Storing Powder

Now here's a bugaboo that worries all serious handloaders/reloaders. To load you've got to have powder and primers as well as the more inert brass and bullets. It is easy to accumulate quantities of both simply trying different loads or loading a wide variety of cartridges. Get a lot of powder and/or primers in one spot and one can make many people very nervous.

Smokeless powders are less dangerous to store than primers and don't create the shockwaves of explosives when burned in relatively open conditions. A cabinet of 1" solid wood with blow-away sides should be used to store 20-50 lbs of smokeless powder. Beyond that the basic rules of handling include 1-Don't smoke or use open flame around the powder and 2-Don't store near flammable liquids. See the links for more details...

Black Powder is more problematic. It IS an explosive. It is easier to ignite (has a lower ignition temperature). It is also more tightly regulated than smokeless powders (at least for now). A magazine (storage container) outside of your home would be ideal storage. One would only need to keep it dry.

Primers contain explosives used to start powders by means of the percussive (normally) action of the firing pin or hammer of the gun. So, it is obvious that along with other caveats regarding explosive storage one not remove them from their containers and one should prevent them from being struck.

Links:
- The Reload Bench, "Powder Storage"
- Smokeless Powder & Primer Storage :: By Marshall Stanton on 2005-08-27