Hoarding Brass

[Char-Gar]

Looking around the shop I see a huge amount of cartridge brass of all calibers and wonder how I got here. When I started reloading 50 plus years ago a hundred cases for a handgun (2 boxes of 50) and sixty cases (3 boxes of 20) for a rifle was considered to be an ample supply. We didn't polish the cases, so we loaded the same cases over and over gain until they hard turn a uniform dark brown color. We would anneal them from time to time to keep them from splitting and have at it again. Of course this was before the day of progressive loaders and the various action shooting games that consumed huge amounts of ammo.

To say I have a lifetime supply is an understatement and I have enough for five lifetimes as I still load them in small batches as I did many years ago. I have to face the reality that somewhere along the way, I started to hoard brass. Be that as it may, I am not going to get ride of it, but continue to enjoy living among the colorful boxes and containers of these magic things.

[btroj]

Hoarding? No, just a frugal man makng sure he takes care of his future needs.

I pick up any brass I find on the ground. Why? Because it seems wasteful not to. I use what I can and scrap the rest.

Lifetime supply? At 48 I'm not prepared to make that call yet. For some cartridges I'm sure I'm there, for others I'm not so sure. I suppose it will be up to my estate to determine how my supply stacks up as "lifetime ".

[claude]

I too have become aware of a certain "abundance of stuff" pertaining to reloading. I can't actually say I'm hoarding yet, but if I laid it all end to end, I'd be far from home............................................ and tired. [smilie=s:

[bedbugbilly]

I find myself picking up brass as well . . . sort of like a crow or a packrat . . maybe because it's shiny?

I've been shooting for 50+years but haven't been reloading more than a few . . . and for some reason, when I have a chance to get brass at a decent price, I pick it up "just in case" . . don't ask me what "just in case" means as I don't really know myself! LOL I got in to reloading to save on cost of ammo and because I've cast for 50 years (shot BP). I din't think it would be additive but it's sure turned out that way. Now, I find myself getting brass for a couple of calibers I don't reload but "might" in the future. It's a sickness . . . just a sickness! Unfortunately, there's no vaccine for it! The nice thing though is that I have been able to help a couple of folks out who need some . . . sort of nice to be able to pass it on to them . . . sort of a "payback" for those that have helped me along the way. I figure that's what it's all about . . . sharing and helping others.

[pjames32]

I keep thinking the same, with brass and all of the equipment. I did get rid of my 10ga. loader. It went with the 10ga. to one of my nephews.
I just looked at a post WTB Win 300 mag dies. I've got them, but still have a 300 win mag in my safe. I've not shot it in 20 years so I guess I'd better keep the dies just in case.
Stumbled on 5-20rd boxes of new 307 win brass for my 300 BS Contender. I have 100 rds loaded so I probably don't need them.
How much is enough? I guess we will never know! If the money runs out in our retirement at least I might be able to sell some stuff for beer money.
PJ

[Digital Dan]

Yesterday I traded a dozen tangerines for 138 pieces of once fired .30-30 brass.

I don't feel guilty.

[MrWolf]

I keep every piece of brass I find (usable of course) and keep them in their respective containers. Who knows, someday I might have a corresponding firearm that needs reloading :bigsmyl2:

[freebullet]

Metal of any kind isn't getting cheaper. If it's free I will pick up every piece I can find.

[Tatume]

I just purchased 1000 Starline 44 Rem Mag cases, and wish I could have afforded more. I'll use them until the mouths split, and expect a couple of years service from them.

[Love Life]

I have a bunch of brass. It's getting kind of ridiculous in my garage. I see a range sale in my future. I have a certain amount of Norma .243 NIB and I laugh every time I see it. I bought it for normal prices during the scare of 2013, but the quantity is ridiculous when I think about the 1st 100 pieces of brass from that lot lasted long enough to burn my barrel out.

[joesig]

I'd rather hear someone is "hoarding" it than they took it to the scrapper.
Just don't store it near ammonia and enjoy the stash!

[paul h]

It seems like hording until we get in times of shortage and you're happy for every piece you have. To me hording would be having more than I actually use, and I'm not there yet.

