Help with wwII 30-06 ammo

[gsracer]

Hi, first post here, hoping someone can help me with my dilema

So i bought a box of 30-06 ammo, and when i get home i open the box and find 272 rds of 30-06 but world war 2 era stuff.

It comes in bandoliers 6 pouches with 8 round clips in each one and its got a headstamp of den 42, which i surmise is denver ordinance 1942, I surmise this is m1 garand ammo. Also the clips are all stamped brw 3.

Now i would feel really guilty shooting this stuff through my savage range rifle if this stuff could be of historical signfigance or alot more value to someone else.

So my question i guess is this anything special or should i blast it at the range guilt free? PS i know its corrosive.


heres a pic

 

[Double Vision]

That looks and sounds like M1 Garand ammo.
Where did you find it and may I ask how much did you pay for it?

 

[Afy]

Cool. If you decide to shoot, remember that the primers are corrosive.

 

[Orlando]

Its not worth much more than later noncorrosive M2Ball
Shoot it then you can sell the bandos and enblocs

 

[Jeff F]

I don't think its super special, I find it floating around at gun shows every once in awhile. I have shot some of it and it seems good ammo. It might be special to someone with a Garand or into collecting.

 

[USSR]

No historical value to it, so shoot it in your Savage and then pour boiling water down your barrel to clear out the corrosive salts. Most guys won't shoot it in their Garands because they would then need to clean out the rifle's gas system in addition to the barrel. Enjoy!

Don

 

[christcorp]

1st: We buy m1 garand ammo almost monthly from the CMP. Nothing special about the ammo you got. Just shoot it and have fun.

Corrosive ammo has a bad stigma to the name "Corrosive". As if the name implies "BATTERY ACID" or something. The "Corrosive" nature of the ammo is the primers, and the chemical is basically "SALT". Yup; salt!!! Don't believe me? Look it up. Anyway; people who say they won't shoot "Corrosive" ammo in their precious M1 Garand are usually pretty ignorant. Little do they know, that those garands probably shot more corrosive ammo through them in their day, that they will put through it.

As for shooting it, there's only 1 extra step you have to go through in the cleaning process. Fill a coffee cup up with some hot soapy water. Run your cleaning brush down the barrel with some soapy water a few times. Run a couple soapy water patches down the barrel. Then a few dry patches. Do the same soapy water clean on the bolt. Then; clean the barrel/chamber/bolt normally with Hoppe #9 or whatever it is you normally use to clean and lubricate with. The additional step takes a whole extra couple minutes.

Remember!!!! It's "SALT". You know, like salt water. Just clean it. Salt breaks down in water. Just clean it with a little soapy water. As for the gas system; most people clean the op-rod in their garands. If you've shot a lot, then use soapy water on it too. Can't tell you how much "Corrosive" ammo I've shot. I really love going to gun shows and gun stores where someone has corrosive ammo and thinks it's strong like batter acid. They are so eager to sell it; and I am so eager to buy it CHEAP. Normal M2 Ball garand ammo from the CMP costs about $96 for a 192 rounds; plus shipping. When I buy corrosive, I can usually get it from people at gun shows and such for about $50. That's $0.25 a round, or about $5 a box of 20. I tried educating people, but many simply don't want to learn. So I've decided I'd rather give them peace of mind, by taking that terrible and "CORROSIVE" ammo off of their hands.

By the way: I'll give anyone $5 per box of 20 for all the m2 ball (garand 30-06) that you don't want because it's corrosive.

 

[gsracer]

THanks for the info guys, good to know ill be able to sleep at night haha.

I know i have to be extra stringent cleaning after cleaning this stuff, but thanks for the tips.

Unfortunatly i probably paid to much for this stuff to be able to sell it to anyone but ill sure have fun shooting it, just hope it all fires.

