hard-to-believe ammo tale from Walmart

[Guest jimdigriz]

I was at a Walmart in Lebanon this morning picking up some ammo, and I had the following conversation with the Sporting Goods clerk:

Me: Have you seen any signs that the ammunition shortage is letting up at all?

Clerk: Well, we're supposed to get in a lot of stuff soon, after July 4th [yesterday], the kind with the primers that expire within 1 year.

Me, incredulously: Expires within one year? Whose BRILLIANT idea was that?

Clerk: President Obama.

I found this tale very hard to believe, because I'd read nothing about it up until now, and I would assume that gun owners would raise a major outcry about something like this. But I question why a Walmart sporting goods clerk would say this if he hadn't been informed of something. Have you guys heard anything like this?

Jim

[Mike.357]

Personally I would not put a lot of faith into what a clerk from Walmart has to say.

[Motasyco]

Somebody's term of office should expire within one year. Sounds like BS to me.

[Guest jimdigriz]

Personally I would not put a lot of faith into what a clerk from Walmart has to say.

Ha ha, good point.

[Metalhead]

Spam emails that are sent out spreading lots of missinformation. There is no such thingas 1 year primers.

[Guest redbarron06]

I did not know they made primers tht expire after one year? Besides if the manufctures were forced to use these I am sure the word would have gotten out by now.

[Guest bkelm18]

Is that even possible?

[Mike.357]

Is that even possible?

I would say anything is possible.

Better living through science and chemistry yanno? I beleive chemicals can be made to use in primers that would degrade over time.

I firmly believe that doing something like this is no real benefit to ammo manufacturers. It would cost them money to research how to do it. I would guess they would scream and yell if somehow they were forced to do it.

Now if, and I mean IF, the politicos never ever planned to ban guns through stopping the manufacture of ammo that expiring ammunition is no big deal. That is as long as there is always an ample supply to go and shoot today.

Obviously the ammo shortages are due to the fact that there are many many new gun owners and everyone already into guns has been hoarding ammo to one extent or another.

[Guest eyebedam]

Did the Lenanon Wally World have any .380?

[Guest jimdigriz]

Did the Lenanon Wally World have any .380?

No, unfortunately. I've been seeking it for two months. I picked up 9mm, 32 ACP, and 22 LR.

[9teeneleven]

what would expiring primers do? I don't see how that would solve any problem. If anything, it would probably get people to shoot more.

[Oh Shoot]

He's actually partially right, in a very faint way, maybe, sort of.

Some Wallies I've been to recently are carrying WinClean ammo, which is "environmentally friendly" ammo.

The bullet is fully jacketed (meaning the base is too, unlike FMJ) but the biggest diff is the primer, has no heavy metals.

Although I can't find the exact info on Winchester's site, it seems widely accepted that the shelf life of those primers is 10 years or less, stored in optimum conditions.

Also note that it is just about exactly twice as expensive as WWB FMJ. It's also packaged in a white box. 50 rounds of 9mm is ~26 bucks.

- OS

[Guest HexHead]

Let me put on my tin foil hat for a moment....

Maybe the govt. is giving the manufacturers the new formula they have to use, threatening them with huge IRS audits if they don't comply or publicize it? Then they flood the market now with the new expiring primer ammo for the next year, then create another shortage, perhaps forcing the manufacturers to sell to the government first.

Then they can clamp down on the citizenry, knowing that while we may "have a rifle behind every blade of grass", the ammo won't work and they make us all serfs in quick order.

:tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil::tinfoil:

Edited July 5, 2009 by HexHead

[Mike.357]

what would expiring primers do? I don't see how that would solve any problem. If anything, it would probably get people to shoot more.

obviously it would stop the stockpiling of ammunition, at least in amounts that would not be shot before expiration

[Oh Shoot]

obviously it would stop the stockpiling of ammunition, at least in amounts that would not be shot before expiration

Yep, makes armed revolution that much more difficult.

See my post above.

You can blame the EPA more than O, I'd venture.

- OS

[Mike.357]

Yep, makes armed revolution that much more difficult.

