flying brass cases ?

[bigted]

ok ... im not the sharpest tool in the chest ... but i do have some savy about most things but this has mystified me for years. it concerns the flying brass as you fire a semi-auto pistol.

i love my 40 and 45 cal semi's and enjoy shooting them very much ... however what i detest is picking up all that brass from wherever it happens to fly to. the joy is soon curtailed when after a couple clips thru either pistol and i stop to police up my brass. man it is ok till i realize i have three or so cases that i cant find ... what a pizzer to search for these few lost cases and i most invarably leave a couple to 4 or 5 there after shooting ... and that really grates on me as my pocketbook is not settup for this amount of loss.

sooo ... anybody have a good idea for finding every case ... every time? im all ears and would shoot them a bunch more if this little dink of a bummer would stop happening.

thanks for the ideas.

[bangerjim]

Make a brass catcher that mounts on a tripod of some kind. It sits to your side where the brass flies. Use a fish net, pool net, pillow case stretched around a steel wire ring, etc mounted on it to do the catching.

I built one out of some surplus stuff I have. What I have is not repeatable and most of it is not anything commercial, so please don't ask where I got it!

Just use your Yankee ingenuity and combine some stuff to make a catcher net.

Simple.

bangerjim

[TXGunNut]

Spread a tarp or bed sheet in the fallout area. Shoot on a range frequented by LE and CHL shooters and pick up bonus brass to offset the brass you can't find. Always make at least two passes on an area because when you're looking straight into the mouth of a case it's almost invisible. Above all don't try to find every piece, you'll be subconsciously "looking for brass" in parking lots and grocery stores and everywhere else you go that day. OTOH you could likely score a WW or two in the parking lot, lol.

[John Boy]

anybody have a good idea for finding every case
One big humongous canvas tarp ... all shooters stand in the middle and shoot from there only!

[500MAG]

There was a couple firing a 50 AE next to me the last time I went to the range and they had some women with them catching the brass as it came flying out of the gun. I had to say something after the line went clear when she started grabbing my M1 brass.

[bedbugbilly]

Uhhhhh . . . tie kite string to each cartridge and attach the other end to your trigger guard?

I was just thinking about this today. My only semi at this time is a 9mm (I mainly shoot revolver) and it kicks 'em out there. Where I shoot here on the farm, they all fall in grass. I was thinking about some sort of easily taken apart frame that could have a cheap blue tarp attached - something that they'd hit and then roll down in to.

When I shoot at an indoor range in AZ, I always have somewhat hit the separating partition between stations and roll out in front of the shooting bench in to "no man's land". Whatever I do, I always seem to come home with less casings than I take . . . but then I usually am able to gather up other calibers that I don't reload. I take those home and throw 'em in a jar and someday will have enough to sort out and maybe trade for what I shoot. I purchase "range brass" (usually off of this site) and that's all I reload so it helps keep the cost down on what I do loose.

[Mk42gunner]

sooo ... anybody have a good idea for finding every case ... every time?

This brings to mind the old saying that nothing is impossible, as long as you don't have to do it.

I believe if you are shooting outside and recover 98% of your brass you are doing very well. Any more than that, you should buy a lottery ticket on the way home.

A big tarp spread out works about as well as anything I have tried over the years.

Robert

[CastingFool]

I saw a photo of a guy shooting a rifle off a bench, and he had a couple of sliding glass door screens leaning over him, like a tent.

[Frank46]

Moskito netting was what I use. Just staple it up on the right side and most if not all cases will be at your feet. Frank

[mikeym1a]

Back in the '80s or 90's, someone came out with a brass catcher that mounted on the right grip panel of the 1911. Me being the cheap soul that I am, I took a couple old coathangers, and an old pair of the ex's pantyhose, and made one. it looks a little tacky, but it works! And it worked with several other of my semi-auto pistols. With slight modification, it would probably work with my AR. As I am getting older, I don't enjoy bending over, anymore. mikey

[MOcaster]

Tarps work for me. Be sure to use a canvas one unless you like scrapping melted blue plastic off all your cases. Trust me, it gets tiresome after about 10.

