Cheap containers you use for stuff?

[Idaho45guy]

Posted a thread about seeing a guy use empty Cool Whip containers for tumble-coating his bullets in.

I found that my empty Folgers Coffee tubs are perfect for holding my different tumbler media; each one holds a perfect 5lbs of media...

http://s7d1.scene7.com/is/image/officedepot/445487_p_smu20631ct?$OD-Dynamic$&wid=450&hei=450

What common containers have you found that are useful for specific applications in casting and reloading?

[Bzcraig]

I have used those and gone to the Dollar Store and gotten their Ziplock (or similar) containers for much of my stuff. After I pour and PC my boolits they go in a approx. 2qt clear container.

[Fordcragar]

I buy milk at Costco in these somewhat square plastic jugs, which I use for brass.

177516

[RogerDat]

Home Depot sometimes has 6 qt. plastic containers in 4 packs for around $4 I use them for brass storage, you can just see some in the shelf at the left side of the bench. About the size of a large shoe box. Bottom two shelves. Hold close to 1,000 .223 or .38 special brass. Less than that of larger rifle but still up around 500.

177511

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Sterilite-6-qt-Storage-Box-4-Pack-16410096/206920258

[Bull Shoals]

I have been using empty plastic JIF peanut butter jars for years. see thru, recycle and if I drop one ...no glass to clean up.

[nagantguy]

I keep about everyour thing in old coffee cans, brass, pc powder, tumbler media, nails, screws, door knobs, grease, hinges, I even use one as a spent primer catcher.

[GhostHawk]

Lots of brass in plastic coffee cans here, from 1 lb cans up to 3 lb. I also have a gallon oil jug full of .223 and a other almost empty of 7.62x39.

Wife had a whole lot of about 4" diameter 2" tall plastic containers that I converted into boolit storage. Mostly just removing the fancy flower label on the top, and write caliber and weight. They work great for 50-150 lubed, sized ready to load boolits.

There is a war on in our house for 3 liter lactaid milk jugs. The prepper side loves to wash them out well with soap and water, rinse thoughly, then fill with water for a rainy day when we might need a drink of good clear clean water.

The shotgun reloader side loves to cut them out and punch out 12 and 20 ga overshot cards.
And the poor slingshot guy likes to melt them down to make blocks of hard plastic with which to make useful things including slingshots.

First come first served.

[MrWolf]

Kirkland raisinettes from Costco. Square shaped and I use the for small amounts of brass and such. I use my 5lb protein powder containers for bulk brass.

[1988-4551]

I tumble lube in 32 ounce yogurt containers, coffee cans for brass, may upgrade to those heavy plastic applesauce containers in the near future.

[too many things]

well one thing to watch out for. about all plastic now is made to biodegrade and when it does you have a mess.I had used cottage cheese containers. they were cheap and had lids you could stack then for cast and brass etc. opened the storage cabinet the other day and had about 3000 mixed up mess all over the place.
the clear peanut butter jars work but the lids become brittle .
I went to pint canning jars. I put a safety rail so they cant be knocked off shelf

[Pb Burner]

I use empty coffee "cans" for storing various things. I also use peanut butter jars, mostly for boolits.

[Sig]

My favorite are these square plastic grapefruit containers.177529

[MUSTANG]

I use the Costco clear plastic square nut and chocolate containers for cleaned and prepped brass. (Stores nicely on shelves). I use old plastic pill and vitamin bottles for various caliber and weighted swaged bullet storage (groupings by caliber and weight). I use larger Costco/Walmart clear plastic Snack item jugs for uncleaned brass to segregate calibers until such time as there is enough to clean and prep for that caliber.

Used to use steel coffee cans for the items above. They worked fine at the Nevada House; but discovered major rust problem developing at the Montana house so I went to plastic.

I use vegetable & soup cans for sorting purposes. Label the cans with a paper label taped on the side so I can sort each by caliber and head stamp. You would be surprised at how many cans you have to set out to segregate 22LR head stamps for swaging .223's. 9mm can be almost as bad.

[lightman]

I also use the empty coffee cans for storing stuff in. I have also used the small TupperWare containers for small parts. The kind that are made for a single sandwich or slice of pie.

I really hope all of my coffee cans don't degrade at the same time. What a mess! I've had 5 gallon buckets full of ingots fall apart.

[country gent]

I save the clorox color safe jugs from the laundry for brass soak jugs and some things. They have almost a 3: opening and makes getting brass out much easier and faster. In the others I cut an opening in the front to reach in and use them for odds and ends also. For my castrifle bullets once lubed they go into 100 rd mtm pistol cartridge boxes for storage. I save boxes of the appropriate size also.

