self defense ammo age?

I agree with some of the above folks that good, quality ammo can remain reliable for many years if stored properly. When I was in the military, our unit ammo was manufactured decades before, and used over the next several decades. I do not ever remember having a round of .45 ACP, 9mm, 5.56 or 7.62 fail; ever. We did not diferentiate between range and carry rounds, all were the same. My experience with military weapons is that cheap, abused magazines resulted in more range issues than faulty ammunition. And by the way, magazines & their springs are not designed to last forever, especially when fired and or remain loaded for years.

Start with high quality ammo, store it in a low moisture environment, keep it somewhat temperature controlled, and maintain your weapon & magazines.

In the end, do what makes you comfortable and what you can afford. I do not intentionally rotate ammo. As someone wrote above, my ammo will outlast me, because I buy only quality stuff and store it very well.

I say keep the ammo and spend that saved money on new magazines and the occasional gunsmith inspection/tune-up.
 
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I do not worry about the age of my ammunition. I have fired factory rounds that were 40 years old without any problem.
I am careful to segregate the rounds that I have cycled a couple of times, measure their length, and set them aside for the range.

So ammunition will last me many years.

Regards,
Jerry
 
My daddy has some shells he reloaded at least 13 years ago he still keeps in his S&W highway patrolman .357. He also still has a box and a half of the same rounds.
I asked him one day why dont he shoot them up and load some more. Told me he hasnt loaded a box of shells to this day that shoot like them do. He shot three at about 40 yards to show me one day. Ever one was touchin. His factory rounds were maybe inside a solo cup. I didnt ask anymore questions.

I have had the same shells in my G17 for about a year now. I have shot maybe three out of the clip here and there. ( hog twice, and think I shot a gar at the river)
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Odd. I handload for accuracy, and handloads are very easy to duplicate once an accurate system of components is assembled.

Daryl
 
For those of you that are answering 6 months to years I have a question for you?
How often do you shoot those guns with what you carry?
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Damn near every day, minimum 200 rounds a week out of my 642 pocket revolver.

Ammo, if kept dry will last almost indefinitely. The CMP sells surplus ammo that's over 50 years old, never heard of any that didn't work.

My ammo normally doesn't last long, but its because of kids and grandkids shooting it no because it goes bad.
 
For those of you that are answering 6 months to years I have a question for you?
How often do you shoot those guns with what you carry?
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I tested a box when I first got my gun, they feed proper, why do I need to keep testing? I cannot keep paying $30 for 50 rounds its just too much. $27 gets me 100 rounds more fun.

I shoot my carry gun about 3~4 times a year, why do I want to wear it out with high round counts? Buy a extra in the same model if you really enjoy your carry gun and wear that one out.
 
9mm; i'm with you on buying a second gun, especially when your carry gun is also a fun to shoot gun. My LCP is my favorite carry gun, as well as I love to shoot it. I've put about 400 rounds through it, trust it, and will not shoot it so much anymore. I will buy a second LCP as my practice gun, and only carry the first one, as it is proven in my eyes.
 
9mm said:
I shoot my carry gun about 3~4 times a year, why do I want to wear it out with high round counts? Buy a extra in the same model if you really enjoy your carry gun and wear that one out.
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If you manage to "wear out" a quality carry gun in your lifetime, I'll be impressed.

And if you do, the cost of a new gun will seem very small in comparison to the price of the ammo it takes to do that; even if you do it with the cheapest ammo you can find.

The gun I shoot the most will invariably be the one I shoot the best. This does result in higher round count for the gun, but that in no way detracts from it's effectiveness as a carry gun. My handguns are well maintained, but they all show holster wear and signs of being shot and handled a lot.

I've spent time in a lot of hunting camps in several states and a couple different countries, and one thing I've noticed that seems to be universal. There's usually one or two fellas who have an old rifle of some kind, well worn, and obviously shot and carried a lot. There's oft-times also a new guy who's packing the latest whizbang rifle he bought last month, and he brags a bit about it's capabilities over that old guy's rifle.

But guess which one ends up with meat on the pole, and who ends up eating tag soup more often than not?

Same concept applies. The fella who shoots his gun the most knows how to use it best. The one who's gun doesn't have a scratch or wear mark on his gun may not be quite as good with it.

I have no use for a gun that won't stand up to regular use (that includes regular shooting, too).
 
I know people who put over 20,000 rounds through their 92fs/m9, the gun is very good, but it has problems around the 20k mark with lock barrel or something? I would not want to fire that one round in a self defence situation and have my gun fail on me. There was also a guy with a Glock with 50k rounds through it, replaced the recoil springs on the 25k marks. Now I do not see myself shooting 20k~25k rounds thats just $1,000's in ammo. But the more you shoot a gun the more it wears out.
 
I don't really care if my guns wear out. They are just tools, and easily replaced. I do not consider wear when I want to shoot.

I agree that by the time a gun is worn out the cost of ammo far exceeds the cost of a new gun. If you can afford to shoot it that much you can afford to buy a new gun.

Regards,
Jerry
 
The ammo in the 357 sitting in the nightstand is probably about 10 years old. When the gun goes to the range or to the woods with me, the expensive factory ammo that is in it gets taken out and handloads go in it. They shoot to the same POI so I see no reason to shoot up the expensive stuff and have to buy more. If there were any reason to question it, I would replace it but there isn't.
 
I equate worn as "could be better." If I have a choice, I'm taking my best gun to a gunfight. But, to each his own.

9mm; I wish I could jack your zombie quote, it's a good one.
 
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