Gun Show Ammo

BMcK

BMcK

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Orangeville, On
I went to the Orangeville gun show this weekend, wow the price's were crazy expensive.

I did manage to snag some old military ammo, from a nice older gentleman.
I got 57 rounds of 303 for 8 bucks. The dates are all over the place, from preWW1 to WW2.
I got some hollow points, spitzers, rounds nose, and even some interesting crimped rounds (Blanks?)

They all look good to shoot. Are they safe?

I also got some interesting 6.5 x 55 swede. They came in a little cardboard box, divided individually. They look to be boxer primer's.
The marking are interesting. Looks like a little crown.
Would these be corresive?

I'm going to try and dig out the camera.

Cheers
 
With the information you have given, I would not be surprised to learn you had bought someone's .303 cartridge collection.

It would be best to look at the headstamps of the ammo. The crimped "Blanks" might be just that, but they could also be higher pressured grenade launching cartridges. Not really a good thing to fire those.

Some of that ammo, particularly if it is military ammo, could be worth more as a collector's items rather than shooting it. Chances are a lot of it is corrosive ammo and will require hot boiling water to neutralize the salts left behind after firing.

All the Swedish military ammo is supposed to be non-corrosive but that does not mean you should neglect cleaning your rifle after firing it. If it is Swedish Military, it will probably have Berdan primers in it, not single flash hole Boxer primers. Any information on the box about the ammo? There should also be headstamps and code numbers on the bases of the cartridges.

Any of this ammo should NOT be fired until it is positively identified. Pictures are best.
 
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BMcK said:
I went to the Orangeville gun show this weekend, wow the price's were crazy expensive.

I did manage to snag some old military ammo, from a nice older gentleman.
I got 57 rounds of 303 for 8 bucks. The dates are all over the place, from preWW1 to WW2.
I got some hollow points, spitzers, rounds nose, and even some interesting crimped rounds (Blanks?)

They all look good to shoot. Are they safe?

I also got some interesting 6.5 x 55 swede. They came in a little cardboard box, divided individually. They look to be boxer primer's.
The marking are interesting. Looks like a little crown.
Would these be corresive?

I'm going to try and dig out the camera.

Cheers
Click to expand...


shoot em and find out
 
Great price on the .303. If the casings are intact, no cracks, should be safe. If the brass is tarnished, shouldn't matter. Also, I've heard any ammo pre-1950's would be corrosive (except soviet ammo..). does the swede ammo have and numbers on the 3 and 9 o'clock positions? If so, it refers to the date 19xx. The crimped ends are almost 100% guaranteed to be corrosive.
 
Thanks for the input.

Didn't plan on shooting a round until identified.


Here are 10 random 303 rounds
DSCF2774_zps7cb74a8f.jpg


These are the 10 from left to right
DSCF2777_zps324410f6.jpg

DSCF2778_zps20247a0d.jpg

DSCF2779_zps78909980.jpg


The 15 rounds of 6.5 x 55, I paid $10
DSCF2782_zpsb8ac1a9c.jpg

DSCF2781_zps63967f1e.jpg


I also got 15 rounds of 32 winchester special for $10.

Cheers
 
With the .303s, some of them look like either original Dum-Dum type ammo, or else Mark II or Mark VI which has been hollow-pointed. If it is original Dum-Dum mmo, it's worth FAR too much to bang off. If they are replacement bullets they MIGHT be safe to fire. If they are converted BULLETS, you are taking a big chance of getting a shoot-through in which the jacket sticks in the bore; the next round bulges your barrel or else blows the front third of it down the range. Be VERY Careful!!!

The ones with the short lead bullets are GP-B: Gallery Practice - Ball: short-range loads adopted only in Canada.

OTOH, you have the beginnings of a rather NICE .303 Cartridge COLLECTION, including stuff which has not been made for almost 120 years.

I certainly would not be shooting any of it.
 
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I agree with SMELLIE as to the safety of the Hollow Pointed stuff. Also, there are some cartridges there that are very scarce, and might be worth the $8.00 you paid for the whole lot in ONE round. I also think that I was on the right track when I said that it was someone's .303 ammunition collection. Look at the variety and the head stamps, dates, makers and types of cartridges.

