Jacketed bullets turning to powder inside jacket?

This is from Terminal Ballistics Research when I was researching 35 Whelen A/I.

Performance varies with age. The older the projectile , the more it will have naturally annealed,while the core may have become somewhat powdery. It is quite common to come across such old projectiles for the .358's at auction because this caliber suffers from fad buying. Rifles are purchased on a whim,tried but not fully utilized and then cast aside,generally speaking,if the projectile packet is sun bleached and completely faded ,the projectiles will be akin to varmint bullets. Those who shoot the .356 Winchester should take note of this because these projectiles can be quit useful in low velocity rifles. But in the 35 Whelen ,aged projectiles can cause a great deal of disappointment.That said - results can go either way. Ahead I describe the 250gr interlock too tough for light skinned game but too soft for heavy game and best suited for larger deer only. Yet an aged 250gr interlock can perform very well on lean game-or abysmally on larger bodied deer.Therefore , these factors must always be taken into consideration.



The question after all of this is how anyone can say this while people will still shoot ammunition loaded to around WWII and earlier not to mention pulled bullets of the same age and older for good effect and tell others that there old ammo may have turned to powder inside of the copper jacket??


Or am I just all wet? Or to say is this really true?

And to this end it sure is nice to have real information from a site like this. And to be careful where one gets there information.

The worst I've seen of Lead powdering over time is looking at old, solid Lead, post Civil war govt. surplus .45-70s.
They have a heavy oxide-something powder on the outside, but the whole thing sure isn't disintegrated .

I've handled a couple of Lead musket balls dug up from a Civil War battle field.
They also had a gray oxide coating,
but it was thin enough they would probably still be a decent fit in the barrel of what it was intended for.

As far as jacket annealing effecting the terminal ballistics, there may be a slight difference in muzzle velocity-- however;
I don't think it'd matter until you got way out there on the ragged edge of what a specific round can or can't do.

Do a quickie search for 'Civil War musket balls'.
There's hundreds of pictures of them.
Unless it had hit something- they all look like you could 're-load' them.

That's about as old of Lead ammunition as you'll find, and none look like they turned to powder.

Annealed over time ? I question that statement as how is the jacket getting annealed ? The lead core may oxidize some where it is exposed to the air but again is it doing it inside the jacket ?

I have seen no sign of it in older bullets I have shot , as to oxidizing on the tip yes , I have seen that on older bullets , but in sealed airtight containers I see no sign of it .

So looking at the article where that is stated and looking over the website I will pass on it as the all knowing base of knowledge on bullets or boolits .


Turning to powder statement begs the question were the bullets they have dug up from some ancient race long lost to antiquity or exposed to chemical or extreme temperature .

Thank You as I thought that I should have had taller boots reading some of there stuff lol. But I came here asking as in the grand scheme of things I have not been reloading that long and I try and keep my mind open to new information. This one just seemed a bit nuts lol.

I got a bag of balls with my recent 1860 Army purchase, seen, (badly, sorry, small pic, not near the house to take a better one), here.

Attachment 291520

They are heavily frosted over and I didn't try using one at the range. There is a possibility they are about 25 years old, but nothing rubs off and I might try one next time I am out with this beautiful beast.
I have never, ever heard of bullets powdering inside of jackets and I've seen some old ammo.

Not with rifle bullets but I have seen old buckshot loads and particullarily #4 Buck that over time had oxidized to the point where I would deem them unsafe to shoot. My dad worked for the prison department and periodically, they would repace the guard buckshot rounds. When he first went there he brought a couple hundred rounds home, most in paper cases that had been accumulating for years. I cut them open to get the pellets for fishing sinkers. Some were oxidized to the point where they were unrecognizable as buckshot. Now, these were paper cases and maybe had been wet several times and carried in all kinds of weather for years both in the gun and in a pocket. Guess it's possible./beagle

Interesting - they won't let us take fired brass home, much less ammo.