Can anything happen when a bullet is jammed in a tough position?

Question

Sorry for the confusing question, but I've had this happen to me a few times and I get a little freaked out. But sometimes when I shoot, my gun will jam and the bullet is lodged in a bizzare manner. Nothbing to uncommon, but bizzare cas far as the position. My question is this: When I go to pull back and eject it and it struggles to get out, will to force of the barrel cause the bullet to fire at the angle its in? I'm sorry for the confusion, but I'm not sure how to word this.

Thank you!

Answer 1

Please also insure booze is not a factor.

I am rather anal about things after putting a nice hole through my brick fireplace back in my not so sober days.

Booze and firearms dont mix no matter your experience level.

Answer 2

Unless something strikes the primer, it should not fire. I have had to remove stuck cases from the chamber of my guns before and have carefully used a cleaning rod to tap it out. I don't recommend this method but it has worked for me. If your gun is causing the cartridge to "stovepipe" or stand straight up in the chamber with the slide closed on the base of the cartridge, just pull back the slide and eject the round. If the gun is a bolt action, you may be able to get a screwdriver blade into the chamber and pry the round out of the chamber. If this is the case, I'd take the gun to a gunsmith and have him look at the chamber to see why it is causing the cases to become stuck. The chamber may be rough and need to be polished. Another possibility if you are shooting hand loads is that they may be over pressuring and causing the case to expand and become stuck. Yolur best bet is to take it to a gunsmith and have him evaluate it for you and make the needed corrections. Do this and the fun of shooting will return.

Answer 3

It sounds like you are saying that when the gun jams, the rim of the cartridge is getting caught between the barrel and the bolt. You then want to know if there is a risk that the cartridge would discharge when caught like this or while the jam is being cleared.

If this is centerfire it won't discharge, if it is rimfire there is possiblilty but very slight.

It is unlikely that it would fire when jammed like this. If it were going to fire, odds are it would have when the jam initially occured, if it doesn't go off within about 15 seconds of jamming, odds are it won't discharge on its own. However, there is a slight possibilty it could fire when clearing the jam. The way to minimize this risk would be to lock the bolt open, preferably after removing or emptying the magazine and then carefully remove the cartridges jammed in the chamber and then close the action.

Answer 4

Sorry Randy, but you are unclear about what you mean about the "bizzare manner."

In general, there is not a lot of danger of discharge in most jam situations. However, proper gunhandling is paramount.

1. Always take your finger off the trigger.

2. Always keep the barrel pointed in a safe direction.

3. Don't force things. Grasp the slide or bolt in a normal manner, and pull back firmly. If necessary, turn the firearm on its side to dump the jammed round.

If this is happening as a regular thing, there is a problem with your gun. You need to consult a decent gunsmith to find the problem. Even cheapo gun are not designed to jam on purpose.

One thing to try before you go to a gunsmith is pay attention to how you hold the gun on firing. It is easily possible to cause even the best semi-automatic pistol to jam if you do not use a firm grip and a locked wrist. If you permit your wrist to flex during recoil, this will cause a jam.

Take your pistol in your left hand, with your hand over the top of the slide with the web of your hand toward the hammer. Hold your right hand with the fingers vertical and horizontal to the ground and with the thumb open. Thrust your pistol firmly into the web of your hand, and grasp the grip with your right hand, trigger finger along the side of the frame, pointing toward the target, wrist firmly locked straight. Raise the pistol to eye-level, and wrap your left hand around the right with the left thumb resting on top of your right thumb. The fire a magazine of ammo. If there are still jams, you will know the problem is mechanical rather in your technique.

Another thing to try before going to a gunsmith is changing the ammunition. If you've been using cheap generic ammo, try a box of brand name ammo. If you've been using JHP ammo, try some Full Metal Jacket or lead round nose ammo. If the cartridge is hanging up on the feed ramp, you will probably need a polish job to get proper feeding. And some handguns are just not designed to reliably feed anything but FMJ ammo.

Good Luck.

Doc

Answer 5

It sounds like your referring to an override.

Will it fire?
It would depend on the ammo style as to how likely it is to detonating, rim fire like a 22 LR could fire if the rim is crushed, center fire is very unlikely.
Any ammo style can detonate if the primer is some how damaged or struck.


override
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/policy/army/fm/3-22-9/c03.htm

http://www.armystudyguide.com/content/army_board_study_guide_topics/m16a2/malfunctions-probable-cau.shtml

If it happens very much, I would have a gunsmith (licensed Gunsmith) check it out for a mechanical failure, and see if it could be fixed.

Other wise I would invest in a more dependable weapon design.

My weapons must work reliably, or there traded off.

D58




Hunting with Rifle, Pistol, Muzzle loader and Bow for over 3 decades.
Reloading Rifle, Pistol and shotgun for over 3 decades.