I put a Lilja barrel on a Sako action, in 22-250.

Put a Leupold 6.5-20 scope on.

I have several large plastic containers with previously loaded ammo.

These are partial boxes with most of the ammo is fired, but a few are left.

This is what I use when someone comes with a rifle and no ammo, to check zero etc.

Looking through the box, found an MTM box with 22-250 ammo loaded in 1987 with 52 grain Berger bullets.

I adjusted the scope, and decided to shoot 5 shots to see how the rifle shoots.

Got a group of 0.280"!!

The man who owns the rifle wants to know the load.

I have no idea, as the only thing written on the box is the date and bullet!!??

At least we know the rifle shoots!

My favorite load for the 22/250 is a max load of H380 52gr bullet.
I shoot both Berger and Sierra

34 year old ammo is like new to me.

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
34 year old ammo is like new to me.

I wish I was that old too

A couple of months ago a friend was asking when I was going to load my hunting ammo.

I told him just before I leave, so they are all fresh!

Ha, me too.

Yeah, I'll stick with Jack Benny + stay 39.

We were at a sailing club years ago.

I heard a woman who was over fifty tell someone that she was 23.

I said "is that the number of men you had last week, or in your life?"

She started chasing me on the beach, in front of everyone, screaming all sorts of insults at me.

A man from New Zealand shouted "settle down woman! Saeed likes them YOUNG!"

She changed directions and started after him.

To the uproar of everyone.

No harm was done, as we all knew each other well enough.

I bought lunch for the three of us, and started discussing a threesome!

One old lady got upset and left.

My New Zealand shouted at her "Hang about. We will give Denis a few beers, and he will be happy to chat you up!"

Denis is an Australian man, who was hardly ever without a beer in his hands!

Those were the days when no one took offence!

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
34 year old ammo is like new to me.

Only a foolish young whippersnapper would shoot ammunition which hasn't been aged properly.

My brother bought a pre-64 model 70 that had been rechambered in the then wildcat 25.06. The seller threw in the handloads that he had built for it in 1968.

My brother is still shooting those reloads.

If the powder was good then it should last indefinitely if properly stored. I shot some 1955 headstamp M2 .30-06 ball Sunday. It all went into 3 inches at 100 yds from a FN Columbian Mauser. After that I shot some 1996 reloads that did equally well.

My father brought back a box of .45 GI Ball from WW-II in 1945. I used to shoot a round once each year just to be able to say it was still good. But I realized a number of years ago that I was going to run out of the ammunition long before either it went bad, or I did. So now I only bring out a round about every five years. The last one I touched off went as squarely through the target as you would want. I'll be sure and chronograph the one scheduled for 2025.

I have some German 7.92 (8x57) headstamped H 1937 7.9. That makes it 84 years old, it still goes bang.

I have 8x57 Egyptian made 113 years old.

Have not shot any as I have no rifle for it.

But have opened some and used the powder for both 308 Winchester and 6 mm PPC!

Works great!

Realistically, if ammunition is stored properly the lifespan is many decades. If it's stored in airtight spam cans like you see for military ammunition, I'd have no issue firing it a century later!

I rummaged up some old paper hull 12ga shells from an antique store a while back. I bought them because of the olde tyme box they came in, but the shells appear to be in fine shape. No staining, corrosion, or weird smells. I'm going to take them to the range and see how they do on clays. Not sure when the industry stopped making paper shells in this country, but it's well before my time.

Paper shells went by the wayside pretty quick after plastics came out in the early 60s. They had been around since the 1870s when they replaced brass shells.

And there we go. That's what I like about this site - you learn stuff.

What's even neater is one of the 6 shells is a 2 5/8" game load. Never seen that before!

I've got 4-5 partial boxes of steel shot from about 1985 in the ammunition cabinet. I wonder if they have rusted into a solid clump that will blow my full choke duck barrel up if I shoot them.

I keep a ledger in my loading room that I list every new load with date, M.V. + who I loaded it for. One can't keep all that in one's head.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
I have 8x57 Egyptian made 113 years old.

Have not shot any as I have no rifle for it.

But have opened some and used the powder for both 308 Winchester and 6 mm PPC!

Works great!

No 8x57 ? Everybody should have at least one.

Saeed, I have shoes older than that! LOL. Brian