Over at The High Road a member posted these pictures of his Ruger SP-101 that kaboomed at the range. He admitted he was shooting ammo a relative had given him, and he didn't even know if it was a reload or factory.
The consensus is that the ammo was at fault, and was likely an overpressure issue, given that it blew the cylinder in half ( the shooter has never found the other half ).
Thanks to Bill Ruger's philosophy of manufacturing only products that are built like tanks, the backstrap bent but did not break, and the shooter himself is uninjured, which is a testament to the toughness of the gun. It is rare that a Ruger revolver grenades like this. He has sent the gun back to Ruger and told them it was an ammo issue, but it will be interesting to see what the factory does with it.
I'd think that there might have been something in the barrel too. You just don't see Ruger revolvers blow apart like that. They are not particularly elegant (like a Colt Python), but they're as rugged as they come.
ReplyDeleteIt would be interesting to know how many rounds had been put through the handgun. Metal fatigue?
I have reloads, but they will be only be used when there is nothing left in my new stock, not before that's for sure.
ReplyDeleteI own one just like that. I think I would have peed myself.
ReplyDeleteC.J.