Damascus Made for Smokeless

[jimcaron]

it is true that Fulminate of Mercury will create a hygroscopic salt after detonation, but the really nasty compound in older primers is the potassium chlorate. This was added to make the flame created burn even hotter. This is even MORE hygroscopic. On top of this it has the added curse that when wet, the potassium ions released will cause metal to rust even faster than sodium. This explains why all the "old Timers" like my uncle would rush home to clean their guns after a day of shooting.

[Autumn Daze]

Interesting...But I faithfully clean my guns after a day of shooting.

[jimcaron]

Originally Posted by Dave Suponski

Interesting...But I faithfully clean my guns after a day of shooting.

Oh no, I never said it wasn't good practice, because it is, but back then, It was absolutely mandatory.

[Tom Martin]

With regard to corrosive primers, I have been doing some internet research this morning, and based on what I have found, mercury fulminate primers were not corrosive. Mercury fulminate primers were discontinued due to short shelf life, which led to misfires and hang fires. Potassium chlorate which replaced the mercuric primers is highly corrosive, but more stable, which is why it was used by the military through WWII.
The true corrosiveness of chlorate primers was not realized until after the advent of smokeless powder. Black powder produces large quantities of unburned residue which absorbed much of the oxidizing residue of the primers, and removal of the black powder residue with water also removed most or all of the chlorate residue, depending on the thoroughness of the cleaning.
Smokeless powder did not leave the quantity of unburned residue of black powder, so a few passes with a brush left an apparently clean barrel, except that the chlorate residue imbedded in the pores of the metal could not be seen.Before the true cause of the corrosion was discovered, it was usually blamed on the smokeless powder. The military found that the corrosion could be avoided by thorough cleaning with soap and water. My early rifle training was at Ft. Jackson and FT. Bragg with the M1 rifle and WWII ammo. On days when we fired, GI trash cans with immersion heaters were set up in the company street and filled with boiling soapy water to clean the rifles.