does ammo go stale or bad ?

[nicknack]

I got 3 boxes of 38 special ammo from a guy whos dad past away.The boxes look really old but ammo looks ok.They are reload wadcutters some are brass and some are steel(?).They were kept in a garage in NY where we see cold winters and hot summers but the garage was always dry.
So are they safe to fire ?I will take them to the range if they are safe....

[Kid Sopris]

DON't shoot someone else's reloads....Period.
Take the ammo apart reuse the components.

[nicknack]

DON't shoot someone else's reloads....Period.
Take the ammo apart reuse the components.

Yeah I think the best thing to do is get rid of it somehow...

[Ratzo]

I wouldn't shoot it. Not because it went bad, but you have no idea what is in it. 150 rounds of ammunition is not worth the damage it could do to you or your firearm. Check with your local PD. They may be able to dispose of it for you. Full wadcutters are a hassle to disassemble so I am unsure I would even spend that amount of time.

[Oyeboten]

I say the same - the best 'Rule' is to never shoot anyone else's re-loads, "period", but especially not when the person who did the re-Loading is seperated by time or other factors from being able to answer for it personally.

Or, just accept that TO shoot other people's re-Loads, is a calculated risk.


Every round may be perfect, and be just as expected, or, you may get a round which is a Squib, a 'dud', or which has a double-charge of Bullseye and Blow the Cylinder apart and blow the Top Strap off of your Revolver.


Grandpas old dusty apparently 'Factory' Boxes of seemingly Mid Range Semi Wadcutters, can turn out to be 158 Grain Semi Wads of +P+ or 'Hot' upper end of .357 Magnum equivelents, loaded into .38 Special Cartridge Cases, since he knew what they were, and felt no need to write the details down on the Box. Lord Help you if any of those got an accidental 'double charge'of Bullseye! Lol...since it'd be even worse than a usual double-charge of lesser amount.

Otherwise, Factory Ammunition will generally remain viable pretty much for ever. It can go bad if exposed to long periods of extreme Heat, or from long periods of deep immersion in Water ( like in Ocean Bottoms or Lakes or something, rather than transient flood conditions of a Home or other, but a Basement might be deep enough to allow it ) but that would tend to be a rare occurance in most situations.

Re-Loads, likewise, would tend to remain viable pretty much for ever, but re-loads will not usually handle periods of immersion in Water as well as factory Ammunition will...and neither factory or re-Load or Home Load will remain viable if Oil is allowed to seep into the Primers.

[Oyeboten]

I myself have a Box of someone's Grandpa's re-Loads from who knows when, which were given to me in the 1980s, and I accepted them out of politeness only.

Fast forward 25 years or so, and, I decide to take that calculated risk and see what a few of the rounds would do.

They look like any old every day set-flush .38 Special 148 Grain DEWadcutter Cartridges...so, electing the 'Duelist' Stance, and, my Bull Barrel S&W Model 10, I loaded one, and, squeezed it off, over the Chronograph.

The reading was something like 1300 or 1400 FPS, and, it had a pretty 'Healthy' recoil and report.

I tried a few more, and, they were about the same.

So, 'Bingo'! Old somebodyelse's Grand-Pa or whoever he was, back in the 1950s or '60s, had whooped up some wholebuncha 'HOT' Loads for himself, in .38 Special, and, could be he knew his subject well, and had impeccible habits with his Loading, and had an appropriate Arm to fire them in.

Then again, maybe not!


All I can say, is I took the risk to see what a few of them would do, and, that is what the ones I tried, did.

This was out of a 3 Inch Barrel, also.


It's a risk!

And the next round might just be a LuLu..!

[smkummer]

No one here can tell you if they are safe since they are reloads, simple as that. While no one intends to harm themselves or the gun they are shooting and more than likely the ammo is OK, you are assuming a lot here. You can pull some bullets and weigh the charges but you will have to be able to identify the powder, but sometimes its the one you miss that was incorrectly charged. No powder charge is an inconvienence as you have to get the stuck bullet out of the barrel without damaging the gun. An overcharge can be disasterous. To some extent you can lessen the risk if you are firing in a .357 chambered gun but even these guns have their limits. Lots of varibles here.

[capstan]

I have the same aversion to someone's reloads I just dont trust em . Could be a double charge real easy and blow up my nice colt and maybe take me out too.

[Nick B.]

I think the advise given re reloads is absolutely correct.

I am intrigued by the other part of the question , does ammo go stale ?
How long can ammo be stored and still be useable ? Will it maybe go bang but loose a lot of it's effectiveness or maybe be innacurate ?

Is that WW1 - WWll ammo still useable, I fired some from the 50s over the weekend and it was useable, I didn't cronograph it but it was accurate.

NB

[ibewbull]

The worst I ever had was a complete dud. Some old .303 British ammo. It was pretty green.Not stored properly for a long time.
It was in a $75 MK II i wore safety glasses and waited , re-cocked and tried once more.