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The Kaboom / SEE is something associated [ in the minds of most people ] either with

The incident here was not a kaboom, as there was no case wall failure in an unsupported chamber. This was a chamber explosion. It has been referred to as a SEE, or secondary explosive effect. I'll refer to it from now on as "kaboom / SEE".

Mention is made in all the manuals that the specified loads must not be deviated from, they just don't warn specifically about the undercharge. The assumption is that deviating from the load means exceeding the powder charge, not reducing it below the minimum.

For sport shooters that reload, the moral of the story is if you want less recoil, use a smaller caliber. And do not deviate from the powder weight ranges as provided in the loading manual.

Many shooters report that factory ammo out of their unsupported chambers does not result in bulged brass, yet that ammo is loaded hotter than sport shooting reloads.

The traditional kaboom is a ruptured case from an unsupported chamber.

If you experience bulged brass from an unsupported chamber in .40 or .45, using reloads of fast burning spherical powder, try and estimate the case fill after seating, and see if it is below 50%.

That bulged brass could be the early warning signs of erratic ignition due to insufficient powder density in the case, pre-cursor to a kaboom / SEE.

In that case test for yourself, replace the fast burning spherical powder with a slower burning flake powder to the same power factor, and see if the bulged brass still occurs.

Last Updated 7 Oct 2023 at 10:17:35