Old ammunition safe to shoot?

Year or two ago shot a bunch of45ACP with 44 stamped WWII ammo. No failure to ring steel at 25 yards. Was interesting that the large pistol pockets were a little too small for modern LP primers. So some quick work with a Hornady pocket cutter fixed that right up. Reloaded with 230 round nose bullets and Blue Dot powder...

Good to go again all polished up spiffy like. ​

 

2 yrs is not old.

 

I got 7.62 x 39 from the 70's that stills goes bang.

Godspeed

 

That's not old. We were shooting paper 16 gauge shotgun shells from grandpa's barn (90f+ in the summer, -20f in the winter). Things were probably 40+ years old. Still went bang. Just want to look for loose projectiles and corrosion.

 

Hey, Justin, from the responses it's pretty obvious that for the most part ammunition age doesn't adversely affect ammunition so long as it's reasonably stored. Since many of us are "gun people" it seems obvious, but I guarantee you aren't the first person (or the last) to wonder. It's really a far better question than it seems on the surface and has brought up a lot of info that even many of us who have been around gums our whole lives may not have known.

Ammunition storage is really pretty simple - keep it dry and keep it at moderate temperatures. Brownell's has a pretty good video on this. If you have more than a few boxes consider an ammo can with perhaps a desiccant package. You don't need to buy them new, just take one that came from something you purchased and dry it in an oven at low temp and it's as good as new.

Anyhow, thanks for asking a fundamental question and don't hesitate to bring up others!

 

Re: post #21. I remember reading that one arsenal loaded .45ACP with a non-standard primer, wasn't large, wasn't small. I think it was Frankford Pennsylvania. Not sure any more.

 

I once found some. 45acp that had been stored in a box of sawdust outside under the eave of a garage in southeast Texas. Headstand was 1917! I wiped it off, and all if it functioned normally! I don't know how long it had been outside.

 

I'm telling yall, That stuff will turn into nitroglycerin even after a couple of years.
Send it to me for safe disposal. You'll can Thank me later!

 

Re: posts #28 & #29. BTPost you should applaud the sacrifice Gater is willing to make to protect a novice shooter. I suppose I could be imposed upon to provide the same service. Ya, I could.

 

Still shooting some '06 black tip that is head stamped "FN 66" and it works like new. Have some Savage 22HP from 1938 that still hunts on occasion but only a round or two every few years. Ammo is pretty forgiving if a little common sense is used.