Gunpowder - Any Such Thing as Too Old?

[qmurphy]

I've got a couple pounds of gun powder that are old, quite old I think. I'd guess them between 20-30 yrs. Powder is H4831.

I'm fairly confident that it has always been stored in a dry environment.

Any concerns with using it?

[ImpartialObserver]

Smell it, if it smells like ether it's good. Acidic smell dump it on your garden.

[Salavee]

If there is no rust on it and it smells OK, it will be just fine. I shot some H4831 from the 50's the other day and it performed like new.

[qwert]

Originally Posted by Salavee

If there is no rust on it and it smells OK, it will be just fine. I shot some H4831 from the 50's the other day and it performed like new.

What causes or is the fine rusty brown powder? I had some 3031 that smelled OK, but had fine rusty powder, I suspected that it was rust from the steel can. I poured it above a large container in a light wind to remove the rust, then tried it for cast/reduced loads. It burned, but produced inconsistent velocities.

[catnthehat]

Originally Posted by qwert

What causes or is the fine rusty brown powder? I had some 3031 that smelled OK, but had fine rusty powder, I suspected that it was rust from the steel can. I poured it above a large container in a light wind to remove the rust, then tried it for cast/reduced loads. It burned, but produced inconsistent velocities.

It starts breaking down when you see the rusty color in it.

I have had several batches of older 3031 do that as well.
Cat

[Battle Rat]

Load it and see what velocity you get out of it.

[qmurphy]

Originally Posted by catnthehat

It starts breaking down when you see the rusty color in it.

I have had several batches of older 3031 do that as well.
Cat

I think you are lying! I can't imagine you keeping powder around long enough for it to go bad.

[Tall Texan]

Originally Posted by Battle Rat

Load it and see what velocity you get out of it.

Don't load it if it smells off or has rust in it like everyone says. You may lose your head! I burnt a can of 4227 once that was bad and it almost exploded, scared the crap out of me.

[DaleJ]

Originally Posted by Tall Texan

Don't load it if it smells off or has rust in it like everyone says. You may lose your head! I burnt a can of 4227 once that was bad and it almost exploded, scared the crap out of me.

Deteriorated powder won't increase pressure. It will decrease pressure and velocity. Lower erratic velocity.

[Battle Rat]

Originally Posted by DaleJ

Deteriorated powder won't increase pressure. It will decrease pressure and velocity. Lower erratic velocity.

This is what I have found also.

[H4831]

I still have some bulk, WW2 surplus powder that Hodgdon's put on the market after WW2 and called it H4831.
I only have a pound or two left, but it is in perfect condition. When Hodgdon's ran out of their surplus H4831, I think in the 1970s, and started having it made for them and put up in one pound cans, I tested the old surplus against the newly manufactured. The instructions with the new powder was that one could use the same loading data as the old surplus.
I tested the old war surplus against the newly manufactured and found that the old surplus gave about a hundred feet per second faster velocity in a 270, as did the same load of the newly manufactured powder.
Within the last couple of years I have run the same test and the results were about identical, indicating that my old WW2 surplus powder is still in perfect condition!

[oilngas]

H4831; I can remember buying H4831 from Edmonton Custom Gun in the early 60's. Same deal surplus WW2 propellant. Brother, cousin n self purchased Safeway paper bags 3/4 full, if memory is correct about $10 each for our share. We used it for years, it never lost the Nitro smell, looked 100% and performed great I'd say for 30 years.

Mind you the performed "test" was pretty basic: bang holes in target sub MOA and bang flop in fall time with 140 gr. Sierras.

I settled on 67.5 grains in 7 mag. That old rifle still shoot sub moa in the hands of a shooter with 4831still 140 gr. but TTSX and I still pretty much bang flop occasionally.

As other have said in pervious posts, still love the hunting but do not shoot much anymore.