Storing Ammo

[Spencir]

How long can you store ammo before it needs to be replaced?

 

[acarnahan]

I store it in ammo cans with a desicant pack and I've got ammo that's a few years old that still shoots fine. Old PMC 223 that has a price of $2.59ea. I do replace the desicant every year.

 

[eldirector]

I've shot some .38 Special rounds from the mid/early 1980's. They were stored in a ziplock bag.

I've also shot some .30-30 rounds that were in a cardboard box in a damp basement since the 70s sometime. A few needed cleaned up a bit to chamber (corrosion on the case). I still have some shotgun shells left over from a hunting trip my father-in-law went on in the early 60s. I'll try them sometime.

Lot's of folks shoot old surplus stuff from post WWII. Mostly from spam cans or ammo boxes.

So, i'd guess, 50 years or so?

 

[Spencir]

So would storing it just the factory boxes be fine or would you suggest an ammo can or something like it. Also, what about ammo in a carry gun? Does that ever need to be replaced?

 

[Fishersjohn48]

Replaced? Please tell me you mean shot! Ammo will last YEARS if kept relatively dry and not exposed to high heat. Heat will start to degrade the ammo over time. I shoot milsurp ammo that is decades old with no problem. I use silica based cat litter in folded over and stapled coffee filters as a desiccant and store it in GI ammo cans. I have some shotgun ammo from the '60's that has been loose in a cardboard box that gets shot at the range as well with no problems.

 

[Spencir]

Well I was mostly referring to hollow points that I wouldn't shoot at the range

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

They should literally last centuries as long as they're kept dry. People still fire WWII surplus, no problem. Old muzzleloaders from the 1700s have been found loaded, and have fired fine. The ingredients are stable, and the way ammunition is put together protects them.

 

[Vlad the Impaler]

^^^^This^^^^

Keep it dry and enjoy it for a lifetime.
I keep my ammo in MTM ammo cans with good gaskets and have a cheap salt shaker in each filled with indicating dessicant. If I don't open the cans, the dessicant keeps fine. If I get in and out of the cans and the dessicant goes purple, I just take the salt shaker tops off and bake at a 250F for a few hours and put the recharged shaker in the can.

 

[tacdriver]

They should literally last centuries as long as they're kept dry. People still fire WWII surplus, no problem. Old muzzleloaders from the 1700s have been found loaded, and have fired fine. The ingredients are stable, and the way ammunition is put together protects them.

Yes sir I too can attest to that, keep it dry and if you can throw some desiccation in the can's you store it in.

I use mil surp 7.92x57 from the year 1936 in my Mauser's, haven't had an issue yet.

 

[reesez]

How long can you store ammo before it needs to be replaced?

every two months..... Ill dispose of all your old ammo for you no charge.

 

[looney2ns]

Well I was mostly referring to hollow points that I wouldn't shoot at the range

Why not shoot it at the range?

 

[U.S. Patriot]

Whenever I feel like my carry ammo needs fired and replaced. Or, if every round in the mag has been loaded twice. As long as you are not loading the same round multiple times, then there is nothing to worry about.