Cartridge Storage

[RDP]

Where is the best place to store cartridges in the home?

 

I have seen some posts suggesting storage in the airing cupboard to keep them warm and dry, and others that have suggested they simply keep them in a box under the bed.

 

Are there any practical health and safety reasons or performance reasons for one storage location over another?

[Guest cookoff013]

Dry.

Room temp.

Not high humidity.

[bisondan]

I keep mine in my shed but I buy 5000+ at a time. In the winter I just bring in what I intend to use the next day, the night before and put on top of a a radiator.

[rem708]

cool and dry. Heat degrades the propellant over time. Almost any room will do but avoid those with high humidity i.e. kitchen and bathroom

[robbiep]

Pretty much anywhere in the house that's comfortable for you. I was always told the same for powder, when I started reloading. Think of it like goldilock's porridge - not too hot, not too cold.

[anser2]

For steel shells beware of keeping them in very cold conditions as some steel powders do not perform well in low sub zero temperatures. A couple of years ago I was using Gamebore mammoths 3 inch in very cold conditions. I had left a dozen in my coat pocket in the car overnight when the temperaure fell to -14C. The next morning I had a great wigeon flight , but the shells seemed unable to kill the birds. Several came down far out across the marsh and two dropped only to fly again as the dog reached them. At the time i thought it was my bad shooting as I only retrieved one wigeon for a dozen shots and that bird was a lively runner, but once fired them all I turned to a spare box that had been kept in the house . The result was six duck for the next nine shots all cleanly killed. All the shells were of the same brand and the same batch so the only difference had been the temperatures they had been kept over night at.

[Rst1990]

I store mine in the spare wardrobe in the house, but when I'm out shooting in the field etc they get very cold as I put them in a bag or coat pockets and can be out for a good few hours, so it does make me think that is there any point in keeping them warm etc?

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Geoff Dales used to recommend game shooters kept their cartridges in a belt inside there coat, then take the coat off at the peg when the drive started.

 

He also used to freeze cartridges over night and chrono them, very enlightening to see the results against one that had been kept in a pocket!

[Uncle Albert]

I think keeping them dry and at a moderate temp (room temp) is the most important bit. If you bring them in from a cold environment to a warm moist one, you are bound to get condensation in them. This must affect the powder. Can't remember if the powder is hydroscopic or not though. I think it is so that will affect the burn rate.