BEST CONTAINERS

[Artificer]

My powder from the fireworks guy came in a 2.2 liter plastic bag. I decanted it into empty cat treat screw-top canisters, but would like to find some 1/2-lb containers. Fits in my range boxes better. I am keeping my eyes open for some of them.

Would something like these work?

Cone Top Cans (houseofcans.com)

Gus

 

[Ed Pilkington]

I vote with TENRING and DEERSTALKER. Plastic. My old cans have rusted. I keep in sealed thick small arms surplus cans inside of larger surplus sealable thick walled cans. I worked with BP for 20 years. You don’t want an explosion in your basement without safe containment.

 

[longcruise]

I keep mine in the original plastic.

Not sure it would be a good idea to store in a ammo can.

 

[springfield art]

How is glass going to spark? There is no metal in glass to spark, it takes metal to produce sparks and not all metal produces sparks.

I gotta think all those millions of DuPont cans were a "non-sparking" metal; never gave it any thought! But that's why this site if so informative.

 

[sheriff john]

A word of caution from my own experience. About 18 years ago, we moved. New digs provided shelves for my powder cache - open, wooden, in garage. Last week I did an inventory. Black powder and substitutes dating back to the 1960's in original cans and plastic were ok. However - an unopened square can of "Bullseye" was next to a can of DuPont Fg (marked $2.79) has rusted nearly completely through. Similarily, a plastic container (not gunpowder) with Red Dot has deteriorated to the "brittle" stage.

Several glass jars (Mason) with black blasting powder are fine, no problem (unless dropped of course). Powders do not present a problem in a fire unless contained. Black powder goes "poof", smokeless powder mostly just burns sorta fast unless contained.

There is a quite lengthy video of various types of ammo, etc. in fires, dropped from various heights, run over by a bulldozer illustrating results available online. My suspicion is that metal cans and plastic containers provided by ammo manufacturers may have special coatings or be made of materials tested to be unaffected by gunpowders.

 

[Brokennock]

You don’t want an explosion in your basement without safe containment.

Lol, I don't want an explosion in my basement, period.

 

[Mark Herman]

I too would like to see glass that sparks. I make 1/2# powder cans by cutting 1# cans in half. Cut the bottom part so the sides are about an inch long and snip slits in the inch skirt so it can be pushed into the top half. Put silicone around the skirt before sliding it in and then pop rivet it in place. 1/2# can with a lid, no problem.

 

[OhioHawkeye]

My powder from the fireworks guy came in a 2.2 liter plastic bag. I decanted it into empty cat treat screw-top canisters, but would like to find some 1/2-lb containers. Fits in my range boxes better. I am keeping my eyes open for some of them.

I took several old metal cans, cut the middles out and re-soldered them to 1/2# cans.
I made sure the cans were empty, completely filled with water overnight, then dumped the water out and started cutting with a coping saw (a jewler's saw would have given a better cut) immediately. After making sure they were dry and free of powder remnants, I started soldering. No issues, and very handy.

Just read Mark Herman's post above.... Not advisable. If you are going to do this, do it properly. That means making the seams water tight to begin with and no nooks and cranies or sticky silicone for powder to get gummed up into. This means you willactually be cutting the metal twice, Once about 1/8" above the bottom. The second half way up in the middle to obtain the desired volume. Trim the bottom piece down to as small as possible and insert the top inside this rim so there is no gap. Make sure to flux so the solder flows into and under the slight gap that will be present.

 

[OhioHawkeye]

....... Powders do not present a problem in a fire unless contained. Black powder goes "poof", smokeless powder mostly just burns sorta fast unless contained.

There is a quite lengthy video of various types of ammo, etc. in fires, ......

As a retired firefighter (28+years experience) I've been on a few fires where powder of all sorts and ammunition was involved. Only one had black powder. In that case, The black powder was in metal cans and in plastic. The plastic just melted, the metal cans sort of did too with the bottom seals failing.. then the powder burned. Weird in appearance. .. in the other cases with the ammunition? No it doesn't fire like in a gun. They just went all willy nilly in all directions. They go off with the heat, but generally the bullet stayed within a short distance, with the brass flying a couple feet out. They have no force in them.

Yes, I agree with you on the issue of plastic degrading even without sunlight exposure.

 

[FishDFly]

This should be a sticky for those who say BP explodes in a fire and bullets go flying off into the hinterland.

 

[DuncNZ]

I used to buy powder in bulk and decant it into plastic bottles which were non static . I have read that static electricity won't make a spark hot enough to set off powder , but as far as I'm concerned I don't want to risk it . It is quite easy to test the static properties of a bottle , just drop a little powder in it , swirl it around and if the powder sticks to the sides it is static producing .

 

[Rifleman1776]

Either is fine.
At one time in the 70's when there was a shortage of bp I bought in 50lb canister bulk. For resale I packaged in 1lb freezer storage boxes. These were lined with a plastic bag and sealed with a twist tie. Never a problem or complaint.

 

[nhmoose]

Plastic is just so traditional.

 

[user 48702]

I took several old metal cans, cut the middles out and re-soldered them to 1/2# cans.
I made sure the cans were empty, completely filled with water overnight, then dumped the water out and started cutting with a coping saw (a jewler's saw would have given a better cut) immediately. After making sure they were dry and free of powder remnants, I started soldering. No issues, and very handy.

