A dud shell could have been worse

Josey1

A dud shell could have been worse 01/27/02I choked away a perfectly good duck gun last weekend in my first, and thus worst, hunting accident. Try Our Classifieds And, with all that leftover ammo being sold and stored after an exceptionally poor duck season, heed the lessons: Events moved swiftly on the last day of the duck season as a flock circled the decoys. We opened fire on the third pass. My first bird fell to the ground, so I swung on another and pulled the trigger again. "Phmmmp . . . " I quickly ejected the dud, still focused on the bird, and shot a third time. "B-Bang!" The end of the muzzle peeled back before my eyes like an Easter lily. My hunting partner and I are thankful neither of us was hurt. And I clearly should have obeyed common-sense rules -- stop immediately if you hear something strange . . . and keep your powder dry. After a few weeks of rattling around unused in a camo coat pocket, submerged more than once while wading in waist-deep water, the second shell's powder simply wouldn't ignite. But the primer did, forcing the load into -- but not out of -- the barrel. When the third shot fired, gas pressure from the plug split the metal at the plugged choke. "We get one or two of these every year," said Brian Tarilton of Allison and Carey Gun Works Inc., as he measured the original 28-inch shotgun barrel. "It split about four inches below the choke, so we'll trim it clean at 231/2 inches. With a fully open cylinder, it will be a good little decoy gun out to 30 or 40 yards . . . or maybe a quail gun." Gary Gronfor, a product service representative for the Federal Cartridge Co. in Anoka, Minn., said barrel damage happens more often with pumps than semi-automatics, which don't generally eject duds. Split metal usually results from a plug in the end of a barrel that is designed to work within close ballistic tolerances. Poorly treated ammunition is the culprit as often as mud, dirt, snow or other obstructions. "You wouldn't believe some of the ammunition we get back from customers," Gronfor said. "Ammunition is not waterproof. All manufacturers seal their shells very well, but the ability to seal moisture out is not as good as the ability of water to get in." Ammo can last 20 to 50 years, Gronfor said, as long as it is stored safely between seasons and, in this case, each use. And make sure ammo is safely locked away from pets and kids. Gronfor said ammonia and its vapors, from either cleaning products or the cat box, are very hard on shotshells. Don't use any ammunition with visible corrosion. If you have suspect shells to discard -- all of my old stuff is outta here -- do NOT toss it in the wastebasket. Contact the police or garbage company, or take it to a Metro waste transfer station as hazardous waste. There's no charge. The ammunition will be turned over to a bomb squad and incinerated. "The primers and powder burn and the lead or steel melts down then we recycle it," said Clackamas County Sheriff's Deputy Danny Dea, a bomb technician with the Metro Explosives Disposal Unit. And yes, both manufacturers and local retailers say it is perfectly all right to take advantage of sales of surplus ammunition, as long as it is stored and used correctly. After all, as one buyer for a local department store chain told me: "Ammunition is relatively waterproof . . . but it's not fool-proof." I earned the hyphen. You can reach Bill Monroe at 503-221-8231 or at bill- monroe@news.oregonian.com http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/oregonian/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/sports/101204980830821516.xml