Feedback Opinion on old powder

[Joker67]

A few years back a neighbor passed and I wanted to buy his primers . His son made an all or nothing offer, so I bought all his reloading gear. He was mainly a trap shooter and also shot 1911’s.

Among the things I still have is 7-9 lbs by guess of a 12 lb Keg of IMR ( Now Hodgdon) Hi-Skor 700x. Is this still safe to use? I have a Hornady 366 of his that with a new spring will work fine.

https://imgur.com/a/6Ruzh9j

https://imgur.com/bakI9K3

 

[2aALLIn]

check to see if the powder has a funky odor. If it doesn’t and has been sealed, then maybe load a few rounds. Make sure the powder is dry and isn’t discolored.

I have used and reloaded an opened 10 year old Unique that was sealed and stored properly with no issues.

If you end up tossing the powder, make sure you definitely keep that container!!

 

[Tere_Hanges]

Smell it.

 

[Joker67]

Thank you. I did the sniff test and poured some out. It looks and smells fine. I’ve had it for 2 years , but it looks much older than that. I’ll load some .45 ACP light loads and see if it shoots.
Why keep the keg? Does it have sentimental value?

 

[2aALLIn]

i think that keg is vintage from the 60”s or 70”s

 

[ipscluver]

Ive shot powder from the 60's and 70's. Works great.

 

[BigBossman]

...... I’ll load some .45 ACP light loads and see if it shoots.
Why keep the keg? Does it have sentimental value?

It's just a cool thing to have in your man-cave. I came across one of those at the flea market off Hwy 4 many years ago. Paid $5 for it, and it took me years to use it all up. If it smells good, isn't clumpy, and does not produce rusty dust when you pour it, you're good to go. 700x is very versitile powder, and I use it for shotgun as well as all kinds of pistol loads (including .45acp).

 

[NapalmCheese]

It's just a cool thing to have in your man-cave. I came across one of those at the flea market off Hwy 4 many years ago. Paid $5 for it, and it took me years to use it all up. If it smells good, isn't clumpy, and does not produce rusty dust when you pour it, you're good to go. 700x is very versitile powder, and I use it for shotgun as well as all kinds of pistol loads (including .45acp).

The smell test is always weird to me. Different powders smell differently, and none of them smell 'good' since they all have various chemically scents. However, if I'm understanding it right, what you're really looking for is burning in the nose from nitric acid; which is a less ambiguous tell in my opinion.

 

[Warpspeed]

I can tell you from experience, if you smell bad powder you will never forget that smell.

And there is nothing ambiguous about it.

 

[Malibu]

Bossman mentioned a “rust colored dust”; this is spot on. If it has that, it’s done.

To dispose of old powder (I scrap a good bit of ammo yearly) I simply pour it out and make a trail down our roadway, and let the kids light it off. They get some fun doing that, and it’s fun to watch. One time at our New Year’s party we filled a pail of it under our Christmas tree, made the powder trail, and let them light it. Good times.

 

[brass slinger]

I have 700X that I bought in the 80s. Same style keg. I used it for 45ACP and .38 Special in bullseye league shooting.

The keg sat in my garage rafters until just a few years ago. So the powder saw summer temperatures of >100F for sure for over 30 years.

It still smells fine and I have recently loaded 44Mag and 9mm with it. The velocities it produced were inline with published reloading data for the charges and bullets I used.

IMR700X is hard to find. There are reloaders out there that would love to buy your 12Lb keg!

It's a fast burning, efficient {low charge weight/velocity) powder that is a very close grain for grain equivalent charge of Alliant Bullseye. Unless you reload shotshell, you probably have a lifetime of pistol powder...

 

[JoeBronco]

I got a bunch the same way. I'm still using powder from uld wax paper containers! My primers say $0.05 each on them!

 

[45auto]

I had a jug older than yours, DuPont branded and had a push to seal,push to unseal tin spout. It smelled fine and no rust on the inside, so I used it up 17grs at a time. YMMV
Barney

 

[sjb323]

Bossman mentioned a “rust colored dust”; this is spot on. If it has that, it’s done.

To dispose of old powder (I scrap a good bit of ammo yearly) I simply pour it out and make a trail down our roadway, and let the kids light it off. They get some fun doing that, and it’s fun to watch. One time at our New Year’s party we filled a pail of it under our Christmas tree, made the powder trail, and let them light it. Good times.

Don't do this with blackpowder. Boy, that stuff lights up something fierce! No joke...

 

[NapalmCheese]

Don't do this with blackpowder. Boy, that stuff lights up something fierce! No joke...

You know, I didn't think we'd have to say this, but you are absolutely right.

Burn all the smokeless you want outside of a pressure vessel and enjoy the show. Don't do that with black powder; it burns very fast. If you use a bic lighter to ignite a pile of black powder the size of a quarter you might actually lose an eyebrow and you'll probably lose the hair on your arm/hand.

 

[AR15barrels]

You know, I didn't think we'd have to say this, but you are absolutely right.

Burn all the smokeless you want outside of a pressure vessel and enjoy the show. Don't do that with black powder; it burns very fast. If you use a bic lighter to ignite a pile of black powder the size of a quarter you might actually lose an eyebrow and you'll probably lose the hair on your arm/hand.

When I get given questionable blackpowder, I put it into a specific can that I don't use for firearms.
I grind it up when I am making electric matches or I use it in flash pots at Halloween.

My flash pots are made from old tuna cans.
The electric matches are small nichrome wire that's spiraled on a 1/8" diameter mandrel and then filled with a slurry made with ground blackpowder and ping pong balls dissolved in acetone.
1-2 tablespoons of blackpowder covering the electric match is a good load.

 

[NapalmCheese]

When I get given questionable blackpowder, I put it into a specific can that I don't use for firearms.
I grind it up when I am making electric matches or I use it in flash pots at Halloween.

My flash pots are made from old tuna cans.
The electric matches are small nichrome wire that's spiraled on a 1/8" diameter mandrel and then filled with a slurry made with ground blackpowder and ping pong balls dissolved in acetone.
1-2 tablespoons of blackpowder covering the electric match is a good load.

Nice! I might have to make some suggestions for the next black powder night shoot I'm heading to.