At a conservative estimate, allowing for approximately $1.00 per round, then you have about $60 worth of ammo. If you have to, offer to trade someone for three boxes of new .303 ammo that you can blast down the range.

At the best, you will probably not get a lot of accuracy if you shoot the lot at targets. There is too much variety of loads and makers, and ammo for target shooting is best from the same lot and maker if you want accuracy.

The 6.5 ammo is M/94 6.5x55 military ammo, 160 grain bullet, made by the Karlsborg Ammunition Factory. With the 1953 ? date, and the different code numbers on this ammo, I might venture that this was a repacked lot. Karlsborg (K) and Marieberg (M) were the two main Swedish ammunition makers with Marieberg being the main factory. The last ammo Marieberg made has not been found with headstamps after WWII and the equipment was moved out of the factory by 1950. In 1941, the Swedish changed to a 139 grain Spitzer bullet instead of the 160 grain round nosed one.
 
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The one with the D/I\C C V hs is an original MkV hollow point made by Dominion Cartridge Factory QC c1899-1900.
 
Thanks for all the information.

I knew this was the place to post, but I have to say, I'm really impressed.

I will try and post some more pics after work.

Cheers
 
green said:
The one with the D/I\C C V hs is an original MkV hollow point made by Dominion Cartridge Factory QC c1899-1900.
Click to expand...

As noted, that round alone is probably worth what the OP paid for the whole lot of them. Not a whole lot of Mark V ammo around because it was replaced with the Mark VI rounds, and a lot of this Mark V and Mark VI ammo was used to train the Canadian Contingents at Valcartier during WWI.
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The one with the D/I\C C V hs is an original MkV hollow point made by Dominion Cartridge Factory QC c1899-1900.
Click to expand...
I've got about 15 more rounds of this. All in about the same condition.






DSCF2788_zps35454597.jpg

The last one on the right is VII




DSCF2786_zpsa3c051a0.jpg

The last one on the right is a SP, might just be a old hunting round.

Cheers
 
Last question.......would you shoot the 6.5 x 55?
I've at least 6, all stamped 31. Maybe shoot 5 rounds and save the sixth.
I can believe how good it looks for its age.

Cheers
 
By and large the .303 ammunition is worth more as collector's cartridges than as shooter's. Some rather uncommon ones there.
 
BMcK said:
Last question.......would you shoot the 6.5 x 55?
I've at least 6, all stamped 31. Maybe shoot 5 rounds and save the sixth.
I can believe how good it looks for its age.

Cheers
Click to expand...

If you intend to start an ammunition collecttion, why not simply put those extra five rounds into a charger (clip to some people.) as a representative of how they originally came ---or use them for trading material to get more and different .303 rounds?

Or you could just blow them down the range. The 6.5x55 ammo is not worth what the .303 ammo is, and due to it being "foreign" it is not as collectable. You have only 5 rounds of it, and if you sell it and have to ship it, it will cost a lot more to ship it than it is worth.

If you really want something to shoot, and maybe reload, buy a box of modern 140 grain stuff and shoot that.
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yup... save that .303 ... whats $8... a few coffees.... Hmm... now I have to go look. At a recent woodstock show I bought 5 on a stripper clip for $5... They were old looking missmatched rounds.. I put them away and forgot about them till now....
 
I quite agree that the .303 inch ammo is worth keeping as the basis for starting a collection.

However, can you let a Brit have a little room for pedantry? The Mark V hollow point is exactly that, it is not a Dum Dum for two reasons. First and foremost, Dum Dum ammunition was made at Dum Dum Arsenal in India and nowhere else. Secondly, Dum Dum ammunition is not hollow pointed , it has a small exposed lead tip. The use of the term "Dum Dum" for any soft nosed or holllow point bullet is something that has passed into the language, mainly from newspaper reporters who know no better.

Attached photo shows true Dum Dum on the left and Mark V on the right. The Dum Dum is more correctly known as the Mark II* or Special.

Regards
TonyE

 
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