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'60's/'70's Era Shotshells

B

Binable

.410
I've some 12 & 16 sg shells from about 45 or so yrs ago. Alcan is the brand. It was no doubt the cheapest stuff I could find back then. 1 box is unopened. I may display it just for fun. All has been stored well & I'd see no reason not to shoot the rest. Is this stuff worth any $, or do I wanna take it on my next trip to the field?
 
I would shoot it up. Keep the empty box and maybe a round or two for display. I wouldn't use it for anything mission-critical. If it tends to malfunction then maybe cut it open, disassemble it and reuse the components. Paper casing, correct? I have some old 20ga paper case stuff that works just fine in my SA-20. I wouldn't display a full box as that is just too much of a fire/explosion hazard for my liking.

PS: There are cartridge and box collectors on Gunbroker.com. Do a search of your ammo and see what it is worth. Note that there are "special" requirements/restrictions for shipping live ammo...

BTW, Welcome Aboard, Bin! :)
 
..appreciate the comeback, Bobster. I'll check out Gunbroker. Maybe someone would be interested in it--especially the full box 1.
Yep, good to be back into the shooting sports. It's been 40 yrs. ..sold about a 12 gun collection I wasn't shooting 2 yrs ago, decided to pick up some shooters, had a couple of surgeries & 2 foot injuries that kept me outta the field but have now picked up a couple of 500's, have my health back & am getting ready to hit it again next fall. Half the fun is in the preparation.
 
There is some $$ to be made selling old ammo boxes still full of cartridges on EBay and other sites...as there are collector's for this niche.

I'm no expert...but on another sister forum I moderate I did help a member date some old ammo boxes still full of the original ammo by telling him to look at the Lot #'s on the flaps of the boxes and calling customer service for that company ( Olin / Winchester ) and he was able to get info to make a decision on what the going market rate was for that time frame...

http://www.winchesterowners.com/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=2436

Hope this helps ya out Binable...
 
Don't shoot the ammo. Keep it with its respective box. Sell what you don't wish to keep. But be warned, you won't get substantially more from it than what cash you'll need to buy replacement modern ammunition.

Legally shipping ammo to a buyer really isn't that difficult and there is no HazMat fee.
 
I had a bunch of 12 gauge that was at least 50 years old. The shells were not pristine and the boxes were in terrible shape. Just took it to the range and shot it up. Had one round that the brass base separated from the paper casing. Other than that, no problems.
 
nitesite said:
Don't shoot the ammo. Keep it with its respective box. Sell what you don't wish to keep. But be warned, you won't get substantially more from it than what cash you'll need to buy replacement modern ammunition.

Legally shipping ammo to a buyer really isn't that difficult and there is no HazMat fee.
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Nitesite, are you saying it's dangerous to shoot this stuff? It's been stored well & looks new.
 
terry2425 said:
I had a bunch of 12 gauge that was at least 50 years old. The shells were not pristine and the boxes were in terrible shape. Just took it to the range and shot it up. Had one round that the brass base separated from the paper casing. Other than that, no problems.
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..appreciate the report terry2425. These shells I have look pristine. I'm trying not to be a collector of things, if you know what I mean. But I will admit once you get into these guns it's kinda hard not to. I'll study my options on what I can get $ wise for the older shells & verify they're safe to shoot, but right now I'm leaning toward shooting the partial boxes & keeping the 1 or 2 full boxes just for nostalgia. We shall see.
 
I highly doubt that "it's dangerous to shoot this stuff". Heck, a lot of us have touched off some really old ammo and we are still here and doing just fine.

I just meant that it's not going to be all that satisfying to shoot it. And you might get some buyer to bid on the full boxes but don't expect a windfall of cash.

When I said "don't shoot the ammo" I was just thinking of having on hand a few old-timey rounds for some cool photo opportunities. To me those pics would be worth far more than hearing them simply go bang.
 
I've personally shot .45 ACP ammo from The Frankford Arsenal made in 1944 from a 1911a1 magazine loaded God knows what year and then reloaded from the marked box...and it touched off just fine.

Storage is the main concern...if it looks bad because it was out in the elements, it probably is. The stuff I had was in my grandfathers drawer in a back room that was almost pristine.
 
nitesite said:
I highly doubt that "it's dangerous to shoot this stuff". Heck, a lot of us have touched off some really old ammo and we are still here and doing just fine.

I just meant that it's not going to be all that satisfying to shoot it. And you might get some buyer to bid on the full boxes but don't expect a windfall of cash.

When I said "don't shoot the ammo" I was just thinking of having on hand a few old-timey rounds for some cool photo opportunities. To me those pics would be worth far more than hearing them simply go bang.
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Great nitesite. We're on the same page. The older stuff would be kinda fun to show off to a few appreciative buds. ..could share a story or two.
 
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