[Kraschenbirn]

Plastic coffee cans for brass, tumbler media, and 'raw' range scrap. Stackable 'Ziploc' kitchen containers for loaded handgun ammo; most rifle ammo is stored in plastic trays from factory handgun ammo boxes, stacked in .50 cal. ammo cans. Unfortunately, those plastic trays from .38/9mm/.45 ACP/etc. appear to have become a 'thing of the past' but, over the years, I've accumulated several hundred and, at 25 or 50 rounds to the tray (depending upon caliber) I'm pretty well fixed for the foreseeable future.

Bill

[mdi]

I have/am using most of the items mentioned above and I have a few favorites. Plastic shoe boxes hold a lot of brass and stack neatly I have 10-12 in my cabinet for my handgun brass. Not 12 calibers though! I have 2 or 3 of each caliber (can be found on sale for about $1.00 each at the box store and are common at the dollar stores). Another favorite is square plastic Beer Nuts containers, with labels removed. The large size is about I gallon and the small jug is about a quart. I store a lot of my pre-lubed cast bullets in these. And I still have 2 red plastic coffee cans full of 38 special brass and one of 357 brass and one half full of 38 Special Nickel plated...

[tunnug]

I've been using the large keg looking containers left over from Costco's pretzels, I use them for the largest amount of brass 9mm, .40, .45 and .223, when one is full they get set low on the shelf cause they get nice and heavy.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

The little black and gray colored 35mm film containers are great for pre-measured black powder or pyrodex loads. Getting harder to find, but ask for them at the Costco picture department.

I also use the square plastic chocolate and nut containers from Costco for storage of brass. Square fits on the shelves more efficiently than round.

As a gunsmith I did lots of parts cleaning usually in kerosene. The kerosene gets dirty, and is expensive, so rather than use a large container for small parts I found it economical to use a container that more closely fit the part, like a kippered herring can for small and long, small can like diced chilis come in for screws, etc. I have a medium-sized cardboard box full of oddly shaped containers for special cleaning use. When the kerosene gets too dirty to use you can dump it and not be out as much as if you were dumping a gallon. I try to stay away from glass, but if you are having to use lacquer thinner as a cleaning agent it will evaporate away in a couple of days without a lid, so small thick jars with lids are good for that application.

[Harter66]

I use the peanut butter jars for bullets with lines for reference of quantity. Those 2lb jars are a little big for bullets under 35/38/9mm so an intermediate instant coffee jar gets adopted for 22,25,26,27&28 cal. Ms has monthly scripts so the ready to load 22 and 27 cal go in them . The pill bottles also hold about 500 gas checks up to 30 cal from the bagged vendors . I have 4 Flambeau tackle tray boxes that hold all of small tool parts like shell holders , trimmer arbors , dummy cartridges and 1 is full of misc rings , sights , rails and bases . Caught on sale those are among the best $6 I ever spent for the bench . I have access to cheap ammo cans through a base property reutilization office , at $3 , 5 and 10 for 30,50 and 20/30 mm cans you just about have to use them . I've taken to making my own ammo boxes recently from soda boxes , think shotgun shell boxes a box on par with a 3' 12ga holds 100 6.8 Rem and is a slip fit in a 30 cal can leaving just enough space for to lay 2 Hornady factory boxes of 20 or an AR mag on top of 3 boxes and a Federal loose 20 box.
I tried the throw away zip lock boxes long ago and had lots failures with them , degrading I suppose. I pretty much stick to clear jars and ammo cans these days .
I forgot about the cat litter buckets ,3 high for ingots and great for shot shells and similar bulky items .

[Pipefitter]

One of the local chain stores here sells ice cream in square 1 gallon buckets. I also use the round 5 quart buckets for brass storage.

[blackthorn]

Brass in coffee cans, Cost-Co protein powder containers (approx. 1 gallon), and Olive "kegs" with the screw-on lids. Bullets go in clear plastic containers in amounts that do not stress either the bullets or the containers. I have also filtered dirty kerosene through a large funnel with a chunk of felt in it.

[Walter Laich]

Lots of brass in plastic coffee cans here, from 1 lb cans up to 3 lb. I also have a gallon oil jug full of .223 and a other almost empty of 7.62x39.

Wife had a whole lot of about 4" diameter 2" tall plastic containers that I converted into boolit storage. Mostly just removing the fancy flower label on the top, and write caliber and weight. They work great for 50-150 lubed, sized ready to load boolits.

There is a war on in our house for 3 liter lactaid milk jugs. The prepper side loves to wash them out well with soap and water, rinse thoughly, then fill with water for a rainy day when we might need a drink of good clear clean water.

The shotgun reloader side loves to cut them out and punch out 12 and 20 ga overshot cards.
And the poor slingshot guy likes to melt them down to make blocks of hard plastic with which to make useful things including slingshots.

