Will cold weather effect reloading such as powder or primers. I reload in my garage and it stays fairly decent temperature wise, bur lately its getting real cold. Should I bring the rounds and reloading supplies inside?
Cold weather VS reloading
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scooter123
Member
I don't think that cold will have any permanent effects on powder or primers.
However, you need to pay attention to the increased potential for Static Electricity discharges as a result of the low humidity that accompanies extreme low temps so you will have to pay attention to the material in any clothing you are wearing while reloading. To be specific you will want to avoid ANYTHING with Wool in it because Wool is famous for being 1/2 of the potential for any static generating device. When I was a kid cotton socks on a braided wool rug was good for making sparks that could jump as much as 6 inches. IIRC Latex (natural rubber) and Wool are also fantastic for generating Static Electricity, thus my recommendation to avoid wearing anything with any Wool in it.
However, you need to pay attention to the increased potential for Static Electricity discharges as a result of the low humidity that accompanies extreme low temps so you will have to pay attention to the material in any clothing you are wearing while reloading. To be specific you will want to avoid ANYTHING with Wool in it because Wool is famous for being 1/2 of the potential for any static generating device. When I was a kid cotton socks on a braided wool rug was good for making sparks that could jump as much as 6 inches. IIRC Latex (natural rubber) and Wool are also fantastic for generating Static Electricity, thus my recommendation to avoid wearing anything with any Wool in it.
JohnK
US Veteran
Cold items brought into a warm, humid area, will suffer condensation. That's not good for powder, primers, and ammo (and guns)
I ran into this, when I converted two downstairs wood burning fireplaces, to unvented gas logs. My upstairs gun/reloading room suffered some major moisture condensation problems.
Some completed ammo, standing in reloading trays, was ruined, and had to be thrown out (in a handy lake). Boxed ammo did not suffer this fate.
It is, however, unlikely you would have high humidity (except when you do dumb things like I did) in a heated winter home environment.
I ran into this, when I converted two downstairs wood burning fireplaces, to unvented gas logs. My upstairs gun/reloading room suffered some major moisture condensation problems.
Some completed ammo, standing in reloading trays, was ruined, and had to be thrown out (in a handy lake). Boxed ammo did not suffer this fate.
It is, however, unlikely you would have high humidity (except when you do dumb things like I did) in a heated winter home environment.
Depending on how cold it is,I'd worry about clumsy fingers and brain farts [emoji12]
Alk8944
US Veteran
From the standpoint of reloading, temperature has absolutely no bearing whatsoever.
From the perspective of comfort and consistency, as well as protecting your tools from moisture, moving indoors has much to be said for it. In other words, what arjay said!!!
From the perspective of comfort and consistency, as well as protecting your tools from moisture, moving indoors has much to be said for it. In other words, what arjay said!!!
FishingPilot
US Veteran
I've seen the cold affect my sizing gauges. Metal shrinks in the cold, especially aluminum. i resized and trimmed some 5.56 cases last week and started to load them this past weekend. I started checking a few before loading and they would not fit in the gauge block. the block was cold so I took it up stairs for a while and they fit again. the cold is the only thing i can think of. I keep the basement temp around 60 deg F and upstairs around 70 deg F. So not a huge difference but enough i guess.
