I came across a box of 100 M2 ball .30-06 cartridges headstamped FN 57. Every case was clean and not quite bright - the brass had just a hint or tarnish but zero corrosion or any other defect. Primers were sealed. I figured they were corrosive & planned to clean up as soon as the last one was fired.

Retiring to the range, out of the first thre rounds, I had two duds & 1 hangfire before I quit. Had to swab the barrel with soapy water for 1 round!

Back home, I pulled a bullet & found the powder looked & smelled OK. The case held 52.5 gr of what looked to be 4895. I pulled the bullets, poured the powder into freshly primed cases and then seated & crimped the bullets. I haven't been able to get back to the range yet.

I wanted to scrap the brass (Beardan primed) but did want to do so with live primers. I deactivated the primers by holding the cases over a propane torch untill the primers cooked off. About 80% went pfffft. A few went PFffffft. A few more smoked but made no sound. A few went Pop with flame visible at the mouth. One went BLAM, like a normal primer, blew the primer from the case & startled me. If you try this, aim the mouth & primer pocket away from you!

Even though these rounds looked OK, they were duds. I have no idea how this ammo was stored over the last 50 years but it made a difference. I'd expected them to be OK - I fully would expect USGI ammo to be OK.
Information
Warning: This is a relatively older thread
This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.