THE GUN ROOM

Here we go again, exploding gun myths.

OK here is a commonly voiced opinion, and it even had some merit in the last century.

Getting your ammo wet is a sure way to ruin your hunt. Or more practically: Wet ammo will not fire.

Wrong.

Here is how I came to test this oftenly spoken and written myth.

The regulars know that Sarge and his son PFC Trent go shooting often and quite a bit together. (that is what son's are for, shooting buddies)

So they were down at the local Boulder Rifle club and as luck would have it they were there just after the local police finished their practice for the month. I don't know how other cities have their rules but Boulder does not allow it's police to shoot reloaded ammo in their duty weapons. AT ALL. PERIOD. So they have a rule at their practice; no one can pick up any of the expended ammo. (empty cases)

Now I am sure you can see the fortune that befell Sarge and his son coming in right after the police left. Right, Brass, Brass Brass all new once fired commercial Brass, happily shining at their every footstep. So not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, Sarge and son soon were picking up brass big time. All in all about 400 rounds of empty once fired commercial brass in the following calibers. 9 mm L, 40 S&W, 45 acp and .38 super. Plus a couple hundred empty .223 cases.

The day before it had rained a good downfall and the range was wet. Very wet. And the brass had been walked on and was muddy and full of sand. So when Sarge got home late that afternoon he took the two big sacks of empty brass and dumped them into a bucket full of soapy water.

A day and a few hours later (about 35 hrs total) Sarge finally got around to checking the bucket and swishing ther brass around and finally pouring the dirty water off that covered all the brass. More water was poured in and swished around until the brass looked resonably clean. Then Sarge sorted the brass out by caliber.

And he found about a dozen loaded rounds. Those of you that are LEO this doesn't surprise you, as when you have a stoppage you clear the weapon and jack the slide with a new cartridge as fast as you can as if your life depended on it cause in a real situation it does.

But looking at those rounds that had been soaking for 30 plus hours gave Sarge an idea. So he dried them off and marked them with a black pen.

The next time Sarge was at the range he made sure he took one gun of the type of each of the water soaked rounds.

And then the big test.

ALL 12 ROUNDS FIRED. There were no misfires, no hang fires, no problems.

Now this may not be as scientific as some members wish but the odds of it happening if the modern ammo was likely to be ruined just by getting wet are astrometrical. This ammo had been under water, not just wet, but under water for 30 plus hours. And one little thing that I will mention for the scientific minded. The ammunitions companies are all at a very low altitude about 500 ft above sea level. So the air that is trapped in the case when the bullet is seated is higher air pressure than that found here in mile high Colorado. In other words if there was any leak in the case/bullet/primer areas the excessive pressure inside the case would have found it's way out and the water would have found it's way in. It did not happen.

In a surge of optomism Sarge had also soaked three shotshells over night and they too fired. (Federal field and Winchester cheap loss leader) Now in the old days of paper shells and less scientific ammunition making or I should say less precision ammunition making, there were problems with the ammunition. Not only did it missfire when it got wet but if frequently missfired even dry. And the paper shotshells absorbed moisture from the air and swelled to where they had to be pounded into the chambers. Not today tho.

OK what did he do wrong in his conclusions that modern ammo can withstand water even dunking water and still be trusted to reliably fire?

Sarge