I seem to find spare time is harder and harder to come by, so when I do manage to get to the loading or casting bench I like to crank out batches in the 100's if not over 1000. So with 1000 or 2000 handgun cases on hand it makes sense if I load them once a year vs. having to reload 100 cases 10 times a year.

Just last weekend I found ~700 sized and primed 38 sp cases, sure made an easy job of loading up a batch of ammo.

[Iron Whittler]

You don't know for sure how much reloading stuff you have accumulated until you have to pack it all up to move. I have been reloading and casting since mid 60s. Now add bullet swaging and you get the picture. My stuff is in crates, boxes, and bags. In process of getting new "Man Cave" ready for the Big move in.:cbpour::swagemine:

[stephen m weiss]

I hope to give away my stuff to kids and grandkids that show an interest. I bought a box of 500 308 brass and 500 223 and have cleaned up maybe half. I learned that making a bunch of bullets to sit in bags in a drawer sort of bugs me, because soon enough, I decide I shouldn't have made em that way and I pull em apart and make a much smaller batch the right way. I like the idea of having configurable brass, powder, and lead. I design and use the bullet to meet the needs I am seeing and anticipating. Designs that I really like I am now making up bags of about 60. By the time I burn thru them I usually want to make them different anyway.

[dragon813gt]

I'm storing most of my brass in five gallon buckets. One cartridge type per bucket. I have multiple buckets for certain common cartridges. One such bucket lead to building an AR because what's the use for all that brass if you don't have a rifle to use it in ;)

Its a good thing I have a three story 1250 square foot garage to keep all my "stuff" in. One day I will stop paying for a storage unit and bring my GTI home to store it in the garage :laugh:

[Eddie2002]

I'll pick up just about anything at the range, even scooped some .22 cases which ended up in the scrap bucket. I get a real kick out of researching the odd stuff found at the range. The common calibers I'm not using get traded to shooting buddies once I have a good supply on hand. I always keep some 9mm and 5.56 brass just in case I get the chance to add another firearm to the collection.
I'm starting to run out of storage for loaded ammo, need to spend a few days at the range.

[paul edward]

The word "hoarding" may not be the best word to describe the accumulation and saving of brass we find or are given. Whenever I shoot, I pick up anything reloadable. Sometimes the brass bag (old claymore bag) contains interesting oddball cases. Those I don't need are cleaned, decapped, sorted and stored. If nothing else, they are trading material.

A couple dozen years ago a cousin gave me a 30/30. I didn't need to buy any brass as there was a good supply of range pickup brass on hand.

When I got a .380, I already had a coffee can full of brass that had been culled from range pickups.

I must admit, however, that I now have more 9mm and 45 Auto than I will ever need.

Some of us, who have been reloading for over 50 years, can remember when brass was scarce and expensive, so we just pick it up. That is my excuse and I am sticking to it.

[nagantguy]

I just turned down a trade with a member here not long ago, nothing was set in stone and there was no hard feelings but I just could not once it was sorted and cleaned bear to part with that much .44 brass, I felt like smog the dragon sitting atop his treasure. I remember a time when cash and a place to get brass was non existent for me. I also have buckets of stuff for calibers I don't load for yet and I've always said just in case, glad to see that so many times here makes me feel better. The 7 or so calibers I shoot the most I probably have a life time supply but remember when I had none. I thought for sure I had plenty of .38 and .357 until wife and daughter started shooting them by the gallon ziploc bag full. Same with .223 and since I'm on a rant here as much as weatherby brass costs why does it not last as long as other brands? I don't hot rod em they just seem to give up the ghost sooner, thought I had a life time supply of them.as well but down to under 100 for both. Ya never find those on the ground.