I will venture a guess that if 100 rds of rifle ammo is not sufficient to acquire a weapon and more ammo from those that would be holding the populace in check that 1000 rounds or more would not be enough either.

So if all us tin foil hatters keep a few boxes of ammo bought last week set back we will be good to. Or dead anyway.

[Jasongar8]

Spam emails that are sent out spreading lots of missinformation. There is no such thingas 1 year primers.

Did anyone read what Metalhead wrote? ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This is not true! You have to remember the source, 1) a clerk at wal-mart 2) the internet. Dont panic.

-Jason G

[56FordGuy]

This is not true! You have to remember the source, 1) a clerk at wal-mart 2) the internet. Dont panic.

-Jason G

But, but...I read it on the internet! It has to be true! Just like the guy that told me all the primers were being bought by the Obama administration and placed in a bunker underneath the White House!

I've heard more gun related rumors, half thruths, and outright lies in the last six months as I have my entire life up until January '09.

[Guest joeharris]

There is some truth to this, the US Army has been wanting to get rid of all Lead in AMMO, so they have been wanting to find some which has no Lead but with a lifespan of 10 yrs! Well, they are still trying!

However FN came out about 4 yrs. ago with the SS 195 28 gr. HP which has a Lead-Free Primer and there has been a Huge debate as to how long this Ammo will have a in long-term storage situation! Some think it will last only a few yrs. and have taken Drastic measures to increase it.

Remington also has a similar type of situation with 1 type of their ammo, i think it is the type used in their Electronic Ignition Rifles!

[Guest mikedwood]

Imagine how much that would make pre-expiration ammo worth.

[Guest Bullwinkle]

09-03-2008, 03:16 PM #5 (permalink) yarro

Gunco Regular

Join Date: Sep 2005

Location: Austin, TX

Posts: 353

iTrader: 7 / 100%

They are referring to lead azide based primers having an "incredibly long shelf life", which stored in a cool dry place have a useful shelf life in excess of the average lifespan of a US citizen. Lead Azide is also used in airbags as it has good stability and shelf life. I have shot US .30 carbine ammo from WWII with modern lead based primers that showed good storage and it all went off. It was over 50 years old at the time. Mercury based primers have an even longer life span under worse storage conditions. I recently shot some 1916 dated British and 1918 dated Canadian .303 British and it all went off eventhough the cases were so dirty we had to wipe them clean before running them through the SMLE. Had quite a few split necks from the batch.

Lead free primers are a totally different animal. Lead free primers are a scarifice to the green movement. What you give up is shelf life and consistency in the switch. The lead free ammo is training ammo intended for law enforcement and would be used by law enforcement rather quickly. A shelf life of 10 years under prudent storage conditions considering the product's intended use does not seem unreasonable. The US military's goal for lead free training ammo was a shelf life of 12 years under prudent storage. The chemicals used in the lead free primers are less resistant to moisture than the two previous solutions mecuric and lead based primers. My guess is that they will eventually sort it out, but that time is not here.

Lead free primers will continue to have teething issues for years. The first lead azide based primers had issues with shelf life and consistency, which is why the military took so long to adopt them over mercury based ones. .30-06 was switched in 1947, except for match ammo, which wasn't sorted out until 1957 due to consistency issues. You can thank gas operated rifles for the military to really embrace the need for a noncorosive priming mixture. The communists took much much longer as storage issues were of more importance to them and they just designed around it.

I would recommend that you just use the SS195 for it's intended purpose of training. The other ammo will outlast you if stored properly. You need to practice anyway if you intend this weapon to be used for defensive purposes if it ever comes to that.

-Yarro

[BryanP]

I know it's a bunch of BS, but I'm just imagining what would happen when someone tried to use their ammo in a self defense situation and the primers "expired" a bit early. Think of the lawsuits ...

[gregintenn]

You're lucky.....I can never seem to find anyone at the Lebanon Wal Mart who can even locate the keys to the ammo cabinet!

[Guest joeharris]

Fact, no B/S, 6 months to 3 yrs on shelf life!

FiveseveNForum.com • 197SR??

Common knowledge with 5.7X28 Ammo owners!

[Jasongar8]

You are talking about one caliber, 5.7x28, and its speculation at best.

-Jason G