Looking to seal my reloaded rounds for storage what do I need?

[K_Dubbya]

Greetings all, I am producing a surplus of rounds which will be sitting in a ammo can. Ive heard about a type of coating you can seal the primers of your finished rounds with. Does anyone know where or what this product is called and how good is it?

Thank ya kindly.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Sorry I don't know the name of the product but I've found no primer sealant is needed if you vacuum pack the ammo. It's a cheap way of storing your "extra" ammo and it's air and water tight.

 

[tommyintx]

Clear fingernail polish!

 

[Quoheleth]

Midway has something they sell...I don't recall the name, but saw it in a recent sale flyer... that seals primer pocket and around the bullet/case crimp.

But, it seems to me, storing in an airtight case is easier & cheaper.

Q

 

[Rollis R. Karvellis]

+1 on the nail polish, just a dab on a tooth pick. Don't waste your money on any supper dooper magice sealint, just ask your female freinds for there old stuff. You will have more then you ever need. Unless you plan on storing the ammo in a bucket of water, they should stay drie and, usable for a very long time.

 

[moooose102]

this is the stuff you want. i have sealed lots of bullets / primers with this. i am on my 2nd bottle of it. nail polish will certainly seal your ammo as well. i am just not so sure how it will act inside your gun when you fire them.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=954332

 

[wgaynor]

You can also color code the year you loaded them with fingernail polish...red 2009 blue 2010....

 

[snuffy]

what do I need?

NOTHING! Primers and bullets are a press fit. Meaning they fit very tightly together. As such, they don't leak under normal conditions. A persons house, garage, or car would be normal conditions. That applies to rifle and handgun ammo. Shotshell, is another story all by itself.

 

[rcmodel]

Exactly.
Don't waste your time, and your finger-nail polish.

If you plan to store it in sealed GI ammo cans, there is no possible way anything can get inside to contaminate the ammo until you open the lid again.

If you don't open the lid outside in a rain storm, or in the shower while taking a bath, you don't have a problem.

rc

 

[delta53]

sealer from midway

is what I have used alot but I think good storage is all you need to keep it fresh for as long as you need,The sealer might keep it longer but I shoot 45acp ammo from ww2 that works 98% of the time and that is from 1943
How long you plan on living ? in sixty or seventy years I will only need (1) good bullitt probally sooner

 

[oneounceload]

The George and Roy's primer sealer is basically clear nail polish.

Buy some small dessicant pieces, put them in your ammo can with a good seal, and close and forget for a long time

 

[tango2echo]

I pack 100rds in a FoodSaver bag, seal lightly, and toss into an ammo can. They'll be ok to shoot a 100 years from now.

 

[fguffey]

I am not a fan of loading ahead and storing, If I wanted to store 'anything' that would be protected from the atmosphere I would heat an ammo can, 30 cal, 20mm or 50cal and load it up while it was was hot, slam the lid shut and leaver the latch over, just make sure you do not over-do it, as in atmospheric pressure crushing it after the can cools off, If you decide to test the seal later first check to see if the can still has the pucker look, as in the pressure on the outside is higher than the inside.

F. Guffey

 

[snuffy]

I load for my family hunting ammo. Years back, a nephew dropped a .280 shell in the snow. We were tracking a deer right then, so he didn't try to find it. Next summer,(6 months later), we found that round laying there. It was a nickel plated brass, so only the Nosler BT was a dark copper color. We were going to do some plinking, he had his rifle along. We proceeded to shoot that shell, it worked perfectly!

How much different is that to being stored in a house or garage? Vastly different, this is Wisconsin, where if you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes, it'll change. Melting snow then rain then gradually rising temps must have been the worst of conditions.

You've been told that you're worrying about nothing. It doesn't matter, worry about more important things.

 

[W.E.G.]

Why do you think you need to "seal" your primers?

Go to Wal-Mart.

Buy a box of commercial hunting ammo.

Do you see any "sealant" on the primer?