First come first served.

when I was with the volunteer fire dept we did the same thing with the jugs--stored water; turns out after a few months the water all tasted like sour milk...

just saying

[runfiverun]

I just kinda use whatever is handy that will fit in the hole on the shelf.
the big bulk sized mayonnaise jugs hold just the right amount of water to fill the pin tumbler.
they also hold about 800 loaded rounds of 40 shorts and are easy to transport.
ice cream buckets are a favorite for brass, so are some candy containers and plastic coffee holders.
the shoe box containers are pretty good since they are rectangular and stack well but don't hold all that much, but are okay for segregated rifle brass.
for the bulk brass I just use 1-3-5-7 gallon buckets with rubber gasket lids they stack well and keep things dry and clean.

[beagle]

The plastic film containers are great for holding greasy sizer dies. The top takes a magic marker quite well and saves scratching through a bigger box for the right die.

The 100 round .22 LR slip top boxes are great for holding sized and lubed bullets ready to load. Label the end with bullet style, sized diameter and they stack really nice. The .22 Mag boxes hold the larger calibers. Bullets dust free and ready to load.

The clear containers for salad work well for shotshells as do the $1 plastic shoe boxes from Walmart. Work great as brass sorting containers as well./beagle

[bedbugbilly]

I use the Folger containers for various brass and set them at the back of my reloading bench. I've gone to using the clear plastic "peanut" jars with the screw on lids for my boolits. Easy to see what is in them and easy to label with a stick on white label.

[OnHoPr]

I just kinda use whatever is handy that will fit in the hole on the shelf.
the big bulk sized mayonnaise jugs hold just the right amount of water to fill the pin tumbler.
they also hold about 800 loaded rounds of 40 shorts and are easy to transport.
ice cream buckets are a favorite for brass, so are some candy containers and plastic coffee holders.
the shoe box containers are pretty good since they are rectangular and stack well but don't hold all that much, but are okay for segregated rifle brass.
for the bulk brass I just use 1-3-5-7 gallon buckets with rubber gasket lids they stack well and keep things dry and clean.


Just from this post and many more like it I am wondering if you are the state militia munitions depot.lol Do your forefingers have carpal tunnel?

[gwpercle]

Don't get pack rats started talking about storage containers....the truth is anything plastic with a top will be put to use.
Prescription medicine bottles hold most of my Lyman Lube sizer dies now , just the right size.
Plastic crayon boxes , stackable with snap on tops ,are great for sized and lubed boolits.
Just don't keep every container you think you can use for storage....you get an intervention and accused of hoarding !

[John Boy]

I have been using empty plastic JIF peanut butter jars for years. see thru, recycle and if I drop one ...no glass to clean up. Ditto!
For bullets that are lubed and I use for match shoots, dumpster dive at the range for trays & sleeves. The cardboard sleeves are turned inside out - re-glued with hot glue - permanently marked with details using a Dymo label maker. Here's a computer made label for my 22LR black powder reloads:
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd220/Meadowmucker/Black%20Powder/22LR%20BP/e7b30360-3ba3-41f5-80b9-1bb9cf741094_zps6fb7eb51.jpg (http://s222.photobucket.com/user/Meadowmucker/media/Black%20Powder/22LR%20BP/e7b30360-3ba3-41f5-80b9-1bb9cf741094_zps6fb7eb51.jpg.html)

[marlin39a]

Large Chock full of Nuts cans for brass. I make up labels on the PC to identify. Those small plastic containers I get pre packed sandwich meat at the store are great for bullets.

[DerekP Houston]

we saved just about every jar, plastic tub, lunch meat container etc around here. They either get used for leftovers and tossed once filthy or stolen for my reloading bench. I like mason jars a lot but as mentioned above they make a mess when dropped and broken. We try to stay away from too much processed foods but they add up pretty quick either way. All my coffee usually comes in bags so I don't have those unfortunately.

[RogerDat]

I forgot to mention the Folgers can pictured in the original post see duty for brass, or for "coins" I make from garage sale solder, or pewter. Sometimes put foundry or mono type in them for on the shelf storage so I don't have to dig out the bigger stash. Keep shot in them too.

One of my favorites are bread loaf pans from garage sales, thrift stores and estate sales. They are found in sizes from large for brass to smaller to ones that are very small. Moderate sized one half full of bullets they stack, when sorting brass, or working through sizing brass or bullets they become an inbox and outbox. They are my main temporary storage bin on the bench when working through stuff. Have one I keep there just for rejected bullets. Use them to bring cast downstairs from casting out in garage. When empty a dozen stack on a shelf easily, waiting for the next pile-o-stuff I need to dump into something.

Ammo boxes 30 and 50 cal. for storing cast bullets. I can still move them even when full, they stack, and are easy to slap a label on. Member her sells labels for them at a really cheap price, don't have the link handy but good deal. Buy the ammo boxes one to a few at a time when at a gun show, doesn't take long to get a supply sufficient to one per caliber, or even one per specific type of cast bullet that you like to keep on hand (can you say .38 swc).

