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Long term brass care

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12 January 2004, 15:30
sharps54
Long term brass care
Are there any special precautions I should take to store brass? I recently bought 500 cases for my 416 Remington and plan to only use 50 at a time. It may take me a while to get to some of the stored brass (I am kinda hoping this will be a long term or life time supply) but I wasn't sure if I need to do anything special when I store the other brass. I am using Midway's 50 rd plastic boxes and they are in the spare room of the house, is there anything else I should do?
Jason
12 January 2004, 16:37
Bob338
Pollutants in the air probably are the most harmful things for brass in the long term. I keep my "lifetime" supply of brass in Ziploc bags. They're a bit more air proof than the cartridge boxes.
12 January 2004, 16:44
Paul Brasky
Moisture's a big problem as well. If they turn green, you know it's too humid! Also, no matter how well you care for it, brass will become brittle with age. After perhaps 10-15 years, depending on the brass & storage conditions, you should anneal the necks before using it. ...Maven
12 January 2004, 17:55
beemanbeme
News to me. I've fird ammo from WW2 with no problems and then reloaded it with no problems...............?
12 January 2004, 23:18
Chuck White
I keep my "EXTRA" brass in vacuum seal bags! As long as they don't get any holes in them, I know that they are air tight!
13 January 2004, 07:04
Paul Brasky
I was given a quantity of virgin WCC 45 .30-06 ball ammo, which I use for cast bullet loads. After two firings (1,750fps) several necks split. I then annealed them and haven't had another split neck since. Some of this brass has been fired +8x. ...Maven
13 January 2004, 13:10
beemanbeme
Shows you're never too old to learn somethin' new.
15 January 2004, 14:15
sharps54
Thanks for the advise, I will switch to ziplock bags for long term storage.
Jason