Hot cases from handguns can be exciting but hot cases from a AR can really be life threatening.
Want to see how hot brass is just lay out a piece of polyethylene film on the ground and fire your semi automatic rifle in a manner that will deliver a hot case directly onto the film.
The AR platform initially ejected hot cases from 2:00 to 5:00. The early versions would cut small chunks of the right cheek of left hand shooters thus the plastic case deflectors were sometimes available.
In 1982 the M16A1E1 was tested at Aberdeen Proving Ground and adopted as the M16A2. The "bump" was added to upper receiver that changed the brass ejection to 2:00 to 4:00 and that helped us lefties but directed 1/3rd more hot cases directly towards shooters to the right.
http://looserounds.com/556timeline/556dw-1983/
The above covers the details.
How hot does brass get. Lay a piece of polyethylene film out on ground and fire your AR so the brass will impact the film. Have not tried it with pistol ammo but I have with 5.56.
The brass will burn right through the poly film.
If you look up the melting point of polyethelene you will find:
"The melting point for average, commercial, low-density polyethylene is typically 105 to 115 °C (221 to 239 °F). These temperatures vary strongly with the type of polyethylene, but the theoretical upper limit of melting of polyethylene is reported to be 144 to 146 °C (291 to 295 °F)."
Now look up the temperatures that cause 3rd Degree burns to skin"
Most adults will suffer third-degree burns if exposed to 150 degree water for two seconds. Burns will also occur with a six-second exposure to 140 degree water or with a thirty second exposure to 130 degree water. Even if the temperature is 120 degrees, a five minute exposure could result in third-degree burns.
Thus if you have a case hot enough to melt through poly film you are looking at 291F and your skin will have a third degree burn at 150F.
Put a pan in your oven, turn heat to 150F and in ten minutes see if you can lift the pan out without protection and what happens to your fingers.
The worst I got three hot cases hit my stomach when I wasn't wearing a shirt and all three cases burned in and stuck to my stomach and I had to peel them off and meat came with them. I had those three scars on my stomach for many years.
I was shooting prone rapid fire at Camp Perry and a hot case from a M14 hit a spotting scope poll on point to my left and the ejection angle was changed and it re directed the case up under my crotch. I had to change my shooting position quickly but fortunately the "little guy" wasn't hurt haha.
I know two agents that have burn scars on their necks from hot brass.
I saw this on a forum put on by a guy in Pensacola, Fla.
"We had a guy killed in my basic battalion in '75 when hot brass went down his collar and he shot the guy next to him in the head on the M16A1 zero range at Ft. Knox. He was shooting left handed and there were not enough clip on brass deflector's to go around.
I don't know about the A2, but I can verify the A1. I know, I was there and we were shut down because of it."
I have met two GIs that saw two different deaths occur on Army ranges from a hot case going down the neck of a shooter next to them and the shooters reacted to getting third degree burns and lost muzzle awareness and shot the troop on the next firing point.
One guy said the guys on line were shooting prone position, one got hot brass down neck and was wreathing around screaming and pulled the trigger killing the shooter on the adjacent firing point.
The other guy was shooting standing, a cease fire was ordered and a Di ran up and grabbed him and pulled him down the line and there was a troop on the ground shot and DI handed him a wound bandage and told him to apply it. (He was slated for MEDIC school when he got out of basic.
On the next firing point a guy was screaming and crying and between sobs found out and the shooter and the shootee had grown up next to each other from infants and they were best buddies. The shooter had a hot brass burn on his neck. The shootee was put in a body bag and the shooter in a ambulance.
The shooter was discharged two days later and sent home.
I have a retired Lt Col friend who was at Ft. Jackson getting a physical as 2nd Lt and nurse runs in and tells Doc a gunshot wound was inbound from range. Doc asked nurse about it and she told him a guy next to the shootee got hot brass down his neck and in the reaction shot the guy next to him.
Bottom line is hot brass can cause deaths and 3rd degree burns.
I changed the ejection angles on my ARs by adding epoxy putty to bump making the front side at right angle to bore center line. They are not pretty but pile brass neatly between 1:00 and 2:00.
Just recently I got a pack of Havoc Tactical Deflector Brakes. A kit has them and you degrease the front side of the bump with a wipe supplied then peel off a little piece of plastic and the deflector is glued to the bump. They were made for AR15s but I put on on a PA10 in 308 and it works well for that as well.
