Went to pick up my suppressor the other day at my local gun store, and while I was waiting, a woman came in and was wanting to give them some powder. Apparently her husband had passed away and she didn't want it in the house. She ended up giving them a 15 pound drum full of Bullseye. No one knew how to open the upressit top! I showed them how it works. I smelled the powder, and it was not acrid. It was also not rusty looking as degraded powder gets. I bought the drum and contents for $50 + tax. They made money and I got a good deal. If I hadn't been waiting I would have asked the woman what other items she was looking to dispose of. Oh, well. I'll settle for $600 bucks worth of powder for $50.

Some of you folks need help with reading comprehension. I had no conversation with the widow. None. No interaction at all. We didn't even make eye contact. I overheard snippets of her conversation with the gun store employees. I only figured out what had transpired after I had concluded my business with my silencer, and well after she had left the store. The keg of powder was still on the counter and the employee who received it was trying to figure out how to open the container.
What would you have me do? Should I take to lurking around the front of gun stores with a pocketful of $20's demanding to know the nature of the business approaching customers hope to accomplish? I'm sure that will go over well.

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Just WOW!!!

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I told you not to use Lifebuoy

15 pounds of Bullseye would be a lifetime supply for me! I paid $60 for the last pound I bought.

Nice score !

That's a lot of Bullseye!

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S&WHF #946
S&WCA #3824

Geesh - that's about 35,000 rounds of .38 wadcutter loads!
You better step up your range time.
What was her name again - maybe she has primers!

And nobody threw the widow a couple of bucks?

You better get shooting!

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Just Say No - To Social Media

I would have gladly given it to her if I hadn't been waiting on my suppressor!

And this suprises you how??

What year is the 15# Drum from? I know I have not seen one since 1982 or thereabouts.

I really wanted to give you a like for your post (op) but I just couldn't. Nothing wrong with the posting, but that is just wrong. I'd have given her a fiver for gas money.

It really doesn't but I don't blame the OP. The LGS guys should have given that powder to the OP no charge, dumped it or taken it home for their own use. If they had paid for it and given the widow money for it, that's a little different but she gave it to them to dispose of it how ever they saw fit. She didn't give it to them to add to their inventory. If the LGS had given it to the OP, they would have been hero's twice over at no expense to them. The OP would have told all his shooting buddies what a great bunch of guys they are over at that shop. Having worked at a couple of LGS's over the years, I can't imagine any of the people who I worked for doing this. It's obvious that this shop only cares about one thing and one thing only and is a good example of why shops fail when the competition gets a little tight. It is a good example of bad business meets bad karma.

Everybody involved was happy with the transaction. I don't see the problem.

How much should the shop have paid the widow if the powder turned out to be spoiled? The woman get a potential liability out of her home. The shop got some satisfaction for helping, and a couple of $$. The OP got a lifetime supply of powder that may or may not start to go bad before he can use it all. Win win win!

Congrats to the OP for being in the right place at the right time.

I would have, also. I was just standing there waiting for them to get my suppressor and paperwork ready. I noticed the woman talking to gun store employees and handing over the powder. I didn't realize what was happening until I had concluded my business and saw the employees wondering how to open the drum. I learned a long time ago not to interject myself into other peoples business at gun stores, banks, restaurants, etc. Your mileage may vary.

The gentlemanly thing for them to do would have been, "Hey Mark. You figured out how to open the can. Congratulations! You just won a jug of powder!".

seems it was already a lifetime supply for it's previous owner

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it just needs more voltage

Many years ago I was shooting trap while home from college for the summer, a friend let me borrow his reloader, along with the loader he gave me a keg like that of Red Dot powder. When I returned the loader he told me to keep the powder as he no longer reloaded. So I too got a keg of powder for free. Karma will strike again next month when my former supervisor will give me 6# of H4895, 8# of Unique and 1K CCI LRP. This will be payment for loading 1K 9mm for him, previously I've loaded several 1K lots of other calibers so this is payment for my labor and use of my reloading equipment.

Took the liberty of rotating your picture.
Nice score.
What was the year that can was manufactured?

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NEMO
"Everything 44"

Brings to memory the time I was hanging around "the range" with High Power Rifle X Course crowd and a elder man drove in trying to give away 25 lbs of surplus 4831. I gladly received it for use in my M70 match gun 30-06. All the others were using M1A's in 308.

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"Don't Give Up the Ship"

Throw her a couple bucks?

The Store got a $65 HAZMAT fee.

Right? The first comment was if I wasn’t in a rush, I would have asked her what else she had.
SMH

They walk among us, both the innocent and those who take unbridled advantage of them. I would have trouble sleeping that night.

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S&WHF 366

How do you tell? I loaded up some 158 grain SWC with 3.0 grains of it, and it worked just fine. As long as it's kept cool and dry, and out of sunlight it will last a long time. About 20 years ago, I was shooting ammo that had been loaded in 1937.

