Author Topic: Exploding Shotgun; NOT GOOD! (Read 920 times)

RWH24 · « **on:** August 17, 2003, 11:54:15 PM »

:grin: Well, a friend and I went to Academy Sports in Plano, Tx Saturday. He picked up a new shotgun for him and his grown, adult son. He bought 2 just a like. The Browning Gold Hunter in 12ga. Very nice guns.
Yesterday, Sunday, my friend, his son and I went to the back pasture with clay birds and some game loads to "break in" the new Brownings. They had been cleaned and lubed prior to the shoot, "Meticulously!" WEll a few fail to ejects, fail to feeds and we are on our way to find out neither gun likes 7/8th oz shot game loads. 1 1/8th oz works fine. Winchester Game loads is what was left over from last dove season and bought new recently for practice prior to this year shoot. I was pulling the targets, my friend was callin and blasting. I heard a different sound so I looked at him and he had this AW SHUCKS look and politely said: " My gun just blew up!" :eek: I looked and sure enough, the bolt apparently failed to lock up prior to being fired, there was case head separation and it blew downward pushing the follower out the bottom. He says " My ears are ringing!"
He had the gun mounted shooting at a clay bird when it went KaBoom so I imagine he felt more too. To say the least we quite for the day. The son's gun had no similar explosion. He did have ftf/fte problems with 7/8th oz loads none on 1 1/8 oz.
Ammo or a burr in the action? We had shot about 25-35 rnds thru this gun prior to the "Ending" Give me your opinion on what happened. :?

Thanks,
Randy

Bob_K · « **Reply #1 on:** August 18, 2003, 06:36:16 AM »

Unusual event to say the least. Any chance in the cleaning and lubing that parts from one gun got swapped to the other?

RWH24 · « **Reply #2 on:** August 18, 2003, 02:29:48 PM »

Negative, Friend cleaned his at home, son cleaned his at his house, a couple of hundred yards apart.

Randy

Bob_K · « **Reply #3 on:** August 18, 2003, 02:45:20 PM »

Perhaps a broken firing pin, with part of it sticking from the bolt. Only other option for an out of battery firing is poor parts fitting from the get go. The disconnector should prevent firing until the bolt is locked but obviously it did not work here. I doubt it was a faulty primer in factory ammunition. Even a high primer should not do it in a shotshell the way primers are contained in their own cup (as opposed to a high primer in a metallic cartridge; I KNOW they'll go off). Good news is he was not seriously hurt. The shotgun should be covered by warranty, but how do you gain confidence in it again? I think I'd close my eyes every time I pulled the trigger.

RWH24 · « **Reply #4 on:** August 20, 2003, 04:28:17 PM »

:agree: Bob K: You may have hit the nail on the head in your last post. My friend went to a Browning repair station and was told this was not the first same complaint like this with the Browning. He said the shop would call Browning and see if they would warranty it or come from his pockets. The disconector may have malfunctioned or a protruding firing pin. Anyway it is at the Gun Hospitol. Thanks for the replies guys.

Randy

RWH24 · « **Reply #5 on:** November 06, 2003, 02:07:49 PM »

UPDATE: Gun was replaced by Browning, shot all dove season, worked great.
Cause?? Browning would not say, except, Her is your new gun.
Have a nice day. Better figured wood too.

Randy