thanks for looking. im new to this site. I use to reload some years ago and am slowly getting ready to do some reloading again. my question is there a shelf life for powder? I have several containers that are several years old and would like to know if they would be safe to use.
Thanks Again
You are welcome and welcome to the forum. If you have kept the powder at a pretty constant temperature and stored properly, it should last for years. I had about a 10 year period that I did not actively reload, the powder (unique and bullseye) was still good when I started back up.
Thanks
powder has been stored at a pretty constant temp. most of the powder is unopened. powder that has been opened looks good if that means anything.
Thanks Again
I have Red Dot and Unique that has been stored in garage for over 25 years and they are as good as the day the left the factory. When powder goes bad, you KNOW it.
The smell is supposed to be different for bad powder. If you get some that is bad just spread it on the flower beads as it is an excellent fertilizer.
I read once that Hercules who at one time sold Bullseye had a supply of the powder used to compare to current lots. That original powder supposedly was over 100 years old.
If there is any doubt about the powder then throw it away. Your time and effort are not worth wasting to find you just reloaded a bunch of duds. But in 30 years of reloading I have never had powder go bad. Some I use today is over 20 years old.
I have some Green Dot and Herco from the 70s that's been stored in my garage. I loaded up some 20 ga shells with it a while back and it seemed to preform just fine.
I'm in the same boat...loaded so much ammo for Y2K that I hadn't loaded since. Started in a couple months ago, using powder that I bought nlt '99. It all still works just fine (fyi the primers are good, too). Take care. Larry
Hercules kept some Unique under water and would remove some when magazines would ask about powder stability and shelf life and would dry out some of the powder and let them load and fire off some rounds and compare to new Unique. I think the powder was over 100 years old before the twenty-first century came around.
Yup. You'll find this stated in the ABC's of Reloading.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
The Firearms Forum
2.2M posts
71K members
Since 2003
A forum community dedicated to all firearm owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about optics, hunting, gunsmithing, styles, reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more!