Uses for spent primers -- rat shot?

[CollinLeon]

I was wondering if anyone has tried using spent primers as projectiles in a shot shell for a handgun like a .357mag... I've been saving mine over the years and I was thinking today that they might be usable in a shot shell for any rats that I might see outside... I saw one yesterday, but didn't feel like wasting a .45ACP Hydroshock round on him since that was all I had on me at the time... I saw him today and was able to go get my .357mag with a beeswax/paraffin bullet and shoot him, but although it resulted in him screaming quite loudly for awhile, it apparently did not kill him since I could not find the body... With the amount of powder that was in that round, the wax came out as a spray instead of as a solid projectile...

I was thinking of putting a small piece of paper towel as a wad over the powder, 3 or 4 spent primers, and then a bit of my beeswax/paraffin bullet lube over the top of it to hold it all together...

What are primers made out of? If they are a softer metal like brass, they probably won't scratch the barrel, but if they are steel, it *could* be a concern...

[shooting on a shoestring]

Can you do it? Sure. Has it been done? Doesn't matter really. Are you going to do? Probably.

Just to point a few things that came to mind. First, spent primers are the nastiest part of reloading. The primer residue could have either lead or mercury in tincy particles that could get breathable from handling, or shooting. Not good for long term. Second, I think most prime cups are stainless steel and so are their anvils. Barrel scracthing would be a possibility. Third, of course primer shape is not optimum. Fourth, rebound and ricochet with springy sided primer cups could prove interesting.
Fifth, bird shot is easy to get now days.

Does that mean don't do it? Well to most folks yes, but to you?

If you're really bent to the idea, then how about shielding the barrel from direct contact with the spent primers like using a shot cup, or a paper wrapped parrafin boolit containing the spent primers? Keep powder charge low like 1.5 grains Bullseye. Maybe use corn meal or cream of wheat as a gas check. Shoot them in a cheap gun you don't like, so if you do screw up a barrel its not so bad. Also, barrels don't have to be perfect to function well. A few scratches might be acceptable to you.

[41 mag fan]

Develop a sabot for them. same as they use in steel shot for waterfowl loads

[frkelly74]

I was under the impression that primers were made of brass. I have been sending them in to the scrapper with all my unusable brass without a problem. git rid and git paid a little.

[Doc Highwall]

The shape and the density of the spent primers will make them almost useless past a couple of feet. Kind of like trying to throw a whiffle ball a 100 yards.

[smokemjoe]

I was under the impression that primers were made of brass. I have been sending them in to the scrapper with all my unusable brass without a problem. git rid and git paid a little.

Junk yard here last week paid $1.35 a lb. for mine, I had 6 lbs.

[1Shirt]

I just add to brass scrap for sale. However did load a mess(?) of spent primers once in a few 12g. Muzzle loader. Patterned poorly.
1Shirt!

[David Bachelder]

The lead exposure form spent primers would be a good reason not to handle them at all.

My thoughts?
Bad idea.

OCYMMV.

[runfiverun]

some #8 or smaller shot will do a rat in up to about 10-15 feet.
try a cardboard under wad,and a piece of tyvex on top held in place with a little elmers glue.
1.5-2 grs of a fast powder is plenty.

[bigboredad]

I like to add to my scrap brass and turn them in you'd be surprised how much what have weighs

[Huntducks]

I started keeping mine years ago thinking of what if the :dung_hits_fan: I could always shoot them up close.

Now I don't bother as I bought and old shotshell mold that does BB size.

[Cherokee]

spent primers = money from the scrap yard

[45-70 Chevroner]

If all you want to do is kill a few rats or maybe even a lot of them. I would get a bag of #71/2 or 8 size shot, about $40 or so and some 357 shot cups, the shot cups will hold the shot together better than using spacers under and over the shot. I would not use spent primers for any thing, just through them away.

[beex215]

i didnt know primers were brass. ive always chucked them, while they could have went into my junk brass pile.

do you have to clean them before you give them to the recycler?

[L1A1Rocker]

i didnt know primers were brass. ive always chucked them, while they could have went into my junk brass pile.

do you have to clean them before you give them to the recycler?

Me too. Tagging for answers to your questions.

[fredj338]

I would think they pattern like ****. Even round shot doesn't do well in handguns much past contact distance, odd shaped primers, wasting powder IMO.

[Reloader06]

I have thought about doing this for a number of years. My thoughts were to use just the anvils. Doubt I ever will. No you don't have to wash them to recycle them. If you try it let us know how it works for you.

Matt

[geargnasher]

I would think they pattern like ****. Even round shot doesn't do well in handguns much past contact distance, odd shaped primers, wasting powder IMO.

That depends entirely on the effort and knowledge of the reloader. I make #8 loads for my .45 Colt revolvers with regular metallic brass that pack 5/8 oz. of shot, don't lead the barrel in the slightest, and will reliably break clays at the closer skeet stations (1,7, and 8).

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=20392&d=1267421549

Here's what the .357 Magnum version does at 12 feet, I killed a small cottonmouth near wife's garden pond last year, in the excitement we both forgot to take pics of that so the target will have to do:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=20384&d=1267411150

Gear

[CollinLeon]

Can you do it? Sure. Has it been done? Doesn't matter really. Are you going to do? Probably.

Obviously someone who understands how the mind of an old southern boy works!

I put out a rat trap last night with some peanut butter and I think that it caught the rat that I shot at with just the beeswax/paraffin lube "bullet". Turned out that the wax blasted off at least 80% of the hair from his back. I was maybe 5 or 6 ft away from him when I shot him with the wax -- kind of a Southern Bikini Wax job. But, for some reason though, I don't think it's going to become popular with the ladies.

Just measured the amount of powder that I used. I had put two of the Lee scoops of Alliant Promo in each cartridge. It turned out that they were the 0.5cc scoops and it worked out to be a total of 7.2gr of powder. I wasn't concerned with putting too much powder in a wax bullet like that due to the fact that since there is minimal mass to the projectile, I figured that it was extremely unlikely that it could into an overpressure situation.

[MasS&W]

The brass obviously won't damage your bore, but I can't say the same about hitchhiking bits of sand and grit that is commonly found clinging to expended brass.

[psychicrhino]

I say do it and post a pic of the dead rat in victory!!!

come to think of it... could you prime your brass, charge it, put a little wax paper in for wadding then pack fill the rest of the case with the primers and pour it level with warm bees wax? Or just thumb a gob of semi set bees wax over the end to seal the primers in? Just thinking out loud. I don't know nothing. Was just thinking about the snub 38 by my loading bench, the spent primers on the floor and the chunk of bees wax on the back of the bench I just rendered.

[fatelvis]

As long as it doesn't ruin too much of their meat, I think it would be a good idea.

[captaint]

See, now you made me hungry !!

[zuke]

I was under the impression that primers were made of brass. I have been sending them in to the scrapper with all my unusable brass without a problem. git rid and git paid a little.

Exactly what I do with them.