Thread: old powder

If powder is kept dry does it matter how old it is for reloading??

Cheers

i have some thats about 30 years old, still works ok. Dosent seem to have deteriorated

I recently tossed (well poured a long strip on the ground and set fire to it he he) about 1.5 pounds of 3031. It was over 30 years old.
I also had recovered milsurp 4895 pop the cap off a can and fume vigorously. Quite alarming as the only storage place I had in the place we were living in at the time was a cabinet in the bedroom.

Both powders had been stored in a dry cool environment.

The 3031 had lost its sweet smell and was quite acrid. It had also started to go from a greyish colour to brown, although this was harder to detect.

Check powders by smell. Should not be acrid. Check for colour change. If old enough to be stored in a metallic container check inside for corrosion. If corrosion inside container powder may still be OK sort-of but performance may be degraded and who wants rust mixed in with their pet load.

Have a few cans chuck it in a fire drum and run

Methyl red paper was the std test. Dampen it and place in the container if it turned from white to red decomposition was occurring. Litmus works as well