Ziplock storage bags. For brass sorted by headstamp, cast bullets, small parts or a set of parts that go together. Often cast bullets will be in Ziplock bags inside ammo boxes. Wife keeps swiping the Ziplock bags because if she sees the box of bags she just assumes it belongs in the pantry and I borrowed it without putting it back, going to try spray painting the boxes I buy for reloading. Generally sandwich, Qt, 1/2 gallon and gallon are on hand. Freezer bags cost more but I think they are stronger.

[Blackwater]

We throw out many containers in the trash that make good storage containers. The big ones have been covered, like coffee containers & milk jugs, but I've used Dixie Cups and cat food cans (cleaned) and dip cans for the munchies to keep lube batches in. I've learned with the lubes, to keep a small tab of paper in it so I don't later have to guess what lube it is when the Magic Marker or Sharpie rubs off, though.

Film canisters (for those who still use film), mint and lozenge tins are useful. All sorts of things we usually just throw away. Some take a quick cleaning, and that's easy, except for tins of salted nuts. Those, I usually let soak a while in soapy water to make sure all the salt gets out of them, and rinse in hot water. Never had a problem with those after doing that. They can store old drill bits (good for pins sometimes if they're broken or worn out), screws and nuts and bolts and nails - all sorts of things. It was common not long ago to keep a coffee can full of old nails pulled from lumber that was rotten, for occasional use without having to go all the way into town to get new ones. On a farm, a minute or an artifact saved always has a use, and I don't think it's any different now. So many throw out good containers to go to the land fill, and then go buy what is sometimes lesser quality stuff to store things in. Our forefathers would find that rather curious, I think.

[RogerDat]

Blackwater sort of has a point. Considering I grew up with a mom that despite her and dad making a good living would save aluminum foil for re-use I get that point. Children of the depression tended to not waste anything, and passed that on to their kids to some greater or lesser extent. For me that upbringing makes throwing out a coffee can a totally unnatural act. Along with left over fasteners, wood scraps or metal drops. The small containers can be good too. Sewing kit in the camping stuff is in an Altoids tin.

[garym1a2]

I like the 32 oz mayo jars the best. One of them holds enough for uspsa match and a few reshoots stages. The big Maxwell tubs are used for work in process. 5 gall buckets are used for range boxes. I use a lot of old alternator boxes to store WW's and mixed lead. These are strong cardboard boxes and loaded I can still lift them

[NoAngel]

My mother in-law has two parrots. Their food containers are GREAT!

177588

[NoAngel]

For serious ammo storage I use this guy. He's local to me and his boxes are AWESOME!

His website is a little tricky to navigate, but his product is perfect and very tidy.

http://www.repackbox.com/protect_ammo.asp

[Shiloh]

Industrial hospital instrument washer. The orange cakes of soap come in plastic containers with secure snap lids.
They became the homes for cast boolits.


Shiloh

[Bullwolf]

Peanut butter, mayonnaise, and mixed nut containers - All are clear and make excellent storage containers that easily allow you to see inside. The labels usually are easy to remove in either warm soapy water, or else I use some Hoppes solvent to remove the gummy glue residue.

I'm a fan of MJB coffee, and I can still find it in metal cans.

http://www.mjbcoffee.com/images/img-can-and-mug.png

I find all kinds of uses for coffee cans, and #10 food cans.

Lately I've started saving empty clear plastic vitamin and pill containers for smaller stuff. I don't smoke cigars, but I'll stop at a cigar store that is selling cigar boxes outside. They are often smaller, rigid, and useful.

I've also been recycling my empty eye dropper bottles, such as Visene, Clear-Eye or Allergy eye drops. They make excellent gun oil dispensers. I use them to conveniently apply a few drops of Mobil-1 synthetic oil to a Q-tip, a squeaky hinge, or the slide rails of a 1911.

A trip through a typical American's recycling bin, will often yield more re-usable containers than you will know what to do with.


- Bullwolf

[retread]

The plastic film containers are great for holding greasy sizer dies. The top takes a magic marker quite well and saves scratching through a bigger box for the right die.

The 100 round .22 LR slip top boxes are great for holding sized and lubed bullets ready to load. Label the end with bullet style, sized diameter and they stack really nice. The .22 Mag boxes hold the larger calibers. Bullets dust free and ready to load.

The clear containers for salad work well for shotshells as do the $1 plastic shoe boxes from Walmart. Work great as brass sorting containers as well./beagle

Haven't seen a film container in years now that everyone's gone digital. Great idea though.

[retread]

That does give me a new (to me) idea though. Prescription pill bottles for lube sizer dies!

[Landy]

Export Soda tins - they hold a lot - they stack very well - they are the perfect diameter for the garage shelves.

