[Cyn71]

I've been trying to research the answer to my question but it's been hard to find. I stumbled across this forum in the course of my research and thought maybe I could acquire some help here.

I'm trying to find out whether an old loaded handgun (say, from around the 1940s/late 1930s or something) that has been kept in storage would still be able to fire those bullets (let's say, about 40-45 years later).

If one tried to fire such a gun, what would happen if the bullets or gun were to fail? Would it just click? Would it jam? Or would it make some sort of noise? Would it eventually - after a couple/few tries - be able to successfully shoot one of the bullets? Or none of the above?

These questions undoubtedly seem strange - it's probably why I couldn't find the answer to my question with a simple Google. At any rate, the reason for these questions is because I've written a novel and I've gotten to the point in my 2nd draft where I want to use a scenario like what I described above. However, since I don't know much about how effectively handguns kept in storage for decades can actually work, I was hoping some more knowledgeable folks could give me a few tips or at least point me in a direction where I can find some answers.

ETA: I apologize in advance if I've posted this in the wrong location on the forum. This seemed like the relevant place; it it's not, I'll put it elsewhere.