Chain fire!!

[jimhallam]

The Cap hitting the frame is a possibility but most likely the cause is flame coming in the front. No -deleted- way flame came in the bottom chamber through the nipple.

Hopw could a flame get past a properly fitting ball -- i.e., one where on loading a thin ring of lead is sheared off? That means that the powder CANNOT be reached from the FRONT - past the hermetic seal.

 

[jimhallam]

Apart from the nipples being too long, another possibility is that the cylinder arbor is too short -- - allowing the cylinder to sledge back.

 

[nick_1]

I am 100% certain that my chain fires happened at the chamber mouth. I replicated it several times. being 16ys old at the time and rather fearless. max loads of real BP 1858 which with the top strap will keep more flame contained around the cylinder. forgot to lube an whammi! lead smeared all over the gun. loaded up again and lubed with vasaline which is what the guy at the musket shop had recomended and no chain fire. loaded again without the vasaline and whammi again. thats a reasonably scientific experiment INMOP. naturally the way to do it nowadays would be with slow motion video.

 

[Stantheman86]

There are probably 20 videos on YouTube about chain fires

The consensus is there are 20 ways to cause chain fires

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

I’ve been pinchin’ caps off and on for about 40 years and haven’t had a chain-fire yet.

... the operative word here is "yet". I've done it myself a few times before I knew of the possible dangers. I also have not had it happen yet.

 

[smoothshooter]

... the operative word here is "yet". I've done it myself a few times before I knew of the possible dangers. I also have not had it happen yet.

There has to be some force from the outside chambers chain firing to jam a ball into the plunger hole.
[/QUOTE

I don’t think I would call it “ dangerous “.

 

[smoothshooter]

How do you KNOW that, please ?

There are videos of at least a couple of people firing maximum loads out of a gun with the barrel removed and chronographing the results.
And if you think about it, the ball is out of the chamber well before pressure builds up to high levels.
Even if the chain-firing balls come out of the chambers at double the claimed velocities, they are still traveling pretty slowly.
Do you know of a person or gun damaged from a chain fire?

 

[smoothshooter]

... the operative word here is "yet". I've done it myself a few times before I knew of the possible dangers. I also have not had it happen yet.

If it happens, it happens.
I will reload and continue shooting.

 

[smoothshooter]

At night or in a darkened place snap a cap on an unloaded pistol and be amazed at the the fireball around the recoil shield all just from the cap. If that flame gets around a loose or "pinched' or missing cap and see where a chain fire comes from.
NOW THIS IS IMPORTANT
Do not load directly from a flask. Pour powder from the flask into a measure or empty shell case or something and then into the chamber. One little spark and the flask becomes a hand grenade and your nickname becomes Lefty that is if you survive.
Black Gunpowder is an EXPLOSIVE. It is called Gunpowder to differentiate it from BLASTING powder, made using the same manufacturing process, same ingredients just a different finishing process for Gunpowder.
I cannot speak for substitutes other that American Pioneer Powder which also is an explosive.
be safe, have fun, but se your head. It is a real firearm not a toy.
Your friendly curmudgeon
Bunk

I routinely load revolvers directly from a flask, BTW.

 

[Jim in Wisconsin]

I load revolvers from the flask also, maybe I shouldn't but then I ride a bike with no helmet, don't always fasten my seatbelts, run with scissors, etc.

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

If it happens, it happens.
I will reload and continue shooting.

Pretty much....

 

[Stantheman86]

I'm taking 2 stock Piettas out today for their first firing, I have 1075s and #11's so some pinching will occur today

 

[Stantheman86]

I load revolvers from the flask also, maybe I shouldn't but then I ride a bike with no helmet, don't always fasten my seatbelts, run with scissors, etc.

I've loaded 1000s of rounds from a flask , I'm about to go do it now actually

 

[Stantheman86]

the safety freaks think if there is a chain fire all will be dead in a 10 mile radius

The last one I had, I didn't even know it until I was missing a round

The famous video of the lady smoking a cigarette and shooting a Walker, and 1 or 2 chambers chain fired and she was more or less unbothered by it was a hit here on the forum

 

[Red Owl]

It would be interesting if anyone had a chain firing from a combustible cartridge or using a conical bullet. If not, then I'd look toward the round ball moving forward. As stated, I think a chain firing can happen in more than one manner.

 

[Robby]

I believe that 'famous video' can be viewed here, The Walker objected...
One of my all time favorites!
Robby

 

[SPQR70AD]

The last one I had, I didn't even know it until I was missing a round

The famous video of the lady smoking a cigarette and shooting a Walker, and 1 or 2 chambers chain fired and she was more or less unbothered by it was a hit here on the forum

lol I saved that video. also as you know the walker would have the biggest charge of powder compared to a 36 navy

 

[Stantheman86]

lol I saved that video. also as you know the walker would have the biggest charge of powder compared to a 36 navy

The lady lit off I forget 2 or 3 chambers probably stuffed to the top and just looks at the gun all like "hmmm" with the cig hanging out of her mouth

There were probably 3 or 4 different causes of that chain fire what made the video was how the chick gave absolutely 0 "c raps" about it

 

[Stantheman86]

I believe that 'famous video' can be viewed here, The Walker objected...
One of my all time favorites!
Robby

You can see the ball flying out like a meteor

I think she lit off 3 at the same time and her boyfriend or whatever is laughing about it as the girl didn't miss a puff off the cigarette and was also laughing

 

[Stantheman86]

It would be interesting if anyone had a chain firing from a combustible cartridge or using a conical bullet. If not, then I'd look toward the round ball moving forward. As stated, I think a chain firing can happen in more than one manner.

I've been reading everything I can find about the use of percussion revolvers in combat, for years. A lot of it while I'm bored at work with access to a computer, and I'll burn up 2 hours reading forum posts from 2003 from Civil War and weapons Historians, letters from soldiers and Officers home telling their parents about the "beautiful but cantankerous forty four Colt's pistol I was given , it bucks like a mule and gets as sluggish as an old dog on a July afternoon after 12 shots" but I have yet to read an original account of a chain fire . Besides the Mark Twain pepperbox story.

I deep dive this stuff, I've read deeply about soldiers using rocks to pound on ramrods to load Minies , old trashy European muskets that would barely go off, soldiers getting barrels so hot in muskets and rifles that the powder was igniting and they threw it away to pick one up off a corpse....young soldiers telling their Dad that they got an Austrian musket that kicked like 20 mules, or a "beautiful English gun that shot clean every time " ,..but not once has a Union LT or anyone else apparently had a letter saved for posterity saying stuff like "I fired off my Colt today to get the 6 shots out I never used and I'll be dammed if half the cylinder didn't go" there's 0 of any of this . You'd think if chain fires were common the troops would write home griping about them

Rifle-Muskets and muskets are written about heavily by veterans and soldiers but there's very little to read about revolvers. I feel like they were such a small piece of the overall picture and weren't fired a lot, so they weren't really written about.