Info regarding corrosive ammo please

[Ken The Kanuck]

Can you make corrosive ammo non corrosive by washing it?

https://www.leverarms.com/products/chinese-military-surplus-7-62x39-fmj#shopify-product-reviews

Thanks

KTK

[leftyo]

no you can not. you can clean your gun properly after firing it, and it will be a non issue.

[Allen]

I think they are speaking of the steel cases being copper washed (or extremely thin copper plating) to prevent the cases from rusting. Some are lacquered but I believe some shooters have had problems with the lacquer melting and building up in the chamber.

I would question the corrosive part though. I consider any ammo that is foreign made, berdan primed or very old U.S. surplus to be corrosive to some degree and clean my guns afterward.

[SysAd]

Or the old acid rounds. I have a bunch of them.

[Vern Humphrey]

Corrosive ammo is corrosive because of the primer, which on firing leaves salt deposits in the bore. Washing the ammo won't change the composition of the primer!

As mentioned above, "copper washed" means the steel case has a light wash of copper to reduce corrosion of the CASE.

[Ken The Kanuck]

Thanks folks,

That is exactly what I thought. I am surprised that Lever Arms which has been around for a long time would call this ammo "non-corrosive".

I gave my son in law a CZ 858 and he found this ammo and asked if he should buy it. I still have a case of corrosive that I think I bought for around $200 but I bought that a few years ago so maybe the price has gone up?

KTK

[JB White]

Can you make corrosive ammo non corrosive by washing it?

https://www.leverarms.com/products/chinese-military-surplus-7-62x39-fmj#shopify-product-reviews

Thanks

KTK

Yes, washing the ammo will remove the corrosive effects on rifle bores, but it's not a simple, straight forward task.

1: In a container (Rubbermaid, Tupperware etc.) spray all the loose rounds with WD-40. Shake and spray to get total coverage.
2: Seal the airtight container and let the rounds fume for a minimum of10 days.
3: Rinse the rounds in denatured alcohol to remove the WD-40 and allow to fume for an additional 3 days.
4: Place rounds in washing machine and run on Large load/Gentle cycle twice. DO NOT PUT WASHED ROUNDS IN DRYER!!
5: Allow rounds to air dry in a damp, cool place.

The rounds which will no longer fire are now regarded as being non-corrosive.

[Ken The Kanuck]

Response from Lever Arms.

"This batch of copper wash ammo (x39( has been tested extensively-
Both by us and independently. It has reliably shown to be non-corrosive in all of tests.
To the best of my knowledge the corrosive component of ammunition was the potassium based primer salts used prior to (roughly) 1970/1980 (depending on location).
This ammo is more recent production and we have sold hundreds of thousands of rounds from this batch with the same results and happy customers."

The plot thickens.

KTK

[leftyo]

it does because the soviets have been know to use corrosive primers as little as a couple of years ago. they may still use them, idk as i dont keep up with it. i would never trust chineese or soviet ammo to be non corrosive. if i chose to shoot it, proper cleaning would ensure no future issues.

[togor]

If one has a batch of suspect ammo in-hand, testing is a relatively straightforward process. Pull a bullet and dump the powder, and fire the primer such that the residue is deposited on a brightened piece of steel like a lawn mower blade or some bar stock hit with a wire brush or angle grinder. Can be useful to similarly fire some known non-corrosive and corrosive primers as controls on nearby spots. After a few days, you'll know. It doesn't hurt to bring the steel into areas of higher humidity, such as the bathroom while someone showers.

[clintonhater]

it does because the soviets have been know to use corrosive primers as little as a couple of years ago.

Which is why they chrome-plate the bores of AKs.

[p246]

If one has a batch of suspect ammo in-hand, testing is a relatively straightforward process. Pull a bullet and dump the powder, and fire the primer such that the residue is deposited on a brightened piece of steel like a lawn mower blade or some bar stock hit with a wire brush or angle grinder. Can be useful to similarly fire some known non-corrosive and corrosive primers as controls on nearby spots. After a few days, you'll know. It doesn't hurt to bring the steel into areas of higher humidity, such as the bathroom while someone showers.

Done similar process given to me by board member here. I put a standard steel nail in a board and fired live primer over it. If corrosive will begin to rust within a day if any humidity at all. In my case it was 303 ammo.