[Big Boomer]

I know I have more brass than I will ever be able to shoot up if I never reuse another case. Don't even know how many thousand .45 ACP pieces I have but if there is a loose one no one claims, I will. Same with .223/5.56. Large coffee cans stacked atop one another and don't even know how many a large coffee can will hold ... and all with the same headstamp. Picked it all up at the range after a police shoot. I know I have at least 1,000 pieces of .30-06 brass. A month ago I decided I would auction off a little under 300 mixed headstamp pieces for site benefit. That still leaves me with more than I will ever be able to use because I just keep using the same 150 or so that I've been using for I don't know how long. When I discovered the .45 Colt I got rid of my .41 Mags. and my .44 Mag. But I still have something like 2,000 pieces of .41 Mag. brass. All same headstamp. Likewise lots of .44 Mag. brass. I had absolutely no use for the .243 Browning A-Bolt an old friend put up for sale due to hard times. But the price was right and then I needed to acquire some brass despite the fact that over 100 rounds of ammo came with the rifle. Haven't fired a single round of the factory ammo but I really need to get some more .243 brass just in case. I used to think there was something wrong with the way I think, or the way I was raised or something amiss ... until I found the old Shooters site ... then I came here and found some of the same folk and determined they all have the same condition I have. Now I just call it normal ... for me, anyway. Big Boomer

[DrCaveman]

Here's a tip: the swappin and sellin section

I havent been accumulating components very long, compared to many of you

When my stack is getting too tall, and i see that it outpaces my consumption, i look around and say: what am i short on?

Then offers for trades commence. And everybody wins. A small shipping fee paid today, for the acquisition of otherwise spendy materials, is a better value to me than the stuff sitting on my shelf or garage floor.

Just a thought.

[Airman Basic]

I just purchased 1000 Starline 44 Rem Mag cases, and wish I could have afforded more. I'll use them until the mouths split, and expect a couple of years service from them.
I don't think I've ever lost a 44 case to mouth splits. Got some I've been loading 20 years. Use new ones for maybe 8 or 10 full-power loads, then they start case separations just above the head of the case. At that point, I use them for light plinking loads. Fun stuff.

[StrawHat]

...When I started reloading 50 plus years ago a hundred cases for a handgun (2 boxes of 50) and sixty cases (3 boxes of 20) for a rifle was considered to be an ample supply...

I remember those days also! I had a 310 tool to load my rifle cartridges and a "C" press to load the revolver stuff. Also some 310 dies for revolver. Than I got into PPC and bought a Dillon 450. I still have the 450 but have gone back to the single station and the 310 for the majority of my reloading. Occasionally, I will use the 450 or one of my brothers progressives to load up a bunch (500!) of ammo. My shooting has also decreased. I generally go out with maybe 10 rifle rounds and 2 or 3 cylinders worth of reloads.

But I still have buckets of brass for some cartridges, 38 Special and 22 WCF for example. Not so much for the 44 Colt or the 50-70. 45 ACP, well, who doesn't have a couple hundred pounds of that?

[ofreen]

I've never had much use for the word 'hoarding'. Sure there are actual hoarders out there, like the nutjobs on the cable TV show. But are you a hoarder because you have a good supply of something? Naw. I am glad I have my "hoard" of 25-20, 218 Bee, 32-40, 348 Win, 22 Jet, 256 Win, 300 WBY, 6.5 Grendel, 357 Max, etc.... I am very glad I don't have to depend on the marketplace or go through a reforming process when I want to load any of those calibers.

[Yodogsandman]

I also "stocked up" on brass years ago. Most of it (thousands and thousands) is reputable once fired 30-06 and 308 win cases from a firearms manufacturers accuracy and function test range. I figured that most cartridges are based on these two cases. I do wish I bought more 35 rem, though.

I picked up lots of range brass also. It was like a game when the kids were young, who could find the most. I have various calibers that are in 3 lb coffee cans, tucked away. I still have a big box full I need to segregate. It's come in handy for guns I've picked up since. Now, it seems the range officers get to it before me. Then again, not many shooting unless they reload, now.

I still find myself having to buy some, now and then. Like when I started to reload for the SKS's. Or when I wanted to try some Lapua cases for accuracy stuff.

I've got just enough!

[RayinNH]

I keep every piece of brass I find (usable of course) and keep them in their respective containers. Who knows, someday I might have a corresponding firearm that needs reloading :bigsmyl2:

Guilty as charged.

