Ammo disposal


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Old 11-14-16, 01:49 PM
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Ammo disposal

I'm tearing down an old house that had been on fire. I've found some burnt ammo. So far I've come across a dozen rifle rounds and a few 22s. I don't know how much is soot and how much is scorched along with some rust. What is the best way to dispose of the ammo?
 
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Old 11-14-16, 02:27 PM
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Take it to a shop or range and let someone else be the person trying them out. Your local law enforcement may also accept them.

If there's actual rust (on the .223 I'd guess) they are steel cased rounds and are only good for the trash now, most likely.
 
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Old 11-14-16, 02:43 PM
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I called the police when I moved in here and they came and took all the old ammo and some blasting caps the old owner left here.
 
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Old 11-14-16, 08:58 PM
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When I said "only good for the trash" I didn't mean the actual trash. I meant the shouldn't be given away to someone or test fired.
 
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Old 11-15-16, 03:10 AM
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They might be .223, my oldest son has one and I thought the rounds looked kind of familiar BUT I don't trust them and sure don't want anyone to get hurt [especially my son] I've also found quite a few casings although I don't know if they were that way before or because of the fire. I've still got a lot of work to do tearing down the house but when I get done I'll see what the sheriff dept says.

Hope we get some significant rains soon! Currently they aren't issuing any burn permits
 
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Old 11-15-16, 05:31 AM
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If you drop the rounds into a solvent like a penetrating oil the oil will seep into the rounds and contaminate the powder and also the primer components. Just let them soak. Then if you want just remove the projectile, dump all the stuff out and discard.
 
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Old 11-15-16, 06:34 AM
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Welcome to the forums skipsmith!

Would motor oil work or does it need to be a penetrating oil? I could add a solvent to the motor oil if needed.
 
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Old 11-15-16, 07:12 AM
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Why not call the local HazMat department. That's what the're there for.
 
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Old 11-15-16, 07:41 AM
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Mark - if you go the oil root, you do want a penetrating oil, as what skipsmith suggested is based on the idea you never want to lubricate a weapon with penetrating oil if it's going to be left loaded, since that can ruin the ammunition by the process mentioned.

I happen to use Kroil to clean and lubricate mine if they're going to be stored empty but I would doubt that's a brand you would happen to have on hand.
 
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Old 11-15-16, 09:27 AM
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Other than the yearly [?] hazmat disposal weekend I'm not aware of any hazmat office in my county. I'll probably call the sheriff's office and see what they say AFTER I get the house all torn down and piled up ...... no sense in trying to dispose of the ammo twice - if I run across more.

Fire is a funny thing. In the closet under the stairs were dozens of VCR tapes, most were melted to one degree or another except for a stack of south park tapes which appeared to be in perfect condition. Except for the clean soot free wood under those tapes I would have thought they were placed there after the fire.
 
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Old 11-15-16, 05:55 PM
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Sorry, I said .223 and now realized you never specified the rifle rounds.

And personally, I wouldn't trust the old soaking in oil or water thing.

Here's a link to an actual test of trying to disable primers on a loaded round. 6 weeks, no failures to fire. The Box O' Truth #39 - Oil Vs. Primers - The Box O' Truth

There are more pages out there and it basically boils down to "if you can't get the solvent/oil/water inside the case it's probably going to do nothing" except go bang when you pull the trigger.

Best bet is the local LE or even State troopers. Anyone with an EOD squad will probably take it. If none of those you must have a nice deep lake somewhere?
 
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Old 11-16-16, 02:57 AM
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I'm sure the large rounds are for a rifle, not sure I'd want to fire a pistol that would hold them

I'll see what the sheriff dept says after I get done and am reasonably sure I won't run across any more. Found more spent rounds yesterday. ..... .. I think I'm too old for all this hard work
 
 

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