How do you clean live ammo rounds?

[rambone]

I just bought a quantity of surplus handgun ammo at a cheap price. The catch is, it needs to be cleaned.

How would you clean live ammunition?

Can it be immersed in liquid and still be shot? Or just wiped down?

What kind of chemical/solution should be used?

Thanks!

 

[Big John]

Please tell me you did NOT buy one of the boxes Blythe's had laying on the floor..

I would NOT shot that out of any firearm I cared about or using a hand I liked to pull the trigger.

 

[glock34]

I saw a thread on Brian Enos web site about vibrating live ammo to clean just like you would brass. I have never done this so you may wany to do more research.

 

[standeford]

Give it a turn in a brass tumbler.

 

[Lock n Load]

Give it a turn in a brass tumbler.

I tumble some of my reloads if they have any lube left on them, just dont overload the capacity and it does fine.... and is safe.

 

[IndyGunworks]

I have tumbled many many live rounds... i would NOT submerse your rounds in ANYTHING

 

[2cool9031]

I have tumbled many live rounds with no adverse affects....but I read one time that the experts advise against it. The powder is grainulated to control the rate of burn, and by tumbling it the structure of the powder can end up finer thus burning faster.

 

[captpaul]

There was an experiment on the Enos website a while back. A guy put some rounds in a vibratory cleaner 24 hr. a day. He chronoed some of them before, some at intervals, and the rest after a week straight with no change in velocity or pressure signs.

 

[mwilson]

we just tumbled about 1200 rounds last week. not going to hurt anything.

 

[SNAFU-M1A]

Another +1 for tumbling. Just keep an eye on how many you put in at a time.

 

[rambone]

Well this makes me wish I had a tumbler. Thanks for the suggestions guys.

Are there any alternate methods, before I go buy a tumbler?

 

[gund]

Curious how will I know it needs to be cleaned? What's on it exactly?

 

[jedi]

Curious how will I know it needs to be cleaned? What's on it exactly?

^-- me too.

@rambone
did you buy it at Byltes?

@Big John
Which byltes were you talking about? & What was so wrong with the ammo?

 

[rambone]

The best way I can describe it is that it seems to have some soot on it. It will start to make your fingers black if you handle a lot of it. I figured I would wipe it down and it would be okay. Cost $7.00 per 50 rounds.

 

[jedi]

What caliber? From where?
Y U holding out on us.

 

[Big John]

^-- me too.

@rambone
did you buy it at Byltes?

@Big John
Which byltes were you talking about? & What was so wrong with the ammo?

Valpo they have several cases of surplus mixed stuff it looks to be mainly 9mm but there is some other stuff mixed it, it is oxidized big time I'm talking white ,green, and fuzzy.

 

[jedi]

Yum.. Yum... white & green & fuzzy...

Too bad no .45 or 7.62

 

[rambone]

Valpo they have several cases of surplus mixed stuff it looks to be mainly 9mm but there is some other stuff mixed it, it is oxidized big time I'm talking white ,green, and fuzzy.

Some of it looked salvageable... It was some .40 caliber I took. I'm gonna start wiping them down, possibly experimenting with household cleaners if necessary.

 

[DR II]

Where can I get a Tumbler? Like the kind you are talking about

 

[boman]

here can I get a Tumbler? Like the kind you are talking about

Midway or Graff's on the net. Gander Mountain if you've got one in driving distance.