I blew up my AR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You may well be correct Mr. Keenan, and I figured you were yanking my chain a little;) No problem.

On 1903's...I had a low-numbered sporterized Springfield back when I was 16, and dinosaurs roamed the earth. I was long on P&V and short on caution in those days, and utterly ignorant of the problems inherent in that batch. A buddy had a loader and we ran quite a number of stout reloads through that old gun. Mine must have been made on a day when the light was just right, because it stood the strain of a couple of teenagers with a loading press.

I also agree regarding the improved safety margins built into modern arms. Out of the three blown rifles I mentioned, no one was significantly injured. That alone says a lot.

I remain interested in hearing further expert diagnosis of the problem with the subject gun.
 
223 blow=up

Dear Sir:
I know of no quality made firearm that "blows-up" with-out some human intervention! If the cartridges were "handloaded" then I think there is the problem.
Harry B.
 
AR Blowups

One can blame these incidents on ammunition, but such does not stand up under scrutiny. First, the M16 (military version) can easily withstand chamber pressures well in excess of 80KPSI without damage (when fired with the bolt head lugs in place). I have information directly from Colt to this effect. They got such pressures by the use of pistol-type propellants, as it is absolutely impossible to force enough of the types of propellants normally used in the 5.56mm into the case to reach such chamber pressures. If you wish, pull the bullet on a round and see the propellant level for yourself. The sase is nearly full. Second, I have yet to see an incident of this nature in which either the lugs on the bolt or in the barrel extension were damaged - a certain indication of an out-of-battery firing condition. Also, in every case, the cam pin was fractured and separated at the thin section at the firing pin hole. I consider the cam pin design to be suspect at best, because the metal cross-sectional area at this point is only 0.027 square inches, about 1/3rd that of the pin body itself. I've often thought that a beefier cam pin or a smaller firing pin hole in the cam pin would be better.

I wish I had all the answers, but I don't. Probably having seen more of these incidents than anyone else in this thread, or maybe everyone combined, I know the symptoms well. However, I can't explain the reasons for the probable cam pin failures I have witnessed.

By the way - I failed to mention in my earlier posting that there was clearly a firing pin indentation in the primer in every case I know of, and that supports the lnvolved firers' stories that they actually pulled the trigger before the incident occurred. Let's keep this thread going, maybe someone has the answer.
 
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