 

[christcorp]

192 Rounds of M2 Ball garand ammo is going for $96 + Shipping. That's from the CMP. That's the cheapest. 240 rounds is going for about $120. Whether you paid too much or not really isn't important. You already bought it. Now; knowing the "Normal" price, you can decide what a fair price. Remember; it costs more to buy this at a gun show or shop. They paid extra for shipping and such. It wouldn't be too unreasonable to take $30 to each of the above prices if it was at a gun show or shop.

 

[gsracer]

So do you think 140 shipped for all 272 rounds is a bad price? I mean its less than i paid of course its of no importance. If i could get at least that much back i would gladly part with them.

 

[christcorp]

Well, the price from the CMP, basically comes out to about $10 a box of 20. (A few pennies per round more with a little extra s/h charge). So for your example, we can average it and just say 280 rounds for $140. Well, 280 rounds is 14 boxes. That would be $10 a box. Considering that INCLUDES shipping, that would be a decent price.

 

[edporch]

Another good way to clean up after shooting corrosive ammo is to use Windex on your patches for the initial cleaning.
Make sure to get the bolt face and other places any residue may be.
Then clean normally the way you would a gun that had shot non-corrosive ammo.
Has worked for me for years.

 

[GCBurner]

If you're not going to use the bandoliers and the clips with your bolt action, you can just remove the ammo and sell them to somebody with a Garand.

 

[gsracer]

well its up for sale in the for sale section, i read about the windex idea on another site. If it doesnt sell ill just use it, im just hesitant to now, because of all the problems i read about corrosive ammo and the fact that its a brand new rifle. Whatever we will see what happens.

 

[Orlando]

I didnt realize you were going to shoot it in a new rifle. Yes may as well buy good accurate modern ammo for it.
If you decide to use it forget Windex, as already stated water is what removes the corrosive salts the best

 

[PapaG]

Once in a great while, old surplus ammo will exhibit higher than normal pressures. Stiff bolt opening, cratered primer, even pierced primers. This is often due to "bonding" of the case to the bullet, or from lacquer used to seal bullet/case. It is not a big problem and can be virtually eliminated by running the rounds into a seating die and just bumping the bullet, perhaps 1/64th of an inch to break the bond/seal.
Had this happen with some 8mm one time and again with some old '06 stuff.
If your bullet tips are painted black, they are armor piercing and technically not legal and will really penetrate....many, many inches of dirt/wood.
Have fun...those clips are gold to a Garand owner.

 

[ball3006]

Armor piercing ammo is legal. The CMP just sold several million rounds last year. It sold out in a week. Good shooting ammo. Some ranges won't let you shoot it though. Many reports say it is a bit more accurate than regular M2 ball.......Just follow the cleaning suggestions posted above and you will be fine. Me, I just shoot corrosive ammo in my bolt action rifles because they are easier to clean.....chris3

 

[christcorp]

1. Black tip (Armor Piercing) ammo is perfectly legal. As mentioned, the GOVERNMENT even sold it to us. I bought quite a bit of it.
2. GSRACER: ANY problems you heard about corrosive ammo, was strictly the shooter. The person telling you about "Problem". THEY were the problem. It's a COLD HARD FACT.

 

[CapnMac]

And "gold to a Garand owner" is subject to a great deal of interpretation.

I've never spent an entire dollar on a single en block clip.
They ought to run about 25¢ each, given the millions that exist.

Bandoleer "kit" with cardboards, EBC and fabric bandoleer is about $5.95 retail.

 

[Hizzie]

I mostly shoot Greek M2 out of my double 30.06. Good stuff. Getting it out of the can is a PITA but hey it's cheap.

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

And "gold to a Garand owner" is subject to a great deal of interpretation.

Yes, there are usually several vendors trying to get .50 apiece for Garand clips. One gun show vendor told me a couple of years ago that they are still available by the barrel if you know where to look.

 

[d2wing]

I would shoot it up. I don't think it will hurt your rifle if you clean it after each session.