Have you ever had to deal with a squib round? (Not talking the Harry Potter reference here 
)
If so, what how did you handle it? Advice for others who encounter it?
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I’ve had one… I was at the indoor range shooting a revolver with my hubby at my left shoulder training me on my technique. I entirely missed that it was a squib… he just said STOP and took hold of the revolver over the top, getting his finger in the path of the hammer drop … I was already pulling through the next shot. 
It was a pretty bold move on his part, and not entirely without risk… what if I’d finished the shot before he got in there? It might have blown the next rounds pressure straight into his hand. (former special forces guys… they put themselves in harm’s way to protect others without a lot of waffling)
At any rate, it was a massive learning moment for me. I’d hope should I ever have another, I’d catch it and react appropriately.
We do failure drills with snap caps in with live rounds, but I don’t really have a way to do squib practice. I wonder if I could have him reload a few empty shells with just primers, no powder or bullet, and load them in in the revolver for me.
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Reading this post got me thinking maybe we need another category called definitions. we are starting to get more people that are newer to guns and shooting who may not know what all the terms we use.
While it may seem obvious to us when we talk about EDC, LEO and now SQUIB it is not always obvious to others. It would be nice if things were in alphabetical order but that i am sure would either mean some under the covers scripting or someone manually updating it as people added new terms.
Just a thought to make it less intimidating to people who are newer to the gun lingo.
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I know what a squib round is, but I’m not sure exactly what it would sound like. What would clue me in to it being a squib round as opposed to a misfire? My understanding is that a squib round is one where the primer fires, but doesn’t ignite the powder. It has just enough power to propel the bullet into the barrel, but it stays in the barrel. Just thinking this through, it may seem like a misfire, but if you rack the slide, nothing would eject from the chamber because the bullet is in the barrel. The danger is that now there is a bullet in the chamber after racking the slide, but if the trigger is pulled it will hit the squib bullet in the chamber and cause problems. Is this correct?
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You will get a shell to eject if you rack the slide, so you can’t use that to tell. It won’t be a round with the bullet still crimped in the case, but in normal racking you might not see the difference.
It sounds like a pop instead of a BANG. Popcorn, or a firecracker snapper (the kind that go off when you throw them on the ground). Recoil is small to none.
The bullet is still in the barrel, and firing another round into it would be A Very Bad Thing. In a semi-auto you might explode the breach or have a catastrophic failure
A revolver might survive it without exploding, but it can ruin your gun.
A misfire is click, like dry firing, not pop.
Also, my hubby, who does a lot of his own gunsmithing says that he won’t remove the bullet in the barrel… get a gunsmith to do that.
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Thanks for that clarification! That’s a scary situation. Hopefully I would notice that, but it’s good to be reminded that it is something that can happen.
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Rather than a new thread…
Got to see my first Squib…
It wasn’t in any of my guns.
Went to the range with my co-worker Robert, his 3rd time shooting and another co-worker, Anthony and his younger brother came out… Anthony and his brother only had his brothers pistol. A couple mags through, he said his pistol seemed to be shooting funny, I educated him about squibs, we checked the barrel it was good.
However a couple mags later, he had a squib and since I told him what to look for, he noticed and didn’t fire the second shot.
Anthony and his brother finished their time on the range with my G34, they also tried my TP9SFX (now Anthony wants to buy one), my Ruger 556, and my NAA mini revolver .22wmr. Showed them the mini revolver. They couldn’t stop laughing. The laughing turned to silence and a suprised look when I shot a target at 3yrds as it blew some big holes in the splatter reactive target. They each got to shoot it, biggest word of advice which they took, hold it tight, it’s small but it packs a punch…
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@Orpackrat that was some pretty auspicious timing on that squib conversation! Someone’s Angels watching out for all of you 
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As a range safety officer, I see a lot in the course of a year. I would say that I run into a handful of squibs a year—no more. Fortunately, most shooters know what that means, and how to spot it and deal with it. We also have many non-range members who are much newer to firearms and it’s usually there that I have to intercede. Frankly, I’m surprised at the number of squibs we are seeing. Perhaps the cartridge manufacturers are working overtime?
My first Squib experience was with a brand new Glock G38 .45GAP. I had picked up the gun from a dealer and bought 2 boxes of WWB .45GAP ammo at Wal Mart and went to the range. The 7th shot in the first magazine sounded funny, like a “PUFF” and the case didn’t eject. Unaware, I cleared the jam, inserted a new mag and shot again. This time, the gun stung my hands, the magazine blew out and the slide locked half way back on a bulged barrel. I later learned I’d had a SQUIB, followed by a “Catastrophic Failure”. Glock SOLD me a new barrel, and Winchester ended up re-imbursing me for the repairs and the 2 boxes of ammo.
Symptoms:
- Soft Report
- Very light recoil
- Semi-Automatic pistol MAY fail to cycle
- No new hole in target
- (Slide MAY not return to battery if you try to chamber a new round if lodged bullet blocks chambering)
TREATMENT:
STOP SHOOTING!
Unload firearm, and disassemble , checking barrel for obstruction.
Usa a metal rod and hammer to drive the bullet back out of the barrel
OR Take it to a Gunsmith.
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I prefer a wooden dowel over the metal rod
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Thanks for sharing your experience, @Jim49! Hopefully people will learn from it - and you never have to experience something like that again.
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Ok, never had it, hope to never have it, but I do pay attention, and now know what to look out for. Thanks!