Just read Mark Herman's post above.... Not advisable. If you are going to do this, do it properly. That means making the seams water tight to begin with and no nooks and cranies or sticky silicone for powder to get gummed up into. This means you willactually be cutting the metal twice, Once about 1/8" above the bottom. The second half way up in the middle to obtain the desired volume. Trim the bottom piece down to as small as possible and insert the top inside this rim so there is no gap. Make sure to flux so the solder flows into and under the slight gap that will be present.

Sounds like a lot of work when you can by 8 oz cans with a screw top for about $2.75 for a quantity of one. Bulk, they run about $1.95 ea, but I usually buy them by the case to repackage harness oil. There is one company that sells as few as 1 can and that is Thermal Scientific in Texas. The caps are sold separate from the cans.

 

[user 48702]

As a retired firefighter (28+years experience) I've been on a few fires where powder of all sorts and ammunition was involved. Only one had black powder. In that case, The black powder was in metal cans and in plastic. The plastic just melted, the metal cans sort of did too with the bottom seals failing.. then the powder burned. Weird in appearance. .. in the other cases with the ammunition? No it doesn't fire like in a gun. They just went all willy nilly in all directions. They go off with the heat, but generally the bullet stayed within a short distance, with the brass flying a couple feet out. They have no force in them.

Yes, I agree with you on the issue of plastic degrading even without sunlight exposure.

Did you ever recover any of the detonated cartridge cases after a fire? While assigned as a CID Agent at MCB Camp Lejeune, NC in the early 1980s, I had a case where two Marines were injured at a training range in the Verona Loop area of the base. A brush fire started at one of the ranges and junior troops were ordered to extinguish the fire as best as they could. About all they had to fight the fire with was a few shovels and most were just flailing the ground with shelter halves. I received a call that two of those Marines were injured and had been transported to the Naval Hospital with wounds. The MPs referred the incident to our office since it was reported that the injured had suffered bullet wounds from unspent cartridges in the fire. Upon arrival, it was determined that projectiles from unspent cartridges had wounded the two Marines, one received a 5.56 round just above the wrist, lodged between the ulnar and radius, the other Marine had a round lodged against a rib on his flank. ER Doc stated that if the rib hadn't stopped the round, it would have more than likely caused internal damage, liver, kidney, etc. I went out to the range where the incident occurred and found quite a few unfired cartridges that had detonated in the brush fire. Here is a photo of one that was recovered from the range.

 

[smoothshooter]

I keep any that is not in a horn or flask, in the original container, those are stored in .50 BMG ammo cans.

I keep any that is not in a horn or flask, in the original container, those are stored in .50 BMG ammo cans.

Those ammo cans are about the worst possible BP storage containers if you ever have a fire.

 

[smoothshooter]

Did you ever recover any of the detonated cartridge cases after a fire? While assigned as a CID Agent at MCB Camp Lejeune, NC in the early 1980s, I had a case where two Marines were injured at a training range in the Verona Loop area of the base. A brush fire started at one of the ranges and junior troops were ordered to extinguish the fire as best as they could. About all they had to fight the fire with was a few shovels and most were just flailing the ground with shelter halves. I received a call that two of those Marines were injured and had been transported to the Naval Hospital with wounds. The MPs referred the incident to our office since it was reported that the injured had suffered bullet wounds from unspent cartridges in the fire. Upon arrival, it was determined that projectiles from unspent cartridges had wounded the two Marines, one received a 5.56 round just above the wrist, lodged between the ulnar and radius, the other Marine had a round lodged against a rib on his flank. ER Doc stated that if the rib hadn't stopped the round, it would have more than likely caused internal damage, liver, kidney, etc. I went out to the range where the incident occurred and found quite a few unfired cartridges that had detonated in the brush fire. Here is a photo of one that was recovered from the range.
View attachment 105228

Most of the time when metallic cartridges are burned in a fire, the bullet doesn’t go anywhere but it’s the brass case that flies off and can cause injury.

 

[smoothshooter]

I was wondering which containers are the best for storing black powder. I know the original containers are best but I've purchased some powder from a fireworks supply company that has bulk powder but will repackage it in 1 pound metal containers for shipping. I have empty plastic containers of the same manufacturer. Which would be best for long term storage ? The containers it was sent to me are not sealed so that's not an issue. Leave it in the metal or transfer to plastic?View attachment 104901

The metal containers will be fine. They are what BP manufacturers shipped powder in for over 150 years. If it were me, I would spray paint the outside with red or a clear coat to prevent rust. Do not obscure any labeling.
Transferring a bunch of powder to different containers just increases the chances of having some kind of accident.

 

[OhioHawkeye]

Did you ever recover any of the detonated cartridge cases after a fire?.....

No, just the one that hit me in the chest. I was lucky enough to catch it before it fell to the ground.
It was a 30-06 and looked normal. I carried it in my bunker pants pocket till I retired. It was still in there when I turned my gear in. (All they let us keep is our class A's and our helmet)

 

[OhioHawkeye]

Sounds like a lot of work when you can by 8 oz cans with a screw top for about $2.75 for a quantity of one. Bulk, they run about $1.95 ea, but I usually buy them by the case to repackage harness oil. There is one company that sells as few as 1 can and that is Thermal Scientific in Texas. The caps are sold separate from the cans.

Not at $80 to $100 a case. Then shipping and tax added... No thanks.

It takes about 10 minutes to cut and resolder and I already have the supply. Buying more would be a foolish waste of money, and I don't like round cans for powder...wastes space in box. Even my glass bottles of cleaning solution are square.