177605

[lead-1]

Haven't seen a film container in years now that everyone's gone digital. Great idea though.

On Amazon you can buy like 12-15 of them for $10-12, a friend of mine used to keep them for carb jets and other small parts for motorcycles he worked on.

[blackthorn]

In days gone by the 1 hour picture developer kiosks that used to be in malls, would give you however many they had accumulated free. I have a good supply.

[Kraschenbirn]

That does give me a new (to me) idea though. Prescription pill bottles for lube sizer dies!

Gee, thought everyone probably knew about that one; they also work great for Lee Case Trimmer sets and all kinds of loose small parts like springs and screws. I peel off the labels, clean the glue with alcohol, and write contents on bottles with a Sharpie.

Bill

[45-70 Chevroner]

Cosco nut containers work great for all sorts of stuff, stuff and more stuff.

[45-70 Chevroner]

Gee, thought everyone probably knew about that one; they also work great for Lee Case Trimmer sets and all kinds of loose small parts like springs and screws. I peel off the labels, clean the glue with alcohol, and write contents on bottles with a Sharpie.

Bill
I 've been doing that for a very long time. They also work great for lube size die.

[Harter66]

That does give me a new (to me) idea though. Prescription pill bottles for lube sizer dies!

The little ones hold 500 + gas checks or 100 ready to go 225-55s . The tall boys will hold 4 full moons of 45 ACP while the short big bores are perfect for a spare BlackHawk or 1858 Remington cylinder . 14 every quarter at my house .
When filling a prescription at Walmart I asked and that sweet lady asked which lid I wanted and if 1 was enough when I asked if I could get a tall large bottle . No charge.

[mold maker]

Your fav eatery throws away the mayonnaise jars. I ask every time I go in, and seldom leave empty-handed.
Bakeries have plastic tubs from 1 quart to 3 gal. w/lids.

[emorris]

I use brake pad boxes from my local automotive shop to store boolits in. Wagner makes good brake pads, but their boxes are awesome to store boolits. I also get my wheel weights from them.

[rtracy2001]

For serious ammo storage I use this guy. He's local to me and his boxes are AWESOME!

His website is a little tricky to navigate, but his product is perfect and very tidy.

http://www.repackbox.com/protect_ammo.asp

I cut my own boxes from old cereal and cracker boxes.

One of the local supermarkets has a deli / bakery department that will give me 1 gallon plastic buckets with gasketed lids for free. (Their frosting and fruit filling comes in them) They work great for lots of stuff, brass, wads, but not for storing lead ingots, the handles rip off. As mentioned, peanut butter jars are great. I always pick up all the little plastic trays I see at the thrift store. They are great for sorting brass.

Once the bags are open, I pour my lead shot into empty 2-liter pop bottles (no spills). Three will fit nicely in the one-gallon buckets, so long as I careful when lifting the bucket by the handle.

[Idaho45guy]

Some awesome ideas here guys! Thanks!

[tward]

I've been using drink mix containers, the round plastic ones for lemon aid and ice tea. The labels come off easily and they stack well. Tim:bigsmyl2:

[doc1876]

I have fallen in love with the blue bunny ice cream containers. A marker will work great on them, but I usually use a sticky, because they are mainly used for separating headstamps. I also use them for some storage, but they are great for cleaning black powder guns.

[Budzilla 19]

Plus one on the Blue Bunny ice cream containers!!!! Also, at your Wal-Mart bakery, they will give you all the 3 gallon buckets you are able to carry off! Just clean 'em up good and they have gasketed lids for them also! JIF peanut butter jars, yogurt containers. The better half says now I'm a hoarder! ........... Well, yeah!!! Hahaha!!!!

[William Yanda]

Home Depot sometimes has 6 qt. plastic containers in 4 packs for around $4 I use them for brass storage, you can just see some in the shelf at the left side of the bench. About the size of a large shoe box. Bottom two shelves. Hold close to 1,000 .223 or .38 special brass. Less than that of larger rifle but still up around 500.
177511
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Sterilite-6-qt-Storage-Box-4-Pack-16410096/206920258

At first look I thought you were talking about the Homer Buckets visible to the right of the chair!

[William Yanda]

The USPS flat rate boxes are commonly found. We are encouraged to recycle them so I do.
I find them a great source of uniformly sized convenient containers, and they can be reinforced for strength.

[Bent Ramrod]

Pill containers for cut wads, percussion cap tins for small screws, fake cream containers (look like Folger can in OP) for rinsing BPC brass before tumbling (and storage), those large cat litter jars for cleaning ML barrels in. I use the containers I get deli salads in to store freshly cast boolits and sort them by weight. Being able to see through some of these containers means they don't have to be marked and only used for one thing.

I'm always on the scout for those little shampoo bottles in motels that have the integral snap top. These are perfect for small amounts of moose milk type cleaning solutions, and they fit in my shooting box and don't leak. A full one will take care of a surprising number of range sessions. No screw top to fall out of greasy hands and get lost.

