Mathman got it. No mercuric primers by then. They went out of style 50 years before that brass was made. Simple corrosive priming (which was also no longer used by FA in '61) is not injurious to brass in the least. I'm using a small batch of FA-32 brass (which was definitely corrosive primed) that's holding up as well as stuff 80 years younger than it is.
Regurgitation of a little primer history: the old #FA-70 primers, used for all gov't .30 ammo from long before WWII until well into the 50's was corrosive as hell, but utterly harmless to the gun if simple cleaning protocols were followed after firing. It was kept in use long after foreign powers like Germany had switched their priming compounds to non-corrosive, as well as U.S. commercial ammo makers. Why? Because it was an extremely stable primer (a useful trait when troops are engaged under all conditions globally), didn't go bad after long term storage, and a very uniform primer which equates to accuracy. Lots of knowledgeable handloaders and benchrest shooters clung tenaciously to the FA-70 primer until gov't surplus supplies of them dried up. I still have a couple packs to use sometime but they're probably worth more to a collector now.
Regardless, you got your hands on some of the best '06 brass ever made. I know loonies who would creep your house tonight if they knew you had some laying around! I treasure the couple hundred pieces of FA Match brass I have and use it sparingly.
As with any old(ish) brass, annealing is a good idea anyway.
Last edited by gnoahhh; 01/18/19.
