very old .45 auto ammo, safe?

[crest117]

I was cleaning out some of my old stuff and came across a 50 round box of 45 auto that looks to be WWll military ammo. Would this still be safe to shoot? Or would it possibly have a value to a collector? Hope I posted this in the correct forum, if not please remove. Thanks

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I'd shoot it

 

[Obturation]

Should be ok, headstamp have a year?
I used to have a buddy who would sell me 45 acp surplus for $20 a shovel full. It was mixed, old and pretty dirty. I put mountains of that stuff through a Sig 1911, never had an issue. Method of storage would be my only concern. If there isn't any corrosion try it. Doubt theres much collector value but I'm no expert on that.

 

[Jim Watson]

Chlorate primers, wet clean.

 

[748]

I have shot barely post ww2 45 ammo, worked fine.

 

[Odd Job]

If it is factory ammunition, the box may be of interest to a cartridge collector. Before shooting it, I would join the cartridge collectors forum and post a photo of the box.
They will tell you what it is worth (see my signature for a link to that forum).

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Safe? Most definitely.

WWII or Korea in the box... even some of the Vietnam era? Collector value beyond new factory loadings for sure.

Nope, don't shoot it. Sell it to a collector and then buy 3 times as much - at least - of "shooter" ammo.

Being a 50 round box - it is probably not, but - be certain that it is not FA-42 stamped. That's worth premium money over almost any other WWII .45 as it is what was supposed to have been used, solely, for the FP-45 Liberator pistol.

Todd.

 

[jonnyc]

"Collector value beyond new factory loadings for sure."
"Nope, don't shoot it. Sell it to a collector and then buy 3 times as much - at least - of "shooter" ammo."

Do you guys have any clue how much .45 ammo was made during WWII??? No, unless it has some odd colored tip, or the box says "EXPERIMENTAL" on it, the ammunition has no collector value at all, and it is actually worth less than current shooting ammo.

 

[JeeperCreeper]

I shoot my garbage through a HiPoint.

Great sacrificial platform.

But I dunno how collectible it would be without a box or dates to back up the age and such.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

"Collector value beyond new factory loadings for sure."
"Nope, don't shoot it. Sell it to a collector and then buy 3 times as much - at least - of "shooter" ammo."

Do you guys have any clue how much .45 ammo was made during WWII??? No, unless it has some odd colored tip, or the box says "EXPERIMENTAL" on it, the ammunition has no collector value at all, and it is actually worth less than current shooting ammo.

That's got to be one of the most completely incorrect statements I've ever read on THR.

I have made good money for over 20 years by NOT shooting GI ammo.

Todd.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

I shoot my garbage through a HiPoint.

Great sacrificial platform.

But I dunno how collectible it would be without a box or dates to back up the age and such.

I sell individual 1911 loaded cartridges to collectors at shows and never for less than a dollar each.

Todd.

 

[TikkaShooter]

I have a bunch of WWII .45 ACP. Every once in a while, I shoot some and it still goes bang with zero F2F so far.
After Vietnam, I was a combat arms instructor. For the sake of cleanliness, I had the OCS types police up all the fired brass (7.62, .30 CAL) and delivered it to my father for reloading.

I sell individual 1911 loaded cartridges to collectors at shows and never for less than a dollar each.

Todd.

Many thanks, my friend. As I didn't know it was worth that much..

 

[crest117]

If it means anything, the box this ammo is in reads 50 cartridges, PISTOL BALL caliber .45 M1911 AMMUNITION LOT E. C. S___ S25247 EVANSVILLE ORDNANCE PLANT The head stamp on the cases appears to be E C S 43 I assume this means it was manufactured in 1943.

 

[tark]

Here is an old box of 45 ammo I have. Notice the seal isn't broken. That is very important to collectors. I have no idea when this stuff was made. There are no markings on the box other than what you see and I'm not about to break that seal to learn more.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

If it means anything, the box this ammo is in reads 50 cartridges, PISTOL BALL caliber .45 M1911 AMMUNITION LOT E. C. S___ S25247 EVANSVILLE ORDNANCE PLANT The head stamp on the cases appears to be E C S 43 I assume this means it was manufactured in 1943.

So then, is it steel cased?

I'd sell that in very good shape for $45-60 depending upon what show I'm at and how motivated I am.

Todd.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Here is an old box of 45 ammo I have. Notice the seal isn't broken. That is very important to collectors. I have no idea when this stuff was made. There are no markings on the box other than what you see and I'm not about to break that seal to learn more.

I wouldn't open it either. Collectors will know it by lot #. I'm guessing interwar.
A lot of times with these 20 rd boxes, you can see partial headstamps by looking carefully under that top flap.

Todd.

 

[jonnyc]

That's got to be one of the most completely incorrect statements I've ever read on THR.