As would I, did you miss the part where I was waiting for my first suppressor?

Do you force your way into other peoples conversations on the regular? I don't. For all I know she had made the arrangement with the gun shop well in advance of that day. If someone is making a deal, whether advantageous to the seller or buyer, I tend to stay out of it if it doesn't involve me directly. You tell me how to graciously horn in on someone else's deal. Seriously!

Many times the lot number will have some kind of relation to the year of manufacture.
Try looking up that lot number and maker for the year on the internet.

Edit:
I have done some searches without success for Hercules years of manufacture by lot number.
Anyone out there have a data table for this?

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NEMO
"Everything 44"

We often got people bringing guns and various gun related items into the store that they had inherited wanting to get rid of them.... Guns were always a negotiable item, in all the years we were open only had one person insist on giving a gun without receiving anything for it.

Ammo, reloading items and accessories were a different matter. many times they had sold off the guns and simply wanted the rest of the stuff gone. Some people hoped the items had some value and we would try to work out a fair deal for both sides. Some simply didn't care and just wanted the stuff out of their house and they didn't ask for anything for it..... It was either give it to us or drop it off to the Police Dept. or Fire Dept. to dispose of it.

Some of the "free" stuff was perfectly good, useable items (factory ammo, components, gun cleaning supplies, other accessories) and some wasn't (reloaded ammo, water damaged boxes, small amounts of loose odds and ends).......... The good stuff we priced and sold, being "free" was no reason not to and we had bills to pay. As to all the non-saleable items, me being the resident tinkerer, I usually ended up hauling it home to do what I could with it. Some of it I never got around to messing with till some time after we closed the store. I have broken down an awful lot of unknown reloads and damaged ammo to salvage useable components.

My point being to agree with the OP.......... You don't know any more about the situation than he did at the time (and you still don't) and jumping into someone else's deal is a good way to make yourself unwelcome.......... The fact that she gave them the powder is irrelevant, the store is a business and if an item has some value they certainly can turn around and sell it.

I'm guilty of stepping into a conversation between a seller and a store salesperson. I was polite and simply inquired about the selling price. The gentleman was wanting to relieve himself of a Winchester 1894 M94 XXX. We were in a Gander Mountain store that was going to close soon (I didn't know it at the time) and the gentleman wanted $400.00 for his rifle. I don't think it has had twenty rounds down the barrel. The store was only going to give him somewhere around $275.00 or so. The rifle is in .45 Colt, and I had been looking for one. I offered him his full asking price and we parted company pleasantly. Two weeks later G.M. was closed.

I have a rifle which is older than me by many years. (more than half a century) and the newest ammo I have been able to find for it was made in 1926. The rifle was made in 1886. Some shoots fine some, doesn't go bang, and some only goes poooof. I know there is a place in Colorado where they make new ammo for the rifle and I'm wanting to order some, I just don't know who or where.

Trouble sleeping at night; yeah, I'd have some, but it would only be because the smile on my face would keep me awake.

Llance

I've got a keg of Unique like that out in the packhouse. Belonged to my Dad. It must be from the early 80's. I'm sure it's no good but I will try to dig it out and get some pics.

Some of you folks need help with reading comprehension. I had no conversation with the widow. None. No interaction at all. We didn't even make eye contact. I overheard snippets of her conversation with the gun store employees. I only figured out what had transpired after I had concluded my business with my silencer, and well after she had left the store. The keg of powder was still on the counter and the employee who received it was trying to figure out how to open the container.
What would you have me do? Should I take to lurking around the front of gun stores with a pocketful of $20's demanding to know the nature of the business approaching customers hope to accomplish? I'm sure that will go over well.

I too have bought stuff from customers that left gun shops(and pawn) with unsold stuff. Mostly guns though. I'm not ashamed

It might be fine. If it didn't get wet.

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S&WHF #946
S&WCA #3824

[QUOTE=Buick;141980523]I've got a keg of Unique like that out in the packhouse. Belonged to my Dad. It must be from the early 80's. I'm sure it's no good but I will try to dig it out and get some pics.[/QUOTE

Heck from the early 80s?? 99.44 % sure that powder is good . Even if it got damp...it dries

Similar to @desi2358 comments in post #28, I had stumbled across a guy who was working for a house flipper back in early 2020. I was just getting started in CAS and most of my reloading supplies were for rifle cartridges. Following up on a craigslist posting for reloading stuff I saw that morning, the guy said "just come over." An elderly CAS veteran in the area had passed away a year or so before and his relatives allegedly fought over his guns and took his presses. They were not interested in the powder or the primers or the brass. The guy working for the house flipper was told to get rid of everything and start the renovation work...he was provided with two large dumpsters and told he could keep the money from anything he wanted to take and sell (or just keep items). So...I got a good deal on scare components and supplies, the worker made some money and didn't have to worry about possibly getting into trouble for throwing out stuff...and my son says there is more than enough there to last through his lifetime