Want to see how hot brass is just lay out a piece of polyethylene film on the ground and fire your semi automatic rifle in a manner that will deliver a hot case directly onto the film.
The AR platform initially ejected hot cases from 2:00 to 5:00. The early versions would cut small chunks of the right cheek of left hand shooters thus the plastic case deflectors were sometimes available.
In 1982 the M16A1E1 was tested at Aberdeen Proving Ground and adopted as the M16A2. The "bump" was added to upper receiver that changed the brass ejection to 2:00 to 4:00 and that helped us lefties but directed 1/3rd more hot cases directly towards shooters to the right.
http://looserounds.com/556timeline/556dw-1983/
The above covers the details.
How hot does brass get. Lay a piece of polyethylene film out on ground and fire your AR so the brass will impact the film. Have not tried it with pistol ammo but I have with 5.56.
The brass will burn right through the poly film.
If you look up the melting point of polyethelene you will find:
"The melting point for average, commercial, low-density polyethylene is typically 105 to 115 °C (221 to 239 °F). These temperatures vary strongly with the type of polyethylene, but the theoretical upper limit of melting of polyethylene is reported to be 144 to 146 °C (291 to 295 °F)."
Now look up the temperatures that cause 3rd Degree burns to skin"
Most adults will suffer third-degree burns if exposed to 150 degree water for two seconds. Burns will also occur with a six-second exposure to 140 degree water or with a thirty second exposure to 130 degree water. Even if the temperature is 120 degrees, a five minute exposure could result in third-degree burns.
Thus if you have a case hot enough to melt through poly film you are looking at 291F and your skin will have a third degree burn at 150F.
Put a pan in your oven, turn heat to 150F and in ten minutes see if you can lift the pan out without protection and what happens to your fingers.
The worst I got three hot cases hit my stomach when I wasn't wearing a shirt and all three cases burned in and stuck to my stomach and I had to peel them off and meat came with them. I had those three scars on my stomach for many years.
I was shooting prone rapid fire at Camp Perry and a hot case from a M14 hit a spotting scope poll on point to my left and the ejection angle was changed and it re directed the case up under my crotch. I had to change my shooting position quickly but fortunately the "little guy" wasn't hurt haha.
I know two agents that have burn scars on their necks from hot brass.
I saw this on a forum put on by a guy in Pensacola, Fla.
"We had a guy killed in my basic battalion in '75 when hot brass went down his collar and he shot the guy next to him in the head on the M16A1 zero range at Ft. Knox. He was shooting left handed and there were not enough clip on brass deflector's to go around.
I don't know about the A2, but I can verify the A1. I know, I was there and we were shut down because of it."
I have met two GIs that saw two different deaths occur on Army ranges from a hot case going down the neck of a shooter next to them and the shooters reacted to getting third degree burns and lost muzzle awareness and shot the troop on the next firing point.
One guy said the guys on line were shooting prone position, one got hot brass down neck and was wreathing around screaming and pulled the trigger killing the shooter on the adjacent firing point.
The other guy was shooting standing, a cease fire was ordered and a Di ran up and grabbed him and pulled him down the line and there was a troop on the ground shot and DI handed him a wound bandage and told him to apply it. (He was slated for MEDIC school when he got out of basic.
On the next firing point a guy was screaming and crying and between sobs found out and the shooter and the shootee had grown up next to each other from infants and they were best buddies. The shooter had a hot brass burn on his neck. The shootee was put in a body bag and the shooter in a ambulance.
The shooter was discharged two days later and sent home.
I have a retired Lt Col friend who was at Ft. Jackson getting a physical as 2nd Lt and nurse runs in and tells Doc a gunshot wound was inbound from range. Doc asked nurse about it and she told him a guy next to the shootee got hot brass down his neck and in the reaction shot the guy next to him.
Bottom line is hot brass can cause deaths and 3rd degree burns.
I changed the ejection angles on my ARs by adding epoxy putty to bump making the front side at right angle to bore center line. They are not pretty but pile brass neatly between 1:00 and 2:00.
Just recently I got a pack of Havoc Tactical Deflector Brakes. A kit has them and you degrease the front side of the bump with a wipe supplied then peel off a little piece of plastic and the deflector is glued to the bump. They were made for AR15s but I put on on a PA10 in 308 and it works well for that as well.
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