I would put money that savage has already seen this thread given the relationship that the forum has with Savage.
Printable View
I would put money that savage has already seen this thread given the relationship that the forum has with Savage.
I have gleaned enough information from pictures and testimony from this thread to tell what exactly happened without a shadow of a doubt. You can quit treating this like a crime scene investigation, because the evidence will not change. This is just an unfortunate FREAK accident. Here are the facts as presented: The shooter shot at a coyote (didn't say whether he hit or killed it, but none the less he attempted to reload). The shooter cycled the bolt back to eject the case and reload the next round. The next round exited the magazine and entered in the chamber, and before the bolt could be turned into battery, the round went off, exploding, blowing the bolt out and destroying the rifle and caused injury to the shooter.
Here's what happened in detail: After the first shot, somewhere in between the pulling of the trigger and the raising of the bolt, the firing pin separated from the cocking piece. This would explain why the bolt was in the cocked position and the firing pin was in the fired position. This could have only happen to a multi piece firing pin assembly. Once the cocking piece and the firing pin become separated, the spring will push them apart, something that could NOT happen with a 1 pc firing pin. The 1 pc firing pins have the springs BEHIND the cocking piece.
With the firing pin now protruding, racking the bolt and driving it home for a fast follow up shot resulted in a "slam fire". The bolt hadn't been turned yet to lock it down, it never got that far before the detonation.
Now begs the question......how did the firing pin separate from the cocking piece? Robinhood suggested that it came unscrewed, and I wouldn't rule it out, but is it very unlikely due to fact that the cocking sleeve is keyed to the lock washer and the lock washer is keyed to the flat on firing pin. If the lock washer was broken, and I have seen a few broken, it may have rotated on the pin. I every case I've seen of a broken lock washer, even though broken, they stayed in place for the fact of the notches in the cocking sleeve. By the way, there is only one way to break a cocking piece lock washer...a pierced primer or case failure. Escaping gases exit through the firing pin hole in the bolt head and basically push the firing pin assembly back like a piston until the spring compresses to solid height and has no where to go but to bottom out on the lock washer. This is evident when the bolt is disassembled because there is a trace of soot all over the firing pin assembly.
The next guess would be that the firing pin broke. It would have to break somewhere between the cocking piece and the firing pin stop nut....the thickest part of the pin. The most likely place would be at the start of the threads on either end, because that is where the smallest diameter is. The firing pins are heat treated, and it would be possible that a hard spot could occur and fail from all the slamming and stress. The only other reason could be that the threads were faulty, over/undersize on the pin and the cocking piece, and it didn't have enough thread engagement to overcome the tension from the mainspring. That would be evident by looking at the threads.
Like I said before, the evidence will NOT change, no matter who tears it apart. Oh, and Dave....FYI, the decision makers at Savage know me on a first name basis. I was at the plant in July 2018 at their invitation and on their dollar.
Donesky
Excellent post Sharpshooter.
WOW! You truly are a Dwarf among Midgets in your world!
https://i.ibb.co/6tDJhJ2/19-D04892-E...07-C5-A4-E.jpg
Quote:
The next guess would be that the firing pin broke.
Yeah. What I was thinking also.
I have dealt with sharpshooter on a number of occasions. He indeed knows Savages.
He does that.
No new info yet?
Savage's website says their call centers are currently down. I sent them a detailed email with pics of the rifle. It's been about 5 days. Haven't heard anything yet. I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt with all the virus stuff going on. If I don't hear anything in another few days I guess we'll have to make some decisions. Maybe savage is going to force us to make the first move. My son had the stitches removed yesterday. Still looks nasty. Inner layer is closed up but outer skin was basically ripped out so it still looks wide open. Its going to be a while before he'll be able to open his hand the meat and skin is real tight from trying to close it all back up.
As with anything else not firearms related, if there is any possibility you may consider legal action- first step is to contact an attorney, preferably one with expertise in the law specifically related to the incident. In this case, firearms completed products liability.
The very last thing I'd do is contact Savage directly- it'll serve no purpose. Nor would I suggest taking it to a smith before contacting an attorney. You mentioned your son has aspirations of playing ball on a collegiate level, and he now has a significant hand injury. It wasn't clear to me whether the rifle was purchased new a few years ago- or if it was used ?
hdball,
Any news as to what exactly failed or caused the failure? And more importantly, how is your son doing???
So basically its been 8 months. Multiple attorneys laughed me off the phone because with only a hand injury they said its not worth pursuing. He still doesn't have full use of his hand and possibly missed out on playing college baseball. One attorney did look into the case and after 6 months called me to say that unfortunately since my son's injuries weren't far worse (lost fingers or hand) or had he even died, the case would go federal and basically wasn't worth it. I did some research and found the attorney that represented a gentleman who was injured by a savage muzzleloader. I attempted to contact them just to see if it was even worth pursuing figuring they would know first hand. It's been a week and I have not received any response from their office. So at this point I guess I'm sending the rifle back to Savage so they can inspect the rifle. I guess we'll see where it goes after that.
Savage may offer you a settlement provided you're willing to sign a release of liability, otherwise the only way to collect is to file a lawsuit. If Savage has the firearm in their possession, you are in a less than ideal position to demand compensation, regardless of how it's orchestrated. If Savage demands the rifle to inspect, I'd propose sending it to a third party such as SSS, whom they know and trust, and whom the shooting community knows and trusts as well.
Hopefully your son's injuries will not be permanent, and he can pursue his ambitions without a compromised hand. Be smart, be reasonable, but be firm and I think it'll work out as best as can be hoped, for all parties involved.
Hello. I have been reading the thread with interest. I am happy no death or dismemberment happened. I have a 10FP that I am planning to rebarrel and start shooting. I would like to know what was found on the rifle and how this has ended. Thanks.