Digging through the trash cans

[white eagle]

whenever I go to the public range I dig through the trash
to look for empty boxes and cartridge holders that I can use
for the loads I am making

[David2011]

Another member there is always trying to pick up my fired brass. . .
Art

Doesn't every range have a resident brass wh***? Ours told me that he bought 3 guns from what he made picking up brass. Not high dollar guns, but guns nevertheless. Then he tried to pick up my still hot brass. I suggested that he pick up brass somewhere else. You can count on him to make the rounds every Sunday afternoon.

There is good stuff for reloaders in the trash cans. Lots of good ammo boxes.

I had to quit picking up 5.56/.223. It was multiplying faster than I could process and reload it. I still have several thousand to load. I'll still pick up .44 Spec/Mag, .357 Mag and .45 Colt if I see some but I have over 100 pounds of .45 ACP, several thousand .40 S&W and 6 gallons of .38 Spec. so I have no business collecting more of those.

[Nines&Twos]

Definitely a dump picker here. I’ve found magazines, knives even a scope once.
Lots of rifle brass still in the factory box right before hunting season. Hunters checking zero are so thoughtful. They shoot high dollar ammo, and put the brass neatly back in the factory box for me. Lol!

[JBinMN]

I'll still pick up .44 Spec/Mag, .357 Mag and .45 Colt if I see some but I have over 100 pounds of .45 ACP, several thousand .40 S&W and 6 gallons of .38 Spec. so I have no business collecting more of those.

May I recommend a "Pay It Forward"? LOL


Doesn't matter to me, I "buy my own tickets to train rides", or, "jump on my own buckin' broncs"...

Just making a suggestion, if ya have more than you will ever load & shoot.

[Blanket]

bad thing on my range is I threw it away to start with

[MaryB]

I am lucky that our range is gated and locked. And on my suggestion last year we added game cameras in hidden spots to monitor fence jumpers and charge them with trespass. Got rid of 5 who were scavenging anything not nailed down, caught one trying to unbolt the hanging metal targets on the 300 yard range! Thy would come in and shoot everything up ruining things... break stuff...

Since then the amount of salvage brass has gone up but many of us there reload...

[redriverhunter]

yes I am a trash picker I made out like a bandit the other day got about 30 .308 win, about 40 30.06 and some other not sure yet have not gone through it yet. What I do not under stand is why those that dip spit in a trash can that is out side, spit juice will ruin a good day of picking.

[mold maker]

I used to always use a pair of cheap HF nitril gloves for the same reason. Spitting in a public place without using a bottle with lid is just plain rude and nasty.

[pete501]

We usually pick up the recyclable material encountered on public land shooting ranges. I hate to see shooters leave a mess. Too many areas are closed because it gets trashed.

As far as dumpster diving. The range I belong to has rules. Pick up only your own brass, no trash picking. It doesn't stop the ROs from taking all the 10 cent deposit containers. The easy brass gets collected by the care taker. Lots of common brass gets swept in the gravel. Before the rules, there was nothing on the ground.

I had gotten a lot of good stuff diving. Magazines, ammo, lots of empty boxes some vintage. At one time I sold empty ammunition boxes on evilbay. I sold lots of plain and common shotshell boxes. Estate brand and plastic CCI boxes were selling for more than the purchase price of a full box. I remember finding 3 Aquilla 22 boxes with the "rampant colt" , modern production. It got bid up to $74. I sold the other two ($73 & $72) to the other high bidders using the second chance offer feature. It was back in the ammo shortage days.

