Old powder?

[coastie]

So, I have a can of Hercules 2400, 1 pound.
Written on the cardboard side: SEPT. 1980.
So....garden fertilizer, or useful stuff?
Container is sealed.....[well, sorta.]

[dave]

Only thing I know is if it has a gases or vapor effect when you open or if powder is brownish or gray color, its no good. I sure people here will tell you to dump it despite appearance because of age,. But if it looks good I would use it for some test loads and try it out. Maybe reduced loads if it worries you?
Don't know what "sorta" means in this case!

[joem]

Old powder that smelled like old aspirin to me was thrown out. I've loaded and shot powder from turks 1942 & 43 vintage. It shot fine. Got a case of 1939 german 8mm that was really bad. Got wet at some point. Outgasing was bad enough when i broke the bullet seal white smoke came out. I bought it for salvage of the bullets only. Also shot .30-06 from WWII, accurate but corrosive.

[Fred Pillot]

I just got done using IMR3031 that my brother bought in 1980. It left a very light dusting of brown powder in my funnel when I poured 1/3 lb through it. Powder looked fine visually. The powder did not meter through my powder dump smoothly.. I weighed each load and brought it up to weight with a trickler. Shot just the same as a new batch of IMR3031.

[Tuna]

I have powders that are from the 50's and early 60's that are still fine and useable today. if powder is kept sealed, cool and dry it will last a long time.

[jjrothWA]

Check with apowder manual, I think Hogdon's still wrties a paragraph that tells what to look for.

[tmark]

Old powder that should be discarded will have a fowl odor to it, so I have read. Check it for consistency like clumping and discoloration as well as unpleasant odor.

When in doubt, chuck it.

[DRAGONFLYDF]

Old powder that should be discarded will have a fowl odor to it, so I have read. Check it for consistency like clumping and discoloration as well as unpleasant odor.

When in doubt, chuck it.

What sort of Fowl ? Duck, Goose ? or

I have used powder from the early 80s, as others has said, as long as it does not smell off or foul..

[Matt Anthony]

I have read many articles on powder deteriorization. Red dust in the old metal containers is one sign of deteriorization and of course the acidic odor, like in a apirin bottle. Any signs, whether it's one or many dictate you destroy the powder by burning or use it for your plants or grass.

Once the powder shows the signs, the deteriorization will continue at an accelerated rate and once the nitro is destabilized, you have a ticking time bomb. If you look at the powder through a microscope, the nitro will start to leach forming on the outside of each granule. This is why you don't shake powder.......period!

Don't be foolish, be smart and educate yourself on what to look for and if in doubt, dump it! It certainly is not worth the events it can cause. I have a friend who bought some old IMR powder, 60 one lb. cans. Most were still sealed, but most had the red dust. He set up a fan and poured the powder twice through the wind the fan created. No more red dust! However, the performance of the powder was not the same as newer produced powder of the same number. We are talking hundreds of feet per second. He put it up for sale and someone bought it, ten dollars a pound, knowing of the red dust condition! There are many fools out there!!!!!
Matt

[Sunray]

How's been stored for 24 years? If you don't know, pitch it. And it can either be sealed or not. There's no 'sorta'.

[joem]

"If you don't know, pitch it" Same goes for powder at auctions. Can't trust what it's marked or know how it was stored. I will not even bid on powder at auctions.

[coastie]

Folkes,
thanks for your views.
That new grass seed in the yard needs some help.
[sprinkle, sprinkle.]