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Posted: 9/9/2007 8:48:44 PM EDT
| I was shooting some guat 5.56 today through my DPMS AR15. I've had no problems with this ammo before and it didn't seem as if there were any problems when I was shooting it. After I was done shooting I was picking up my brass and noticed that one of the primers was completely gone from the primer pocket . When I was cleaning afterwards, I looked in both my upper and lower and didn't see it. My question is, do you think the primer blew out while I was shooting it or maybe it came out when the shell hit the ground? Should I be worried about this? |
Not that. Need more conclusive evidence before you can make a decision one way or the other. Look in your receiver for the blown primer. If you do not find it, kepp it in mind next time you shoot, and inspect the brass from each shot as you begin. Was it hot out? Did you have the ammo in a hot car for a few hours before firing? Do you have a .223 chamber? Is your barrel / chamber filthy? Lots of variables. |
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I don't have any Guat so tell me, are the primers crimped in? If you had crimped primer come out something is wrong. I had a bunch of South African that uses primers that have 3 stake marks to hold them in instead of a full crimp. I never had a primer blow out in 3 tubs of 2700 roundeach but did notice one day in the hot Texas summer sun that the pressure were getting up there when the ammo sat in the direct sunlight even when loaded in mags. Extraction became a little more difficult until I put up an umbrella and started keeping the ammo in the shade. Then again, that Guat is older surplus and could've had a defect...????? |
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Guat ammo IS staked, tho not as much as LC is. Is your DPMS a 5.56 chamber or a .223 chambered upper? One primer popped does not mean much and LC does the same thing on occasion also. I would make sure the chamber of the rifle was 5.56, verify while cleaning it that the primer is not in the trigger group and go from there. Guat is pretty decent ammo, I've run a considerable amount thru my ARs. |
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I've shot a couple of thousand rounds of guat, and didn't have any problems with it. It _is_ loaded on the hot side, so I wouldn't shoot it in a .223 chamber. The heat in your trunk won't permanently damage the ammo as far as I know, but if you shoot it while it's still hot, the pressures will be higher, and that could cause primer issues, etc. In the future you might want to put the stuff you plan on shooting in the front with you to cool it off a bit before you get to the range. Just a thought. |
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I had some flattened primers and about 6 blown primers with Hornady 5.56 TAP back in July and August from a known lot of questionable TAP. Both times the temps were in the mid-90s and humidity was 85%+. When I contacted Kathy at Hornady regarding the issue she seemed to think the possibility was there that the high pressures plus high temps and humidity could have contributed to the issues. She'd told me that the technicians at Hornady had been attempting to duplicate the blown primers using other ammo from questionable lots but weren't having any luck. I have no proof these conditions would cause the blown and flattened primers but it was two separate days with similar weather. I'm also not sure what your conditions were but perhaps you had similar conditions. Merely a thought, Scott |
It wasn't with guat or tap, but I've had a good number flat primers and cratered primers as well as a few popped ones with several kinds of ammo in hot weather when I'd allowed the ammo to get hot before shooting it (everything from federal xm-193 and win q3131/q3131a to russian junk). Heat will definitely have an effect on certain types of powder. Some are worse than others though. If you reload, Ramshot TAC and Varget are supposed to be less sensitive to temperature change than a lot of others. I'm no expert though... and I don't play one on TV. 
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