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I pride myself that, in 35 years of reloading, I have yet to load a double charge or a round with no powder, but that doesn't mean I don't do as many stupid things as the next man.
This morning I was at the range checking out my guns for a forthcoming CAS match. 10 rounds through my old Euroarms 1873 SRC in .357mag showed that, as usual, it was spot on. I reached for my original 1873 in 38-40 to check out the new Marbles flip-up rear sight I had added. All the time yakking to the man in the next bay about the virtues of old Winchesters, I loaded up and touched off the first shot. The report was quieter that usual and there was no black powder smoke. After a decent interval I opend the action. The shell did not eject and there on the base I could plainly read "357 Mag"!!! Yes, I had loaded up from the nearest open box of ammo to hand.
The accidental wildcat is in the center, between the 38-40 and the 357 Mag. I was wearing eye protection but the case expanded enough so that there was no blow-by. My first thought was for the wellbeing of my beloved old '73 but she seems non the worse for the jolt.
Perry Owens
With the bullet being that loose in the bore, I doubt enough pressure had built up to cause damage. It did almost fire form the front part of the cast though.
Goes to show you even the greatest minds can be distracted!! Your incident is not by any means unique, it happens frequently. Not so frequently found are folks who will fess up in an effort to help prevent someone else from suffering the same fate. Here's mine, got my .30-30 and .303 British ammo on the same bench with both rifles at hand. No injuries but certainly embarrassing:
It never ceases to amaze me at the different types of events that happen in the world of handloading and shooting. That's the first time I've heard of a .357 being fired in a .38-40 chambered gun. It's pretty neat from the standpoint that you now have a conversation piece to put on your desk/reloading table. Good to hear that you and the gun are ok.
The worst I ever saw as a gunsmith was a 270 WCF cartridge fired in a (German) Weatherby in 270 Weatherby Magnum caliber. Almost total destruction. It shattered the stock, blew out the floorplate, and froze the bolt in the receiver. Damage to shooter, bruises on his forearm, lucky, lucky!
Gun Smith wrote:The worst I ever saw as a gunsmith was a 270 WCF cartridge fired in a (German) Weatherby in 270 Weatherby Magnum caliber. Almost total destruction. It shattered the stock, blew out the floorplate, and froze the bolt in the receiver. Damage to shooter, bruises on his forearm, lucky, lucky!
Exact same thing happened to the Governor of Wyoming while here in town for a hunting/shooting event several years ago. Catastrophic damage to the gun and the Gov was very lucky indeed to escape unharmed.
I'd say load a .38-40 slug in that "accidental wildcat" case and hang it on a chain around your neck as a reminder. I haven't made that particular mistake yet, myself--just a few of the others. I still have no idea how I missed charging those three cases with powder...
A man's admiration for absolute government is proportionate to the contempt he feels for those around him.
JerryB wrote:And how many of us blackpowder smokepole shooters belong to the "Order of Ramrod Launcher" ?
I came awfully close to doing that one day at the range. Ever seen the Movie The Mountain Men? There is a scene where a shot is fired in the middle of a fight with the ramrod still in the barrel.
Closest I have come was one time at the range not paying attention and dropped a .223 round in my .308. The sound of it dropping into the chamber sounded strange enough that it made me look.
Good thing your incident was with out ill effect.
Jeremy
GySgt USMC Ret
To err is human, To forgive is devine, Neither of which is Marine Corps policy Semper Fidelis
I have never (not yet) shot a ramrod, but I have seen it happen. At the Tenn. state matches in Franklin I saw it happen a few times in the speed matches.Our club in Tullahoma used to shoot there in the spring and fall matches.
JerryB II Corinthians 3:17, Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
We need a new gunlaw, dangit 