[RayinNH]

I just purchased 1000 Starline 44 Rem Mag cases, and wish I could have afforded more. I'll use them until the mouths split, and expect a couple of years service from them.

Then they become .44 Specials and you get a couple more years out of them :bigsmyl2:.

[Bonz]

my wife has very few rules regarding reloading but number one rule is not keeping brass for a caliber that I currently don't have a gun to shoot it in. she knows that if I begin to collect brass in that unused caliber, I will eventually buy a gun to use them in. must be a guy thing, makes perfect sense to me to buy the gun if I already have all the ammo for it ;-)

[captaint]

I keep telling myself to stop picking up 9mm brass at the range - either on the ground or in the bucket. But I can't. I have to pick it up. Like Rick said - it just seems a waste not to. I will trash it,though, when the primer pockets get a little loose. No time for that. Mike

[dondiego]

I found a stash of once fired .357 Sig brass..................luckily, I only had to buy a barrel to drop in and a set of dies and I am shooting that caliber now!

[dpoe001]

Two of my sons now reload, i once thought i had plenty of brass,it now slowly keeps dwindling down!!The good thing is as they go to the range they now pick up any brass they see.

[texassako]

I did not think I was a brass hoarder until a recent look showed I am up to 7000 .25 ACP cases. It is also a slippery slope when you find some brass, then a cheap set of dies comes along or a mold, and suddenly you are trying to find a gun to shoot it in.

[gnoahhh]

Ha ha. Count me in as a brass hoarder too! I live in a small apartment and have a room devoted to "gun stuff", in which I store my brass in foot locker-size wooden chests I built. Three of them aren't enough to hold it all. As a result you will see boxes and bags of the stuff everywhere- kitchen counter, coffee table, night stand, etc. It's disease, and thank god I live alone! The GF has grown used to it, and she doesn't even complain anymore when she comes over and finds .30-06 brass stored in the flour canister. No room for dust bunnies under the bed- too much brass and lead stored there!

[fredj338]

Reloader's by nature are scroungers. I can't leave a range w/o picking up brass that is just laying there for some turd to scoop up & take to the salvage yard. Good brass needs a good home with a reloader. I have even picked up brass for calibers I don't have. I figure some day I'll get a gun in that caliber or find someone else that needs the brass.

[gwpercle]

It happens because until just a few years ago hardly anyone reloaded. You went to the range and all that brass was just lying there. People would shoot full boxes, put the empties back in the box and drop them in the trash barrel. And the truth be known, we reloader's are the ultimate " Pack Rats" .... can't just leave all that shiney once fired brass lying there....got to take it home. I would come back from the range with a big cardboard box filled with all kinds of brass....I had to! We are Brass Junkies, hopelessly addicted.
Gary

[Smoke4320]

I am not a hoarder Just a prudent planner and retirement funder (yea that's it.... I am saving all this brass as a retirement hedge ) :) :)

[opos]

When at the range if I see a shooter that is obviously not saving their brass I'll ask if they would mind if I take it..if ok, I do and if not ok I never poach brass..I also don't cull off the range floor..that belongs to the range or the shooter. I seem to always cruise the classifieds on the boards I frequent and Craigs List postings...often find "broken lots" of all sorts of reloading components...have no idea how many "boxes" of 20 or 30 rounds of J word bullets I've bought ...for super cheap prices...over the years...will never need any more bullets..but will keep buying if they are just a few and are cheap...same with brass...I've gotten small quantities here and there on the forums and also by posting in the WTB section...often someone will say they have 50 or 75 of something or another and it's usually a $5 bill or something to just pay something...I got enough 45 Colt and 44 brass to fill a big dresser drawer and am still shooting the 2nd or 3rd "batch" I've loaded over and over again..but I'll buy more if I find it cheap enough...don't drink or smoke so I figure my components are my "sin expenditures"...been giving away 9mm, 38 special and some 357 brass to new loaders for years..and still got enought to last my lifetime. I don't accumulate so much rifle brass...I shoot 06, 8mm Mauser and 7.62x54r and with the 06 and 8mm I probably got a couple hundred of each..don't load for the Mosins...just shoot the cheap milsurp and wash out the barrels.

