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Rotting ammunition

Encourages unloaded weaponry when not in use, and has a “use-by” date once open
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These bullets are packaged in a way that prevents their contact with open air. Upon breaking the seal to get them out, a chemical barrier, perhaps hydrophilic, starts to change state inside the shell, eventually exposing the gunpowder and whatever chemical encased therein to a quick spoiling reaction that prevents the ammunition from firing off after a reasonable time period—say 12 hours perhaps.

Keeping such rotten ammunition from ruining the barrel like a spoiled battery is the tough part.

RayfordSteele, May 18 2018

US5773748 https://patents.goo...om/patent/US5773748
Limited-life cartridge primers [xaviergisz, May 24 2018]


       Pretty clever.   

       I don't know about rotting, but having it not fire after a few hours might be something that would prevent accidental shootings.   

       Heck, have it only last for a few minutes before "expiring". Pull it out of it's wrapper, load it and shoot it. If one's left in the weapon accidentally, it's inert after 14 minutes or so. [+]   

       I think you'd simply have the primer, the only part of the explosive part of the cartridge exposed to air, change.   

       Ok, here you go. There's a solid piece of something that quickly deteriorates and turns soft after a few minutes of exposure to air between the primer and the hammer. It's hard enough to transfer the impact of the hammer to the primer for a few minutes, then it degrades and gets soft so when the hammer hits it it simply absorbes the blow of the hammer without transferring any impact to the primer.   

       You'd peel a little metal tab off the rear of the cartridge to arm it and expose it to the air to start the degrading/di-fusing process. The metal being necessary to block the hammer if the tab was left on.
doctorremulac3, May 18 2018

       There's already a bit of metal between the primer and the hammer. A spent round has a neat little dent in it where the firing pin hit it. Your proposed tab needs to be strong enough to resist this impact, but flexible enough to peel it off; sounds like a tall order to me.   

       Maybe a disc of material that expands as it absorbs moisture from the air, gradually moving the whole cartridge slightly further down the barrel, eventually reaching a point where it's too far away for the firing pin to reach it?
Wrongfellow, May 19 2018

       Why would any gun owner buy this ? It's not useful in any way.   

       Throughout your history the emphasis has almost invariably been on improving the shelf life of products. For example, a well-known brand of fast-food hamburger can be stored at slightly above body temperature for years with no degradation of taste, texture or nutritional value. Admittedly it didn't have any of them to begin with, but the principle remains valid.
8th of 7, May 19 2018

       Well, it seems to me like a great way to issue ammo to armed police. Ideally you want them to just go in there and get the job done quickly, and with minimal risk of their ammo being useful to any criminals who might get their hands on it. If things go sour and the operation takes longer than anticipated, the guys could probably use a break anyway, so send in a second squad with fresh ammo to take over.
Wrongfellow, May 19 2018

       I was reading how controlled the issuance of ammo is in the military, and trying to think of ways to bring the same effect to the general public.   

       You wouldn't want the transition to be a slow one, as that could be unsafe for the owner and/or spoil the weapon.   

       I think some reasonable number of hours, say, for a hunting period, extended police shift, or somesuch would be a good timeframe.
RayfordSteele, May 19 2018


       Easy, picture a dime with a piece of tape over it. No need for flexibility on the blocking piece, just the tape holding it in place.
doctorremulac3, May 19 2018

       I wouldn't want the technology chosen to be of a type that would be easily defeatable, and I suspect the only way to get it into the marketplace would be to mandate it as a requirement.
RayfordSteele, May 19 2018

       Could also replace the tape with a snap on / snap off cap that was big enough that it wouldn't fit into the clip or chamber until it was removed.   

       Idea number two: Peel off the tape, the primer is exposed but there's springs that pulls a blocker into place. This spring is coated and infused with a solid material that evaporates or softens when exposed to air. After a few minutes the spring, no longer held in place by the material pushes or pulls the blocker in front of the primer.
doctorremulac3, May 19 2018

       I'm still leaning towards something that spoils the gunpowder.
RayfordSteele, May 19 2018

       Problem is that powder in the cartridge is sealed up air tight. Unless you're using something else to start the degrading process no air is going to get in there.
doctorremulac3, May 19 2018

       Just make the seal between the shell and the casing degrade on contact with air and humidity will soon spoil the powder.   

       Looks like it might be time to start stocking up...   

       That’s what I’ve essentially proposed. A degrading chemically-timed seal that once degrades opens a fast path to powder spoilage, which would be encouraged by some chemical means.
RayfordSteele, May 19 2018

       Packing them in tobacco tins full of bacon grease will cure that right up.   

       There weren't many things I got to learn from my grandpa... but that was one of them.   

       ...an other thing was that, if you get your hogs hooked on canned corn they will uproot any stumps within their enclosure if you've auger-ed holes beneath the roots and poured canned corn down them before letting them into their new home.
Tilled and fertilized... for the cost of a couple of cans of corn.

       Oh!... and that you can train a turkey to attack the legs of anybody who doesn't know his name through the steps leading up to your house if you make that its pen.   

       The other Grandpappy taught me the correct Quebec pronunciation over the France pronunciation of the phrase 'baby duck'. Still remember arguing with him about it as a three-year-old to this day.   


       Aren't grandpa's just totally friggin awesome?   

       Anyone that gets access to imprinting state will always be frigging awesome.
wjt, May 24 2018


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