Have you ever dealt with a powder recall and what did you do.

AJC1 · Oct 22, 2021

I see powder recalls pop up on the ramshot website every time I log onto their site. I have been pondering what I would do if I had a recalled powder. If it's just sitting on the shelf no big deal, just follow directions for an exchange. I'm trying to figure out what I would do if I had been running the powder and had a pile of loaded ammunition. That's a lot of punishment with a kenitic hammer, and I'm curious. What would you do or if it's happened what did you do.

Blue68f100 · Oct 22, 2021

I've had recall on primers in the past. The mfg normally will supply you all the necessary packaging and labels needed to return them. Once received they normally do a 2 for 1 swap for your troubles. I would think powder would be handled similarly. They may only want the label back and have you burn off the old powder. I don't know since I have not had any powder recall in 45+ yrs of hand loading.

I was lucky I ran into the problem early on and only had to break down 300 rounds. With bad primers they also paid for repairs to my gun.

AJC1 · Oct 22, 2021

Blue68f100 said:
I've had recall on primers in the past. The mfg normally will supply you all the necessary packaging and labels needed to return them. Once received they normally do a 2 for 1 swap for your troubles. I would think powder would be handled similarly. They may only want the label back and have you burn off the old powder. I don't know since I have not had any powder recall in 45+ yrs of hand loading.

I was lucky I ran into the problem early on and only had to break down 300 rounds. With bad primers they also paid for repairs to my gun.

Sounds like you were treated well.... good on them....

Slamfire · Oct 22, 2021

AJC1 said:
I see powder recalls pop up on the ramshot website every time I log onto their site. I have been pondering what I would do if I had a recalled powder. If it's just sitting on the shelf no big deal, just follow directions for an exchange. I'm trying to figure out what I would do if I had been running the powder and had a pile of loaded ammunition. That's a lot of punishment with a kenitic hammer, and I'm curious. What would you do or if it's happened what did you do.

In every one of these notices, the gunpowder has deteriorated to a dangerous state, and will auto combust in the can. Red fumes are an indication of gunpowder that has deteriorated to the level that all the stabilizer is consumed and since the deterioration is auto catalytic, gunpowder that is fuming red ill eventually catch on fire.

There are two reasons the maker recommends filling the bottle with water: 1) to absorb the nitrogen dioxide outgassing out of the gunpowder, and 2) cool the stuff down so it does not catch on fire!

So, if the recall is because the manufacturer knows the powder lots are deteriorating unexpectedly early, then fill the bottles with water and get them out of the house.

Incidentally, deteriorating gun powder will blow up your gun. There is nothing good about old gunpowder.

AJC1 · Oct 22, 2021

Slamfire said:
In every one of these notices, the gunpowder has deteriorated to a dangerous state, and will auto combust in the can. Red fumes are an indication of gunpowder that has deteriorated to the level that all the stabilizer is consumed and since the deterioration is auto catalytic, gunpowder that is fuming red ill eventually catch on fire.

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There are two reasons the maker recommends filling the bottle with water: 1) to absorb the nitrogen dioxide outgassing out of the gunpowder, and 2) cool the stuff down so it does not catch on fire!

So, if the recall is because the manufacturer knows the powder lots are deteriorating unexpectedly early, then fill the bottles with water and get them out of the house.

Incidentally, deteriorating gun powder will blow up your gun. There is nothing good about old gunpowder.

Is there increased danger disassembling ammunition in this state... I would assume yes.

41 Mag · Oct 23, 2021

In my case I had 1 half loaded jug or 4350, and two full ones. Sent them an email with a picture of the label and Lot number.

Got a check in the mail about a week later which covered everything.

The half jug had just been opened and loaded into a hundred or so rounds. It looked and smelled fine. We dumped the powder in the containers and shot up the loaded rounds.

AJC1 · Oct 23, 2021

41 Mag said:
In my case I had 1 half loaded jug or 4350, and two full ones. Sent them an email with a picture of the label and Lot number.

Got a check in the mail about a week later which covered everything.

The half jug had just been opened and loaded into a hundred or so rounds. It looked and smelled fine. We dumped the powder in the containers and shot up the loaded rounds.

This is kinda what I was thinking, shoot at the earliest opternuty the recall stuff, and purge the rest.

FROGO207 · Oct 23, 2021

I generally don't actually load up any bulk ammo. I just load up what amount I want for the next outing shortly beforehand. The amount I had loaded in reserve is used and new lot is put into reserve to be used and then replaced at next range trip. I do however have a lot of previously processed brass in reserve to reload with. This saves me from having to reclaim components if I were to run out of say, primers to use somewhere else.

Slamfire · Oct 24, 2021

AJC1 said:
Is there increased danger disassembling ammunition in this state... I would assume yes.

From what I know, probably not. The greatest danger is storing old deteriorated gunpowder in bulk and having it auto combust.

But, my knowledge is based on small arms cartridges. This is a firearms forum, therefore members barely acknowledge that there are other weapons on the battlefield. Many believe the Garand won WW2, never mind artillery, airplanes, ships, torpedoes, etc. Read up on the number of people who have been killed by unexploded ordnance, and the butcher's bill will continue to grow. There is a lot of stuff lying around that is not small arms cartridges. There are big stuff, like bombs, artillery shells, even mines, though mines tend to be an anti personnel weapon. There are ship busting mines, have to have a large amount of explosive inside. But whether the explosive is a smokeless propellant, or another type of energetic material, heck if I know.

Could have been a big badda boom!

What is inside becomes unstable and are dangerous to move. I do not have expertise in all munitions so I don't know why. I have been told that the nitroglycerine in double based powders wicks it way to the surface of smokeless propellants and that make the surface "sensitive". I was told by a person who saw WW2 rocket motors being opened, and nitroglycerine scrapped off the surface! Scary! Obviously a double based propellant. But, there are lots of other explosives in shells and bombs, and they do go unstable and kill UXB personnel.

See

The First World War bombs that are still killing people in France

Iron harvest

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_harvest

Despite their age, unexploded munitions remain very dangerous. The French Département du Déminage (Department of Mine Clearance) recovers about 900 tons of unexploded munitions every year. Since 1945, approximately 630 French clearers[clarification needed] have died handling unexploded munitions.[5] Two died handling munitions outside Vimy, France as recently as 1998. Over 20 members of Belgian Explosive Ordnance Disposal (DOVO) have died disposing of First World War munitions since the unit was formed in 1919. In just the area around Ypres, 260 people have been killed and 535 have been injured by unexploded munitions since the end of the First World War. Shells containing poisonous gas remain viable and will corrode and release their gas content.[6] Close to five percent of the shells fired during the First World War contained poisonous gas, and ordnance disposal experts continue to suffer burns from mustard gas shells that were split open.

edwardware · Oct 24, 2021

AJC1 said:
what did you do.

Sniffed it, then kept loading and shooting.

dh1633pm · Oct 25, 2021

I had some of the AA powder. I contact them. No reply. Used it on the lawn. Already shot most of it. No I’ll effects.

Have you ever dealt with a powder recall and what did you do.

AJC1

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Blue68f100

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AJC1

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Slamfire

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AJC1

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41 Mag

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FROGO207

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edwardware

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