Round cooked off in the drawer today.

[Belevolk]

I was sitting at the desk reading something on the computer screen when a round cooked off in the drawer. Something richoted hit me on the belly and drew blood. Belly is an easy target. Never heard of or ever had this happen before. The bang/pop was nothing like the report that these shells make in chamber.

The drawer is plastic, the only electricity is the 5 volts for my backlit keyboard. Keyboard has no open wiring. 5 v dc seems a bit low for detonation of a primer.
Not hot, 80 with the A/C running.
Was not messing with the round in any way.
I have not found the brass or the projectile. There was a slight smell of gunpowder, but since I am olfactory challenged that would not help.
I do not know if this was an OEM or reload (by me) round. I don't even know the caliber, could be a 9mm or .45 acp. There was a couple of other rounds in the plastic drawer which have been removed.
Nothing sharp with enough mass to hit the primer. Yes a couple of pens but they weight less than a .45 round.
My remembering of College Physics says the projectile is heavier than the case so the case is probably what hit me. Looking on the floor I find nothing. I do not find the projectile in the drawer either.
Seriously doubt static electricity If the plastic drawer had become charged, the hair on my arms would move when I get them near the drawer.

I hate things that go bump with no explanation.

Anyone?

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[MadDuner]

There has to be evidence of left over components somewhere.

 

[nvshooter]

Gremlins. Or maybe now ammo has grown an intelligence-- like have all Black Rifles...

 

[armoredman]

If it was cool enough for you to sit at the desk, the round did not cook off. The only time I had cook offs was in a barrel that was far too hot to touch, and a plastic drawer would have melted long before it got that hot. I had a buddy who left a shotgun shell on the dash of his pickup in summer in Arizona...the plastic hull melted, but the round did not detonate. Primers are impact sensitive, not electrically sensitive. With no pieces/parts left behind, no burned spot from the detonation, no shredded marks in the plastic drawer...I'd look elsewhere to see what it was that got you.

 

[Belevolk]

thank you

 

[Ura-Ki]

I suspect you cooked off something else, not a loaded cartridge! I have cooked off a few cartridges and even the .30/06 left the bullet and the entire case in place, all it did was split down the length and jetted around a little!

I bet it was a small battery, a watch battery or maybe even something bigger like a AAA size, especially those new lithium types, they are well known for detonating, especially if discharged/shorted by other loose things in contact with them!

 

[armoredman]

That was something I had forgotten - my wife had one of the batteries in her flashlight explode years ago, gutted the flashlight like a hog and actually started a tiny fire on the bed spread. Cheap Chinese CR 123 batteries destroyed a brand new Surefire G2 Nitrolon. Check for that.

 

[Ura-Ki]

I use Li-ion/Li-po Batteries so much for so many things that I had to get battery bags to store/charge with! These are specifically made to contain an exploding battery, and to prevent a fire from spreading! Not cheap, but not all that expensive! I even put one in the plane, and i'm using Earth-X Li-ion cranking batteries, and one of those could blow my hanger to pieces!

 

[Belevolk]

Thanks everyone, I had never considered a LI battery. I do have a lot of them. The concept of a battery bag was quite foreign to me. Never considered that before. I have been recharging batteries for over 10 years. All sorts and combinations. I checked the web and there are lots of bags under 20 bucks, flameproof and explosion proof, according to the ad text. That is pretty scary flameproof and explosion proof for less than 20 bucks. Bet they are not made in North America.

 

[nvshooter]

I have been recharging batteries for over 10 years. All sorts and combinations.

You've been recharging batteries that are not designed to be recharged? I recharge the rechargeable type, but they forever seem to not hang in there worth a flying copulation. They refuse to hold a charge after just a few rechargings. I even tried some pricy ones and they, too, took a quick dump. After several go-rounds with that noise, I no longer use rechargeable batteries.

 

[1971Chevelle]

You've been recharging batteries that are not designed to be recharged? I recharge the rechargeable type, but they forever seem to not hang in there worth a flying copulation. They refuse to hold a charge after just a few rechargings. I even tried some pricy ones and they, too, took a quick dump. After several go-rounds with that noise, I no longer use rechargeable batteries.

