Some Ammo Fun
Posted by Socrates in guns and gun issues, Socrates at 11:11 am | 
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If you own a gun, you must own ammunition for it. Without ammo, a gun is a paperweight.
Every gun “prefers” a certain brand and type of ammo. If your gun “likes” Brand X 155-grain semi-jacketed hollowpoint ammo, then use that brand/type whenever possible. If you gamble on a different brand/type of ammo, you may discover, all too late, that your gun doesn’t function well with it. Some brands of ammo have too-hard primers, or they are under-powered, or over-sized, and so forth. Stick with ammo that you know works.
Don’t store ammo in a hot place (e.g., in an attic in Arizona). Heat kills ammo. The ammo will degrade and it will be smoky and sooty when you shoot it off. “I can’t see the target for the smoke, and my gun is jammed after only 10 rounds!” you’ll scream. It’s a bummer. Store ammo in a cool, dry place and date each box of ammo with a pen so that you know when you bought it. Ammo will last a long time, but it won’t last forever; 25 years is probably the limit of its “dependable” shelf life (granted, 50-year-old ammo will usually still work, but it may not be dependable). Keep a notebook that lists “which gun prefers which ammo” if you own more than one gun.