under water ammo can testing

Glad you posted this. I moved my bulk ammo to metal cans over the weekend.
 
I'd say those plastic boxes fall into the "moisture-resistant" category rather than "waterproof". I use them to store primers, but never ammo.
 
I didn't know anyone thought the plastic ones were anything more than a stylized sterlite bin (cheap $2 plastic shoe bins). They're cheap facsimiles of what an ammo can really is but only useful for organization.

If you shop around, they're not even any cheaper. You can usually find 50cal cans for $10 or now the PSA deal has them for $7.50.
 
I use a plastic box for carrying ammo to the range because it is lighter.
 
You can't fix stupid.
 
The only advantage I have ever found to the plastic ammo cans is that they are easier to open if you have any arthritis in your hands. I suffer a little in my right thumb but it's not going to get any better as time passes.
 
This guy is kinda dumb. Might as well filled it with water and put it out in the sun for a year. Omg the water is gone these don't work.
 
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Well now we know an easier way to hide your guns and ammo from THE MAN instead of digging holes in your backyard... lol
 
Ok. This has my interest. Maybe it was the brand he used happened to be crappy.

Here's an MTM brand can that's going into the pond with rocks in it to see how it does. No gaps in the sealthat I can see.

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BurnedOutGeek said:
Ok. This has my interest. Maybe it was the brand he used happened to be crappy.

Here's an MTM brand can that's going into the pond with rocks in it to see how it does. No gaps in the sealthat I can see.

View attachment 14487
Click to expand...
It'll leak. A real ammo can has a wider seal I think. I don't think that MTM can seal will standing the pressure. I could be wrong. Curious like you now. I'd throw one in my pond but we have a turtle big enough to eat that can lol
 
BurnedOutGeek said:
Ok. This has my interest. Maybe it was the brand he used happened to be crappy.

Here's an MTM brand can that's going into the pond with rocks in it to see how it does. No gaps in the sealthat I can see.

View attachment 14487
Click to expand...
I'm sure it was the brand. I think his point was the military cans are more reliable than plastic. My take on it was there's several brands of plastic ones find the quality ones to use check the seals just like you would on the metal ones.
 
This was not a test . This is a guy who sunk his ammo expecting those cans to work. I'm amazed the military cans held up as well as they did.
 
I found a side opening 50 cal box full of 1950 dated blanks in M1 Grand clips in the woods in VA when I was in High school.

Ammo was still good and the box was still water tight.
 
The largest difference in the two styles of latch mechanisms. The plastic cans simply snapped shut, while the latch on the mil cans is a cam-lock that compresses the seal.
 
"Decided to test it by sinking his ammo in a pond for a year" aka he must have been going threw a divorce and tried to hid it from his wife or her lawyers for year.
 
I use a few of both. Plano makes a shotshell box size container that fits 100 rounds perfectly. Very good for organizing. And while I don't dispute that the metal USGI cans are better, most of what I need the cans for is storage and organization. Not protection for total submersion for a year.

I would also like to see how many of those .22 were still viable rounds. That would be interesting to see how well they held up, if at all.


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Would it make sense to test with a vacuum pump? Thread the can lid for a line, add a gauge and shutoff to the line. Apply some reasonable amount of vacuum, something short of crushing the can, then close the valve and see if the needle moves over the course of a month or two. Seems easy enough and I even have the gear. Could do the same with pressure.

The downside I see is that in surplus cans the seals are the variable. Maybe connect the line to the can and then use it to test the seals in as many lids as you want. Hmmm, might have to build that.
 
..." Just wanted you YouTube folks to know how much of an idiot I am. I sunk ammo cans full of ammo in my friends lake....I could have used toilet paper, stacks of maxi pads, notebook paper but I chose to use live ammo."
 
JimB said:
Would it make sense to test with a vacuum pump? Thread the can lid for a line, add a gauge and shutoff to the line. Apply some reasonable amount of vacuum, something short of crushing the can, then close the valve and see if the needle moves over the course of a month or two. Seems easy enough and I even have the gear. Could do the same with pressure.

The downside I see is that in surplus cans the seals are the variable. Maybe connect the line to the can and then use it to test the seals in as many lids as you want. Hmmm, might have to build that.
Click to expand...

That would be a good test. Vacuum inside the can would compress the seal more tightly (good) and would simulate the external pressure caused by sinking the can under water. Internal pressure would try to lift the lid and decompress the seal (bad).
 
There are three types of caches I learned in SF,

Burial, bury in good containers, not to hard to find if you remember where you buried it
Hidden/Concealed, easiest to do and quickest to find
Submerged, hardest to do, most prep, and hardest to recover at times due to depth of cache.

I've sunk rubber boats, dive tanks and equipment in lakes for later recovery. Dove with USGI ammo cans down to 66' without issues of leaking.


CD
 
Combat Diver said:
I've sunk rubber boats, dive tanks and equipment in lakes for later recovery. Dove with USGI ammo cans down to 66' without issues of leaking.
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So that's 3atm, and assume 1atm in the can to start the differential is 2atm or about 30psi. That's a lot more than I'd have expected them to take before leaking. Now I've gotta hook one up to the pump and see if it'll crush, will try it when the new ones come in from PSA.

trcubed said:
That would be a good test. Vacuum inside the can would compress the seal more tightly (good) and would simulate the external pressure caused by sinking the can under water. Internal pressure would try to lift the lid and decompress the seal (bad).
Click to expand...

I agree that you'd want to test vac. Heat would cause the contents to expand and worst case the seals would allow some excess pressure to vent. Assuming that it doesn't allow air to enter once it cools down then no harm in that other than that it makes the lid harder to open.
 
Any of the plastic cans are problematic. I like the MTM's, because they are sturdier and have better latches. But, if you load any of the plastic cans up, you'll see that the lid flexes when lifting the full can, enough to break the seal every time.
Unless, of course, it's a Pelican. ;)
 
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