 

[Gatofeo]

Of greater concern than a sealant is the environment in which you will store the ammo.
Store it in a shed out back and you're inviting trouble. Sure, it may be protected against moisture by using a sealant, but not against wide ranges of temperature!
Temperature, especially high heat, is the real enemy of smokeless powder. Granted, high humidity might creep in around a bullet or primer over time but if the primer or bullet are a good fit it's not so likely.
Keep ammo in your gararge, vehicle or shed and summer heat will adversely affect the smokeless powder, perhaps the primer as well.
I've always kept my ammo in my spare room, in the house, where temperatures are pretty much constant throughout the year.
I wouldn't worry about sealing the primer or bullet. Worry more about exposing it to a cycle of high heat and bitter cold.
Interestingly, black powder is more forgiving when it comes to such extremes. But the primer may not be.
Store all ammo away from such extremes and it will be good for decades. Store it in such extremes and it may go sour in months.

 

[FROGO207]

Yep Snuffy is right I often will pick up old ammo that careless relatives have dropped and left in the dirt at our family pit the next year. They will fire OK after I clean the dirt and such off them. The weather in Maine is not a picnic either. I find them while scrounging all brass I can to reload.

 

[Sunray]

"...in sealed GI ammo cans..." As long as the gasket is in place it'll be fine. Not forever though. I open my cans and get the smell.

 

[LiveLife]

+1 for vacuum packing.

I put 100 rounds in the bag and use Permanent marker for date/load info. I rotate out the "SHTF" lot annually - In case of "SHTF", I can issue 100 round bags to each person for easy waterproof carry in their ammo vest/pockets.

Out of curiosity, I have run long-term test of exposed reloaded ammunition stored in the garage since 1995. I have shot samples every few years and although brass/copper have tarnished, they still shoot fine.

BTW, they were reloaded with Winchester 231 powder and Winchester primers.

 

[tango2echo]

I also store new factory ammo in the FoodSaver bags for longterm storage, as well as breaking up .22lr bricks into 100 or 200 round lots. Makes it easy to grab for a quick bit of plinking. In fact, the only ammo I DON'T store like this is what I plan to shoot in the next few months.

No Air=No Oxygen=No Corrosion

 

[Cosmoline]

NOTHING! Primers and bullets are a press fit

Well yes and no. Under ordinary household conditions for practice and test loads, no primer sealants are needed. If you're going to be hauling them around in the woods or if they're going to be exposed to high humidity then a primer seal is a good idea. I've had powder ruined with loads I took out fishing.

I use the stuff from Midway. Works good and a little goes a long way.

Remember to clearly label your loads when you stow them. I use freezer bags with the load info written on the outside.

 

[Rollis R. Karvellis]

Here is another extream example; Mamorial weekend a few years ago went to some land I had a range at, had a picnick with freinds and, family. Plenty of shooting. At the end of the day packed up, in the dark. A bucket of .45's was missed, sat for about three weeks in the open. Ohio in the spring = lot's of rain. There was about 2'' of water over the bullit's when I, found them three week's later. shot them up with no problem.

 

[JDGray]

I had a minor flood in my basement, where a few boxes of 9mm reloads took on some water. They all shot just fine with no sealants. I would agree that GI ammo boxes, would do the trick

 

[Franco]

Another option, or additional measure, is to put some silica moisture absorbing packets in the ammo can. Cabelas sells many sizes for use in gun cabinets or cases. I have ammo boxes for all different calibers and I put one of the smaller silica packs in each then replace them every so often. It doesn't protect against all of the other potential harms (changing temps, etc) but if you're storing in a normal place, they should remain potent for many many years and they are cheap.

 

[snuffy]

Okay, how about I prove there's nothing to worry about?! Since I'm "into" disproving loaded round tumbling being dangerous, how about I take 50 rounds of the same 40 S&W I just tumbled for 48 hours, go outside, bury 25 in a snowbank? 50 round midway/FA box, open, bullet down, case base up. Another 25 from the same batch saved inside where I normally store the ammo.

How's 6 months sound? That would be June 23rd. Exposed to snow now, melting then rain, sun and everything else central Wisconsin can throw at us. It'll take a while, but should prove whether that will cause problems. I'm betting it won't.

What do ya think? Should I?