8mm surplus with loose bullets

[Bobby Ricigliano]

Hello all,

I got some very old (I think Turkish) 8mm Mauser ammo in the mail. A couple bullets were separated completely from the cases with gunpowder sprinkled everywhere...lovely.

But my question is, quite a few of the bullets can be pulled up and down in the casings, somewhat loose but won't come out. Is this ammo unsafe to shoot in my milsurp Mausers? I do not want a KB or any damage to my old warhorse guns, but I hate to pay for a bunch of ammo that is unshootable. Too expensive and a PITA to send it back to seller so if it is no good then I guess I take a haircut on this deal...Any input is most welcome!

[Exodus343]

I'd sell the loose ones to a reloader so they can pull and recycle parts
that's just my opinion, Turkish ammo is already hot enough, the loosening of the projectile can cause a higher spike in the hot loads already

better safe than sorry

[XDRoX]

I've been known to shoot just about anything. But I also wouldn't shoot those.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

Looks like this stuff is not getting shot. Thanks guys. I am somewhat attached to my K98K. It didn't survive a world war and decades in storage for a goon like me to blow it up trying to shoot on the cheap..

[stand125]

I have shot alot of the old turkish ammo. Most fired just fine, some had loose bullets and some even had a second before primer went off, but the stuff went boom and was accurate.

[knucklehead0202]

i'd shoot it. the old warhorses can handle more than you're likely to ever throw at them. they've lived almost 100 years, we're not gonna.....

[BruinGuy]

The rounds that are still firmly seated ought to be fine. Just be alert for hang fires.

Those with loose bullets, as Exodus said, can be sold for components so at least you can recoup a few bucks.

Good luck!

[mark501w]

Try neck sizing & reseating the bullets.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

The rounds that are still firmly seated ought to be fine. Just be alert for hang fires.

Those with loose bullets, as Exodus said, can be sold for components so at least you can recoup a few bucks.

Good luck!

I will figure out how many rounds are not salvageable and just give them to a local CG'er who can use them.

Thanks for all the replies!

[Mssr. Eleganté]

Sounds like 1947 Turk. I bought 7000 rounds of Turk 8mm back when it was cheap. Luckily, only 350 rounds were the 1947 stuff. I went through all 350 rounds, tugging on the bullets to find the loose ones and ended up with about 150 where the bullets came right out of the cracked necks. I burned up the powder in the fireplace and gave the projectiles to a friend who reloads. All the rest of the 1947 stuff fired fine in various Mausers.