What happens if you freeze your shells?

boltonscouter

boltonscouter

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So let's say you leave a flat of shotgun shells in the trunk of your car for a week or so in the winter in -20C weather ...... will it harm it?

What if you store ammo in your locked garage in a locker or in a cold cellar during the winter ..... how will it survive?

I know heat & humidity are BAD :eek: for ammo but what about cold & dry?

Just to clarify .......... I'm not suggesting storing your ammo in a freezer! And I'm not suggesting freezing your ammo will extend it's life expectancy (or does it?) I just want to know if short term freezing will have detrimental effect on the ammo. Let's say it's a steady cold! Not a freeze & thaw cycle with the associated condensation issues.

Anyone with experience you're willing to share, good, bad or indifferent????
 
I've had a bag of shotshells in my truck (temp. range of -30C to +30C) for about 4 years now. Now and then I try one. They still go 'boom'.
 
I've not experimented rigorously, but I've certainly frozen ammo in the trunk for a period of a week or more. Seemed to work fine. Actually hadn't given it a second thought. Interesting to see other experiences...

RG

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The only thing that freezes is moisture. If your ammo was dry when it went in it will be dry when it comes out. Shouldnt be an issue. I have left shotgun shells, and .22's in the shed at the cottage in Thunderbay over the winter and no problems next season.
 
Think about it, the army goes out for weeks at a time in the winter and our ammo fires fine. We on the other hand are cold, miserable and hate life for most of that time.
Just don't try licking the metal part of the shells and you'll be fine :)
 
I have stored 12 guage, 223 and 308 shells at my cabin out on the ARCTIC tundra over winters ... they still go boom ... ;)

Otokiak
Rankin Inlet, NU
CANADA
 
Depends on the shell, the powder and the temperatures. Very cold temps can result in some single based powders not burning completely. In extreme cold wads can freeze and not provide a good seal.

I've noticed with Challenger target shells that they tend to sound "off" when shooting in extreme cold and that there is more unburnt powder in the barrel.
 
I store most of my ammo locked up in an unheated machine shed in military ammo boxes and have never noted any problem. This is just a storage space issue. Done it for years. (The guns I keep indoors and at fairly constant room temperature of course.)
 
Nothing unusual .... Although frozen shells tend to sound a little "off" in gas-operated semis (like my cousin's Ithaca)... I think just for the hell of it I'll drop a couple of them in a bucket of water and freeze them solid, just to see what it does when I thaw/smash them out of there ....
 
RobSmith said:
Nothing unusual .... Although frozen shells tend to sound a little "off" in gas-operated semis (like my cousin's Ithaca)... I think just for the hell of it I'll drop a couple of them in a bucket of water and freeze them solid, just to see what it does when I thaw/smash them out of there ....
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Frozen in water only gets them to the freezing point. Try leaving them out over night in -20C and then see what happens.
 
syndochrist said:
Just don't try licking the metal part of the shells and you'll be fine :)
Click to expand...

Now that's funny!:D:D:D 12 GA mmmmmmm nom nom nom !!! Reminds me of the kid stuck to the fence pole in the school yard! Can you imagine showing up back at the hunting camp with a round frozen to your tongue ..... man I'd never hear the end of it.

Thanks guys, I sort of suspected it shouldn't harm the ammo but just figured I'd ask. I didn't plan on shooting frozen ammo but it's good to know you can. I was more concerned about freezing during storage and it sounds like it's a non issue. Should have known, being the great white north & all!
 
Many times I leave my hunting shells in my truck for weeks on end.They freeze and I have never had a problem with any of them going off when I used them.
 
My concern would be the thaw and frost of the cheap steel shell. You may be shooting a chunk of rusted steel welded together. Other than that you are good to go.
 
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