Another Safety Warning...Please read.

[jgh4445]

A friend gave me a box of .280 Moly coated ammunition yesterday because he no longer has that rifle. I decided that I didn't want to shoot moly in my rifle so I pulled the bullets thinking I'd salvage the brass and primer and load my accubonds in place of the molys. I pulled the bullets and turned them upside down to empty the powder and the powder was sort of hardened and caked in the brass. I got a plastic straw, the type that comes with WD40 or a can of compressed air, and broke up the powder and poured it out of each piece of brass. I got a light and looked in the case and there was still about two or three grains worth stuck to the sides just under the shoulder. I took a can of compressed air and blew it out. I got some more out but upon re inspection there was still some clinging to the sides. I used a case brush and could still see a flake or two or three. Finally put it in my tumbler and ran it for a couple of hours in some corncob media. Came out clean as can be. Point is: If I had just pulled the bullets and dumped powder and not kept checking for a clean case, I could have loaded some rounds with 2 or 3 extra grains of an unknown powder. Could have been real unpleasant. Now..I did pull some bullets for another caliber I use earlier in the year and recall hardened powder in them also. (Old stock). I do not recall doing as thorough a job inspecting each case. Now, I'm going to have to pull bullets from 40 rounds and re check just to have piece of mind. Lesson learned. Be extra careful when you pull bullets and dump powder. Make sure you check and re-check.

 

[45lcshooter]

When I go to auctions and buy "reloads" I always pull them apart. If some one sells a gun and knows I have the same caliber they usually give me the rounds, I know how they store their ammo so I'm not worried. But if they are older boxes, I had one or two just go "click" and no boom. So I pulled all those older rounds.

Even if you know the person that gives you their ammo, use desecration on shooting or pulling.

 

[jgh4445]

UPDATE: Pulled all 40 30.06, 220 grain loads that I had a concern over and sure enough I had 7 with still caked on powder just under the shoulder. One of them had 4 grains (weight) of some unknown powder. Firing them could have been a bad experience. From now on, I'll sacrifice the powder and primer and give the bass its full treatment. You think I'd have known that after 40 years of loading. That was the first time I had ever pulled bullets and decided to try and save the factory primer. Never again.

 

[gamestalker]

I have seen this before, even with some factory Win. 12 ga. Universal shells. What I don't understand is why.
I have pulled some of my own reloads that have been sitting for years and I have never had powder do that, it always dumps freely from the case with no clumping or sticking to the case walls.

My first and only real suspicion is that there is some form of either moisture or lube residue in the case when it was loaded. This is not good. I have been said to be over doing it when I use acetone to clean the inside of my brass after tumbling, but I think not, especially if the ammo is going to possibly be sitting around for long periods of time.

GS