.44 magnum Question

[40 cal]

I was shooting a S&W .44 mag today, An I knoticed that everytime I shot it the shell casing was cracked the whole way up the side of all the casings Ive fired. These were factory loaded rounds. ( Cant think of the brand off hand ) Is this a problem with the ammo or could it have something to do with the gun? ( I dont know much about revolvers ) I am thinking it is just some bad shell Casings... Anyone else have this problem, or could could it damage my gun in anyway?

Thanks

[Pete D.]

What you describe is VERY odd. I would not shoot any more of those rounds if I were you. As to the cause....has this happened before or just with this lot of ammo? The fact that every case split is indicative of more than a simple problem.
Cases split in every chamber of the cylinder every time?
Pete

[Xringshooter]

That is not right. Almost sounds as if the cylinder chambers are oversized and when the gun is fired the case expands too much and splits. If a new gun it needs to go back to the factory. If a used gun either back to the factory or to a gunsmith to have the chamber diameter checked. If incorrectly bored then contact the manufacturer to see what they are going to do for you. I would not fire it any more until it is checked.

[WVBob]

Make sure it was a .44 Mag not a .454. If one case splits, that's not odd. If a lot of them split, something is wrong, very wrong and you are in danger.

[cptdco]

I agree that something is way out of whack and I wouldn't even think of firing the gun again until I figured out what it was. My first thought when I read your post was : I wonder if he was using 41 magnum rounds. It certainly sounds like a firearm / ammunition mismatch of some sort.

[John Fox]

It does sound like 41 mag loads were being fired. That would happen.

[40 cal]

What you describe is VERY odd. I would not shoot any more of those rounds if I were you. As to the cause....has this happened before or just with this lot of ammo? The fact that every case split is indicative of more than a simple problem.
Cases split in every chamber of the cylinder every time?
Pete

Correct, every shot the casing split in the cylinder. Nope hasnt happend before that I know of. The box of ammo was white, an said .44 magnum on it it in red letters.

[mythaeus]

Correct, every shot the casing split in the cylinder. Nope hasnt happend before that I know of. The box of ammo was white, an said .44 magnum on it it in red letters.

It's probably Winchester. I have shot them in both my S&W 629PC and my Dan Wesson 744 without any problem. The only time I've seen the case cracking was when I put a .32ACP round into a .380 gun. Basically, this means that if the chamber is too loose, the casing is not properly contained and the pressure will cause the case to split. Did you save the casing? How deep were the splits? That would really help in identifying the type of ammo. Do you know the age of the ammo? Have you tried different ammo in the same gun and have the same problem? Answering some or all of these questions will probably lead you to the cause.

Al

[AFARR]

40 Cal:

What Model of S & W were you shooting (the model is on the frame---when you rotate the cylinder out for loading, look on the frame part that is hidden).

On the Brass of the ammo you are using, what is stamped?

What load (on the outside of the box) are the rounds?

That might give an idea of the gun/age/ammo, etc. and let us make a better guess....pics of the ammo might help.

[40 cal]

I dont know the exact model. But, the gun has only had around 100 rounds through it. I borrowed it from my grandfather to go shoot yesterday. I think it might have been winchester ammo. He had the ammo for a few months I think. I dont think that a few months should do that. I didnt save the casings no. I had one an I showed my grandfather when I took the gun back to him, he couldnt figgure out why it was doing that neither. The casings were cracked the whole way through, untill the base of the casing by where the primer is located. They were pretty big splits, as soon as I looked at a casing it was noticeable. Im 100% sure it was .44 mag ammo, Just not sure on the brand. I only shot 12 rounds an I saw that an didnt want to shoot anymore of them....