Not all rechargeable batteries are created equally. Stay away from the Energizer and Duracell ones - they never last. I needed rechargeable batteries for the large hot shoe flash on my DSLR camera. I ended up going with the Panasonic Eneloops. They do cost a bit more, but they will hold up to 70% of their charge for 10 years, and can be recharged up to 2,100 times (which is a LOT of recharging). They also get excellent reviews.

Panasonic Eneloop AA Rechargeable Ni-MH Batteries (2000mAh, Pack of 16)

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www.bhphotovideo.com

 

[Belevolk]

As 1971Chevelle stated the rechargeables are not all equal. Most recharge at 1.2 volts, which is an almost immediate problem with higher current devices. I use NIMH which recharge at ~1.6 volts. There are some others out there that recharge to the higher voltage. Need a different charger, and the other do not do well in the NIMH chargers. I used the NIMH exclusively in my game cameras on my property, they usually last more than 30 days in the heat or cold. Got to be careful of the 1.6 volt batteries, flashlights generally do not like the higher voltage, or they do just for split second like a flash bulb. I used 6 each in my game cameras and they do the job quite well.
Then there is the issue of MA. How much will the battery hold. I never buy any battery less than 2000 and try to stick with 2500 or 3000.
Lastly reading the information from the manufacture they will state how many recharges you can get. I stick with ones that are over 2000. All of this means I pay more for each battery.
Lastly the NiMH even with the right charger they take as much as 24 hours to recharge. I let them run down to 20% or so before recharging. I have some Zinc Hydride batteries that are beginning to fail after 5 years or so. In fact the company making them is gone from the business world.

I found a battery based on salt water that I was interested in for my solar system for my house. They are not cheap, $2800 each. They have none of the problems LI or other batteries have. LI likes, REALLY likes a constant temp not hot not cold.The salt water batteries were on the market and were pulled off. I check the manufacturer's web page and they have not corrected the problems and are being sued by the early adopters.
In case you're wondering I have lead acid 6v golf cart batteries on the system now. at 100 each they do the job for now. When I get to installing the large array, 9 kw I will be looking at the Nissan Leaf battery pack from a wrecked car. The batteries come in 3 sizes 30, 40, 50 kw. I need 20kw so a wrecked car for $3000 and reconfiguring the cells to 48v should be the best for me. Still have to keep them inside. Does not make any difference in whose car you buy. The Arizona heat will affect the batteries in 3-5 years.
We need better battery tech.

 

[thorborg]

Piss anyone off recently?

 

[nvshooter]

Piss anyone off recently?

I do that with most of the world's population every morning when I fall out of the rack. People just do not like me. Must be my breath. Or my body odor. Or my lack of hair...

 

[armoredman]

So, you DON'T look like your avatar...

 

[nvshooter]

So, you DON'T look like your avatar...

No; the picture is of an all-nude stripper I knew years ago. I did a search on her name several years ago and found that she works as a forensic microbiologist for the State Police of an eastern seaboard State. I knew she was studying Computer Science back in the day, but had no idea she was also studying biology. To have earned two science degrees in four years is abundant evidence that she's dam-ned smart. She owns a million-dollar condo in Washington, DC. She'll be in her mid-40s in November. I'll assume she's a liberal, what with living in DC...

 

[nvshooter]

I just saw that I'm a "Silver Supporter." How did I achieve such an exalted status? I guess it's better than being an athletic supporter...

 

[Gabby]

We could call you Jock for short!
I detect a double entendre' there! (SP?)
Gabby

 

[nvshooter]

I detect a double entendre' there! (SP?)

You spelled it correctly. Nice touch to include the little accent mark over the ending e...

 

[Jory45acp]

I would think you be able to find a case if a round touched off or at least the bullet. Since it was't in a chamber the pressure spike should be low and everything should be relatively intact. Maybe I misread it but was there a hole in the drawer from anything exiting? I agree with the other poster it likely wasn't a round but something else laying around. I'm sure it was startling non-the less.