My parents were Depression era kids and when a new marvel came along they saved it and reused it. Before Saran Wrap, they reused "Pliofilm" bread bags for refrigerator storage. Tinfoil and wax paper were the only alternatives back then. "These kids today, tsk, tsk" don't know how well they have it! :mrgreen:

I guess I fall in with those that feel our throwaway culture is somehow unnatural. These everyday artifacts are marvels of design, execution and economy, and would probably be worth elephant tusks and beaver pelts if traded to another culture.

[garym1a2]

Homer buckets are great for storing brass though a little heavy when full of 9mm brass.

At first look I thought you were talking about the Homer Buckets visible to the right of the chair!

[slim1836]

177666
Did I mention I like Folgers? I get them at work.
Use a marker between the hand holds, erase with Acetone when needed.
I've got many more than that used for different applications.

Slim

[The Governor]

I use zippered bank bags for loose rounds, Coffee cans for loaded rounds and Power Ade bottles for cast slugs.

[RogerDat]

At first look I thought you were talking about the Homer Buckets visible to the right of the chair!
Nope those buckets are polishing media and sifter for the vibrating brass polisher on the floor. Boxes I like for brass are on the bookshelf on the far left.
Sort of have a system, brass on left, operations in middle, finished product on right. I do keep lubed and ready to go bullets under the bench, along with some brass. Bulk storage of cast is in the ammo cans on the right.

If you look close you can see I have a large and medium bread loaf pan on the right side of the bench top, I was putting a clean up chamfer on the bottom of some cast bullets, the big pan is full of bullets, the small one is where the trimmings fall into or culls get dropped. There is a pile of bullets on a Folgers can lid, and in the Folgers can next to it. Tells me I was doing 303 British and sorting the plain base from gas check since the mold does both. There is also a couple of bread loaf pans under the right side, just above the polisher. Those are lubed and ready 45 and 44 caliber cast. 38's are on the other side in bread loaf pans hidden by the chair. The pans are ok for shorter term lubed bullet storage but lacking a cover I don't like them for longer term but they are great next to a press, easy to pick up from. Long term goes into zip lock bags and into the ammo cans or coffee cans or sometimes back into the bread loaf pans just inside a bag.

I am jealous of that massive red Folgers coffee can collection in the picture. I have several and I would even have said a lot but I'm telling you that there is a picture of a LOT-O-CANS!

[RedHawk357Mag]

If you know any muscle folks ask them for a couple of those protein powder containers. Excellent plastic. The creatine containers are very useful but smaller.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

[edadmartin]

Ive been using the large protein powder containers to store brass,works great and has a wide mouth.

[robg]

Ice cream tubs ,screw cap plastic washing powder tubs and the plastic Tupperware type containers that Chinese take always come in .plastic bags to keep lubed boolits in by weight and keep the dust out.

[samari46]

Medicine plastic containers, cake tins, the little test strip bottles for diabetics, potatoe salad and macaroni salad,and cole slaw containers. Have been known to check out the trash bins at the range for the plastic containers that black powder shooters use for the pre compressed powder charges and bullets. And for brass that's been sorted good old freezer baggies. Frank

[lightman]

I thought for a minute that Slim had posted a picture of my storeroom! That looks like my brass stash. I also use the plastic bowls that they issue you in the hospital to sort brass or segregate brass that is being processed.

[rondog]

Aw man, I'll use just about anything with a lid on it for storing brass. I even save the plastic trays that frozen single meals come in, those are real handy on the reloading bench for brass, bullets an primers, and on the gun bench for parts, cleaners, and oil trays for refinishing stocks.

I've got all kinds of containers, my wife thinks I'm some kind of plastic hoarder freak. Maybe I am.....

[Big Dog]

Breyers Gelato containers are not too tall and are wide & flat enough and are just right for cast bullet storage


all sizes of Folgers plastic coffee containers are good for all kinds of storage


don’t get many metal coffee cans these days, they are still good to go


I open cans w/ a side lip cutter so no sharp edges also called a smooth edge can opener


a 29 oz. crushed tomato can you can close back up w/ some duct tape when filled w/ cast bullets


a 66 oz. tuna can can be used for so many things especially when you have a lid to fit back on it, I keep one in the car for the dogs water dish


same goes for a #10 can


another vote from me for the Blue Bunny ice cream containers


1 quart yogurt containers are good to go too


tall-boy pill bottles are great for drywall / deck screws in your pocket to go up ladders

[Green Frog]

I can't believe you're all ignoring CIGAR BOXES!!! I accumulate a variety of shapes and sizes and use them in several ways, including storage of sorted brass, 310 Tool set storage, loading dies powder measures, etc,etc. I especially go for the wooden ones.

