Temp effects on brass during storage

Z

zeke

New member
Am looking at modifying living arrangements after retiring, and storing new brass cases in unheated garage. Maybe up to 2 years. Any negative affects from temp swings on the brass? Lowest temps around -30 f, highest maybe 90 f. Am not talking cartridges, just the brass.

Thanks for any insights, experience or advise.
 
Nope. So long as they aren't moist you'll be fine. Any doubt and just toss em in a sealed container (ziplock, coffe can with snap lid, old jars) with a couple of desicant packages, I just reuse ones that come im stuff I buy.
 
I found a gallon paint can full of brass that I put away in the mid 90's a few months back. No lid, just an open can in a dry basement. I dropped them in the tumbler and then loaded them up. They are working fine.
 
Never had temp or moist issues with mine...never any special handling when storing it. I was recently reloading some .223 brass brass that has been in paste board boxes in my garage for over 20yrs...polished up like new and shot like gangbusters.
 
Thanks all, it be appreciated. After being able to keep shooting through multiple shortages and preparing to retire, probably will never have to buy another case in this lifetime.
 
Zeke, temp swings won't hurt anything. What you might want to consider is condensation. If your container can "breathe" then there's no issue with that. If you intend to seal it, a desiccant pack won't be a bad idea.

Congratulations on your impending retirement!
 
The only temp swing issues I've had are with condensation (moisture).
Although the brass looked fine, the primers had corroded into the pockets and punched through instead of punching out.
I try to deprime before storage and no issues since then.
 
JeepHammer brings up a good point, make sure you decap them prior to storing them thru those Wisconsin summers and winters.

Don
 
Condensation is your only real issue in my view...put them in something where you get some air circulation / 5 gallong bucket or something...if it has a lid - punch some holes in it.

Dessicant bags...don't work very well / because once they saturate with moisture ( and it happens quickly - when it cools off on humid days ) then they give off their moisture / so you have more moisture inside box...

Plastic bags ...if they are sealed ...are moisture barriers but not air vapor barriers...so humid air passes thru the bag ..and it will condense as it cools off. Keep bags open ...if you have them in plastic bags inside a bucket or something.
 
BigJimP said:
Plastic bags ...if they are sealed ...are moisture barriers but not air vapor barriers...so humid air passes thru the bag ..and it will condense as it cools off. Keep bags open ...if you have them in plastic bags inside a bucket or something.
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That's simply not true. Typical household storage bags may leak at the zip lock, and they may be permeable to oxygen, but if they are sealed correctly they are not permeable to water either liquid or vapor. I store things more precious/sensitive than brass in plastic for years with desiccant and indicator strips with no issues.

The cheapest desiccant one may use is plain kitty litter dried in the oven. Put that in a brown paper bag and you have a great system.
 
Texas checking in ....central.... typical yearly variance (right now 14F outside) from 25F to 105F with humidity from 13% to 87%

I keep every thing inside one of the many climate controlled areas of the property....simply because it is common sense

For brass I tend to think NOT critical....during handling, culling, sorting, tumbling, sizing, and reload they are all going to come up to room temp, be consistent sizes and easy to work

Keeping primers and powder in climate controlled conditions is slightly more critical...for me......NOT so much bullets or brass

Regardless of the 6 total out buildings I have on the Micro Ranch property... 3 climate controlled and 3 subject to whatever the weather is.... I keep ALL reloading and actual firearms in 100% controlled environment... why not

At any given time I have 30,000 pieces of brass in many calibers... sorted and easy to find storage inside the climate controlled house

If you live in a 900SqFt apartment and must store components out side....choose the bullets and cases to be in the Wx.... primers and powders inside....Just my .000001999 cents worth of opinion
 
-30 as in thirty degrees below zero ?
I don't believe it will negatively affect brass but it would negatively affect me.
It was 15 degrees above zero here this morning in Baton Rouge Louisiana and me and the two cats are considering a move farther South.... -30 that's just insanity .
Gary
 
15 in Batton Rouge is nuts, I don't blame the cats, but where do you go when Florida is cold? California (grin)

The only issue with long term brass is it tarnishes. Maybe help if its sealed and desiccant in it.

On the other hand, as noted, some I have pulled out after 30 years I just tumbled and away we went.
 
Thanks again, none of this brass is once fired or primed. Just brand new un-primed brass. Powder, primers, bullets, fired cases and loaded rounds are staying inside. Will check to see if all are in plastic bags, and add desiccant packs (after drying em out) having been saving up.

We just went through several weeks where it did not get above 0 degrees Fahrenheit. Multiple nights down in -20's. Not that unusual to see several nights down in -30's. -40's getting rarer.

Just got back from road trip to new indoor range 24 miles away.
 
zeke wrote:
...storing new brass cases in unheated garage. Maybe up to 2 years. Any negative affects from temp swings on the brass?
Click to expand...

The temperature swings will have no appreciable effect on your brass.

What will have an effect on your brass are the changes in humidity that accompany those changes in temperature.

I have the somewhat unique experience of having had a large quantity of brass at various stages of being processed at the time I was afflicted with a neurologic condition that kept me away from my guns and reloading bench for two decades. So, I can comment on long-term storage in a garage in north Texas with temperature swings from 10 degrees to 120 degrees for years.

Without getting into all the details, the best results were fully processed brass stored in ammunition boxes where each case had its own compartment that was then stored in a sealed ammunition can. While all brass stored for 20 years suffered some deterioration that resulted in me deciding to no longer use it, brass stored this was lost less than 2%.

The worst results were unprocessed brass stored in a ziploc bag and left in a drawer in a cabinet next to the reloading bench. This suffered a loss rate of nearly 15%.

Sealed storage, individual compartments, use of dessicants all seemed to contribute to better outcomes.
 
Condensation usually only happens with quick temperature changes.
Desiccant packs require periodic changing/maintenance. Buy a vacuum sealer.
Start at $17.98US in Wally World.
 
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