Thread: Disposal of old ammo?

Ok, so i pulled out and looked at some old military surplus ammo that i have been storing for the past 10 years. About 1 in 4 cartridges has what appears to be corrosion? Light green stuff on the casings....perhaps 5-10% coverage on the ones that have it...is that the lead?
I separated these from the ones that still appear ok.
Are these now unsafe to use?
Should i look into disposal?
And if I do need to get rid of it... where does one dispose of old ammo like this?

The green corrosion is from the brass, not the lead.

have had rounds for many years that are ok. As long as they have been stored in a cool dry place, you should be good to go.

You could dispose of it in the back of my truck. But it's just discolored brass- take some out and shoot it.

Thanks guys. That is a relief....have just gotten back into the hobby after 15 years of having these guns/ammo stored so is nice to know the ammo should still be ok!

I think most ammo will last a lifetime or longer if it's stored properly.

What type of ammo? I have picked 7.62X39 up out of puddles covered in rust and shot it through my cheap ak.

Originally Posted by korntera

What type of ammo? I have picked 7.62X39 up out of puddles covered in rust and shot it through my cheap ak.

That is what it is...i bought it 17 years ago when i got my SKS....fired off about 70 rounds and stored the gun and ammo ever since..in a cool dry basement.
Was just surprised when i was inventorying it recently and found a quarter of it oozing a bluish/green substance...

Originally Posted by KENOC

That is what it is...i bought it 17 years ago when i got my SKS....fired off about 70 rounds and stored the gun and ammo ever since..in a cool dry basement.
Was just surprised when i was inventorying it recently and found a quarter of it oozing a bluish/green substance...

Oozing?? THAT might not be good. Case discoloration is one thing but if it's "oozing" a liquidy substance THAT is another thing entirely! Be careful.

Please check out the ones mainly to the far right or upper center row on this pic. The 'substance' is mostly coming from the seems where the casing and bullet meet.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_k07pirzBU3...400/DAG762.jpg

So......the final verdict..ok to use or no?

Wipe or scrape off the crud and see what is under it.It looks to me like is is just the same stuff brass gets on it when stored in a leather holder.If you dont want to shoot it give it to me,I will.

Not sure whether your ammo is ok or not, but I've disposed of old ammo (stuff that I can't shoot anymore because I sold the gun or whatever) at my range. They'll sometimes have a bucket for duds and old stuff. I'm sure it gets picked-through, but better someone else mess with it than me.

I have some .308 just like that. Shoots just fine through my G3 machine gun.

I heard you can take most of the stuff off with a Scotch-Brite pad.

The ammo is still worth something to re-loaders if you don't want to shoot it.

They can pull the bullets, save the powder, and tumble the brass.

Originally Posted by KENOC

Ok, so i pulled out and looked at some old military surplus ammo that i have been storing for the past 10 years. About 1 in 4 cartridges has what appears to be corrosion? Light green stuff on the casings....perhaps 5-10% coverage on the ones that have it...is that the lead?
I separated these from the ones that still appear ok.
Are these now unsafe to use?
Should i look into disposal?
And if I do need to get rid of it... where does one dispose of old ammo like this?

You can send it all to me if you don,t want it.

The lovely classical name for brass corrosion is "vertigris", originally used to define the sad condition of disused knight's armor fittings. I think the word just means, "pale green stuff."

If there is more than what will come off easily with a scotchbrite pad, the case could be weakened and might split inside your gun's chamber.

I once bought a 500-round can of fifty-year-old .30-carbine military ammo. The loose ammo had been moved between several different cans, but generally well stored. Only a few rounds had spots of vertigris, which came off with a thumbnail. Not a single round failed to function perfectly, and were even loaded a bit "hot".......................elsullo

Originally Posted by KENOC

Please check out the ones mainly to the far right or upper center row on this pic. The 'substance' is mostly coming from the seems where the casing and bullet meet.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_k07pirzBU3...400/DAG762.jpg

So......the final verdict..ok to use or no?

Tough to see from the small pic but I what others have said is probably true... if it's just discoloration that comes off easily it's probably fine. If it's "liquid" or doesn't come off easily then it's probably not worth risking (weak case, "bad" powder that mixed with moisture at some point, etc.).

Originally Posted by ZeroRing

Oozing?? THAT might not be good. Case discoloration is one thing but if it's "oozing" a liquidy substance THAT is another thing entirely! Be careful.

No kidding, I draw the line at 'oozing'! Uzi ing is OK.

Give it a good wipedown and let the lead fly!

I've shot hundreds of rounds like this. It's aged like a fine wine!!!

Here is a larger pic..notice how most of it..whatever is is, is coming from the seem where the bullet and casing meet..

I think if you clean them they should be just fine. I doesn't look bad enough to have done damage to the casing.

Green scotch pad those and use em up!!!


Don't forget to rotate the round. You shouldn't feel/hear all the powder in the round shift at once. If you do then the powder got wet and clumped up.