Primers turning green

[richbug]

I have a couple 1000 Alcan/S&W primers that I bought at a yard sale. A few in each pack are starting to get some green funk growing on the edges. The Winchesters I bought at the same time and place, that are of the same age look fine(10K or so).

The green alcans still go bang. BUT would you use them? My cheap nature is saying yes, but make sure they get burned up this summer.

Thoughts?

[Outpost75]

They are probably fine. I would use them but DO NOT use them in an automatic priming machine or progressive reloader. The green is probably "dusting" from primer mix, which can occur with age in those makes of primers which are not sealed with a lacquer. The green dust is both toxic and explosive! Take precautions against static electricity and wear safety glasses. Clean the reloading area with a static reducing compound, such as Bounce drier sheets, and ground the press before loading.

Be mindful of primer dust and carefully wet sponge and clean the equipment and loading area.

[richbug]

It looks somewhat like verdigris that brass gets on it when wet/old. The packaging shows no signs of ever having been even slightly damp.

[35remington]

Kill a primer with a little oil and let it set for awhile. Then see about the nature of the discoloration and see if it polishes up with a little steel wool. A close examination with a magnifying glass of good magnification should clear up what it is. Most priming mix I've seen looks a bit glassy, verdigris "spongy."

[leadman]

The cups are brass so it is probably just some corrosion. wipe it off and load them in something you are you are going to shoot soon.
I read an article that the author worked in the manufacturing part of reloading components. He said it is almost impossible to kill a recently manufactured primer. He was right, I oiled one and let it set overnight, donned safety gear and smacked it with a #4 hammer on the garage floor. It went bang.

[Frank46]

I bought some 5.56 cases from weideners years ago. Supposedly they had been killed by them. No they weren't. Deprimed them carefully and buried the primers where the sun don't shine. They still went bang as I tried them in an ar I had. Wonder in a few hundred years if an one of them guys who digs stuff will say if he ever finds them. AH the battle of crab **** bayou. Frank

[Victor N TN]

A lot depends, I believe, on how they were / are stored. I have primers I bought in 1983 that still go bang... every time. A friend of mine has primers bought less than a year ago that don't. His primers were laid on a bench in his basement. Mine were stored in an ammo can. (Bought before they became priceless pieces of art...) The boxes are inside a zip lock bag with either a small desiccant bag or a couple of pieces of dried chalk in each bag. The bags are stored in ammo cans. Kept cool & dry they'll last a long time. Just sitting there "somewhere"... No promises.