The only casting for which I qualify as truly OCD is for Schuetzen, in which I fire my bullets as-cast in the order cast. These bullets go into the plastic inserts from commercial pistol ammo boxes then into flat wooden cigar boxes that hold 4-6 of these inserts (200-300 bullets) nicely lined up and ready to set out on the bench to shoot.

Oh yeah, I also like coffee containers, from the big plastic ones for brass or shot shells down to the ones from International Coffees that are great for small batches of pistol bullets.

Froggie

[dverna]

I tend to hoard a lot of stuff

I use 5 gal pails with lids to store 2x+ fired shotgun hulls to be reloaded. They stack without need for shelves and only take up about 1 sq ft of space. Each holds over 500 12 ga empties. Most of my once fired hulls are stored in large plastic totes (18 gal)

Trap loads are also stored in bulk, in 5 gal pails. (normally have 6-12 stacked up.... 3000-6000 shells) I stack them 4 high and get over 2000 loaded shells in a 1 sq ft space without needing shelves. (note: the buckets are placed under the loaders and finished rounds drop directly into them) Boxed 12 ga are stored in diary crates - 24 boxes in each and the crates stack nicely. Three crates are enough for each State or Regional shoot.

Pistol/rifle reloads go into plastic boxes and/or military ammo boxes

Brass, for what I shoot a lot (9mm, .38, .40, .223, .308), is stored in 15 quart Sterilite conatiners. I like being able to see what I have. The rest of the brass goes into smaller plastic containers, or commercial plastic ammo boxes.

Cast bullets currently go into cardboard boxes but I am thinking of making wooden boxes that will stack without using shelf space.

[Spector]

Someone gave me a large box of smaller black boxes that cremains go into. They are rectangular in shape and pretty strong. Not as much wasted space as with round jars and buckets, but I still like large peanut butter jars as I can readily see inside.

Mike

[sukivel]

I'm convinced Folgers sells more coffee to people that want the containers, than the coffee itself. I think that's the intention, because Folgers is tolerable, but just barely. Peanut butter cans, well that's usually good stuff!

[smalltownguy]

Before I retired, the medical lab girls saved the white Styrofoam trays that the vacu tainer blood tubes came in. 100 holes and square-ish for bullets

[Good Cheer]

Anything that fits :p !

[rondog]

I work in an office "cubicle ranch" (much bigger than just a farm, it's as big as a WalMart in here), and there's lots of people always having BIG clear containers of pretzels, pub mix, animal crackers, etc., the big jugs of stuff from Costco. Those big clear plastic jugs are excellent for storing large quantities of cleaned & polished brass.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I have been using the plastic Swiffer Refill boxes for storing my brass. They are close to Shoebox size and have lids that snap on. the large size will hold 500 .45ACP cases.

I am also very big on Hillshire Farms lunch meat containers. We go thru lots of them and I have a bunch stacked up. Great for storing boolits. and I also use them for storing things like gun parts so everything stays together.

I have a problem understanding why anyone would buy plastic containers unless there was something really special about them. There are so many plastic containers laying around in everyone's house nowadays that it is mind boggling.

Now, I do buy plastic boxes to put loaded cartridges in, mainly because Hillshire Farms doesn't sell any "compartmented meats. "

Lots of options here, and all of them are free!

Randy

[whisler]

+1 on the Hilshire Farms lunch meat containers, Very handy!

[snoopy]

All of the above, and recently started with the vape juice bottles, nice for oiling, or any liquid application by the drop.

[Connelly47]

My wife and I tiled our kitchen and bathrooms, and we ended up with a stack of subflooring and coffee cans of screws. The sheets of plywood were irregular and a little sticky from the stick on tiles, so we couldn't even give it away. I ran it through the tablesaw and my wife assembled them into boxes. We use these boxes for all sorts of projects. right now Im sorting lead ingots by hardness into them and stacking then in the basement. Each box holds about 50 1 lb ingots.
I'm a child of depression parents, my wife is always surprised how much of our ' trash' I repurpose.

[anthont1]

I am using plastic yogurt containers from work for alot of my stuff.

[fiberoptik]

Save almost everything, recycle ♻️ the rest. PB/Mayo jars & square boxed flip top baby wipes boxes [emoji403] my fav. Wipes boxes are white, top pops off. Wipes come in handy too!


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[rondog]

These Utz jugs are awesome! I get them at work, when the snackers empty one I try to snag it. Screw lids, very heavy clear plastic, very sturdy, hold LOTS of prepped brass! Warm up the labels gently with a heat gun and they'll peel right off cleanly.

[mold maker]

Small rectangular plastic baby food containers come in handy for small quantities or small objects. The snap tight lids allow stacking and some have no label to remove.

[psweigle]

I use coffee cans for every thing. Mostly because I drink a lot of coffee!

