Old ammo/brass brittle?

[351 WINCHESTER]

Does the brass get brittle on older ammo? I'm talking 50 years or so?

 

[rcmodel]

It can.

Old foreign mil-sup ammo is often found with case-neck cracks.

It probably has more to do with poor brass manufacturing methods back then, and poor storage conditions since then, then anything else.

Very old cases may have been fired with mercuric primers and/or black powder, both of which eat cases for breakfast.

On the otherhand, I have 55-60 year old WWII G.I. 30-06 & .30 Carbine cases still in use for reloading.
Never a problem.

rc

 

[Oyeboten]

Smokeless Rifle Cartridges...Necked-Down Cases - with time, the Cartridge can crack around the Bullet from the strains on the Neck area, of the Bullet being tightly held.


Does not mean the Brass is brittle per-se, just that under tension, for long enough time, it can crack.


Hand Gun Cartridges, not likely, nor is their level of neck stress usually as high.