Majja Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 I finally got around to going through a bunch of reloading stuff my grandfather had, that has been put up on a shelf in my garage for years. And there is a brick of primers and various packs of primers in this box. I was wondering are they still good to use most are rifle primers but there are a few packs of lg pistol. My guess is they are from the 80's. Thanks Majja Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
echotango Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 I used primes from the 70's and 80's from my father in law with no issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmob50 Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Should be fine, not sure how the humidity would affect them being in an uncontrolled climate though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majja Posted May 15, 2015 Author Share Posted May 15, 2015 Well this is Utah, we get a bit damp on occasion but for the most port people around here have no idea what humidity is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racknrider Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Load a couple in some empty shells and see if they ignite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterthefish Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 (edited) Nope. Cool dry place they'll be good for as long as you're alive. Lead-free primers not so much. Edited May 15, 2015 by peterthefish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi-Power Jack Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 My guess is they are from the 80's. 1980's are good, 1880's Not So Much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 My guess is they are from the 80's. 1980's are good, 1880's Not So Much. Jack, is that experience talking? I had no idea you were that old! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reshoot Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 My guess is they are from the 80's. 1980's are good, 1880's Not So Much. Jack, is that experience talking? I had no idea you were that old! Yeah, that is a very telling post, Grump! I use primers from the late 70's, that were always stored in a cool, dry place. They are 100% Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadowrider Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 Stored between 50 and 90 degrees at 35% humidity they won't go bad in a couple of lifetimes, maybe longer. When you get over 130 degrees it starts changing slowly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 1961 shoot just fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gng4life Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 I've heard the lead-free have a shelf life of about 5 years. I have some that is about 5-6 years old so I'm going to test that theory sometime soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walnut Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 (edited) Speaking from personal experience, I had bought a old stock case of Rem 5 1/2 primes before the "insanity," severel years ago, The went bang everytime, but I was getting mystry carbon build up around the the primer pocket edge, I shoot a couple of hundred of them and they worked great. HOWEVER, I went home to clean my guns, my AR 9mm, 1911 9mm and my M&P 9mm had significate eroision damage on the breech face from leaking gas. I contacted Remington and supplied them the Lot# and pics of the damage guns. They tested my loads, and they were within spec, so overload was not an issue. They informed me that they had a lot of primers from the late 80's to mid 90's that had primer cups that would age harden and crack when shot. It affected only 1 1/2 and 5 1/2 primers sizes Light loads or heavy loads, the primer cup shoulder would crack and leak gas. In the end Remington did not repair my guns due to the age of the primers (1992 Lot if my memory serves me correctly). However they did send me two free cases of primers for my trouble. They were really nice about it, 20 year old primers are a bit out of the warrenty period. But to this day I won't shoot old stock Remington until I call to check the lot and check the primer anvil. If it has 4 wings, it is the bad lot that has age harden, the newer 3 wing style are safe to use. However, I would buy them and call Remington, they said they will always do an exchange. Sad part, I had 500ish rounds loaded up with the bad primers. In the end, I gave them to a friend who is a cop, who then gave them to bomb guys to disposed of. . . . . .I didn't want them around to accidently find there way back into my gun or anyone elses. Edited May 24, 2015 by Walnut Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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