What should I do with this ammo???

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passintime

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I just purchased a new home and was taking the dog for a walk. We rounded the side of the house and came across this pile of ~125rds of 40S&W.

It appears to be factory loaded, Speer target rounds.

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All of it appears to be in acceptable condition. The pile was surely NOT there when we had the house inspected prior to closing. So, what should I do with it? Shoot it or toss it?
 
Err on the side of caution

I would certainly hesitate to shoot ammo I know nothing about. The rounds look fine but you just don't know for sure what's in them. They could be anything from hot hand-loads to off the shelf stuff. They probably are just as they seem but what if there not. I would err on the side of caution. If you reload I would probably pull the bullets and reload them with my choice of powder in a light load just in case they have magnum primers.
 
If you don't reload, and don't know anyone who reloads, give it to the local PD and let them deal with it.

Have you considered it may have been dumped there as the result of a burglary??
 
Sleuth, I have. I have no idea how long it has been there. We closed in late November. It snowed and this pile would have been under the snow. Several mild days (until last night!) have resulted in the snow to melt, leaving this behind. They all were pretty wet.

Also, I do not reload.
 
It looks good and like factory ammo, but hand loads in virgin brass look like factory loads too. If it was very old the brass would have patina. Too bad you don't have a bullet puller and powder scale.

Maybe Sleuth's idea of contacting the police might be a good one. It is possible that it was not the previous home owner who dumped them, but a burglar.
 
I'd be suspicious myself. Never know if someone fixed one or more of them by pulling the bullet and double dosing it with Bullseye before reseating the bullet. Any one of my guns is worth more than some free ammo. So are my fingers and face.
 
I would never shoot a round that I don't know where it came from or who made it. If you have a reloader friend try to give them away. Being that many were lying around the home ower more than likely threw them away.
 
Heck, Ill take it if you decide you wont use it. Id love to do some research on the brass itself since you say its been hnder snow n wet n such. I live in sunny Phoenix,AZ and would love to take it to a class/group i attend that does some ballistics and scientific testing on ammunitions and metals. So,if you aren't interested let me know. Id be glad to assist. Ill send you ammo boxes to pack if need be and some s&h if needed as well. P/m me if u would like further info. Be safe. TC1


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Maybe during Santas travels, some of his ccw backup ammo fell off tha sleigh. Heheh. Happy New Years Everyone


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Tacticool, I have plenty of brass that has been left out on my range under the snow. I am looking for the exact conditions that cause brass to turn black, as much of mine does after a period left outdoors.

I live in AZ, but up in the mountains. We still have snow from the first storm, almost a month ago - it's been a cold year.

I doubt anyone intentionally 'booby trapped' any of those rounds, but they could be the product of a careless reloader. A good friend passed away, and his widow gave me a bunch of his loaded ammo. I tried a few - bang, poop, POW! I salveged all the primed brass & bullets, dumped the powder.
 
When I was about 12-13 years old, my father was in the Air Force and was transfered to Ellison AFB. We rented a house on Badger (6 mile) road.

In the basement we found a 55 gal drum about half full of surplus '06 ammo. My father went to special services and checked out a Model 70 in 30-06. My brothers and I commenced to empty that drum. The old ammo worked fine, but by the time it was gone, so was the barrel of the Model 70.

Your ammo looks pretty good, and looks like factory from the pictures. Upon looking closer, and I couldn't find signs it had been reloaded, I'd shoot the stuff and reload to brass to suit me.

Its not that hard to tell if ammo has been reloaded or not.
 
Not worth the chance.

According to my buddy, these look like reloads to him. Just not worth taking a chance and shooting. Ya just can't trust something like this. Find a buddy that reloads and he will know what to do with them. .... ;)


Be Safe !!!
 
Well , I suppose the UPS dude could have dropped a 'bulk pack' ordered by someone on his route and it broke open. :confused:
 
In this day and age... box it up and take it to the local PD and tell them where you found it. I would not consider shooting unknown reloads!! Just my tqo Centavos...
 
Don't gamble. You never know where it's from. Is it really enough to go have it checked by a reloader? I look at it with utmost caution... even though they're all likely the same load, there's a possibility that they're not.

And, again, you don't know where they came from. Even though the odds are extremely slim, there's always the possibility that they could have been used in a crime (ammo of the same batch) or something of that nature. Very unlikely, still possible. When you think about it, there aren't many explanations for this anomaly. I'd say give them to the police.
 
I would plant them in the ground around the house. Clearly they fell off an ammo tree and you should be able to grow new ones by planting them.


Or a giant bean stalk.
 
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