[greatzippy]

I tried searching and couldn't find exactly what I'm looking for



Basically I keep 4 fully loaded mags on Federal EFMJ in the house for defense and was wondering how long the basic ammo shelf life is (the mag usually get unloaded & reloaded 1-2 times a month).



I keep everything in a drawer that doesn't have any type of heat source near it and the AC is on the other side of the room, plus I have 2 small packs of Silica gel in the drawer to help keep any moisture under control.



My guess is that ammo should last a fairly long time the way I'm keeping it but I just wanted to ask .... wouldn't want to end up in a situation that required a trigger pull & nothing happens due to prolonged storage.



========================================================



Also, what's your take on this stuff;

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/template...&hasJS=true



I'm would assume that the ammo mentioned above would already have sealed primers .... at least it sorta looks like it to me anyway. I've seen some cases that have red around the primer which I would guess is some other type of sealant .... the primers on this stuff appear as if there's a clear yet shiny coating. Would adding this stuff aid in keeping the ammo stored longer??

 

[Highlander]

I am certainly no expert on this, but do have a little experience. I have recently shot several hundred rounds of .38 and 9mm that were over 25 years old. I did not have a single problem with any of them. I had stored this ammo in metal military ammo cans in household temperatures. I have been told that ammo that is protected from moisture and temperature extremes will last almost indefinitely.

I also have been told that ammo that has sealed primers is best because the usual failure mode is moisture seeping into the primer.



Having said all that, I still only carry new stuff in my CCW pieces. Anyway that is my .01 worth.

 

[G56]

Ammo lasts quite a long time if it's stored under reasonable conditions, if you look around you can still find a lot of surplus ammo from WW2 still being sold, unfortunately it's in the odd calibers, there isn't any US GI stuff left.



For defense use ammo should really be replaced at least every couple of years, most police departments change their ammo out every few months, and back when I was a Deputy we changed ammo every 3 months, and I shot up the old stuff for practice.



Sealants aren't really necessary under the type of conditions you are going to see, if you regularly hunt in the rain, or under other terrible conditions that might be a good idea, but I wouldn't expect rainy conditions inside your house.

 

[Highlander]

There is an interesting article on "Taking Care of Ammo" in the Sept/Oct issue of American Handgunner p. 68.

 

[chilewhat]

They have a pretty good shelf life. the only problem i have had is over handling some rounds and watching them turn brown. Mainly WWB.

 

[mikenkansas]

I'm not sure I'd trust most military surplus over 40 years old in an emergency situation. Wait a a sec... ok, make that over 50 years old. Commercial stuff you might want to change out more often, every 20 years?

 

[raz-0]

newer ammo is even more stable than the old stuff for the most part. It's also helped by the fact that most bullets are kept in with glue these days that's of a nice modern design and creates a pretty good seal.



I wouldn't worry about them going bang unless they sit for quite some time.