[RayinNH]

The club I shoot at has a policy that if it's in the brass bucket, and you can use it to reload, you are welcome to it. You are not allowed to empty all the buckets so that you can make money at the scrap yard. The club does that to pay expenses.

[pretzelxx]

I shoot two calibers. I currently have 200 or more of about eight. If i decide to ever shoot 45 (more so if the wife let's me) I'll have at least 500 of that ready to go! Its not hoarding, it's hoping to shoot them in the future!

[rondog]

I consider picking up brass the same as picking up coins. If I had to buy that case for a nickle from someone, or I could sell it for a nickle, or get a nickle value in trade, then it's the same to me as a nickle. I'll pick up free money all day long, thankyouverymuch!

[Char-Gar]

I just purchased 1000 Starline 44 Rem Mag cases, and wish I could have afforded more. I'll use them until the mouths split, and expect a couple of years service from them.

Anneal the top half of the case every five loading and they will never split, if you use a steel die and not one of those carbide thingies that overwork the brass.

[Char-Gar]

I remember those days also! I had a 310 tool to load my rifle cartridges and a "C" press to load the revolver stuff. Also some 310 dies for revolver. Than I got into PPC and bought a Dillon 450. I still have the 450 but have gone back to the single station and the 310 for the majority of my reloading. Occasionally, I will use the 450 or one of my brothers progressives to load up a bunch (500!) of ammo. My shooting has also decreased. I generally go out with maybe 10 rifle rounds and 2 or 3 cylinders worth of reloads.

But I still have buckets of brass for some cartridges, 38 Special and 22 WCF for example. Not so much for the 44 Colt or the 50-70. 45 ACP, well, who doesn't have a couple hundred pounds of that?

I still load handgun ammo with a 310 tool and a trio of old Pacific C presses. I load rifle on a RCBS A2. I took a flyer into progressive reloading and bought a Dillon some years back. You could really crank out ammo on one of those machines, but an overcharge in a fine old 1931 Colt Officers Model 38 Special soured me on them. No damage was done to the handgun, but the Dillon was sold down river, pretty quick you betcha. I don't need to load ammo that fast.

[fredj338]

I shoot two calibers. I currently have 200 or more of about eight. If i decide to ever shoot 45 (more so if the wife let's me) I'll have at least 500 of that ready to go! Its not hoarding, it's hoping to shoot them in the future!

500 isn't even a good start! If you get into some form of competition like IDPA or USPSA, you can often score 1000s in just a couple trips. This month I started shooting 40 minor vs 45acp. In just two matches & have already picked up 500rds above what I shot. I am amazed how many still shoot factory ammo.

[John Allen]

Hello, My name is John and I am a brass and lead hoarder. I am planning on doing nothing about it except continuing the addiction.

[nagantguy]

Hello, My name is John and I am a brass and lead hoarder. I am planning on doing nothing about it except continuing the addiction.
Hello Jon, my name is Steve. I first realized I had a problem when I couldn't just physically could not trade off some .44 brass.

[Blackwater]

It's part of every real reloader's DNA to salvage brass at every opportunity, and those of us who are getting a bit long in the tooth have a plenty! I'm humbled too, to be so blessed with raw products to keep me going. I've even taken to saving spent primers in a big 2 lb. coffee can. With the price of brass, fluctuating, ya' just never know what you might get for a big can of near solid brass, ya' know? "Waste not, want not," as the old timers used to say. I just hate to see things squandered, and committing something recyclable to a local dump just offends my delicate country boy sensibilities. If that makes me peculiar, so be it. I've been called a lot worse, I assure you.

[blackthorn]

When it comes to accumulating brass---I have a terminal case of selective OCD!!!

[Boyscout]

There is a store close to town that sells loose brass and everytime I stopped in I would buy 25-50 35 Remington Cartridges, one time I needed to round up an internet order to make the freight worthwhile and I bought 100 more of the same. I felt quilty buying it when I really didn't "need" it. Now, I can't even find loaded 35 Remington ammunition. I am glad I "hoarded" and I won't be hurting for brass to reload for awhile.

