The other evening I was reloading a box of my favorite 444 Marlin loads in anticipation of deer season. I was charging the rounds that I had resized and primed the night before. On the sixth round that I poured my measured charge of H4198 into, the case overflowed. Assuming that I must have bumped my powder measure and fouled it up, I dropped another load of powder onto my scales to see how much over I was. Well the scales said I was right on the money for the load I was using. Again I poured a load into the sixth casing and again it overflowed. Now I was scratching my head. The night before when I had completed sizing and priming the casings, I had turned them neck down in the loading block to prevent anything from falling in them so I knew nothing should be in the case. Finally, I emptied the remaining powder out of the case and rapped it hard neck first on the loading bench. Lo and behold one of those black hard shelled light bugs fell out of the casing. From the time it took me to turn the cases upright, walk over to my powder storage and return to the bench one of those danged bugs had landed in my shell casing. Boy was that a misfire looking for a place to happen. This is just another example of no matter how careful you are, Mr. Murphy and his law are just around the corner.

What is a black hard shelled light bug?
I have been known to seat a bullet on an asian lady beetle so as to reduce to parts per million. It is cheaper that dacron as a case filler ;).

Cheezywan

One more bug story.

Casting outside...fan to my back, enjoying the shade of an oak tree. Somthing about the size of my thumb either dive bomed into the pot or happened to drop dead just above it and fall in. Think it was a cicada...not enough evidence after the fact to be sure.

Juicy enough to cause a pretty big eruption...gyser of lead shoots up...next memory is of being up against the fence with no real idea of how i got there, and thinking I'm blind. Lead had coated my safety glasses and I was blind until I took them off...then I was just pie-bald from the lead spatter on the unprotected areas of my face (was the first...and last...time my wife saw me clean shaven).

Ribbonstone, I can imagine the surprise on your face. The only thing close to that happening to me was when my young son hit a golf ball into my lead pot. Luckily the lead splash went away from me.

My question remains. What is a black hard shelled light bug?

Cheezywan

Hmmmm....could be a Turpentine beetle?

I found out, at least here in Louisiana, don't leave empty brass in open containers. I scooped up a handful of .38s to start loading. These cases had been stored in a shed, not airtight or bug-tight, ya understand, and while loading into the Dillon, I noticed several plugged up by Dirt Dauber mud nests.

Note to self; "Self, keep a dental pick handy to clean out dauber nests, and keep lids on brass cans!"

My question remains. What is a black hard shelled light bug?

Cheezywan

We called them lightning bugs but they are also called fireflys. It's a type of beattle...not sure of there range but we have them here in the south. You know it's spring when just at dusk you can see little flashes of light in the night air. Through the use of bioluminescence they produce light. It can be a spectical at times when there are alot of them. Used to chase them as a kid.

I googled them

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/bugs/firefly.html

I don't know of turpentine bettles :confused: . We do have lightning bugs here. We use them as tracer rounds in air rifles here :D .

No matter the bug. Is a good idea to inspect cases for loading.

Cheezywan

We use them as tracer rounds in air rifles here :D .

Cheezywan

I'll have to try that one. I can't believe that my imagination as a kid never lead me to doing this :D

The bug I am talking about is one of those big black bugs that fly around your porch light in the summer and hangs on the screen door. We used to put them in those old spring loaded play double barrel shotguns and shoot them at each other.

The bug I am talking about is one of those big black bugs that fly around your porch light in the summer and hangs on the screen door. We used to put them in those old spring loaded play double barrel shotguns and shoot them at each other.

Most bugs here do tend to hang around porch light. We also have what we call a "June bug" here. Ours are tan in color. A normal sized one is about the size that could fit a 444 Marlin.
I got hit bare chested years ago (at some speed ) while on a motorcycle. Thought I had been shot! Sure left a welt and a memory.

Ours have a hard shell and make a noise that will make hair stand up on your neck when they fly near your ear. I wonder if this might be a cousin to your bug? Might make a good .410 slug load?

I don't have any other bugs here that get close to your discription. Thanks for reply.

Cheezywan

Cheezywan, sounds like yours must be the first cousin to my bugs. We have a saying down here, You can tell a happy motorcyclist by the bugs on his teeth.

Cheezyman,

I just happen to have gadgeated from Clemson U. with a degree in Entomology. If you want a positive ID you will have to send a pic. Many insects are attracted to light and a few have a black beetle like appearance.

If it was the electric light bug you would not have had any room for powder, even if you were loading 50 cal.

The lightning bugs we see are in the family lamperadea and are a beetle and black but you can see the bright yellow luminesing abdomen, even when it is not lighting up. They stink a little too.

Can't figure how one crawled under your case. I bet it about got you frustrated enough to slap your grandmaw.

All bugs are insects, not all insects are bugs. Chew on that one.

Not a degreed entomologist, but EntSoc (Entomological Society of America) says I'm one.

Yea. Lightening bugs are beetles, not bugs, but only we know that Charley.

hemiptera are not your friends...

Gee and thought reloading could not get any more complex.