into the tube and one detonated. We also don't know how old they were. I've seen some lately being sold as "old new stock" and I wouldn't take them even for free. I have a friend who was cleaning out her Dad's home after he passed away. She called me after opening an old cabinet in the basement with several boxes of very old, and leaking, primers. I had her call the sheriff. The first deputy giggled at her until he looked for himself, then he called the bomb squad. They in turn. giggled at the deputy before looking, then he went back and fully suited up. I won't say why I know about contact explosives, but they can detonate under their own weight, and from the picture it appears everything in the tubes went off. He's very lucky.
Geez, well that gives me pause. A friend gave me a couple 100 primer sleeves of very old small pistol primers that he found in a barn. The outer cardboard wrapper looks pretty faded, probably got moisture on it at one time, but the primers seem clean and I certainly don't see anything leaking. It never occurred to me they might be unsafe to use. He gave me a bunch of clean primed brass at the same time that was just as old, but I get that's different than loose primers.
 
They did surgery on his thumb and he is expected to make a full recovery. He said the pain had subsided by late Thursday night. Modern pharmaceuticals work wonders. 😂

His story is he thought it was static electricity.....I'm not saying it was or wasn't, but I'm struggling to wrap my head around that scenario....I'm thinking something more mechanical.
I'm just glad he will be ok.He is lucky to have all his digits and his life.
 
So please help me. Sorry if a dumb question. I single load my by Hand I always thought it one went off the way I do it it should just blow out the end of the empty case and maybe a bit out the bottom. But this has me worried. If loading one at a time and keeping hands and eye in proper spots. Keeping case mouth pointed away is this even possible? Or is the way I'm doing it that much safer?
This looks terrible.
 
Wow. I sure hope that fellow will be okay. I'm currently buying all the required reloading components. I will be a newbie to reloading. I was planning on buying that same bench priming tool. Maybe I should reconsider that idea now.
 
I use this primer system and have been using it for years. Hard to see how seating a primer set this off. When the primer is seated the tube rocks back out of the way and the shell case is in its shell holder pointing straight up. Can't imagine a primer I am seating detonating and setting off the primers in the tube.
 
If you are loading on a bench over a rug, grounding is critically important.

Excellent point! Carpets are great for contributing to static electricity. Just ask any cat. I'm am going to ground my presses and RCBS priming tool. Also going to start wearing a full face shield while priming. Many thanks to the OP for posting this misfortune. Hope the victim fully recovers.

When operating this particular priming tool I never did like how the tube would bang around when operating the handle. Would be nice if RCBS would design a "cushioning" device of some type so the tube wouldn't bang around. Kinda like a shock absorber.
 
Last edited:
Several years ago this happened to me. Finished loading, put the carton back up on the wood shelves with sliding doors on the front. Next time I got it out a tray had detonated. No idea what caused it. No kids, no stray electrical currents, didn't get dropped. But it is a testament to how the carton and trays stop the propagation.

View attachment 355253
Not to hijack - but has anyone else seen something like this? This raises questions for me. I would have been on the phone with Winchester maybe? Odd vibrations? Apparently spontaneous ignition is red flag city to me.
 
I bet this dude had the tube full of primers and he had lost the little cotter pin so he had his thumb over the bottom to keep them falling out. He went to put it on the tool in a fast motion but in doing so a primer or two fell out and maybe got sideways. In his fast motion to keep the rest of them from falling out the bottom he was too aggressive and set one off.
 
He must have been holding the primer tube when it happened to get that much damage. Not sure though since we don't know the whole story. Would like to hear the whole story for sure. Glad he is healing and hopefully will heal completely.
 
Several years ago this happened to me. Finished loading, put the carton back up on the wood shelves with sliding doors on the front. Next time I got it out a tray had detonated. No idea what caused it. No kids, no stray electrical currents, didn't get dropped. But it is a testament to how the carton and trays stop the propagation.

View attachment 355253
That's crazy
 
Top