thewheelman
Member
What's the average shelf life for currently produced ammo?
Shelf life?
- Thread starter thewheelman
- Start date
Cal44
Member
I have some I bought 30 years ago that works fine.
I suppose it depends on storage. Mine was locked in a cabinet in a dry garage (in California weather) all that time.
I suppose it depends on storage. Mine was locked in a cabinet in a dry garage (in California weather) all that time.
cgt4570
SWCA Member
Stop beating a dead horse! Store it properly and the heirs of your heirs can shoot it a hundred years from now.
Autococker07
US Veteran
a long long time.... under the right conditions. In the mid eighties I found my dads service 45 that had been locked in his trunk since 1944... fired all seven rounds without a hitch! (This was kept indoors in an AC environment). I have rounds from the 70's and 80's (reloads) and have found no significant degradation. Again, NEVER stored outside/garage/etc. I keep all my ammo in the house, dark and as cool as possible.
OP
thewheelman
Member
Thanks for the quick responses! Some guy (who was selling ammo) was telling me that the new stuff has some chemicals in it that will render it useless in less than a year......I rolled up my pants legs 'cause it was getting deep! But, I didn't know what was really right! I keep mine in a gun cabinet drawer, climate controlled and dark.......
Thanks again!
Thanks again!
Cal44
Member
Internet forums?
Rpg
Member
Last year I took a deer with ammo I'd reloaded when I was 14. I'm 64.
Maddog 521
Member
New ammo will last longer than the shelf.
that's the dream of those that hate the 2nd amendment
From people that have & want to sell ammo.
shouldazagged
Absent Comrade
Trust your depth gauge. Some of them really do think we're stupid.
bluegrassarms
Member
I've heard this story going around and it did in the last shortage as well, though I heard two years in my version. lol.
I guess it starts as has been said with people who just want to sell ammo no matter what, and is perpetrated by people who think it must be true b/c they read it on the internets.
Utter nonsense of course, but you'd be surprised how many people who should know better have told me it's true. It's silly conspiracies like this one that unfairly discredit the conspiracies that I know are true.
I've shot 22 from the late 40s, I think that's the oldest for me. Don't think I'd rely on my grandfather's paper shell shotgun rounds for self defense, but other than that "indefinite" seems a fair description of ammo life. If properly stored of course.
kimporter
Member
im still shooting 220 swift ammo my dad loaded in 1967,still takin hogs at 300 yds+
Bkreutz
US Veteran
I still can shoot .30 carbine ammo made in '51, I have a box from '44 but I'm not using it because the year matches my M1 Carbine not because I don't think it will shoot.
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I recently fired some old beat up ammo that I would estimate to be at least 60 years old - - - NO PROBLEMO! A lot probably has to do with how and where the ammo was stored. The new stuff should be good for many years as long as it is stored in a cool & dry place.
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bigmoneylewis
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Modern ammo no longer uses a lead based primer . This change in the chemistry of the primers is a fairly recent event , and as such, modern ammo has not yet proven itsself as having a long shelf life .
Many "experts' have estimated that the chemisty used in todays primers may in fact break down and fail in less than 10 years, and some say less than 5 .
The change was made for our health , the government said, as prolonged inhalation of lead particles was bad for us .
In much the same way that we were forced to give up analog TV ,
and incandecent light bulbs , we now gave up long lasting lead based primers in our ammo .
I don't know what standards and regulations they have overseas, but I think it is a good idea to stock up on ammo made outside the U.S.
Lewis
Many "experts' have estimated that the chemisty used in todays primers may in fact break down and fail in less than 10 years, and some say less than 5 .
The change was made for our health , the government said, as prolonged inhalation of lead particles was bad for us .
In much the same way that we were forced to give up analog TV ,
and incandecent light bulbs , we now gave up long lasting lead based primers in our ammo .
I don't know what standards and regulations they have overseas, but I think it is a good idea to stock up on ammo made outside the U.S.
Lewis
