Putting one away this morning.
Full of .357.
Handle came off.
Can dropped onto my foot.
Ouch. Top of foot took the hit.
I will be throwing these away and going back to GI .30 cal cans.

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-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

Can plastic ammo cans contain the explosive energy. I only use metal.

The MTM plastic ammo cans are much better than the Plano ones.

I have mine packed with some pretty heavy stuff, no issues. My only complaint is the lids are bulkier/wider than the bottoms so they don't stack as nicely as the GI cans sitting side by side.

I don't know about this containing the explosive energy aspect... should something go off if/when the can is dropped, I want it to vent the pressure quickly and dissipate the energy before it has the chance to build up and turn the can into deadly shrapnel.

That's why the metal safety storage bins for smokeless powder are made with breakaway seams, to dissipate the pressure before it turns into some kind of pressure cooker bomb.

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Conrad
SWCA #1830 SWHF #222

Why waste $ on cheap plastic cans when there's millions of quality steel GI cans available?

Anything can fail. I've got a USGI surplus .30cal can where one of the spot welds for the bit of sheet metal that holds the handle popped apart. I didn't even realize when it happened, but I know it wasn't like that when I got it. Since then, I'm hesitant to carry them over things that can't take a hit (like people or pets).

I agree - - STILL PLENTY of the USGI cans left around and most STILL in great condition. Just got two last week that a fellow Club member just gave me because he shot up the Lake City ammo that was in them. In pristine condition too

I don't know about you but every time I see surplus GI cans they're 15 or 20 bucks. Seems like too much, to me.

I have one also, same condition.

It took me time to get used to the plastic boxes since I'm a traditional kind of guy and appreciate the GI surplus cans but for about 5 bux you can pick up a plastic box at Walmart. There is starting to be a collection of these in my garage.

More like $25 or so around here.

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-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

I still see 7.62 NATO MG cans for $10 at gun shows. I prefer the M249 cans, but they are a little difficult to find.

I've picked up quite a few of the GI surplus cans at the local gun show. I like the 40mm size and can get those for $15 each. I do have a couple of the MTM plastic cans which I only store primers in with a large desiccant bag. They work well for those since there's not much weight involved. For ammo, it's steel cans only.

$15.00 for a GI ammo can isn't too much. They are difficult to harm and last forever. Ever drop one of these on your foot? I did, mine had about 250 45 ACP rounds in it and I hobbled around for a month...

I'd like to see some of those...

Availability and pricing of the GI ammo cans seems to be highly regional... where I'm at, the few local LGS's that do have them have prices on them like they are made out of gold. For many, Gun Shows are either too far away or non existent.

Buying them online is too expensive when shipping is added... not worth it to me if I have to add on an additional 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of the cans for UPS to come visit.

The plastic ones sometimes are the only choice.. and the MTM ones are decent.

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Conrad
SWCA #1830 SWHF #222

I can give you one good reason. Packing ammo for airline travel.

I packed about 600 rounds of 38sp, 357mag, 44sp, & 44mag in 50 round boxes into two of these plastic ammo cans and put the locked ammo cans in a checked bag when I flew down to my mom's place in AZ. They require that the ammo be in a locked bag and I figured that since metal cans wouldn't x-ray so well they'd tear my bag apart if I tried using the metal cans. So I used the plastic ones.

Due to the rough handling the airport employees gave the bag, one of them cracked on the bottom, but the bag went through x-ray and made to to the destination no problems....

Just by chance did you read the label on the Plano box? I suspect it may indicate a safe load limit for the box. A box full of .357? What were you thinking? It's only plastic for heck sake.

As gunhacker said, the MTM boxes are better than Plano! I will add much better! They will handle a full load of ammunition. Construction of the MTM is far superior to the Plano.

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Gunsmithing since 1961

If the contents were to 'explode', neither plastic or metal would contain it. It is much more likely that ammo would 'cook off' in a fire where, in the case of plastic, the ammo would be firing from a puddle of plastic goo or in the case of metal, from within the metal can.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Call Plano. I had a handle break one time on my Plano tackle box, and they took care of it with no problem

I won't buy plastic cans period.

A few years ago 30 cal cans were typically $3-4 and 50 cal were $5-8. I don't know how or exactly when but it seems during the shortage & gouging of 2010 prices skyrocketed. Now they want 15-20 for a 50 cal can.
Every now and then I see one at the flea market for 8-10 so I pick it up but not very often.

