I've got a coffee can I working on filling. When I get enough, I'm going to make a shiny brass doorstop...
I've got a coffee can I working on filling. When I get enough, I'm going to make a shiny brass doorstop...
I used spent primers to fill the suede shooting bags I made (inside an inner bag of heavy plastic). The rest went with the scrap cartridge brass to the recyclers. IIRC, I got a bit less per pound for the jugs of primers than the cartridge brass. Everything got run past magnets to take out the steel (none in my case: I don't reload shot shells and the brass is what I've shot up myself, and I screen the steel out of my brass before loading it.
i have a local yard thats with in my daily travels so small batches are not a big deal so lunch money is fine. Right now scrap is low.
April 2019 I cashed in my junk "ammo brass" and primers.
Ammo brass was $1.79/lb spent primers where .85¢/lb. He was glad I had them sorted. He ran the primers down a small belt that went under a magnet. Over 1lb stuck to the magnet. 6lbs of primers fell into the bin.
They turn the magnet off and switch out the bin. Cool set up. This place does not like to sell scrap back unless you want to pay$$$
If the right guys are there you can often trade this for that.
They sort all the good stuff for themselves.
One thing to watch for is lots of yards around here give price per ton. Smaller amounts get less. This small yard gives per pound price when you call if you have a ton you need to ask for better price. They all play games, learn a few tricks of the game and its fun.
Last edited by mac1911; 07-12-2020 at 07:52 AM.
Scrapyards in my area are jumpy cuz one found ordnance from a local military base in the scrap heap. The hard way. It wasn't small arms ammo but they had to shut down while EOD did their sweep and found more. They're being overcautious? I know I'd be.
" As long as there is no steel mixed in there it should be fine."
Aren't the anvils in each primer steel?
Micah 6:8
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
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I may be discharged and retired but I'm sure I did not renounce the oath that I solemnly swore!
I'm pretty sure the outer cup, the part that contacts the primer pocket, is steel. The anvil may also be, but I don't think there is enough steel in that anvil to attract a magnet, and a magnet will pick up the bases of some brass based hulls, if it contacts the bases flat.
Primers for rifle and pistol are the same brass as the case, including the anvils. This I read in a 30 year old NRA publication on ammunition making by George Frost, and I can confirm from personal inspection and testing that they look like brass and are non magnetic.
Shotgun primers, per the same publication, are all copper or brass plated steel nowadays (30 years ago), though older styles shot shells did have brass anvils.
I find the primers from some factory steel cased pistol ammo have a brass cup and steel anvil so I don't put them in the brass I want to sell.
You got me there: I've never decapped or reloaded a steel case.
Mine goes in with the scrap brass when it goes to the scrap yard.
They pay the same price for them as the brass.
Having taken thousands to the scrap yard we have learned that...
The anvils in the rifle and handgun primers are brass, the cups are semi magnetic and the scrap will not take them as brass.
Shotgun primer are plated steel and go in the pile of mixed steel and iron along with the rifle and handgun primers.
It strikes me as odd that a scrapyard might refuse decapped primers as not being brass but will pay for undecapped cases.
Last edited by kevin c; 07-14-2020 at 02:48 PM. Reason: Fixed a word
My scrap yard takes decapped primers along with brass cases.
Don
NRA Certified Metallic Cartridge Reloading Instructor
NRA Life Member
ALL of mine go in the garbage can. Not worth hauling to the yard for the very few $$ you MIGHT possibly get!
banger
Scrappers around me won't take cartridge brass unless it's been deprimed and primers aren't even in play.
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BP | Bronze Point | IMR | Improved Military Rifle | PTD | Pointed |
BR | Bench Rest | M | Magnum | RN | Round Nose |
BT | Boat Tail | PL | Power-Lokt | SP | Soft Point |
C | Compressed Charge | PR | Primer | SPCL | Soft Point "Core-Lokt" |
HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
PSP | Pointed Soft Point | Spz | Spitzer Point | SBT | Spitzer Boat Tail |
LRN | Lead Round Nose | LWC | Lead Wad Cutter | LSWC | Lead Semi Wad Cutter |
GC | Gas Check |