7.69X39 shelf life

[Gillen1]

Hey all,

I will be getting my pal in the mail this week and I have a question I hope you guys can answer for me.

If I buy a case of surplus ammo, say 60's production, and open it how long will it last and stay fresh? A coworker of mine voiced some concern that it could go "skunky" after opening is considering it's age. i'm looking at picking up a case of 1400 rounds and would hate for them to go bad before I can find time to shoot them all!

Thanks in advance.

Edit. 7.62X39. Sorry I was reading another threat and those numbers were stuck in my head.

 

[Grove]

Stay fresh for long long time.

Avoid excess vibration and you are all good.

 

[Shooting Centre]

Ammo should be stored in a cool dry place. In the absence of extreme heat and humidity it will not go "skunky"

 

[kirkf]

Corrosive surplus ammo, best guess is 100 years.

Kirk

 

[kirkf]

Also those 1400 rounds could easily go down the pipe in a weekend. So dont sweat it.



Kirk

 

[m-134]

unless its really old (like 100+ years old) ammo usualy doesnt go bad. as already said its defantly recomended that it is stored in a cool, dry place as the powder/primer could get moisture in it and cause malfunctions.

 

[saskcop]

I think surplus ammo will outlast us.

 

[bluegrizz77]

It can last through a shop fire that burnt the crate and it still shoots fine. So it should last sitting in your closet....

 

[albertacoyotecaller]

Beer goes skunky. Not ammo.

Greg

 

[762shooter]

The reason that the communist countries used corrosive primers until recently is because the shelf life of corrosive primers is very long, much longer than non-corrosive primers. That's why they now have millions of rounds of perfectly good surplus ammo from their war stocks.

 

[mississaugagunnut]

I keep mine in my garage in a locked cabinet. In SW Ontario the garage gets pretty hot in the summer and cold in the winter, obviously. I think it will be okay there.

 

[fiddler]

Your grand children will be thankful that you put ammo away for them to shoot many years after you have passed.

 

[Gillen1]

Thanks everyone! I thought that it would be fine, but since I'm still pretty new to all this I figured I'd at least ask the experts!

 

[safety first]

Beer goes skunky. Not ammo.

Greg

Actually it does.

There's been posts about it

 

[Andurp]

Well, let's say this:

A while back, I bought a spam can of Polish ammo from the late 80's, I had about 50 duds and I bought 1400 rounds of it. This is the WORST I've ever seen. 50 out of 1400, while not great, isn't the end of the world. Considering what I paid for it, I still feel like it was worth it.

I recently purchased 2500 rounds of Ukrainian surplus stuff, which as best as I can tell, was made in the early 1950's, and according to the import markings, it's been in Canada since the early 1990's. I only have a little over 400 rounds of it left, and I have had no failures. Went bang every time. I am confident the remaining 400 will give me the same results.

Basically, unless something exceptional happens, your ammo will be fine.

 

[albertacoyotecaller]

Skunky ammo

Actually it does.

There's been posts about it

Can you provide further info please.

Greg

 

[pavmentsurfer]

I figure, the stuff I bought came as 1440 rounds in 2 720 round sealed spam cans. I only opened one and am about half way through it so far. But if this ammo has sat around as long as it has (mine was since 1960 or so), stored WHO KNOWS where... it should last no problem for a year or so until I'm done with it.

Ask yourself this, was this ammo stored perfectly for the last 50 years? Was it treated carefully? Not likely. It was probably found in a dark damp bunker somewhere and was likely thrown around in transport more than once. its designed to last. I just bought a 2nd case to "keep" around for a while. Im just going to store it in my closet with a lock on it.