Well, the box store in my small town has new GI ammo cans on the shelf, a little higher than I paid for brand new cans at $19.00. I have purchased ammo cans on line for as low as $7.00 used and $15.00 new, and given the sturdiness and longevity, it's a deal. I haven't had any problems finding them when I just looked. I have only been using them for storage since mebbe '85, and none have ever failed, in any way (no plastic hinges to break, no stiff plastic from sitting in the sunlight, etc.).

I've got eight of the plastic ammo cans. Both small and large Plano's and small cans from Harbor Freight. I have used them for over 6 years, loaded to the gills. Never had a problem. Anything can break. I bet if you got a replacement, you'd never have a problem with it.

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Thugs that comply don’t die!

Well, they tend to last a lifetime, so it's all about you get what you pay for. That cheap $6 plastic container won't last or protect nearly as long as the GI cans will. Just be sure you're not getting those Chinese knock offs they sell impersonating US GI cans. Midway USA has GI cans for about $10

I don't put too much thought into containers. I have plastic, I have GI cans. Both do identical things. Both I've had for years. I even have 2 wooden crates. They work too. Whatever....it's a container not a mathematical algorithm

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk

I actually had the handle pop off one of the Plano plastic cans. I had about 1100-1200 rounds of 9mm stuffed into it. It bulged at the sides a bit. It really wasn't meant to hold that much. Fortunately it didn't fall on anything but the floor which was undamaged as were the contents. I popped the handle back on and took a few rounds out. It has been fine since, and I'm still using it. Just not with 1200 rounds literally stuffed into it.

So long as their limitations are recognized, I think the plastic cans have their place. They are inexpensive and they won't rust.

I have a reinforced concrete and cement block cellar built into the side of a hill in back of my house. The previous owner built it in the early 1960's, so it may have been intended to be a fallout shelter, but whatever it's original function, I use it for storage. It is warm and moist and the plastic cans hold the things I leave in them, keep them dry and they don't rust.

I shoot 4 to 5 times a week and shoot the stuff up before I ever have enough to fill a can. I don't reload that fast.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

US ammo cans are fine, for sure, but I have never liked the way they open and close.

I bought the large Plano plastic can last year and was impressed with the performance. I fill it up completely when I go to the range and have never had an issue. To my way of thinking it beats the old way, certainly with how the US cans have escalated in price.

After reading this thread I went back and looked at my can again. I really can't see how it could break, considering how well its made.

The swinging top handle is retained by two plastic pegs about 3/16" long that are just snapped into recesses in the lid.
Too much stress and they snap back out.

Color developing nicely on my painful reminder:

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-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

Yowza - sorry, man.

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Now go make God proud...

They break. Been there.

But the side conversation is that the plastic cans can have a lock put on them, but the metal cannot. It you are in malicious compliance mode for storage/transport, even though the plastic can be broken open when locked, it is possible to put a lock on it.

I've found empty folger's cans good to store ammo in. They stack pretty well, have no handle to break off, and are free if you drink coffee.

I use them for my brass...marked "clean" or "dirty". And the respective caliber, of course.

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Thugs that comply don’t die!

Me too.....then one day the light came on and I realized they would hold live ammo as well.

You should sue them. What a ***.

I recently bought new Mil Spec ammo cans at Costco. Metal, powder coated, gasket sealed. They had a 30 cal inside a 50 cal. $8.00 for the pair. I bought two pairs and am kicking myself for not buying 200.

I used to see the USGI cans 3/$10 at gun shows, prior to the current administration in Washington and the ammo shortage/panic/price spike. Now you are lucky to find them for $12 each and $15 is more the norm.

There's a reason that the military doesn't use plastic ammo cans.

Probably because before the ammo shortage, people didn't need to stock up and store nearly as much ammo. Back then most just went to the store and got a few boxes when they needed it. These days you buy all you can find and keep it for when it isn't available again. Supply and demand free market causing them to go up in price.

A couple of reasons. Dimensions for one. Maybe ya need just a skoshe more room to fit a given amount. Shotguns shells are much less dense than metallic, for example. Maybe the plastic will fit a certain ammo box perfectly.

MTM used to make a VERY robust plastic can but I haven't been able to find any for years.