Rasputin747
Member
I got all these old .22s I found in my basement. I think I got them in the early 90s, late 80s. Would they still be good to shoot? They're copper coated, and the copper isnt green.
How long does ammo stay good for?
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rustymaggot
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unless its visibly corroded, then its cool. ammo stays good for a very long time if its kept clean and dry.
thexrayboy
Member
Ammo, if properly stored will function long after you stop functioning. 
solareclipse
Member
i had constant misfires, jams and weird recoil with ~20 year old ammo. and this was in a revolver mind you. imagine in an auto 
THE DOC 44
Member
How long does ammo stay good for ?
I am still useing .303 ammo from 1952 , .38spl., 9mm., 12ga. reloads from 1970 and they still shoot well . It all depends on the conditions that they were kept in , cool with low humidity is best .
I am still useing .303 ammo from 1952 , .38spl., 9mm., 12ga. reloads from 1970 and they still shoot well . It all depends on the conditions that they were kept in , cool with low humidity is best .
deadin
Member
If properly manufactured and stored, 40 years, 187 days, 3 hours and 15 minutes. (or longer) (maybe less)
As stated by others on this thread, there are too many variables for a definitive answer. I've shot WW1 surplus that worked just fine and I've tried to shoot some stuff that was loaded less than 5 years ago (and stored badly)
Dean
As stated by others on this thread, there are too many variables for a definitive answer. I've shot WW1 surplus that worked just fine and I've tried to shoot some stuff that was loaded less than 5 years ago (and stored badly)
Dean
Art Eatman
Moderator In Memoriam
I have some GI .45ACP dated 1943. Shoots just fine. From curiosity I tried a .45ACP from 1918 a few years ago; no luck.
I still have some of my 1968 .243 reloads; they group just like the new stuff, but hit maybe an inch or two lower at 100 yards.
I'm getting inside of one MOA with some .220 Swift handloads of my father's, from 1978.
My father gave me some pistols he'd stored away in an old ammo box, somewhere in the late 1940s. This was in 2001. All the magazines were loaded. I checked them out; they all worked just fine. Mags fed, cartridges went bang.
Odds seem greater for shorter shelf life for .22 rimfires; I don't know why. Old .22 rimfires seem to misfire far more often than centerfire stuff.
Art
I still have some of my 1968 .243 reloads; they group just like the new stuff, but hit maybe an inch or two lower at 100 yards.
I'm getting inside of one MOA with some .220 Swift handloads of my father's, from 1978.
My father gave me some pistols he'd stored away in an old ammo box, somewhere in the late 1940s. This was in 2001. All the magazines were loaded. I checked them out; they all worked just fine. Mags fed, cartridges went bang.
Odds seem greater for shorter shelf life for .22 rimfires; I don't know why. Old .22 rimfires seem to misfire far more often than centerfire stuff.
Art
I wonder in .22 rimfires, if the primer, that is spread around the rim, tends to settle because of gravity. so if stored on a slant, or on their sides, the primer may settle at one point in a curve on the rim and not all around it.
All the best,
Glenn B
All the best,
Glenn B
Geronimo45
Member
I think .22 ammo is usually manufactured to a lower standard than centerfire. Maybe the cartridge isn't sealed up properly - or it's just the nature of the primer.
I had an old .22 with old ammunition of various makes. The rounds were possibly ten years old or more, and simply stored in the plastic case in a zip-up pocket. The Super-X ammo (is that Winchester or Remington?) didn't fire - not one round of it. Some of the other makes did... could be that that was the oldest ammo.
I had an old .22 with old ammunition of various makes. The rounds were possibly ten years old or more, and simply stored in the plastic case in a zip-up pocket. The Super-X ammo (is that Winchester or Remington?) didn't fire - not one round of it. Some of the other makes did... could be that that was the oldest ammo.
MatthewVanitas
Member
The first .22 ammo I ever shot was some CCI that had been sitting in my Dad's closet for 20 years. Worked just fine. I'd imagine keeping it in the closet instead of garage probably helped a lot.
-MV
-MV
Ian Sean
Member
I have shot some 40 year old 9mm my dad gave me, all went bang.
Currently going through some 1930's production 8mm Mauser (Turkish), out of roughly 400 or so rounds, I have had 3 duds.
Currently going through some 1930's production 8mm Mauser (Turkish), out of roughly 400 or so rounds, I have had 3 duds.
CountGlockula
Member
Additional question:
How do you properly store ammo? Keep it in it's box inside your gun vault?
How do you properly store ammo? Keep it in it's box inside your gun vault?
Ian Sean
Member
If I was to do that, I would have to buy a couple of safes just for ammo!
Rule of thumb for ammo storage is COOL and DRY.
I have many calibers and I also reload. I mainly use ammo cans (50 cal and the big 20mm jobs). All the cans are labeled with masking tape and a marker, I put the date I purchased on all the boxes of store bought and label all my reloads also. I try to go through everything (inspect ammo + guns) every few months for any problems..corrosion, rust etc...
Way back when I was first starting out and only had a couple of guns and not much ammo on hand, I kept everything in the bedroom closet, ammo up on the top shelf. Normal house temperature and humidity is fine for ammo storage.
DFW1911
Member
My Old Man told me when I was just a kid "Take the cotton out of your ears and put it in your mouth."
Never before has his wisdom been so relevant.
I'm learning a lot here.
Thanks and take care,
DFW1911
Never before has his wisdom been so relevant.
I'm learning a lot here.
Thanks and take care,
DFW1911
I recently fired some WWII vintage .45ACp stuff. Every last round went BANG!
Performed a very deep cleaning of the 1911-A1 afterwards. I'm fairly sure that 1943/1944 GI stuff is corrosive-primed.
Also have fired some USGI .30-06 from around that same time frame. Again, every round went BANG!
1988/89 vintage Albanian Ball in 7.62x54 in my M-44 Mosin-Nagant worked every time, too. But then that stuff is only 17-18 years old.
Performed a very deep cleaning of the 1911-A1 afterwards. I'm fairly sure that 1943/1944 GI stuff is corrosive-primed.
Also have fired some USGI .30-06 from around that same time frame. Again, every round went BANG!
1988/89 vintage Albanian Ball in 7.62x54 in my M-44 Mosin-Nagant worked every time, too. But then that stuff is only 17-18 years old.
Pilgrim
Member
A friend gave me a couple hundred rounds of linked .30-06 ammo with headstamps dating to WWII. The cartridges that were badly corroded I just pulled the bullets. The rest of the ammo fired just fine. I cleaned the rifle thoroughly afterwards.
Pilgrim
Pilgrim
knuckles
Member
Yep, fired off a ton of WWII .303 yesterday, none had a problem...
ammo stability
Centerfire IS different than rimfire. I have shot 50 year old finnish 7.62 x 54 (all functional in Fin SVT-40)
But 5 year old .22 ammo couldnt give me enough info to setr my sights on a new S & W togget pistol till I got some NEW production ammo
Yodar
Centerfire IS different than rimfire. I have shot 50 year old finnish 7.62 x 54 (all functional in Fin SVT-40)
But 5 year old .22 ammo couldnt give me enough info to setr my sights on a new S & W togget pistol till I got some NEW production ammo
Yodar
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