Bullet went off loose in a handbag?

Ive traveled roughly 500k miles in my life by automobile and Ive never had a tire blow while driving and cause an accident.

I guess that makes it impossible and all of the LEO's, reporters, and others that have reported it either liars or incompetent.

:rolleyes:

As I said earlier, and Ive posted about it before either here or on THR,
Ive personally witnessed a 22lr go off in a back pocket of someone that fell on his butt.
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Since the case was trapped under the weight it allowed the bullet to move.
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Okay, but to what velocity could the bullet accelerate given that it wasn't in a barrel ? Seems like once the bullet cleared the case the expanding gases would go in all directions, and very little of them pushing the bullet.
 
Okay, but to what velocity could the bullet accelerate given that it wasn't in a barrel ? Seems like once the bullet cleared the case the expanding gases would go in all directions, and very little of them pushing the bullet.
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I bet a lot more than a cork being blown off of a bottle of champagne.

Ive seen that big round soft cork put a pretty good dent in a ceiling and more than 1 person has lost a eye that way too.
 
I bet a lot more than a cork being blown off of a bottle of champagne.
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That's an interesting point. At what point in the cork removal does the force pushing on the cork exceed the remaining resistance of the bottle, thus accelerating the cork from that point until the cork completely clears the bottle ? I would guess the last 1/4 inch.

I'm not a reloader, so I don't know how far in does the bullet set in the case ? 1/8 inch ? The cork might have a longer time accelerating.

The second factor in the acceleration is the mass. I just weighed a wine bottle cork at 92 grains, which is much more than I would have guessed, and only a little lighter than your typical 9mm.

The third factor would be the force, and I agree that I would expect the propellant force from a cartridge to be considerably stronger than that of sparkling wine, but I didn't measure that.
 
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Okay, but to what velocity could the bullet accelerate given that it wasn't in a barrel ? Seems like once the bullet cleared the case the expanding gases would go in all directions, and very little of them pushing the bullet.
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I bet a lot more than a cork being blown off of a bottle of champagne.

Ive seen that big round soft cork put a pretty good dent in a ceiling and more than 1 person has lost a eye that way too.
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But a cork is propelled from a barrel of sorts and the barrel does not expand or fragment. You don't have this with a cartridge.

Part of the reason that firefighters don't fear ammo to any great extent is because when it goes off in a fire, the slug usually does not move very far. It it is the case that moves. Not only that, the case, being unsupported, tends to rupture and so a lot of the pressure is lost in directions other than what would propel the bullet. Even if it doesn't rupture significant, the case mouth expands to release the trapped expanding gassesThe flying shrapnel of the case is a minor concern and their heavy fire gear is more than sufficient to protect them. At right would be exposed skin and especially unshielded eyes.

There is no reason to believe that a bullet deonating in a purse that isn't in a barrel will have sufficient velocity to leave the purse (I am assuming it supposed went thought the side or bottom of the purse). Between the two, it will be the case that moves furthest and likely only a fragment would escape.

As noted in the article, it wasn't the bullet that left the purse, but a part of the cartridge case. Hence, it was a minor wound.

Also noted was a bullet from a court case that exploded in the bag it was in and was propelled a whole 20 feet. That is an extremely short maximum range. My little daughter could throw a bullet further than that and it would not be at a velocity that would penetrate anything much thicker or stronger than a piece of paper.
 
Well, I guess I have to own up to my own idiocy. I had a case (no bullet) with a primer in it. The case was deformed so I couldn't run it through a decapping die. So I put it in a fire. I had done this hundreds of times with no problem.

The last time I did that trick, the primer came out of the case and fire and penetrated the calf of my leg. It went in the front and lodged just under the skin in the back of the leg. Luckily it didn't hit a blood vessel or a bone.

So it's not a simple thing when a cartridge or a part of a cartridge goes off.

I hope some of you will learn from my dumb actions. I certainly did. And the guys at my gun club will never let me forget it!!! :cool:
 
I liked this part...

In March, a bullet being used as evidence in a court case exploded in a bag and shot 20 feet across a courtroom. No one was hurt in the incident. It was surmised that the bullet exploded after its tip bounced against another bullet tip in the same evidence bag, according to the Telegram & Gazette.
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Obviously these were explosive-tipped bullets... good thing they weren't nukes.
 
Mostly 9 Volt batteries, sometimes cell phones or other devices, have caused thermal incidents in a purse or handbag. It could have been cooked off.

I wouldn't rule out unstable powder either. I had some go bad in the Texas heat that was scary to look at. It was soft, wet, and glistening, like I didn't think possible.
 
Well, I guess I have to own up to my own idiocy. I had a case (no bullet) with a primer in it. The case was deformed so I couldn't run it through a decapping die. So I put it in a fire. I had done this hundreds of times with no problem.

The last time I did that trick, the primer came out of the case and fire and penetrated the calf of my leg. It went in the front and lodged just under the skin in the back of the leg. Luckily it didn't hit a blood vessel or a bone.
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Ahhhh.... but thats impossible according to so many skeptics here.

Part of the reason that firefighters don't fear ammo to any great extent is because when it goes off in a fire, the slug usually does not move very far. It it is the case that moves. Not only that, the case, being unsupported, tends to rupture and so a lot of the pressure is lost in directions other than what would propel the bullet. Even if it doesn't rupture significant, the case mouth expands to release the trapped expanding gassesThe flying shrapnel of the case is a minor concern and their heavy fire gear is more than sufficient to protect them. At right would be exposed skin and especially unshielded eyes.
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Well thats odd.... Ive seen on a few occassions on the news that firemen wont go inside when they hear rounds going off. "Too dangerous" they say.

