Salvaging Ammo Parts and Age

[usabaker]

I was given a bunch of 60 rounds 30-06 Springfield and even more 120 rounds of .300 Win Mag reloaded ammo. I got lucky with all of the .300 Win because the person that reloaded it stored the reload information with the rounds so I will be able to disassemble and use everything.

Not so lucky with the 30-06 Springfield Ammo. No info at all. So I guess I can salvage everything but the powder.

My questions, the 300 Win Mag is dated in 79 and 80. What's your opinion on the age of the powder and the primers based in just using the reloads for plinking.

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[pocketshaver]

the powder information in that reload information as you call it, is worthless.

I can give you a handful of factory Remington 300 win mag ammunition, and put a sticky note in the bag that gives false powder info. Do you trust that?

[usabaker]

You have a point, I have no way of truly knowing the powder type and brand. The primers either. Better safe then sorry as the saying goes

[CINDERS]

Besides the load may no be suitable in your rifle not that I advocate shooting someone else's reloads keep the projies seat them to what you reload yours at whether COAL or from the ogive, keep the brass and ditch the rest.

[usabaker]

Besides the load may not be suitable in your rifle not that I advocate shooting someone else's reloads

I never shoot other peoples reloads, even when it a friend that's giving them to me. I just wasn't thinking because I never got ammo that had the reload info with it. so I was making a bad assumption that the powder was what written on the slips with each box.

---------- Post added at 06:23 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:18 AM ----------

The primers could be magnum rifle and that's vastly different from large rifle too.

Wonder if I can dud modern primers the way that I do pre-WWII primers with a water and ammonia bath. (I still pop them, it's just less cleaning and less corrosive crap down my barrel since almost always the primers are dudded.)

[browningautorifle]

Wonder if I can dud modern primers

I wouldn't count on it. I'd just snap them and be done. Then they can be dropped into your brass scrap for recycle. The oil method has never been a good bet. Most pre WW2 primers have died a natural death long ago.

[usabaker]

I'd just snap them and be done.

I'm going to snap them for sure but just curious. I also got about 200 8MM, 300 7mm Mauser and about 180'ish 30-06 milsurplus ammo to part-out. Another powder burn pile on the way I guess.

[browningautorifle]

200 8MM, 300 7mm Mauser

Those bullets should be valuable...cases are boxer or Berdan? Although 8mm brass is fuggin' hard to get around here, seems just as hard to sell when you have a smack.

[browningautorifle]

I'd keep the cases if usable and the bullets and ditch the rest. The primers could be magnum rifle and that's vastly different from large rifle too.

[Bruce_in_Oz]

I've salvaged a lot of "dubious" ammo over the years, Boxer and Berdan.

Bullets? Use a serious bullet puller like the RCBS "collet" type. Those plastic hammer jobs are great for "short" runs but get "old-FAST" when you have a 4 gallon bucket ti clear. The press-mounted collet ones allso retain the powder in the case so it can be inspected and then salvaged or used as fertilizer on the garden as desired.

The one situation in which the plastic "kinetic" bullet pullers shine is when you need to dismantle ammo loaded with cast / non-jacketed / steeply conical bullets as commonly found in pistol ammo. The collet fingers of the "press" type will not "grab" the soft bullet very firmly and if you wind it up tight, you mangle the bullets. Horses for courses, and all that jazz.

Primers? Two things:

Firstly: "Popping" primers is noisy and NOT to be done indoors; LEAD residue and all that. Furthermore a LOT of older (pre 1950 "military") primers are CORROSIVE. REALLY old stuff may also be Mercuric primed, both Boxer and Berdan, but this is also often indicated by the COPPER primer cups that are not attacked by the primer mix like brass ones.

Secondly: NEVER "pop" primers in rimless cases. IF you do, you will probably notice that the fired primer has backed out of the case a little. What this means is that you have just seen the power of primers in action.The case has been driven forwads into the chamber and the shoulder pushed back. This is NOT a good thing; instant excessive headspace will exist with reloads on this brass. Results may include misfires, ruptured primer cups, etc. RIMMED cases like .303 Brit and 30-40 Krag headspace on their rims and don't suffer from this problem, similarly "belted" magnums. (or should that be "Magna"?).

As for ""neutering" primers, "oil' is slow, diesel fuel works, but it takes time.

I've never bothered. Just deprime them as per normal. LEE make a special depriming (decapping) die which is essentially a standard-looking 7/8" x 14 die body with a big parallel hole up the middle; one size fits all, apparently. A primer may occasionally go "POP" but almost never if you operate the press slowly. Wear ear protection, "just in case". On salvaged "military" brass, primers are usually crimped / staked in and thus a bit harder to remove, but just don't be in a hurry. And you will then have to remove the crimp / staking to insert a new primer. The BEST tool I have ever found for this is the Dillon "Super Swage 600" bench-mounted job. It actually works! REALLY well made and comes with swage tools for both large and small rifle / pistol primer pockets. You only need to "de-crmp" primer pockets ONCE in their lifetime, so it is a device that will probably outlast several owners.