I shortened 12 cases to comply with State law and felt quilty, but it was the only way I could use my rifle. My son also has a 35 Remington T/C. He will appreciate my hoarding when he inherits my reloading stuff. Shooting my first cast bullet deer last week made the mutilation of brass a little more palatable. I'm am going to hold off doing much more until Indiana makes a ruling on using high power rifles.

[bangerjim]

Hoarding......that's not hoarding!


I have over 1,400# of brass and AlBronze barstock (1/8-6") stored in my machine shops. Now that's hoarding! Bought a lot of it when it was $0.75-1.00/#.

Lost count on the # of pistol and rifle brass castings. Always come home with more than I go with!

banger

[Frank46]

At one time before the crazyness with reloading components and ammo shortages I started picking up spent brass. Over a period of a couple years I had over ten 5 gallon buckets full of just about any caliber you could name except the older ones. I had guys asking if they could get certain calibers and was happy to do it. Got tired of tripping over the buckets in the garage. Off to the scrap yard. 459 pounds of brass almost filled a 55 gallon drum. Had a buddy who did CCW handgun courses he had so much brass from the classes he'd hand me the broom and said have at it. 40mm cans full of 38 special, 40S&W,45 acp. Don't even pick any up at all now. Frank

[fal_762x51]

The wife always gives me the look when I come home with a 5 gal bucket full. The one who dies with the most stuff wins.

[Slow Elk 45/70]

Hoarding???? Not. waste not want not!!!!:cbpour::guntootsmiley:

[jonk]

I know a guy in his 60s who has been shooting for about 50 years. When last we spoke, he had:
700,000 loaded rounds of .45 ACP, and about 1.2 million more cases;
2 million loaded rounds of 9mm, but not so many empties
100,000 each of loaded 30-06, .308, 5.56, plus 250,000 or so empties total, 100k each of the 30s and 50k of the .223
Plus several million loaded rounds in various other calibers
18,000lb of lead
Over 1000 guns
More powder and primers than are legal to have in the house
God knows how many jacketed bullets

Basically his entire basement was filled, stack floor to ceiling with pallets full of loaded ammo, all of which he had done himself. Attic was filled with guns. Lead stacked in 50lb pigs in his back yard. Brass in 55 gallon drums in his double car garage, again completely full.

He was still buying more of everything as fast as he could. And yes, while having a modest enough house, you wouldn't know he's a millionaire.

Lest you think this is 'a friend of a friend of a cousin's wife', I did see this hoard myself once.

Now to be fair, he does shoot about 100,000 rounds a year, he has his own range on site, and shoots pretty much every day.

THAT is a hoard. A 5 gallon bucket of brass? Wise set aside for a rainy day.

[RayinNH]

I know a guy in his 60s who has been shooting for about 50 years. When last we spoke, he had:
700,000 loaded rounds of .45 ACP, and about 1.2 million more cases;
2 million loaded rounds of 9mm, but not so many empties
100,000 each of loaded 30-06, .308, 5.56, plus 250,000 or so empties total, 100k each of the 30s and 50k of the .223
Plus several million loaded rounds in various other calibers
18,000lb of lead
Over 1000 guns
More powder and primers than are legal to have in the house
God knows how many jacketed bullets

Basically his entire basement was filled, stack floor to ceiling with pallets full of loaded ammo, all of which he had done himself. Attic was filled with guns. Lead stacked in 50lb pigs in his back yard. Brass in 55 gallon drums in his double car garage, again completely full.

He was still buying more of everything as fast as he could. And yes, while having a modest enough house, you wouldn't know he's a millionaire.

Lest you think this is 'a friend of a friend of a cousin's wife', I did see this hoard myself once.

Now to be fair, he does shoot about 100,000 rounds a year, he has his own range on site, and shoots pretty much every day.

THAT is a hoard. A 5 gallon bucket of brass? Wise set aside for a rainy day.

:shock::shock::shock:.

[Shiloh]

Hoarding? No, just a frugal man makng sure he takes care of his future needs.