[Jayhawkhuntclub]

How has nobody mentioned Tidycat buckets (or did I miss it)?!?! Those things are awesome. They hold a lot of range brass! Almost makes me wish I had a cat. Aside from that I store most of my cast bullets in 1 lb metal coffee cans (more like 15 lb). Yeah there is some company out there that still makes the metal ones. Also peanut containers from walmart.

[fiberoptik]

Cat pails, & jugs, Utz pretzel Stick barrels (Big!) kids single serve applesauce plastic containers (great for small amounts of stock dope or mixing JB Weld)


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[jrdztech]

I go to the Walmart stores around my area, almost all of them have bakery section, I ask the manager if I can get their empty cake frosting buckets, I get lucky most of the time, and bring home 6 or 7 buckets, they are made of hard plastic, you can stack them on top of each other and they lid seals great, I use them to hold my process brass in them, after throughly clean I let them dry a few days, I fill them with brass and trow in a couple of disicant bags to keep moisture out.

[kingstrider]

Lol we drink a lot of coffee here too.
http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t138/kingstrider/Reloading/IMG_8781.jpg
http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t138/kingstrider/Reloading/IMG_8782.jpg
http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t138/kingstrider/Reloading/leadxrayfoil.jpg
http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t138/kingstrider/Reloading/IMG_8784.jpg

[Texas by God]

Save almost everything, recycle ♻️ the rest. PB/Mayo jars & square boxed flip top baby wipes boxes [emoji403] my fav. Wipes boxes are white, top pops off. Wipes come in handy too!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
IMO baby wipes are one of the greatest inventions ever! Wipe the dust off your face and be a new man. AND the containers hold a good amount of whatever and retain Sharpie labeling well. I like the metal bread loaf pans for reloading and of course plastic coffee cans. Empty Hodgdon powder bottles are a favorite also but being black they need a label affixed. Best, Thomas.

[Digger]

Another vote for Folgers ...my shed is red with them holding my cast .....
On the other hand for my processed brass ...180629
Dog food containers , .. wally world , flip tops , works great , the bigger one on the bottom, rifle brass.
won't mention the five gallon buckets of other outside the shop.

[jrdztech]

I stopped by my local donut shop today and scored a couple of nice buckets one for 1.25 and on for 1.75 bucks, they sell them icing buckets already clean, one holds 1.5 gallon small round and the 4.5 gallon it's square and they are made of very hard plastic, I talked to the owner of the place and secured a verbal contract with him to pick up all his empty buckets every weekend..

[340six]

Processed Clean shiny brass goes in Food Saver bags with the air taken out. Or As they says today Tooken

[BC38]

http://s7d1.scene7.com/is/image/officedepot/445487_p_smu20631ct?$OD-Dynamic$&wid=450&hei=450



I have and use a couple of these, and large metal coffee cans, and peanut butter jars, and the big plastic jars that protein powder comes in for storing brass and tumbling media. I also use the peanut butter jars for bullets. I use the Betty Crocker cake frosting containers with a layer of foam in the bottom for storing my Lee 4-hole Classic Turret press plates (with dies).

[dale2242]

I just got a popcorn tin from my wife.
The ones they sell the 3 flavored popcorn in at Xmas.
I sort my cleaned bras by caliber and brand and place them in plastic zip lock bags.
I then place them in the tins marked with the caliber....dale

[Doggonekid]

Kingstrider, you look like you got a lot bite wings in those coffee containers. My father in law was a dentist and I have melted down my share of bite wings lead. My favorite container is Costco's nut jars. I also use IMR empty power cans, the round plastic ones.

[Tracy]

I store brass, boolits, hardware, etc. in Folger's cans. I also cut those plastic-coated paper half-gallon orange juice cartons about halfway up and use the bottom half for tumble lubing boolits. And I'm currently using a whipped cream tub for shake-and-bake powder coating.

[laveritt]

I scrounged some plastic 1 gal. large mouth jars at a nearby pizza takeout. Seems that pizza sauce & some of the toppings come in them.
I put some 1/2" aluminum angle in them for baffles, using tiny screws & nuts.
I use them to tumble lube jackets & lead cores for core forming. Works great.

[Idaho45guy]

I just emptied a jar of this and used it to store a couple hundred 300gr .452 boolits...

186679

[rondog]

These Utz jugs are awesome! I get them at work, when the snackers empty one I try to snag it. Screw lids, very heavy clear plastic, very sturdy, hold LOTS of prepped brass! Warm up the labels gently with a heat gun and they'll peel right off cleanly.

The snackers in my office also eat lots of pretzels. I've scored several 3.25 lb clear plastic pretzel "kegs" after they're emptied, grabbed another one tonight. These are about 2.5 to 3 gallons in size, and they'll hold a helluva lot of brass!

Here's a can of soup for a size comparison.