old pistol questions.

[andyd]

I wound up with Dad's pistols when he died. One is a an English flintlock, ca. 1790, Nothing special and it needs a spring to function. I can get the spring for 30$ Assuming I fixed it,would it be safe to fire?

The other is a 1940 Luger, numbers matching except for the clips. With it is a box of Winchester cartridges that are 60 yrs old. The cartridges are shiny, still. No green tarnish. Are they any good? TIA,

 

[ARCOgraphite]

I think you need to be asking somebody with long experience who's holding the weapon in his hands.
Ive shot .30 springfield WWII surplus rounds through a very nice m1 Garand that were ~40 YO in the mid 1980's an they shot fresh. 30 years on? May depend all on storage.

 

[Boomer]

The Luger is presumably a 9 mm. For the cost of ammo, buy a new box. Are you sure it is a Luger and not a Pistole 38? I have a 1944 Mauser made P38 that I fire regulary after replacing the recoil springs. My father-in-law took it off a German officer at the Elbe River.

 

[andyd]

Far as I know it is series 1940 Luger. Dad spoke German and prolly interrogated a prisoner or two.

 

[123Saab]

Pic?

 

[hatt]

You need to take them to a gunsmith and have him look them over. I'd save the old box of ammo your dad had and buy new stuff to shoot. It's most likely still good but why shoot it.

 

[default]

The flintlock, you will want to have that inspected very thoroughly for corrosion, and only fire very light loads in it if it checks out ok.

The Luger, having it inspected wouldn't be a terrible idea, though I doubt it has any problems. Note that regular 9mm loadings may not work very well, the Germans more or less invented 9mm+P for that handgun IIRC.

 

[bubbatime]

The ammo will probably function fine. It is probably corrosive so gun will need to be thoroughly cleaned after shooting it.

The old flintlock might be safe to shoot with a small powder charge. Needs to be inspected by a professional to know for sure though.

 

[default]

I don't know if I would recommend trying to fire ammo that was stored outside of a sealed container for 60 years.

 

[2cool]

INRE: 60 year old ammo. I saw a show about archeologist's finding an ancient navigation computer in the Mediterranean near Turkey on Discover channel a few years back. They also brought up these "sticks" which were identified as cordite. They would have been used on British warships in WWI. They had been submerged for over 70 years, and when shaken dry and a lighter put to it; it burned so fast the crew member's hand almost go burned.
About 4 years ago there was an article in the news about a Civil War collector that was attempting to open up a shrapnel round he'd found. It detonated and killed him. It was about 130 years old and filled with gunpowder to boot. Keep the ammo as a souvenir, but it will probably go bang if mishandled.

 

[bubbatime]

I've fired tons of ammo that is 50-70 years old. If it looks ok, it is probably safe to fire.

 

[UncleS2]

I read a just a few years ago that surplus ammunition from WWI- that's World War One, not Two- was commonly used in 21st century crimes committed in Europe & the former USSR. Remember that military contract ammo was usually very well sealed around the case mouth & primer pocket. How long does fixed ammunition last? No one really knows.

I would not want to count on such old ammo for serious need. On the other hand I would *Never* stand in front of it either.

 

[outdoorsman310]

30 bucks for a spring? wow! I would probably have them looked at by a gunsmith

 

[Astro14]

Originally Posted By: outdoorsman310
30 bucks for a spring? wow! I would probably have them looked at by a gunsmith


Flintlock firearms were handmade, there was no standardization/interchangeability that we expect in firearms now (and that firearms were responsible for developing about 170 years ago, well past the age of the flintlock), so that spring would likely have to be custom made... and $30 seems cheap for that...

 

[brianm_14]

Please, do not fire the flintlock without having it inspected by a gunsmith experienced in antique arms. If it checks out stick with light loads.

The Luger should be shot with ammunition of recent manufacture. Why bother with the trouble of cleaning up after shooting what might be corrosively-primed ammunition? The cartridges are likely fine if they were stored under reasonable conditions and not ruined by oil or solvent contacting he primers. But you could have problems when firing it, such as hang-fires or a round that simply lodges the bullet halfway down the barrel. If the latter occurs and you touch off another round the barrel will suffer bulging (at the very least!) and be ruined. Save those cartridges as a momento.

Esp. if it us chambered for .30, it is common to need a replacement spring or to trim the one now in the Luger by a coil or two. The original springs can be too stiff for some lower pressure ammo made today, and the pistol won't feed.