I have made good money for over 20 years by NOT shooting GI ammo.

Todd.

Then, sir, you sell trash as gold to fools who are not cartridge collectors, but apparently get "schooled" by unscrupulous hucksters who live to rip-off the uninitiated. I am very knowledgeable about cartridge collecting and cartridge value, and stand by my previous statement. I have walked by plenty of hustler tables at gunshows and laughed repeatedly at all the "rare", "unknown", "exotic", and "valuable wartime" ammo I see. Just because you have it, and have sold it at 3 to 4 times its value, to the ignorant who believe what you say, does not in any way make WWII .45 ACP ammo a scarce or valuable collectible.
Thanks for your service to cartridge collecting, and from all the widows who have had to shovel tons of worthless junk out of basements, left there by their husbands who were convinced by others that their junk was valuable to collectors.

 

[Dudedog]

Something is only worth what someone will pay for it.

If I have something that I think is worth $100 and I can easily sell it for $100 then I would say it's worth $100....

How much would a bottle of water be worth to a thirsty man stuck in the middle of Death Valley on a summer day?
Things may have value above their Intrinsic worth for various reasons.
If I am at a show and see some WWII .45 ammo that I want that is $50 it may only be worth $5 but it might be worth it to me to pay the extra $45 because it is available right then,
because it filled a hole in my collection (if I had one), just because I just thought it was neat, or for whatever reason
If the buyer and the seller are both happy I don't see any "rip-off"

A WIZBANG .378 Super Zinger that they only made 5 of might be worth $10,000 to a collector, to me it would only be worth what I could easily sell it for...

 

[Mk VII]

That steel-cased stuff has some curiosity value for those who are that way inclined.
If the powder has started to breakdown, it will corrode the steel from the inside, and you can't tell from looking at it (unless it's already rusted thru)

 

[gunlaw]

I’ve fired 303 British from WW1 or older. Shoots fine but need to clean for corrosive.

 

[scythefwd]

As long as the cases aren't tarnished should be safe to shoot. Probably corrosive primes, clean accordingly

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Then, sir, you sell trash as gold to fools who are not cartridge collectors, but apparently get "schooled" by unscrupulous hucksters who live to rip-off the uninitiated. I am very knowledgeable about cartridge collecting and cartridge value, and stand by my previous statement. I have walked by plenty of hustler tables at gunshows and laughed repeatedly at all the "rare", "unknown", "exotic", and "valuable wartime" ammo I see. Just because you have it, and have sold it at 3 to 4 times its value, to the ignorant who believe what you say, does not in any way make WWII .45 ACP ammo a scarce or valuable collectible.
Thanks for your service to cartridge collecting, and from all the widows who have had to shovel tons of worthless junk out of basements, left there by their husbands who were convinced by others that their junk was valuable to collectors.

You've clearly got a hell of a bug up there.

When a fella has a particular dated 1911 or 1917 and I am able to provide him with a single round, a full magazine or even a complete box with a corresponding date... and he walks away seriously jazzed - I in fact DO feel like I've provided a service buy protecting that ammo from some clown who thinks that it has no value.

It should also be noted that around half of what I sell is sold to dealers indicating a *below market value* cost on my part.

Here's a little tip. Try to never show ignorance in general and offensive ignorance in particular by doubling down on something that you either don't know anything about or refuse to learn about.

Todd.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

That steel-cased stuff has some curiosity value for those who are that way inclined.
If the powder has started to breakdown, it will corrode the steel from the inside, and you can't tell from looking at it (unless it's already rusted thru)

The *zinc* coating does a very fine job of protecting it, fortunately.

Todd.

 

[tark]

I wouldn't open it either. Collectors will know it by lot #. I'm guessing interwar.
A lot of times with these 20 rd boxes, you can see partial headstamps by looking carefully under that top flap.

Todd.

Can't seem to find a lot # anywhere on the box.....and I know there HAD to be one. It may have faded out. That box looks like it may have spent some time sitting in the sun, everything on it looks faded out.

I gave ten bucks for it years ago at a gun show. I figure that's about what it's worth. I keep it around just because it is a neat looking old box of ammo.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Can't seem to find a lot # anywhere on the box.....and I know there HAD to be one. It may have faded out. That box looks like it may have spent some time sitting in the sun, everything on it looks faded out.

I gave ten bucks for it years ago at a gun show. I figure that's about what it's worth. I keep it around just because it is a neat looking old box of ammo.

22115 is the lot number of the 20 round box.
Serious collectors will know the contents without opening it. There are a few collectors' organizations on the internet that might help you out.

I found some 50 rd boxes of lot number 22180 that were WRA-45 though lot numbers can sometimes be a bit tricky.

Todd.