doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Aging shotshells

SJ,
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Jager:

Yes, they're next to useless, me thinks. I use to be of the oppinion that 20G 3" @ 1-1/4 oz. shot was the equal of 12G 2-3/4 @ 1-1/4 oz. shot. My dad and I used the 20G 3" on North Dakota pass-shooting ducks with good results.

John

I just picked up 22 boxes of paper hull shells from a yard sale, majority of these are 28ga & 410. I knew they are quiet old but since most are still in factory carton I thought they should at least go "bang" to use in birddog training, I never considered pressure could be an issue. I’m so glad I came across this topic.

BuzzB,
You'd do well selling those on one of the auction boards for ammo collectors. Shoot'em if you like, but I'd go for the money.

I acquired a bunch of the roll-crimped Remington KleanBores when I found my Mod 1912 20 ga. Tried to shoot them at doves in my 686, and about half went "pop" instead of "bang." I'd try a few, but would be inclined to go for the cash at the next gun show in your area.

IMO for whatever it's worth it primarily has to do with storage conditions. If the ammunition was stored in a cool dry location it will probably function well. Stored under hot or wet conditions and that's a whole other matter.
I have and continue to use 45ACP amunition headstamped from the WW I(1917) period and it functions well. I managed to acquire several thousand rounds several years ago. It's not target grade by any means but I can still get reasonable groups with it.
I have a lot of 30-06 and 8MM ammo vintage WW II that is still reliable and not prone to problems.
I have, on the other hand, run across lots of this ammunition that wern't reliable but were loaded in the 60s or 70s. All I can attribute this to is improper storage.
Jim

I've shot some pretty old pistol and rifle ammo myself...I don't think it ages like shotgun ammo.

Good point HJ and I wonder if others can expand on this??
Jim

They are a legitimate collectors item. Go to wally world and buy some cheap shells to go pop and sell these to someone who will stroke them gently into the night. Jake

A few years back a local gun shop owner died and when his sons cleaned out upstairs one of the things they found was about 70 or 80 cases of winchester paper shotshells all #4 and #6 shot and all 20 gauge.They put a mountain of them in the middle of the shop floor and sold them for 1.00 per box "no warranty expressed or implied"! I promptly bought 400 boxes and was 2 years shooting them up. All but a very few worked fine and the few that didnt were just weak.I might mention I didnt use these for hunting just for play clays.