I have several thousand rounds of .22lr. Currently they are in their orginal boxes (bulk packs of anywhere from 333 rounds to 525 rounds) and then in 50cal ammo cans. The boxes take up a bunch of space in the cans. Would it be alright to take the rounds out of the boxes and put them in heavy duty zip locks and then in the cans. I think I could eliminate atleast one of my 50cal cans with the sapce savings of getting rid of the original packaging. Any problems with this?

Thanks
J-

In before the "why store ammo in ammo cans crowd."

I have no experience in such matters, but I think you are better off as is. If one in a million .22 rounds packed in a .50 cal can goes off from being smushed up in there with thousands of others and then sets off a bunch of others, well that would be bad. What's one in a million you say? If you already have a few thousand, you could be well on your way.

Not to say this can't happen in the boxes as is, but even if it makes it just 3 times less likely, you would be better off.

I guess the question is, do the manufacturer's package them for safety's sake or just in convienient quantities?

I can't see you saving that much volume. They pack those boxes pretty good.  Unless the top of your ammo cans isn't filled...  I think you'll be fine however.

I doubt you'll gain much with the Ziploc bags.  I'd leave it boxed.  If you do decide to store it loose then tear the lot number off the box and keep it in the baggie with the ammo.

If you ever intend to barter the ammo for food or other essentials the original package would be preferable.  The ammo may be a very valuable commodity.  Just my .02

Blasting ammo gets dumped loose in a .50cal can.  

Leave it in the boxes.  What is the problem with stacking one more or one less ammo can?  I dumped a case of ammo into a can because I thought I would save space.  Instead, I wound up with about 85% of a case of ammo in one can and who knows what I did with the rest of it.  I kick myself now because I don't remember what grain the bullets are, and I surely don't remember how many fit in the can.  I was thinking of selling the ammo because I don't keep a gun in that caliber anymore, but now I would have to find packaging and count the rounds out.

Leave it in the boxes for several reasons (most outlined above);

1.  Ease of carrying it - you can pick up one or two boxes and not carry the full (heavy) ammo can.
2.  Security - the plastic baggies will be eaiser to break/tear than the factory boxes
3.  Ease of remembering the type/grain/velocity/etc of the rounds
4.  Eaiser to keep count of rounds

I tried dumping loose rounds in a can also and didnt like it.  I like to be able to separate by type/manufacture/grain/etc if I want.  I find this eaiser in boxes.  You can always dump it into baggies for range or other reasons on a case by case basis.

MHO

Jim

I think people are missing the OP's point:
the boxes are not the right size to fit efficiently in ammo cans and he winds up with a lot of wasted space.
My solutions have been:
Federal 550 Value Packs
Lay 3 on their face on the bottom against the side of a .50 can
3 on their bottoms on top of that, and transfer 4 boxes to quart freezer bags and fit them in the remaining space on the open side of the can.
Bingo: 5500 rounds in a single can.
Federal Auto match 325 packs
12 boxes fit tightly in a .50 can with no gaps.

Some of the posters above are correct that selling ammo out of it's original packaging will never bring full price.
For whatever reason, people pay more for ammo still in it's box.
Shoot the stuff in bags, sell the stuff in boxes.

Ammo cans provide an easy way to stack and store it, as well as airtight seal, convenient carry handle, etc.
The guy that said it was a hazardous way to store loose ammo must not realize what happens to the bullet when a round goes off outside of a chamber . . . not much.
load em in cans any way you can work it.
Keep em in boxes as much as possible.
don't beat yourself up if you have to out some in bags.

+1

I have around 3k fed bulk pack in a 30cal ammo can.  I pick up the can when I go the the range.  Works fine, take much less room and then the boxes that don't seem the be same size as any ammo can and I have had 0 problems.  I threw in silica and for bulk storage it works fine.

Have not dropped the can from a height yet, but that might be interesting test for some of the rich guys out there.

I know what the op means though.  I am pretty kick ass at tetris and I could not get those bulk packs to fit in the cans without a hug amount of wasted space.

The "fat" 50 cal cans (aka saw cans) fit the large .22 bulk boxes pretty well.  The normal 50 cal cans, not so much.  IF you can get on, try it.  But, that much .22 in a can is heavier than even .223 in the same can.

copy thanks guys, should have mentioned that they are the fat 50's but I still end up with wasted space.

J-

I've been toying with ideas of how to store my bulk pack .22lr and the method I'm going to go with is storing it loose in .30 cal cans. From what I've seen, you can store roughly 3300-3500 rounds per can, and they're still light enough for transport.

Tear the label and lot number off the original boxes to go in the zip lock bags. I would also normally line the can with cardboard on general principle, but would not say that was necessary. Over the years I have found and retained boxes that fit well and repack into them. I use a reload label to ID the load and lot number. Midway has some generic white boxes that a reviewer said fit just right 12 to a 30cal can. I can generally double whatever fits a 30cal can to a 50cal can.

Send them to me for proper storage

I'm with Gulfdiver.  Many folks pay to have things stored on someone else's property, you know ministorage.  As part of your disaster recovery planning, you should distribute you assets geographically.  As part of your BCP, I will provide storage for a portion of you unpackable assets.  I will store them, in their boxes and in ammo cans, with desicant, in a climate controlled room, vacpacked, upside down, sitting on a block of wood!  I will provide lot testing as well to insure your stored goods remain fresh.

cardboard in can = bad... collects/holds moisture.

Technically you are correct, cardboard can hold moisture, but IMO in practice it just isn’t a problem in sealed military cans. I should also point out the government packs ammo in bandoliers and I have opened cans that had cardboard fillers in them.
I like my cans packed so the boxes in the can don’t shift around. I have some ammo packed this way that is at least 35 years old and is still shiny and goes bang. I have a lot of ammo at least 20 years old packed this way including hundreds of rounds of 22LR that I fire with no problems. These cans get opened at least every other year and I do not use desiccant packets in the long term storage cans.

I think around 3250 rds per 30 cal can max. I dump the shit in there and forget about it until I need it and If the can explodes I will post pics.

Personally, I like to keep all ammo in its original packaging even inside a can. It helps if I need to identify specific lot #s (for good or bad reasons) and if you ever have claim against a manufacturer for refund or replacement of bad ammunition they usually require that you return it to them in the original packaging.

I KNOW what you mean about .22 bulk pack in 50cal cans!

How about this, place as many original bulk packs into the can as you can fit, then go with zip-lock packed ammo to fill in the remaining space. Cut the mfg/load/lot information from the empty box and keep it in the bag with the loose ammo.

BTW- A "fat fifty" can be completely filled with Federal 550rnd ammo bulk pcks with no wasted space.