[woodbutcher]

Never did do much diving as there were no dumpsters back then.I did pick up what I used though.When I first started reloading it was 30-06,45acp and.223.In those calibers,I had a neighbor who shot on the NG rifle team.He brought me about 4K 1964 LC match brass,2K of .45acp and almost 5K of 5.56
brass Cost?Merry Christmas.That was why I bought a 788 Rem in .222 and had it rechambered to .223.Could`nt find one in .223.Also why I bought a Colt AR15
with 3 extra mags and 100 rds of ammo for $215.00 out the door.The only brass that I actively looked for after that was .38 spcl.
Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
Leo

[skeettx]

I pick up all the brass I can find, sell what I do not want for scrap and pay for
my annual club memberships, yeeeee Hawwwww !!

[reivertom]

You'll only do it once in Kentucky............too many 'backy chewers and snuff dippers....nasty..

[Iowa Fox]

When I hit the range I check out the garbage cans first thing, even before I even sign in. It's just fun to see what gets tossed. One day I found an old S&W partial frame and grips. No barrel or cylinder. Don't know what happened there as the rest of the parts weren't in the can. I've never sold one penny's worth of brass, when someone needs some and I have it I give it to them to help out.

[lightman]

I've been picking up brass since I was a kid. When my kids were younger our weekend outing often was packing up the cooler with soft drinks, some crackers and a stick of Summer Sausage (Often Deer) and riding around to the local shooting sites. Usually the gravel pits, bridges and dead end roads that always seemed to attract dumping, and shooting. The boys also picked up any aluminum cans.

I have to admit that I'm a little conscious of digging through the trash can but I often look in them. I have been known to dump them in a box in the back of my truck and sort through it at home.

I pick up all brass, even the damaged or corroded stuff. The damaged stuff goes straight to the scrap bucket. The surplus 9mm, 40's and 223's get gifted to new reloaders or those that enter into a shortage unprepared.

[Outer Rondacker]

Funny I found this thread. I was in the garbage cans yesterday at the local range. I mainly pick boxes out since I am a reloader and always tend to have more in bins then boxes. So its a small range a few hundred members. The results are just outstanding for someone like me on a next to nothing budget.

A gallon size bag of 9mm. Did not count yet.
674 40s&w
29 7mm-08
291 45 acp
11 10mm
71 308 win
small zip lock baggy of 380
18 300 win mag
7 270s
5 30-30
30 45 GAP
1 204 ruger
300ish 5.56

I feel this is the entire winters worth as I found targets dated before hunting season last year.

[lightman]

You made a nice haul! I hardly ever find any rifle other than 223 except during hunting season. Mostly 9mm, 40 S&W and 223/5.56. Maybe a few 380's.

[fatelk]

Finding any rifle brass other than 223 and the very occasional 308 at our range is extremely rare too. There are at least a couple hard core brass scroungers that frequent the range so they've got the brass supply pretty much sown up.

[nvbirdman]

My friend and I were the only ones at an informal range one day just before hunting season and I kicked an empty ammo box on the ground. It didn't move like an empty box so I picked it up. Full box, twenty rounds of 30-06. Hope the guy discovered his error before he went hunting.

[Outer Rondacker]

The only full ammo I have found is a 22lr on the floor of the outdoor range. I did find yesterday a few more empty pieces here and there but the best one was this. A 223 case with a bullet head sticking out part of the way. I picked it up and the bullet fell back into the case. The case mouth had been crimped on one side by something. After getting it home and pulling the bullet I measured it. .204.

Good heavens I am wondering if I need to open my big mouth at the club and ask if anyone needs help learning reloading. You can clearly see they had to hit the case mouth with something to get the bullet to stay in place. Then when cycled it must have pushed into the case not letting it into the chamber.

I enjoy walking the range when no one is around. Last week I found 10 40 cal projectiles about 40 feet from the bench. All looked perfect and sat in the same pile. I now wonder if perhaps someone had loaded them so light they just inched out the barrel?

[lightman]

I got out for a little while today between rains and picked up a couple handfuls of 9mm and 223. I saw something odd laying there and when I picked it up saw that it was a single 7.62 X 25. Some reloader is only going to have 49 cases whenever he gets around to loading them! I would like to know what it was fired in.