Is ammo waterproof or can it be made so?

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Tinker

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Recently bought a new Glock 23. It will be my main carry pistol. My wife and I are getting back into hiking. I intend to carry the 23 when I think the need may arise. A lot of the areas we go and will go have bears and hogs.

I chose the Glock because hear they are tough, easily maintainable, fairly light and reliable. I am not concerned about the 23. Sometimes on long hikes you get drenched or have to cross a creek. Have concerns about ammunition. I could plan on carrying extra ammo in a ziplock or just tuck the gun in one. It would be more convienent to just leave it handy if needed without the fuss of a bag.

Just wondering how water resistant factory ammo is. Also wonder if it can be waterproofed if it is not already. Maybe crayoning soft beeswax thinly at rim seam and primer?
 
Factory ammo is relatively water resistant. I would bet that crossing a river waist deep with your gun underwater would not be an issue. Though if you have the inclination, clear nail polish around the primer and neck will water proof it.
 
I bought some 'for components only' ammo
ammo bought from an insurance company, and from what it looked like, under water for a while, could be from a container dropped off a barge, or Katrina etc.

shot fine, review had a few people saying 2 or 3 duds out of a thousand.
 
Thanks guys.

Unforgiven.....the nail polish sounds good. Less mess than wax. I could even use beautiful colors. :D

Actually, the nail polished rounds could stay in my backpack....just load that mag when hiking. I'll try sealing a round or two with some of Sweet Thang's nail paint and see if it chambers easily.
 
Its pretty water proof. We never worried about it in the military. We just waded in with our ammo pouches at our waist.
 
It works well, though my experience with using it is on shotgun shells for duck hunting. If the nail polish is thick you can add a little bit of nail polish remover to thin it.
 
Both the primer and projectile are a relatively tight press fit with no gaps into the case, so cartridges are highly water resistant. You would have to leave it immersed over a long period to hurt anything.

Sometimes on long hikes you get drenched or have to cross a creek.
Click to expand...
It would still be prudent, after a soaking, to field strip the gun and shake out as much of the water as possible. This is easy with a Glock. You especially don't want caked/dried mud, twigs, pebbles or other debris in your barrel. :uhoh: Also unload the magazines, shake out the water and dry your rounds off. All of this would only take a few minutes, after which you can resume your journey. :cool: With such precautions, I don't think you need any special waterproofing for your ammo. If doing so would make you more comfortable, you can put clear nail polish or commercially available primer sealant around the case mouth and primer. Don't cake it on excessively around the case mouth.
 
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The wife washed a speed strip of my 38 Special +P carry ammo the other day in a pants pocket.
I decided to shoot the ammo to make sure it did not end up back in my pocket again as carry ammo.
I fired 3 in my 638, and 3 in my LCR 357. The washing did not bother the ammo at all.

I wish I could say the same thing about ink pens she washes. I have no idea how many ink pens the wife has trashed in the last 30 years.

Bob
 
.....the nail polish sounds good.
Click to expand...
Until flakes of it get stuffed back in your firing pin channel and your gun fails to fire.

If you buy better quality SD ammo from most of the major manufactures?
It already has a lacquer primer seal.
Look for traces of red or other color around the primer.

BTW: Cops carry more .40 S&W handguns then anything else anymore.
And cops & their ammo often get wet because they have to be out in the rain!

You will find few to none painting ammo with nail polish I betcha.

You can carry spare ammo in a plastic slip or flip-top ammo box in your pack if it concerns you.
http://www.mtmcase-gard.com/products/rifle/ammo-boxes-rifle-r-50.html

rc
 
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Many/most factory (non-military) loads are not waterproofed. If you reload, before you close the bell, a bit of lacquer will do there. Wipe any excess immediatley after seating. The primer is easiest to waterproof and most prone to compromise.. do the same as above..apply a small drop and wipe excess with your thumb. If you use lead, just waterproof the primer.
 
I shoot BP a lot and love my cap and ball guns. They're NOT water proof, however, and even the humid air will contaminate them given enough time. Folks on the BP board told me that coating the caps and balls with candle wax was the preferred method back in the day, could actually cross streams this way without fouling the powder, so I tried clear nail polish on the caps of one cylinder, waxed another AND the balls. I let them sit in my garage for 3 months. They all fired, but I got to slight hangfires from the candle wax. The one treated only the nipples with clear nail polish fired like a center fire gun. :D I figure, when I wanna carry afield with 'em, I'll do both, first polish and then wax and only on the nipples. I did this with my '51 navy, only gun I currently have spare cylinders for, and the caps on the waxed cylinder stayed in place while the nail polish ones fell off (can cause a cap jam on the colt open tops).

Anyway, the nail polish wouldn't hurt ammo and might add some insurance. :D Good ammo is pretty resistant, though, and some of the milsurp stuff I've gotten in 7.62x39 was even copper washed. Milspec ammo is the way to go for water proofness IMHO. But, it's all ball ammo. You'll even see a little red ring around the primers of milspec and some commercial, this a sealant to seal it from moisture.
 
Now that you bring this on the table...

I have always wondered (and actually assumed that) if navy spec ops guys, be it the US SEALS or what we call the "combat divers" over here use some kind of special ammo when they deploy from submarines. You know, they get into the torpedo tubes, flood them, then reach the shore diving carrying their gear with them, and that includes weapons and ammo.

I assume factory ammo is somehow water resistant, but when diving at 80 or 90 ft, things must be different and perhaps some "special" ammo is needed.
 
I also accidentally ran a speed strip of 38 special through the washing machine. Took it to the range and all the rounds fired with out problem from my S&W 638. The ammo was Winchester PDX I think.
 
You might look at S&B ammo, the ones that I have come accross have sealer on the primmer that is reportly to make them more water proof.
 
I've put a good two dozen rounds through the wash along with likely $100 worth of pocket change over the past 3 years since I got into shooting. The money was still good, less any value due to inflation while in the machine, and the ammo still fired... :D

Has anyone else noticed how SHINEY the bullets and cases are when they come out of the washing machine? They're like JEWELRY ! ! ! ! !
 
I actually am doing a test I started last week over this subject.
Three Remingtn 38 Specioal 130 Grain FMJ cheapo's from Wally World.
One is left alone, another is the control, the last one I sealed (primer/bullet) with nail polish lacquer.
The control is sitting next to the cup of water the other two are bathing in.
 
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