How Long is Ammo Good For ??

WarMonger

I have some shotgun shells in my room that are at least 20 years old. Think they are still okay to fire ?

IAMACLONE_2

Shot some 1941 USA MilSurp 45acp last year, just like new, in sardine cans.
Made by Federal, bad part was they were steel core/ copper jacket 230gr round nose and semi corrsive.
Paid $89 a 1,000.

dlrjj

I got several hundred rounds of .38spl and a half dozen boxes of 12ga. from a relative a couple years ago that dated back to the twenties and thirties. The shells and boxes were too scuffed up to have any collector value (I checked) so I shot them. Every one of the shells fired and worked just fine. I sure wouldn't worry about twenty year old stuff; I've got reloads older than that.

hughbetcha

The real answer to this question is....depends on how the ammo is stored/sealed etc. Kept dry and at moderate heat/cold ammo has lasted a hundred years or more. Ammo can be ruined quickly by moisture and/or oil.

WinM70

I've wondered but never had anything go wrong or missfire with any I've ever shot that was old. If I have anything that looks like it is a little corroded I give a quick blast w/WD40 let drip dry load and fire.

ElMuertoMonkey

20 years was only the 1980's, so they should still be okay. I think modern ammo has higher tolerances to the weather and environment than stuff from the 1940's or so.

Sperry

Until you shoot it.

cussedemgun

WinM70 et-all,

for safety, the case & chamber of all guns should be clean, dry, & as oil free as possible.

as the pressure of firing expands the case, it grips the chamber walls to form a gas seal & prevent the hot gas from escaping.

oiling the case or chamber allows the case to slide back thus allowing full pressure on the bolt & locking lugs. premature loss of headspace can result!

Ray B

the primary problem with storage is that it is best when stored in temperature about 50 degrees and low humidity. Ammunition of recent ingredients will last indefinitely. Older (way older) ammunition that contained mercuric primers deteriorated so as to not fire and powder that was tinned, would breakdown and have a burning rate much different from original, which could run pressures way up. But for most newer stuff, age alone is not a problem.

tr fox

quote:Originally posted by cussedemgun
WinM70 et-all,

for safety, the case & chamber of all guns should be clean, dry, & as oil free as possible.

as the pressure of firing expands the case, it grips the chamber walls to form a gas seal & prevent the hot gas from escaping.

oiling the case or chamber allows the case to slide back thus allowing full pressure on the bolt & locking lugs. premature loss of headspace can result!








Hummmm. Wonder if you get some of the same effect when firing steel cased ammo?

11b6r

I am currently shooting up WW II vintage 8mm Mauser. Stored well, shoots good. Depends, as the man said, on temp and humidity where stored. Heck, was digging thru the ammo locker, realized I have 45's that the tag says I handloaded in 1995.

n/a

I shot up a bunch of WW1 .45 and some stamped 1943, no problem.. Shotshell, as long as it isnt swollen, corroded (brass) or split, and apparently stayed dry, I wouldn hesitate to shoot it,, A guy just gave me a couple boxes of the Old Paper shells, they did just fine..[:)]

Iconoclast

Storage is key - temperature extremes . . . especially heat, but cold as well . . . humidity, exposure to oils & solvents - all play a role. The one sort of ammo I would approach with extreme caution would be early smokeless loads, and in particular the early HV items such as Newton rounds, .280 Ross, etc., produced before 1930 or so. I've seen *way* too many neck cracks from powder deterioration to trust that brass even if the exterior looks good. Old BP rounds will shoot if the primers work.

zipperzap

Used to shoot UMC stuff from the turn of the century ( I was told) when I was a kid.
7x57 Except for a cracked neck in about every twenty they were fine - FML 174gn
Roundnose, as I recall - silver in color.[8D]