How to make safe corroded rifle reloads

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WmMunny

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I’ve got a bunch of highly corroded old IMR 4895 .308 reloads I’m trying to make safe for disposal. I pulled the bullets but the powder has semi-solidified and won’t loosen or dump out. .

If I soak the cases— in tap water, ocean water, WD40, motor oil, or something— for a week or two, would that permanently neutralize the powder and primers?
 
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Not really.
How big a bunch? I have thrown a few doubtful cartridges in the trash. Haven't heard of a garbage volcano at the landfill yet.
 
If I soak the cases— in tap water, ocean water, WD40, motor oil, or something— for a week or two, would that permanently neutralize the powder and primers?
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Most likely, but the best of the three would be oil of some sort. This assumes you've pulled the bullets as you stated. Rod
 
I like the idea of trying the vibratory tumbler, but here is another idea:

If the bullets are out of the case, why not chamber a round (outdoors of course) and squeeze the trigger? Even if the powder refuses to ignite the primer is almost surely live and it should do a fine job of blasting that powder wad out.

Of course you’d want to pull the bolt and get eyes on the bore to be sure.
 
Sevens said:
If the bullets are out of the case, why not chamber a round (outdoors of course) and squeeze the trigger? Even if the powder refuses to ignite the primer is almost surely live and it should do a fine job of blasting that powder wad out.
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I think this might be time to also read post #26 in this thread:
https://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=614825&page=2

Which describes some things that may be going on with corroded ammo and why firing may not be a good idea.
 
Fire PIT...burn barrel....and a bit of distance...:rolleyes:

With the bullets pulled, there is nothing to build pressure in the case. The powder will burn and the primers will pop (or not) without real risk to anyone, (assuming you're smart enough not to stand over the fire...)

Once burnt, its harmless, and if it doesn't burn, ...its not going to, so again, harmless.

alternate method, small stiff rod to insert into the case to break up the clumps, dump it out, toss it (the nitrates do good things for the lawn) a bit labor intensive, but will work.

tumbling the cases with stuck powder (with the bullets removed) might work. Might not work 100%. I'd recommend removing your usual tumbling media, first, if you're going to try that, though...
 
44 AMP said:
Fire PIT...burn barrel....and a bit of distance...:rolleyes:

With the bullets pulled, there is nothing to build pressure in the case. The powder will burn and the primers will pop (or not) without real risk to anyone, (assuming you're smart enough not to stand over the fire...)

Once burnt, its harmless, and if it doesn't burn, ...its not going to, so again, harmless.

alternate method, small stiff rod to insert into the case to break up the clumps, dump it out, toss it (the nitrates do good things for the lawn) a bit labor intensive, but will work.

tumbling the cases with stuck powder (with the bullets removed) might work. Might not work 100%. I'd recommend removing your usual tumbling media, first, if you're going to try that, though...
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True, but wouldnt a fire pit anneal the heads making the cases worthless?
 
There is a good chance the cases are worthless now, having been internally de-zincified by the acid from the powder breakdown. Per the other thread linked to, it isn't uncommon for them to become completely corroded-through when the powder is in this state.

I can think of more complicated disposal methods than fire, but none are worth the trouble since you can't count on salvaging anything. You could soak them in a strong baking soda solution to neutralize the acid to stop them from inducing rust or corrosion in the objects around them, and maybe it would fizz enough to drive some of the powder out. No guarantees, though, with the powder in a lump state. Soaking in acetone would eventually dissolve the powder. You could etch the cases off of the powder lumps with another acid. But all these things would cost money or possibly, with the exception of the baking soda solution, cause some other unwanted reaction. Fire is still best. You can also call your local fire department and see if they can take them for disposal. In some places, they will.
 
True, but wouldnt a fire pit anneal the heads making the cases worthless?
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The cases are corroded, they're already worthless.

Additionally, using a chemical solution, acid or whatever leaves you with the (hazardous) liquid to dispose of, as well.

Fire is simple, relatively safe and very effective. I wouldn't dump a bucket full of them in at once, (cause the burning powder might "flare" a bit and the primers might "pop") and you can rake the metal out of the ashes for recycle if desired.
 
Shadow9mm said:
Could you put them in an empty vibratory tumbler and shake the powder loose? Or wet tumble?
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Don't have a wet tumbler and I wouldn't be comfortable putting likely-compromised primers and powder in an expensive vibrator...

Sevens said:
If the bullets are out of the case, why not chamber a round (outdoors of course) and squeeze the trigger? Even if the powder refuses to ignite the primer is almost surely live and it should do a fine job of blasting that powder wad out.

Of course you’d want to pull the bolt and get eyes on the bore to be sure.
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I don't think I'd want to try to cam/force one of those green crudded-up monsters into my rifle...

44 AMP said:
Fire PIT...burn barrel....and a bit of distance...:rolleyes:

With the bullets pulled, there is nothing to build pressure in the case. The powder will burn and the primers will pop (or not) without real risk to anyone, (assuming you're smart enough not to stand over the fire...)

Once burnt, its harmless, and if it doesn't burn, ...its not going to, so again, harmless.

alternate method, small stiff rod to insert into the case to break up the clumps, dump it out, toss it (the nitrates do good things for the lawn) a bit labor intensive, but will work.

tumbling the cases with stuck powder (with the bullets removed) might work. Might not work 100%. I'd recommend removing your usual tumbling media, first, if you're going to try that, though...
Click to expand...
Thanks but I don't have a suitable burn location and wouldn't be comfortable pushing a rod down into the case.
 
If it was me, I would dig a 2 foot deep hole with the post hole diggers out in woods by a tree, pour them in and cover them up decomposes into good fertilizer. . If that violates some law I don't know about, don't do it.
 
Per post #1, he's already pulled the bullets. As I said before, he can probably drop them off at the local firehouse and they'll take care of it the way they usually will old, unwanted fireworks, but he'd have to call first. I looked to see if my state had any prohibition against munitions in a landfill, but I couldn't spot any, so your solution would be OK where I am, AFAIK.
 
Where I live, during the summer months there's a haz-mat drop-off every Saturday morning in the parking lot behind the municipal water company offices. They take pretty much anything. The OP might try Googling hazardous waste disposal for his geographic area.
 
I dispose of all the dud ammo at our range.
If you have pulled the bullets & the powder won't dump out it's probably Cordite type of powder. It will have a cardboard cover over the rod powder. Just pull the cardboard out of the case with a long needle & dump the powder it will look like this. The old .303 Brit has a lot of this.


 
IMR 4895 certainly isn't a rod powder like cordite and, as far as I know, .308 was never loaded with cordite powder, either commercially or in its 7.62x51 military configuration.

Decaying nitrocellulose powder can, in some instances, clump. I've found a couple rounds in my personal collection that have done so. In one, an old .30-30 Winchester from probably the 1920s, the powder had turned into a sticky VERY acrid smelling mess that ate its way through the case.
 
7.62 man said:
I dispose of all the dud ammo at our range.
If you have pulled the bullets & the powder won't dump out it's probably Cordite type of powder. It will have a cardboard cover over the rod powder. Just pull the cardboard out of the case with a long needle & dump the powder it will look like this. The old .303 Brit has a lot of this.


Click to expand...
He said the powder is IMR 4895 so that's not Cordite.

A friend bought a .303 Enfield rifle at a gun show in the 1980's. It came with a thousand rounds of ammo that was dated 1917. We had several that just went "Click", a few that went "Bang" and a majority that would go "Click" .............."Sizzle"..........."Bang".

It was scary stuff. I don't recall how he disposed of the ammo but he did. At the time we thught it might be cordite filled.
 
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