Dud

Some commenter asked "How do you extract a 'dud' round then? Long stick down the barrel?"


I'm not sure what he is referring to specifically, but I am assuming a 'squib' round. Look it up in Google or wikipedia.

A squib happens when lack of a powder charge or faulty powder causes an event that is different than expected. It's not enough to propel the bullet out fo the barrel, much less down range. The primer cap is too small a 'pop' to necessarily get the bullet itself out of the works. The shot will generally sound and feel light, and if you are paying attention you should notice this. And you should be paying attention.

This has never happened to me, but if it does, I am prepared to handle it.

First, keep the gun pointed down range as a matter of caution. In case it is a handfire or complete dud, wait 30 seconds. I'd hate to be manipulating the piece and have it go off 20 seconds late. Stay calm. Even when guns blow up entirely they rarely injure anyone. But don't let this fact make you act complacently.

NEVER in ANY circumstance try to 'shoot out' a stuck obstruction.

Next, unload all the remaining live rounds, and the fired case if it is still in battery. The light shot might not have operated the slide on an automatic to eject the spent case.

Double check that all the bullets are out.

Now, worse case scenario is you have a bullet in the barrel. Best case is the bullet left the barrel and dribble onto the ground, as impotent as a Nevada Boxing Commissioner. If you have a chamber light you can shin this light down the barrel to see if it shine through.

A bullet is not dangerous just sitting in there. A bullet, not the case cartridge. A bullet is just a piece of lead and copper metal. There are no explosive in the tip. (If you have explosive tipped bullets you are much more advanced than me and don't need this primer.) You can often just poke this bullet out with a cleaning rod without a brush or patch on the tip.

I have a chamber light and cleanign rod at home, so I'd usually do this chore after the shooting session was over. If I only brought the one, now gimped, gun then my session is over. At home I'd fully field strip the semi-auto pistol anyway.

Depending on how certain I was that I caught the one squib round and didn't luck out firing a second round after it, I might take the gun to my gunsmith for him to check out to see if there is any damage. There is no shame in doing that even if you are sure of yourself. Or if the gun is an antique or cheaply made. Err on the side of caution. Never hurts to. I'd also definitely take it to a smith if I couldn't dislodge the obstructing bullet. If all went smoothly and everything looks fine and the barrel isn't bulged.

I'd suspect the ammo from that box, too, paying extra attention to how they feel and sound, if factory ammo. If they were reloads I'd worry that a no-charge case might mean a double charge case elsewhere in the batch. A double charge is much more dangerous than a squib. Many times with a double charge you don't have to worry about disassembling the pistol after the failure. It will have disassembled itself.