New spam can of 7.62x54r full of water!

[winetoad]

Now that is a pisser. Sorry just had to add a pun.

[TRAP55]

That Polish was loaded and packed in '77. I would open that other can and check it. The longer it sits, the less there is to salvage if it's full of water too.
Those cases are copper washed steel.
I've shot Bulgarian light ball (two crates) in one of my Mosins, that had a 1 in 15 or so, case split or separation. Mosins do well venting gas from ruptured cases. A broken case extractor does come in handy though.

[DennisCA]

Yup - It truly sucks
IMHO - toss them, wouldn't take the chance.

BTW - where were they stored?

[Mssr. Eleganté]

I wonder if there was a broken water pipe or fire sprinkler system malfunction in the ammo factory on the day that ammo was packed. The unsealed can might have been moving down the conveyor belt toward the sealing machine when the water started coming down and then got sealed before they could shut down the machinery and shut off the water.

[mofojoe]

I wonder if there was a broken water pipe or fire sprinkler system malfunction in the ammo factory on the day that ammo was packed. The unsealed can might have been moving down the conveyor belt toward the sealing machine when the water started coming down and then got sealed before they could shut down the machinery and shut off the water.

What an imagination. Had a few too many huh???

[IntoForever]

If this was mine I would open all the bundles and put them in a tumbler with old media and see how they look afterwards. At that point you could better tell which were possibly useable and which ones likely not. Pull some examples of each type for inspection and then make a final decision of where you are with them. HTH

I can't recommend you tumble them but I would throw a few in to see how they look under all that rust. Sucks to see that and makes me want to go check my cans for problems.

[Mssr. Eleganté]

What an imagination.

I worked part time in a warehouse back in college and we did have a ceiling water pipe break one night. It shut down our shift for the night and they brought in a cleanup crew. But for months afterward we were still finding stuff filled with water. Guys who weren't there when it happened would grab a plastic container off the top of a storage locker and then be all, WTF!!!, when they found it full of water.

Had a few too many huh???

Nope. Just starting.

[mofojoe]

I worked part time in a warehouse back in college and we did have a ceiling water pipe break one night. It shut down our shift for the night and they brought in a cleanup crew. But for months afterward we were still finding stuff filled with water. Guys who weren't there when it happened would grab a plastic container off the top of a storage locker and then be all, WTF!!!, when they found it full of water.

Nope. Just starting.

Well have a few for me

[kouye]

If had a little rust in the other type of can, but never one of these sealed cans. Hope you're able to salvage at least some of it.

[bill_k_lopez]

DON'T TUMBLE LOADED AMMO!

Tumble loaded ammo all the time - not an issue

[BrokerB]

i have tumbled THOUSANDS of live rounds. ZERO issues.

There is a arf.com article that goes into detail of tumbled ammo and a microscope of powder after dozens plus hours of tumbling.... no issue


All you would need is a maybe 4 or so hours to clean those off. At least you could see if cases are heavily corroded.

Looks terrible and that is sad

[E Michael]

collectors item :-D

[mud99]

I'll give you $10 for it...better than throwing it away

[ditchdrift]

Yup - It truly sucks
IMHO - toss them, wouldn't take the chance.

BTW - where were they stored?

They were in a back office, stored with all my other ammo.

[TRAP55]

Not all powders are created equal.
Ball powder you probably won't have an issue with.
Stick powders you're taking a gamble.
Stick powders can and will, break down in a tumbler, changing both the burn rate, and the case volume. Either one of these conditions can cause dangerous pressure spikes, combine them, and you just doubled down.
You can show me an arf.com article, I can show you a pair of plasma etched Bushnell shooting glasses to prove it can, and does, happen. If I hadn't been wearing them, there's no doubt I would have lost my right eye.
The first couple of rounds showed some obvious pressure signs, that I was too young and dumb to pay attention too. I knew they were loaded at the maximum recommended, and figured I would shoot up that box and load a little lighter. The next one went off like a bomb. No damage to the rifle, but the chamber and receiver were full of brass pieces. The rim and web were still attached to the bolt face.
I have no doubt, that you have tumbled thousands of rounds with no problems, so did I. Some manufacturers tumble their loaded ammo too.
Like I prefaced with, "Not all powders are created equal". Some stick powders it has no effect on, others it does. That can change with powder production lot numbers, that's why load data manuals are always updated. Knowing which powders can and can't be tumbled, is the big question. Trusting a combloc milsurp powder to be one that you can?....not me!
All I'm saying is be safe, don't risk your firearms and/or body parts on a gamble.