32 year old reloads, need advice.

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1TwistedGimp

1TwistedGimp

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In the boonies near Branson West Mo
Hello again THR,

For the last 16 years I’ve mostly lurked in the shadows here reading and learning laughing and crying (recently learned of rc passing), occasionally I’ll post a question or two. Members of this forum have helped me with numerous things including picking my first handgun and helping me get started reloading among other things.

I find myself in need of some advice and believe I’ll get the best advice here on THR.

I acquired some 32 yo 30-30 Reloads today, I was hesitant to accept them but did only because they were free and I can always just pull them apart and reuse the brass and the reloader who has since passed on to greener pastures left a very detailed loading label on the box.

Label lists the loads as follows-
Date 3-21-86
Cal 30-30 Win
Case Rem (cases are mixed win, fed & rp)
Powder 3031 wt 29.0gr
Bullet 3060 170gr flat point Hornady
Case length 2.020
Total length 2.530

Looks like he was very meticulous and aside from the cases darkening some from age every round is honestly as stated on the label at least c.o.l. checked with my calipers. Primers are all seated consistently...

What is the shelf life of what I’m assuming is (IMR?) 3031? I have 0 interest in damaging either of the 2 30-30s I own or myself just to see what happens.

Also the load of 29.0gr of 3031 is .5gr over what Hornadys 9th edition max load is listed at. I know that older data wasn’t as lawyered up as today’s but would like some advice from some more experienced persons here. I’ve only been reloading for around a decade and have no experience with any rifle powders, I only recently started gearing up to reload for rifles (.223/5.56 & 30-30). I think I should at least pull 1 apart and see if the powder is still ok.

Or should I just pull them all apart and reuse the brass, pull them apart and toss in the recycling bin...

Dave
 
It is very unwise to shoot anyone else's reloads. Things that go wrong in the neighborhood of 50,000 psi are very dangerous. I'd scrap them responsibly.
 
If he was as meticulous as you say, I'd try 1-2 to see how they did. You could pull 1-2 to see if the powder is bad, but unless they were stored poorly, they should be good to go.
 
JeffG said:
It is very unwise to shoot anyone else's reloads. Things that go wrong in the neighborhood of 50,000 psi are very dangerous. I'd scrap them responsibly.
Click to expand...

JeffG
I agree with you and at the same time the fella I acquired them from knew the gentleman that reloaded them for 40+ years and knew him to be meticulous about EVERYTHING he did. The fella I acquired them from shot 9 out of the 40 he was given and only said they weren’t any different than store bought to him, it’s been 15 years since the last time he popped one off though.

Dave
 
Welcome back, you mention:
1TwistedGimp said:
Case Rem (cases are mixed win, fed & rp)
...

... Looks like he was very meticulous and aside from the cases darkening some from age
Click to expand...

Meticulous? To me it doesn't sound like it from mixed brass when listed as Rem on the label. If that single detail is wrong or suspect, then I'd worry about everything else.
I say, pull them apart, fertilize with the powder, resuse cases, primers, and bullets if you don't damage anything pulling them apart.
 
Walkalong said:
Pull one and make sure the powder hasn't started going bad. It may be just fine, but it might not.
Click to expand...

Walkalong, I was hoping you might chime in on this, like I said in the op I was hesitant to accept them but with the back story and looking at em (they look like aged factory rounds, just a bit of darkening to the brass) I definitely want to pull one apart and look at the powder but everything else is in spec so...
 
mstreddy said:
Welcome back, you mention:


Meticulous? To me it doesn't sound like it from mixed brass when listed as Rem on the label. If that single detail is wrong or suspect, then I'd worry about everything else.
I say, pull them apart, fertilize with the powder, resuse cases, primers, and bullets if you don't damage anything pulling them apart.
Click to expand...

mstreddy,
To be fair, the Hornady reloading label only has enough room for 3 letters after “Case”. My first thoughts definitely mirrored yours and others here and I will probably end up pulling them apart but measuring them they’re all within a thousands of the recorded length so I am leaning towards believing that he was indeed meticulous.

