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Forgotten .38spl round

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RevolvingGarbage

RevolvingGarbage

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So I was cleaning out the trunk of my Taurus earlier and under the spare tire, in a 1/8th deep puddle of rusty water, I found a single round of WWB 130gr FMJ. I can't think of when it could have fallen down there, but it must have been about 8-9 months ago.

The side of the case that was submerged had begun to rust slightly, but this came off after a bit of rubbing with a rag. Besides discoloration, the case seems to be perfectly intact, and it drops into the chamber no problem. The primer also looks a bit discolored, but isn't rusted and no liquid has leaked from it, so I do believe there is a good chance its still live.

Now what I'm wondering is, whats the worst thing that could happen should I fire this round? Perhaps a ruptured case? Bullet stuck in the barrel due to water getting to the powder? Hangfire?

Due to it being a low powered target FMJ load, I'm not too worried about shooting it, and I think it could make for an interesting experiment, seeing just how well cheap ammo lasts in a worse-case scenario. Thoughts?

0831001151.jpg

0831001152.jpg
 
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I'd do it. I have shot alot worse though. I was still shooting old paper/cardboard hulled 12 gauge shells in the late 90s. Rusted up and all. Go for it, just make sure it gets out the barrel.
 
I think it may be ok. Fire it with no other rounds loaded in the cylinder. If it became so weak to the point where the bullet wouldn't clear the forcing cone and binds up the cylinder, you wouldn't have any live rounds pointing at your hand when you try to tap it out.
 
Should be fine...

Military Ammo was able to withstand shallow submersion for long periods.


This should be a full power Cartridge, not a low power Target Round.


The Military had to use Hard Ball for all Hand Gun Cartridges because of the Haugue Convention of 1899 forbidding use of any axpanding Bullets.


In a long Barrel Revolver, these would usually piece Automobiles quite well.
 
Oyeboten said:
Should be fine...

Military Ammo was able to withstand shallow submersion for long periods.


This should be a full power Cartridge, not a low power Target Round.
Click to expand...

It is a FMJFP round, not hardly the same specs as the ammo used by the military. Ive heard reports of this stuff chronographing around 650 FPS from snub revolvers, so its clearly loaded at least a little on the light side.

As a side note, while winchester FMJ appears to be lightly loaded, Federal American Eagle 130gr FMJ-RN is actually fairly hot stuff. The box i shot through my snub had about the same recoil as a Federal Nyclad defense round, and the primers showed similar pressure signs. I dont have a chrono, but these rounds seem to be much more similar to military ball ammo than Winchester FMJ or Remington UMC ammo is.

*Edited the OP to include pics.
 
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The military .38 Spl 130 grain FMJ load is a pip-squeak load too.

They were developed for the Air Force Airweight revolvers years ago and never changed since.

rc
 
Just toss it in the trash. Why bother with something explosive that is in questionable condition. It just isn't worth it. Who cares if it works or not, just get rid of it.

We just have one chance at this live, make the best of it by making smart decisions.
 
So I have a conclusion to this thread finally. I was out testing some reloads and i remembered about this old rusty round .38spl, and decided to touch it off. I loaded it alone in the gun, cocked the hammer back and let fly. I was rewarded by a satisfying crack, a little smoke, and a nice hole in the target where I was aiming. I guess what we can learn from this is that even ammo exposed to really unfavorable conditions can still function properly, at least some of the time?
 
Jonah71:
Yep....listen to youngda9. Why bother?
youngda9:
Just toss it in the trash. Why bother with something explosive that is in questionable condition. It just isn't worth it. Who cares if it works or not, just get rid of it.
Click to expand...
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No, you want to deactivate any live ammunition first before trashing/recycling (remove bullet, powder and live primer).

As OP demonstrated, the round in question was "live" and capable of injury if improperly ignited or handled.

Be safe.
 
Good to hear that the only thing damaged was the target. :D It didn't go poof or stick the bullet in the barrel.
 
bds said:
No, you want to deactivate any live ammunition first before trashing/recycling (remove bullet, powder and live primer).

As OP demonstrated, the round in question was "live" and capable of injury if improperly ignited or handled.

Be safe.
Click to expand...
Do you "deactivate" all your aerosol cans before you trash them?
 
Do you "deactivate" all your aerosol cans before you trash them?
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Nah, California banned aerosol cans years ago. :D

Seriously, come to think of it, I don't have any aerosol cans inside the house - for reals (pump hair spray is it). I even have WD40 in a gallon can and use a small bottle for the bench. Only aerosol cans I have are spray paint cans and I use them until they are empty.
 
bds said:
Nah, California banned aerosol cans years ago. :D

Seriously, come to think of it, I don't have any aerosol cans inside the house - for reals (pump hair spray is it). I even have WD40 in a gallon can and use a small bottle for the bench. Only aerosol cans I have are spray paint cans and I use them until they are empty.
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The point is that a live round in the trash is no more dangerous than an aerosol can (probably less, in fact), but since consumers are very familiar with such cans and do not associate them with guns no one ever suggests deactivating your shaving cream.
 
Black powder flintlock rifles generally will fire after sitting out in the rain for awhile, it takes alot to contaminate a centerfire cartridge.
 
Kinda reminds me of some testing i done years ago, on handgun ammo(357mag iirc).
Submerged rounds a foot deep and some 15ft deep in water for several hours.
The rounds subjected to one foot submersion fired fine afterwards, where as the 15ft rounds didn't fire at all. Also no go for the rounds that were left submerged in one foot for several days.
 
Either the trunk lid gasket or the rear windshield gasket needs fixed. Rust never sleeps.

To keep this related to the forum, load some Hornady FTXs and test fire them through the trunk floor. That will make some drain holes. :what:
 
RevolvingGarbage said:
So I was cleaning out the trunk of my Taurus earlier and under the spare tire, in a 1/8th deep puddle of rusty water, I found a single round of WWB 130gr FMJ. I can't think of when it could have fallen down there, but it must have been about 8-9 months ago.
Now what I'm wondering is, whats the worst thing that could happen should I fire this round? Perhaps a ruptured case? Bullet stuck in the barrel due to water getting to the powder? Hangfire?

snip

Due to it being a low powered target FMJ load, I'm not too worried about shooting it, and I think it could make for an interesting experiment, seeing just how well cheap ammo lasts in a worse-case scenario. Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I see you shot it. I cleaned out my Saturn before dropping it off to get it repaired and as well as I can tell I've had some .22rf, .380, .38 spl and .45 auto
ammo in the trunk since sometime in 2003 when I was shooting IDPA. That is 10 years in a hot car trunk. So far everything I've tried has shot okay.

Clutch
 
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