Why? Well, I suppose its the very last sentence in the quote.

I suppose as well, she wasnt shielded with heavy fireman gear.



I didnt see in the article what kind of purse it was. I think some here are assuming it was a thick leather purse like so many are. It could have been made of thinner cotton... or loose knit/woven macrame.
 
Well thats odd.... Ive seen on a few occassions on the news that firemen wont go inside when they hear rounds going off. "Too dangerous" they say.
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I've seen that, too. The earlier comment that firefighters weren't concerned about ammo in a burning house caught my attention, since I have maybe a thousand rounds of several calibers on the top shelf in my closet (guns are all locked up separately and securely).
 
I've seen bullets 'pop' when dropped three feet onto a gravel path; the primer hit the right pebble 'just so' and with enough force to set it off.... When this happens, the case ruptures and sends brass shards into the nearest shin but the bullet just kinda lays there.

I can see how a loose pen or other such thing could smack into a primer hard enough to set it off.
 
I call BS. The case would not have enough energy to go through a purse let alone do any damage to the woman.

Its also not that easy to set off a rimfire I find it very hard to believe that falling on one would set it off same with tossing it out on the road. A lot of times you have to spin a cartridge around because you strike a section of the rim with no primer or you light strike it. I'm sure its possible but the odds seem very slim.
 
Goat droppings! Perhaps a round could discharge such as in a fire, but without a barrel and some sort receiver to allow it to develop some velocity there is no way it would ever escape the purse let alone penetrate her leg. This sort of topic has been done to death and has been thoroughly debunked. Anyone who has the slightest understanding of firearms and physics understands why this is impossible

Don't jump the gun here. Myth busters did it and very muched proved that a case or for that matter a bullet will do damage. They cooked it inside a over and when it went off it made a large dent in the oven where it hit. More than enough force to damage tissue. In one case it actually broke the oven window (which is very thick temperd glass)
 
At the office we have a saying... "Just because you've done something stupid 10,000 times and nothing has gone wrong doesn't mean that it won't on your 10,001st attempt."
 
The earlier comment that firefighters weren't concerned about ammo in a burning house caught my attention, since I have maybe a thousand rounds of several calibers on the top shelf in my closet (guns are all locked up separately and securely).
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It's not so much the ammo as how is/where is the ammo stored.

Chambered in a firearm is a problem. (Any loaded weapons in your home? Say a nightstand gun?)
Stored in a safe or other container that effectively turns it into a bomb is a problem. (Sound familiar to anyone?)

Traditionally there are far greater hazards to firefighters in the average home than some boxes of ammo stored on a shelf in a closet. (Think about all of the flammable explosive toxic pressurized household chemicals, propane bottles/tanks, gasoline containers, etc... that most of us have around our homes.)

My dad is a fire chief with over thirty years of serving his community, and I have had this discussion with him. It is not the boxes of ammo sitting on an open shelf in a closet that he is worried about.

It would be the "bombs"/explosives that are created out of everyday items, that most of us have and store in our own homes, when fire and intense heat interacts with them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_skRaqrYg_g&feature=related
 
Ahhhh.... but thats impossible according to so many skeptics here.
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Primers are not the slug.

Well thats odd.... Ive seen on a few occassions on the news that firemen wont go inside when they hear rounds going off. "Too dangerous" they say.

Why? Well, I suppose its the very last sentence in the quote.

I suppose as well, she wasnt shielded with heavy fireman gear.
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Rish AZAK, it isn't loose or boxed ammo that firefighters fear in a fire. They fear loaded guns going off in the fire.

My BIL is a firefighter as well. Ammo isn't much of a concern for him, but garage/shed-stored full BBQ-sized tanks of propane give him the willies.

Don't jump the gun here. Myth busters did it and very muched proved that a case or for that matter a bullet will do damage. They cooked it inside a over and when it went off it made a large dent in the oven where it hit. More than enough force to damage tissue. In one case it actually broke the oven window (which is very thick temperd glass)
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That would be from August 2007. Here is the summary from that segment...
http://mythbustersresults.com/episode85

Bullets can explode with lethal force if they are stored inside a hot oven.

busted

The Mythbusters placed a .22 caliber, .44 caliber, and .50 caliber bullet inside an oven. All of the bullets exploded once the oven was hot enough, but none of them were able to penetrate the oven. Without a gun barrel to contain and direct the propellant gases, the bullets did not develop enough speed to pierce the glass or steel portions of the oven. The shell casings actually caused more damage than the bullets.
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Not only did they do the oven but a fire...

Bullets thrown into an open fire can explode with lethal force.

busted

The Mythbusters dropped a box of bullets with varying calibers directly into an open fire. While many of the bullets immediately discharged,, it appeared that none of the bullets could be lethal. Like the oven test, most of the damage was being dealt by the shell casings, which could not travel fast enough to be lethal.
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Once again, it isn't the bullet doing the damage.
 
DNS

Rish AZAK, it isn't loose or boxed ammo that firefighters fear in a fire. They fear loaded guns going off in the fire.

My BIL is a firefighter as well. Ammo isn't much of a concern for him, but garage/shed-stored full BBQ-sized tanks of propane give him the willies.
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I am not exactly sure of your context; nor the "Rish"?

I do understand about the BBQ propane tanks:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4G8np29pJ4
 
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