NBC's "Life" Character Charlie Crews Reloading Ammo on TV - the Wrong Way
Ever heard of the show? It's called "Life." Kind of a quirky show, with much that's intentionally unrealistic - but in the episode that aired on February 4, 2009, they went a little too far with that.
The episode is named "Re-entry." Detective Charlie Crews (a detective who was framed for murder and jailed for years, then became a millionaire upon his release) had been shot. Before he left the hospital where he recovered, he asked for, and received, a twisted gob of metal that was supposedly the bullet with which he had been shot.
Halfway through the show, Crews plans himself some vengeance. He pops a Zen cassette into his tape player, and goes about supposedly loading that bullet into a new cartridge. But what he does is impractical, dangerous, unrealistic, and could get some people seriously injured or even killed, should they try to follow his example.
He begins with the bullet in a small dipper. This he holds over the flame of a gas burner until it melts. It turns out to be all lead, with no trace of a copper jacket, although the guy who shot him would almost certainly have been using jacketed bullets. Let's ignore that, though - that info isn't likely to get anyone killed.
Next, he pours that tiny bit of un-fluxed lead into a bullet mold - one that apparently hasn't been pre-heated, as it's sitting on some of that rubber stuff you lay down under rugs to keep them from sliding around. It's obvious that the small amount of lead won't be enough to fill the mold, but since when do the folks who make TV dramas care about reality?
Now comes the deadly part. Crews takes a brass cartridge case, probably 9mm, and holds it with a Leatherman tool. Then he scoops up a bunch of loose gun powder from a small bowl! No measuring or weighing of the charge - just SCOOP! As many of you know, that is extremely dangerous. Powder should be very carefully measured and weighed, and the amounts confirmed with more than one source of information. The amount of powder used varies greatly from one type to another, too.
Because we're not done departing from reality, he next holds the cartridge case upright on the table with the Leatherman, and pokes the eraser end of a pencil into the case, apparently packing the powder somehow. This is not necessary in real Life, and is actually problematic, because doing so would almost certainly cause you to lose some of the supposed-to-be-carefully-measured powder, when it sticks to the rubber eraser.
Now, he opens up the bullet mold. Hurrah! That much is done properly, anyhow. Then he taps the mold with his Leatherman, and the bullet falls out. Knocking your bullet mold with hardened steel is not something you'd want to do on a regular basis, but since he's just a one-timer planning a little revenge, we'll forgive that.
The bullet falls out, obviously incomplete. It doesn't have enough of a base to load into a brass case, and there's an odd goober of lead hanging off it. Next, he grabs another cast bullet (this one has a base on it) with that Leatherman - which is getting a heck of a workout, don't you think? - and sets the bullet on top of the cartridge case. I guess nobody told him that it's okay to touch a bullet with your fingers before you load it. They also forgot to inform him that to properly seat a bullet, you really ought to have a press, and a set of the proper loading dies. And, that cast bullets ought to be sized & lubed before loading.
The next scene shows the bullet already pushed down into the case, and Crews oh-so-gently tapping on it with - you guessed it - his Leatherman. This is purest bull hockey. It's just not gonna happen. He would never have been able to seat the bullet properly in this way, and even if he had, the nose of the bullet would have been deformed - which it was not, on the show.
I have forgiven this show quite a bit, because I enjoy it for the most part. I like the actor who plays Crews (Damian Lewis), and have done so ever since I first noticed him in "Band of Brothers." But this kind of misleading scene could get someone killed or seriously injured, trying to copy it.
Crews is, after all, a multi-millionaire... so why stage a low-budget, half-baked, just-plain-wrong attempt to load a single round of ammo, rather than having him spend some of his many dollars (which he has been eager to do in the past) to buy some reloading equipment and do it correctly? The character supposedly has a deeply thoughtful and analytical mind. Therefore, it seems out of character for him to go at something without understanding the right way to do it.
Bummer, NBC.
