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Posted: 8/23/2008 7:53:54 AM EDT
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In the past I primed brass and loaded it, same session at the bench. My "new" primers are kept inside were the temp. is pretty much the same all the time. How long can the primed brass sit without going bad, before the powder and bullet is added to the case? My reloading "shop" is open to ambient temperatures and humidity. In central VA the humidity can get pretty high in the summer. Just curious about the practices/beliefs of other reloaders here. PS. I have some primers in the attic that have been exposed to summer humidity, temps over 100 F and then winter temps at or below freezing for over 20 years now. I intend to do some reloading with them and with some of that old powder (if the powder isn't obviously degraded when I open up the cans.) We'll see how that turns out. |
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virtually forever if stored right, if in doubt, seat a couple, fire, if they work chances are all of them are OK, if not, chances are all of them are bad. There's no absolute answer, it all depends on the storage condition. I'm shooting reloads with 12+ y/o primers which have been stored indoors, Think I had 2 misfires in the last 5000 rds or so, which is about the same rate of misfires with new primers |
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To answer the question. It would be best to load just after priming the longer you wait while the primer in the heat and humidity the better chance it has to go bad. I havent heard of a set time but primers do last for a long time. I have a box that I got with a reloading press I bought used that the glue is starting to not hold the box together. I smashed one with a hammer to see if it still worked and it went bang... MAHA |
| I have a batch of 1000 that I am almost worked through for my service rifle. I primed them about 1 year ago and keep them in a clear rubbermade bin in the garage. Garage is subject to a little heat and is not humidity controlled. I have not noticed any accuracy or other performance problems. Zero failures to fire. These are rem 7-1/2 primers. |
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One for the guys said that primers will last indefinitely..he maybe right. At a gunshow years ago I bought a large wooden ammo case with lots of old ammo in it. The 303s that had split necks I pulled the bullets dumped the powder on the roses and threw the split cases in a plastic 5 gallon bucket. It sat outside in the rain/snow until it fell apart. I eventually cleaned up the mess. It had been out in the weather at least 5-8 years. One day years later I found a 303 split 1942 case primed with their big copper primer. Wondering if it would fire I tried it in an Enfield. It fired loud. So I don't know how long they would last. In the same box I found someBritsh made 303 that looked alright. When I got my first Enfield I grabbed them and went to the range. The RA 1917 shot poorly and spilt their necks on firing. I had sorted out some British and shot it as well. It shot in a nice tight group at 100. Looked at the head stamp... At first I thought it was 60, but then realized it was really 1909!!! wish I had a case of it. Pulled a bullet and found it was filled with an extruded stick powder, looked like 3031 |
| I finished loading about a 100 .45 ACPs earlier this summer that had the primer put in the case before we moved into this house - 12 years ago. The cases were rolled up in a paper bag and thrown into the back of an inside closet for the last 4 years after we built the addition. The previous 8 years they were in an ammo can in the garage. All went bang with no misfires. |
You know.... Everybody here is coming from different experiences and everybody here has their own nuances (tid bits if you will) of experience that is germane to the question at hand. Many people may not have a direct answer but do have a bit of information to contribute that when pieced together, by a reasonably intelligent person, through the process of integration, will direct one to a good and sensible answer to the question originally posed. Directly answering questions one does not have a direct answer to is foolishness. |
I understand that but I was referring to the eggs and future ammo can remarks. The personal experiences that everyone listed were very helpful. |
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A primer in an otherwise empty case is no different from a primer in its original packaging. And primers that are properly stored (not subjected to horribly high temperatures or other bad stuff) should last "indefinitely." I contacted both CCI and Winchester about this issue; I discovered several thousand primers of each brand stashed away in my reloading stuff, and I KNOW THEY'RE 25-30 YEARS OLD. Both companies said that they should be good to go, but I worry so I tested some. The manufacturers are right; without babying these primers in storage, they showed absolutely no difference in performance from brand new primers. Note that you can still occasionally find ammo loaded for WWII that functions fine-because neither modern(ish) primers nor smokeless powder "spoil" due to age. Contaminants can damage powder and cause it to break down, but primers are built to protect the priming compound. There are lots of "old gun store tales" about "use WD-40/water/Sweet's/granny's urine/etc." to kill primers. They're pretty much all wrong. After the manufacturer deposits the priming pellet in the cup, they put a slightly oversized foil disk over it and then seal it with lacquer. This is before the anvil goes in. You are NOT going to get any solvent to both dissolve the lacquer AND somehow seep in between the foil and cup to attack the compound. You might dissolve that lacquer, but the foil will stop you. Primers are TOUGH! |
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