Gun corrosion and ammuniton developments
One of those things I've often thought of,
but never tried it, was to pull the bullet and powder from a questionable cartridge and fire it against a clean non-stainless steel plate and see if it gets rusty. This doesn't have to be done in the firearm --you can probably tape a BB on the primer and hold the cartridge with a pair of pliers and smack the BB with a hammer.
Sounds hairy, but is not very dangerous except for the noise involved, which is why I never tried it in my senior citizen's apartment. Even just a primer going off is pretty noisy.
The problem with this is that according to Hatcher's Notebook, in his chapter on "Gun corrosion and ammunition developments," corrosion will not usually occur until the humidity goes above about 50%. So, in a dry climate, rusting of the steel plate (or gun) may not occur for a while. I think this is the reason for the "I've never had a problem with corrosion if I clean with chicken fat (or whatever)" statements, but the writer happens to live in Arizona or some other dry place.
ARIzona, from "ARId," get it? But try cleaning with chicken fat (or whatever) in Mississippi or Florida or a place like that, and the gun rusts.
This 50% thing was the cause of the great mystery the ordnance department had in its initial experimentation with corrosion due to primers --guns fired with corrosive ammunition might not actually rust for days, weeks, or months, because the humidity had not gone above that "about 50%" mark for those days, weeks, or months.
Then, boom, their test barrels would suddenly rust. When they finally discovered that, research on corrosive primers proceeded more quickly.
Here in Colorado, the humidity only occasionally goes anywhere near 50% unless it's monsoon season. Yesterday the humidity was 8% and went all the way up to 13%. Right now it's 55%, so go figure.
Anyhow, them's my thoughts on it
Terry, 230RN
REF:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hatchers-notebook-julian-s-hatcher/1100192686