I pick up any brass I find on the ground. Why? Because it seems wasteful not to. I use what I can and scrap the rest.

Lifetime supply? At 48 I'm not prepared to make that call yet. For some cartridges I'm sure I'm there, for others I'm not so sure. I suppose it will be up to my estate to determine how my supply stacks up as "lifetime ".

Guilty here as well. I'm a brass monkey. It gets harder to stoop over to pick it up though.

Shiloh

[W.R.Buchanan]

If you're going to pick up brass and you are older and not as flexible as before then I would suggest one of these devices. It's called a "Nut Wizard" and you guessed it,,,it was originally designed to pick up nuts.

I sweep ranges after my shooting events and usually come home with a lot more than I left with. I seldom come home from my home range with less than 100 once fired .223's usually LC's. It amazes me that people just leave the stuff laying there, but everytime I go there is a new supply just laying there.

Even if you don't reload you can always recycle, plus it is good etiquette to clean up after yourself.

Randy

[62chevy]

I feel totally inadequate with my small stash of brass and lead. :shock:

[EDG]

I recently found a new rifle laying in the floor of the closet in the form of large quantity of hard to locate brass for which I have no rifle. So now if I sell the brass and buy the rifle. I will have to find some more of that brass. It is something like working on your glasses. You really need another pair of glasses.

[mdi]

One time I wondered why I looked for a 30-06 case that had been flung hither and yon by my Garand, mebbe 5-10 minutes before I found it. I figgered I look would for a shiny new dime (or quarter) so why not a case?

BTW; I do not own a .40 S&W handgun and I have never shot one, but I have about 300 cases I "found" at the local "shootin' spot". I don't think I'll ever own a .40, but who knows? I may make some jacketed .44 Mag. bullets outta those cases...

[rondog]

If you're going to pick up brass and you are older and not as flexible as before then I would suggest one of these devices. It's called a "Nut Wizard" and you guessed it,,,it was originally designed to pick up nuts.

I sweep ranges after my shooting events and usually come home with a lot more than I left with. I seldom come home from my home range with less than 100 once fired .223's usually LC's. It amazes me that people just leave the stuff laying there, but everytime I go there is a new supply just laying there.

Even if you don't reload you can always recycle, plus it is good etiquette to clean up after yourself.

Randy

Absolutely! I have one called a Brass Mower, same thing as a Nut Wizard but made for brass, just a little different in size is all. But man, what a wonderful tool for picking up brass! I heartily recommend these things.

[ravelode]

I'll go to the local casual shooting area (it's) less than 1mile from my house and pick up any brass, lead and misc. stuff people leave behind, in one 5month period I found a couple thousand pieces of reloadable brass, a full AK 47 mag, one AR15 mag, one Ruger 10-22 mag, three boxes of factory 12 gauge ammo, and more unfired ammo in various calibers than I cared to count god bless those careless (drunken nighttime) plinkers

[jaysouth]

I am not a hoarder Just a prudent planner and retirement funder (yea that's it.... I am saving all this brass as a retirement hedge ) :) :)


Yes, accumulating reloading supplies = Investing in the future. Gold and silver, hell, I am buying brass and lead.

It makes me feel smug to be shooting 231 and Red dot that I paid less than $10 a pound for.

[Drdarrin]

I'm not a hoarder either. I prefer to think of the brass, lead, primers, bullet molds, powder, guns and safes as part of a well diversified investment portfolio. I hope I have more than I'm ever likely to need and only half of what I want.

[dragon813gt]

If you're going to pick up brass and you are older and not as flexible as before then I would suggest one of these devices. It's called a "Nut Wizard" and you guessed it,,,it was originally designed to pick up nuts.
They work on a concrete surface. But the ranges I belong to are mostly crushed stone. That thing picks up more stones than brass. They're great for the block houses as long as the rain hasn't washed in a bunch of stones.

[TXGunNut]

I feel pretty good about my stash of 2-300 cases for each rifle cartridge I load. Doesn't sound like much compared to some folks but it will last me quite some time at my current rate of consumption.

