AR15 goes kaboom!

[Karl]

Even Colts can fail......

http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2...-ar-15-kaboom/

[randyhamrick]

Oh, my.

I've been around twice when a pistol let go, but have never been around a rifle coming apart. I'm sure glad I wasn't standing near this shooter!

[twaits]

Yup, ARs will peel right apart if the pressure is high enough no matter what the make. I've evaluated dozens and dozens of catastrophic failures like this as a gunsmith at Bushmaster.
What happens is the bolt starts to partially unlock before all the pressure has been dumped from the bore and the case head fails at the weakest point which is where the extractor is. The case head fails there and all the pressure comes back into the receiver causing all the damage. The good news is the shooter is almost never harmed. The sides split and magazine blows out the bottom of the mag well.
9 times out of 10 its because of faulty ammunition.

[1dchouseman]

Poor AR

[DESERTFOX]

sounds like bad ammo.

[Malysh]

Yup, ARs will peel right apart if the pressure is high enough no matter what the make. I've evaluated dozens and dozens of catastrophic failures like this as a gunsmith at Bushmaster.
What happens is the bolt starts to partially unlock before all the pressure has been dumped from the bore and the case head fails at the weakest point which is where the extractor is. The case head fails there and all the pressure comes back into the receiver causing all the damage. The good news is the shooter is almost never harmed. The sides split and magazine blows out the bottom of the mag well.
9 times out of 10 its because of faulty ammunition.

Great information, thanks for posting this!

[AEA]

I bet reloads!

[JRI]

Will the warranty cover that?

[threefeathers]

Wow. I'm very careful with my reloads and won't shoot some some of the foreign ammo.
I'd be willing to bet someone used the wrong powder.

[twaits]

This is why you should never buy ammo in bulk at a gun show. I've had many Bushmasters come back that are destroyed in the fashion and the owner states "bulk ammo bought at a gunshow"
There's this stuff out there that is rejected Lake City ammo. I believe it is refered to as "Lake City PD ammo" Its stuff that didn't pass the NATO standard or whatever. Anyway, lots of it got sold in bulk and it is CRAP.
So you're really rolling the dice shooting this stuff. There's lots of crappy foriegn made stuff too.

This is not to say that it couldn't happen with factory off the shelf ammo. I've seen that happen many times as well. But the reputable ammo companies will usually cover the damage. Just always keep the empty case (its usually stuck in the chamber) and whatever ammo is left over and the box. I know Winchester and Remington will cover the bill if their ammo causes the damage. Hunting Shack is also pretty good about covering damages. I Believe Hunting Shack is remanufactured ammo so personally I would stay away from it anyway.