I have come up with some older ammo from my father's old foot locker in the shed. I'm not sure what could be done to clean it up? I would like to put it to use, and it certainly seems that it would be better to clean it first, but is it necessary? Is there a product better suited for the cleaning job? I have a unfired rifle and thoughtt I could at least use it for break in and getting close before using "newer" stuff for further shooting? I was not sure where to post this question and tried to do a search but came up empty. So I apologize if this is the wrong spot. Thanks for the help.
- Thread starter rshunter
- Start date
M
milo 2.0
Guest
If it was mine, I'd pull it and salvage the brass. But they should be fine to shoot. Reactivate some media and tumble them for 20 minutes or so, see what gives. No reason to gum up your chamber with that green shit.
Extreme heat is ammo's worst enemy.
The Win and Rem boxes look 70's, maybe earlier, but that Peter's stuff, I'm an old bastard and have never seen that packaging. Don't throw the boxes!
Extreme heat is ammo's worst enemy.
The Win and Rem boxes look 70's, maybe earlier, but that Peter's stuff, I'm an old bastard and have never seen that packaging. Don't throw the boxes!
The other thing I'd be concerned with is a squib load. As powder gets older and is affected by heat, it becomes weaker. If you have a primer that is also weak you can stick a bullet in the middle of your barrel. That is a bitch to get out without harming the barrel. I'd either pull and save the bullets and reload with new primers, or chuck the old brass. JMHO
Definitely keep the boxes, and that winny looks like a complete box, that may be worth something to a collector as a side piece for a rifle display. With the money from selling the boxes, you may be able to get a box or two of Remmy or Winny soft point hunting ammo.
If it hasnt been subjected to very high temps for years Id take some 0000 steel wool and shoot it.
Is it corroded at all - either the brass of bullet? If the case is, pull the bullet, fertilize your yard with the powder, and throw it in the recycle bin. If just the bullet is, use 0000 steel wool and clan it up.
"I'm not sure what could be done to clean it up?"
Toss any that has green on it, that's real corrosion and thins/weakens the case as surely as rust weakens steel. Dull or dark brass is merely tarnished, that's harmless, shoot it.
It's possible but highly unlikely your ammo will fail to fire normally but if it doesn't there will be no recoil and you will surely notice the difference! Clear a stuck bullet - from any cause - before firing another round.
Getting a stuck bullet out of a .30 caliber bolt rifle is easily done with a barrel length piece of 1/4" brass brazing rod from a welding supply house and a mallet. Wrap a couple-three turns of plastic tape around the rod at maybe 6" intervals to help center it on the bullet. And oil the bore in the direction you will drive the bullet, not behind it. It hardly matters what oil you use.
Toss any that has green on it, that's real corrosion and thins/weakens the case as surely as rust weakens steel. Dull or dark brass is merely tarnished, that's harmless, shoot it.
It's possible but highly unlikely your ammo will fail to fire normally but if it doesn't there will be no recoil and you will surely notice the difference! Clear a stuck bullet - from any cause - before firing another round.
Getting a stuck bullet out of a .30 caliber bolt rifle is easily done with a barrel length piece of 1/4" brass brazing rod from a welding supply house and a mallet. Wrap a couple-three turns of plastic tape around the rod at maybe 6" intervals to help center it on the bullet. And oil the bore in the direction you will drive the bullet, not behind it. It hardly matters what oil you use.
Why tempt fate? Why risk ruining your "new rifle" bore. Save a few bucks? Spend another $500? Ridiculous, I say. JMHO
If that ammo in those Peters boxes is "original" it will be worth more to a collector if the box is full or even partial full. Judging by your pic I would leave it as is and sell what I could as collectable and toss the rest. The ammo doesn't look to have been properly stored and that would give me pause. I personally wouldn't shoot it nor pull it down. 30-06 brass is easily bought last I checked. Most surplus stuff from even as far back as '52 looks way better than anything in that picture. I have some '52 AP that is absolutely pristine.
Similar threads