Comments
This in my opinion is NBC’s way of showing the uninformed public that reloading is unsafe and they should spend there money on factory loads. I have been reloading ever since I had three misfires in a row in a box of factory ammunition,I pulled the bullets and found that there was no primer mixture in the primer, everything else was there but the priming mixture, How many benchrest matches have been won with factory ammunition? 0 If you want something done right do it yourself.
that had to be a democrate running that deal on the tv one of those people we all know and have read about trying to take away our rights to own our rifles and handguns. I reload my own ammo and i use two scales to make sure the powder weight is right for the pectecular weapon i’m relaoding. that was very poor taste for any big tv company to do.
thanks
robert booth..
it does not even mention a primer, taking old out on putting new in.
I completely agree that, if a character in a fiction story undertakes a given task, it’s irresponsible to depict him doing it the wrong way. But the problem (of accuracy in fiction) is more widespread than just the area of firearms and ammunition.
I’m a fiction writer and can attest that, if a writer chooses to write “about something real,” they must do their research. No writer “knows everything.” Steven King used to be one who made silly mistakes when writing about firearms – particularly odd when you think about how many times guns play a role in his stories. But no one corrected him – with any success. It was Mr. King who was the success – despite mistakes – ending up a multimillionaire.
In TV shows the problem is worsened because writers are under tight deadlines. Once a “concept” is approved: there’s mostly just pressure to get the next week’s script done so rehearsals and sets and “etc” can begin. Movies: a little better, but how many times have we seen the cowboy with a six-shooter fire eight times w/o reloading the gun. Point being: there’re different standards of accuracy depending on the type of writing (books, magazines,TV and movies).
Still, if it’s a matter of creating a possible safety hazard, the only way you can react is by contacting the producers and telling them about it. It’s not political, by the way, it’s just those differing standards and the impossibility of knowing (or catching) “everything.” Commenting about it to your shooting buddies – is just patting yourself on the back, it solves nothing.
You must look at it from the standpoint of the childish and churlish writers and actor.It looks good,so it is good.There you have the summation of the matter.To expect wisdom from the unwise is counter-productive and it only makes you mad.Expect foolishness from the foolish and at least you yourself can come to terms with the bizarre.
I must say I like the plot mentioned here. I think that taking revenge with the same bullet that was shot at you is an extremely curious situation. I understand the wrongs found within the show; however, it is certainly television and everyone can attest that flaws are encountered. Obviously this is not the correct way to reload, however; I would hope that anyone attempting to reload something would do research, even a beginner. You are working with gunpowder, even the most simple minded has heard stories of firecrackers taking fingers off. hopefully everyone encountering this episode would know that bullets are dangerous. Wow, i cant beleive how left-wing this comment sounds, i actually lean far to the right.
Since when would anyone who knows anything about shooting or history expect TV (with the possible exception of the History or Learning channels at times) to present anything correctly! It is “dramatic license” which covers all sorts of stuff.
I keep my S&W Det SPL loaded with 5 lead wad cutters. I also keep 2 speedloaders with SP Silvertips.
Remember the pistol he was shot with was never shown, and the cop that shot him was an old timer like me-lol
TV is escapism-If I want reality I can go to work. The fun is seeing them McGiver there way to an ending -LOL
How pathetic can you be to look past the show’s storyline and characters and point out such an unimportant flaw?
Pathetic? I don’t think so. Reloading ammo can be dangerous business if attempted improperly, and any example set by a popular TV show is apt to be followed by some folks… so it would be smart of them to approach it accurately.
And I didn’t look past the show’s storyline and characters. I pointed out that Crews is a rich man and likes to spend his money – and that is an important part of the show. So why didn’t he pony up some bucks for proper ammo loading equipment? It doesn’t jibe.
Can’t ammon loaded the proper way still be dangerious in a gun??
Only when the gun is used improperly, or when it’s used for self-defense, and then it’s only dangerous on one end – the one the bullet comes out of. The way Crews was loading the cartridge, it could easily cause the gun to rupture in the hand of whoever’s firing it, causing injury to him/her and also to bystanders.
The electricity in your home’s wall plugs is also extremely dangerous, but not when everything’s done correctly. And if a TV show were to show someone doing something extremely hazardous as a main part of a story, their lawyers would have a fit about it, because someone could easily be ignorant enough to act it out, get hurt, and sue the network.