What is a Squib?

“Squib” is a term that you hear a lot at the firing line, and – while I have seen squibs come out of commercially loaded ammo – it is for the most part a phenomenon found amongst hand loaders.

Outside of shooting, a “squib” is a very small explosive device. Think of the smallestfirework on the 4^th of July. It’s the one that makes a little hissing sound and then a pop and everybody shrugs and asks about “the fun one over there.”

In shooting, a squib is similar:  it is an under-pressured round that does not fully fire. Pretty much the only thing that can be blamed for a squib is the person who made the ammunition.

When a squib occurs, a few things can happen…

1. Rarely, but I’ve seen it, a primer may ignite but the bullet won’t move much:  it jams into the rifling while still remaining encased in the brass enough that it can be ejected with some healthy yanking on the slide or bolt.

2. The bullet will expel from the case and jam in the barrel; the shooter will realize what happened and use bad words because he knows that the bullet must now be hammered out of the barrel; in my experience, this is what happens the majority of the time when a squib occurs.

3. An unfortunate continuation of #2 occurs when the shooter does not realize that he has a bullet stuck in the barrel, and he fires another round behind it; this is often followed by another form of malfunction known as a “kaboom.”

4. But, sometimes, the round will have enough oomph to trickle out of the barrel; in this case, the shooter should consider himself lucky and go buy a lotto ticket.

What are some causes of squibs?

1. 99% of the time, a squib is caused by no powder in the case; the primer ignites with enough force that it moves the bullet out of the brass and into the rifling; no powder in the brass should have been caught by the hand loader during the loading process, as he should be visually inspecting each case before seating the bullet.

2. A small amount of powder is present, but the ammunition is so severely undercharged, it does not produce enough force to push the bullet through the entirety of the barrel; again, this should have been visually caught by the hand loader.

3. Powder is in the case, but the powder was contaminated prior to being loaded so that it fizzles rather than explodes when ignited by the primer; again, the handloader should have been in better control of his powder to ensure that this didn’t happen.

4. Deprimed brass is tumbled in corncob media and not checked for debris in the flash hole. Powder won’t ignite and primers try to back out of the primer pocket.

5. Related to #3… and admittedly is not the fault of the hand loader, per se, but… it is possible for powder to become contaminated after being loaded if the ammunition is not properly stored; for instance, a hunter may submerge his equipment while crossing a river, and then the gun goes pop rather than bang while he’s aiming at that 8-point buck a few hours later.

It’s worth mentioning some other forms of malfunction that are often lumped into the“squib” category, though I personally think it is a misnomer in these instances.

One malfunction can occur when an incorrectly sized or severely damaged bullet is loaded into a piece of brass, thus causing it to lodge into the barrel after it is fired. Similarly, the wrong kind of ammunition may be loaded into a firearm and fired, causing its bullet to jam into the barrel. This has been known to occur when people try to fire a .300 BLK in a .223 Remingtonfirearm. 

It is also possible that another object in the barrel (i.e., severe lead buildup or debris that’s been jammed into the muzzle) can stop the bullet’s passage. 

So… following this line of thought… if a bullet is already stuck in the barrel from a just-fired squib, and the next fired round is stopped by the previous squib… does that make the second bullet a squib, too?

Personally, I think that a “squib” should be defined as the incomplete firing of a bullet due to a failure or lack of propellant. If a bullet stops in the barrel because it doesn’t fit, or due to apreviously existing obstruction, then that’s not a squib… it’s a “barrel obstruction.”  

See my point?

Anyway, I’m not going to waste a lot of time arguing semantics. Maybe my definition is different from everyone else’s definition, though, so y’all are welcome to disagree with me and count those other ones as squibs if you’re that passionate about it.

So, how to prevent squibs?

Pay attention when you are hand loading!  Always look in your cases to ensure that powder is present—and in the proper amount—before seating that bullet!  Keep your components clean and away from contaminates!  Use the proper components for your caliber!