Dave
 
I would pop a couple or three random rounds apart and measure the propellant. If it matches the box you can put them back together and shoot em IMHO. I would not worry unless there is a large variation of propellant in them. I have some 3031 that is 45 years old and shoots just fine. If you have an old databook check the loads, I bet they are loaded under book max according to it. Just sayin------
 
FROGO207 said:
I would pop a couple or three random rounds apart and measure the propellant. If it matches the box you can put them back together and shoot em IMHO. I would not worry unless there is a large variation of propellant in them. I have some 3031 that is 45 years old and shoots just fine. If you have an old databook check the loads, I bet they are loaded under book max according to it. Just sayin------
Click to expand...


FROGO207,
I’m look for my puller now lol, is 3031 a single base or double?
 
I would pull them apart, check powder, check weight, then reassemble them “as they are” assuming everything checks out OK. I have recently loaded a couple pounds of 3031 that were in the neighborhood of when your ammo was assembled, it worked well in 30-30, .223, and is a dream in 7-30. That way you are ensuring your own safety, but also using the ammo as it was intended by its loader. That’s what I would hope someone would do with my reloads.
 
WestKentucky said:
I would pull them apart, check powder, check weight, then reassemble them “as they are” assuming everything checks out OK. I have recently loaded a couple pounds of 3031 that were in the neighborhood of when your ammo was assembled, it worked well in 30-30, .223, and is a dream in 7-30. That way you are ensuring your own safety, but also using the ammo as it was intended by its loader. That’s what I would hope someone would do with my reloads.
Click to expand...

WestKentucky,
Your last sentence is exactly how I feel
 
OP 3031 is a single base propellant. Look at the base of the bullet and inside of the case for green corrosion or white powder on the end of the bullet. If things look good and the propellant does not smell acidic the propellant is probably OK to reuse. It will have a reddish tinge or powder in it if stored in a steel can that will usually also be corroded on the inside if it is bad.
 
1TwistedGimp said:
JeffG
I agree with you and at the same time the fella I acquired them from knew the gentleman that reloaded them for 40+ years and knew him to be meticulous about EVERYTHING he did. The fella I acquired them from shot 9 out of the 40 he was given and only said they weren’t any different than store bought to him, it’s been 15 years since the last time he popped one off though.

Dave
Click to expand...
Agreed, but even with that pedigree, if you gave them to me, and we were school chums, I'd still scrap them. If you were my father, or brother, I'd still scrap them. My face is next to that rifle's action. Love many, trust few.
 
Ok, pulled 3 random apart, no corrosion evident on base of bullet or inside cases.

Charge weight was 29.0gr in two and 29.1 in one. Powder looks new, no smell or reddish color. I’ll weigh all the rest and see how close they are.

Dave
 
JeffG said:
Agreed, but even with that pedigree, if you gave them to me, and we were school chums, I'd still scrap them. If you were my father, or brother, I'd still scrap them. My face is next to that rifle's action. Love many, trust few.
Click to expand...

JeffG,
I’m going to have accept YOUR advice, after weighing all the rounds the weights are all over the place from 341.1 gr (confirmed 29.0gr pulled apart round) all the way down to 331.8. Maybe they would be ok to shoot and maybe not but I’ll just pull em all and reload it myself to be sure. I weigh every load and load 1 at a time on a ss so I don’t ever have inconsistency like that but I’m anal and seriously ocd about my reloading.

Guess he wasn’t as meticulous as I was told.

Does good powder still make good fertilizer? I have quite a few House plants that could use a shot lol!
 
mstreddy said:
Welcome back, you mention:


Meticulous? To me it doesn't sound like it from mixed brass when listed as Rem on the label. If that single detail is wrong or suspect, then I'd worry about everything else.
I say, pull them apart, fertilize with the powder, resuse cases, primers, and bullets if you don't damage anything pulling them apart.
Click to expand...

mstreddy,
You nailed it!

Dave
 
Loaded cartridge weights are always all over the place. There is considerably more variation in brass than what you would think. That's the big reason folks sort by headstamp, and some even by lot. Weight gives you an indication of wall thickness, and thicker is usually better in that regard, but it also eats up space so you either change powder weights or you change pressure. Usually no big deal unless your loading for extreme accuracy...but that's probably not the case since we are talking about a 30-30
 
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