[borg]

I have so much brass,, I sold over $8,000 worth for a trip to Perry.
One guy and his father in Dallas bought 22,000 rds of 5.56 alone.

Premier Brass ***** here,, LOL

[fredj338]

Yes, accumulating reloading supplies = Investing in the future. Gold and silver, hell, I am buying brass and lead.

It makes me feel smug to be shooting 231 and Red dot that I paid less than $10 a pound for.
Really a true statement. I finished the last of my 1994 primers a few months ago, $11/k I think. Working on some RedDot powder that is at least 15yrs old, maybe $15/#? So buying in bulk is saving $$ over the next 5-10yrs as everything goes up. Not to mention you'll always have reloading supplies if you are buying & replacing as you go. Not much gets cheaper as tie moves forward.

[Airman Basic]

They work on a concrete surface. But the ranges I belong to are mostly crushed stone. That thing picks up more stones than brass. They're great for the block houses as long as the rain hasn't washed in a bunch of stones.
How do they work on grass? The kind you mow, I mean.

[dondiego]

Mine works pretty well in the grass, and also in the pea gravel on my range.

[dudel]

I'll pick up brass that I reload for. I don't take brass that I don't have a gun for. If a stray .380 or .40 gets picked up with 9mm, or 45 ACP gets picked up with 45 GAP, I save those and give them to friends who use 380, 40 or 45 ACP. Someone who reloads that caliber would put that brass to better use than having it sit on my shelf.

[bigarm]

How do they work on grass? The kind you mow, I mean.

Another thing that works really well is: http://www.amazon.com/Steelgrip-TA5105-Pick-Up-Tool/dp/B0043570IS/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1416844695&sr=8-3&keywords=pick-up+tool
We call it a gopher. It seems we picked ours up at Ace, but I could be wrong. Not as fast as the nut thing, but usually only get the brass.

[mdi]

I made a "tool" to pick up brass; a 1/2" dowel about 3' long with a hole drilled in one end (lengthwise). I found a piece of spring steel, mebbe 1/8" diameter and tapered the ends and bent one end 90 degrees for about a 1"-1 1/4" "leg". Forced the straight end into the dowel about 2" deep. I find a case, don't matter what caliber, stick the wire "leg" in the case mouth and pick it up. No bending...

[W.R.Buchanan]

MDI the whole reason I have a .45 Glock is because of all the .45ACP brass I accumulated picking up brass with that device of mine.

For info,,, They don't work all that well on gravel but on dirt or grass they are just fine. You're always going to get some debris but usually it is minimal. After you use it for a while you get the hang of keeping the junk out. I can even pick up brass off gravel if it hasn't been trampled into the gravel.

Randy

[mdi]

I saw a feller try to use one of the "Nut Picker Uppers" at the local shooting spot and along with brass it collected small rocks, cigarette butts, bottle caps, and assorted trash. Worked quite well at that though, nuttin' smaller than a pea was picked up...

[rmark]

I pick up range brass, bag it, and keep it. Unfortunately no ones left a bunch of once fired .43 Spanish for me to pick up :(

[tomme boy]

I have never bought brass for ANY gun I have ever had. What I don't reload for either gets sold here or scrapped at the local yard.

[s1120]

Im new to the loading world, but I grab whatever I can. Im good for 38 and 357, but just starting 30/30. I shoot at a small club that has a brass bucket they keep. I don't take from that, but if im cleaning up my fired brass before I leave, and the last people left something I need on the ground.... oh ya its coming home!

[BenW]

I don't think I'll ever own a .40, but who knows? I may make some jacketed .44 Mag. bullets outta those cases...

I cry a little inside every time I see that happen. Same reaction my "Eco" cousin has when I eat tuna fish (oh those poor dolphins). Mine's worth being sad about though...

[Vinne]

To this day I still pick up brass when I see it even though I have tons, old habits run deep. Guess I don't want to ever run short.

[ofreen]

I cry a little inside every time I see that happen. Same reaction my "Eco" cousin has when I eat tuna fish (oh those poor dolphins). Mine's worth being sad about though...

I feel the same way when I hear people are using lead to make fishing weights. I always ask them why not use a rock?;)