How do big piles of loose bullets in ammo canisters keep from going off?

Question

I’ve been getting a lot of firearms videos on my YouTube and such and I was wondering how those big ammo boxes full of loose bullets are safe, and how do they keep from being poked on just the right spot with the weight of the pile making a loose bullet fire?

In: 0

Answer 1

I think you are underestimating how hard the primer needs to be “poked” to go off. It’s metal that has to be deformed, and when firing the gun’s hammer strikes the primer HARD. You shouldn’t be shaking and agitating ammo boxes anyways, and nothing short of dropping an ammo box from significant height would generate enough force to set off a primer, even if a bullet tip happened to be lined up with a primer just right.