[I'll Make Mine]

There's a company named Graco Models (http://www.gracomodels.com/) (not the Graco or Grayco that sell grease drum pumps or electrical equipment) who make a brass catcher for pistols that slips onto your right hand. It's got a bag like the ones that used to mount under the grip frame, but it stays with the shooter instead of the gun -- helpful if you shoot multiple pistols that you want to reload for (like my .380 and .25; the latter caliber is a real challenge to find the brass, not to mention nearly every other reloading operation).

[Larry Gibson]

Back in the day I jumped through most all the hoops mentioned here......came to the realization "if you're going to dance you have to pay the band". I've policed up enough brass over the years it has become second nature and not really a chore either. Just have to know that most often the grass and rock brass god requires his payment.

Larry Gibson

[bob208]

back when I was still living at home I had a 1911. I would let my younger sisters look for it. some time walking barefoot through the grass would find some. I am shore there is still some out there behind the barn to this day. if I was on the tractor it was gone forever.


the way I beat the problem was to buy a Blackhawk in .357 no more lost brass.

[MrWolf]

Here is one I built that works for me: post #15

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?235735-My-attempts-at-a-Brass-Catcher

[Tom W.]

Take a kid with you. It's uncanny how well they can keep up with flying brass....

[shawnba67]

http://www.sherwoodakuna.com brass catcher mounts right on the pistol accy rail

[FergusonTO35]

I am building a wooden frame that holds an old window screen. Will post pics when it's done. Really I only need it for my Kel-Tecs. Those things fling it far and wide. My Ruger and Glock deposit it all within 3-5 feet to the right a bit back.

[Artful]

When I really cared I used a bed sheet king size - started at my feet and curled up to some supports so cases had a better chance at hitting it.

[bigted]

thanks all for the great ideas. i been shooting my 1911 and now the XD40 and just always spent the money for sale ammo ... now i would like to get the loading of boolits into swing and so i will be way more particular about what gets where and how easy the policeup will be.

also now im in the states and my cash making ability is diminished from the far north abilitys so i gotta watch me pennys mo carefully.

thanks all for the great ideas. also looks like i will have to shoot at a private range here as stuff has changed a bunch and nearby rock quarys seem to be a bit harder to find.

[Artful]

You want cheap - that was the way I rolled back then.
check out the local motels - you can usually get a used king size sheet that has a tear in it for the asking.
Good Will does sell them for cheaper than a new one. supports are tripod of 2x2 or PVC couple of large spikes or tent stakes and some fishing line.

[44man]

Have to wait until I make the brass magnet! :bigsmyl2: You guys ever hear about REVOLVERS?

[gwpercle]

Taurus 455. 5 shot, 45 ACP , two inch , ported barrel with or without moon clips. Fun to shoot, no searching , stooping and bending....it is now my favorite 45 ACP.
Gary

[FergusonTO35]

I have one of Graco catchers that straps to your shooting hand. It works great, unfortunately requires that you adjust the hold of your weak hand.

[nicholst55]

How about something like this: http://www.sinclairintl.com/shooting-accessories/ammo-boxes-bags/brass-catchers/ctk-precision-universal-brass-catcher-prod42931.aspx

[jebsca]

I've noticed that u shoot my wheel guns more than my autos now just for that reason. I have found that with time, I am better about looking for brass, but I know that after a few passes, I am still leaving some on the ground. If I get what I used, that ok, but more times than not, someone else has left more than I am leaving behind. The down side is, I spend a lot of time looking at the ground. I have found brass away from the range. The one that surprised me was the 38 spl at a high school.

[Dframe]

The evil ZnCu (zingcoo) must be appeased. He always demands a sacrifice of your brass. He's especially hard on people who shoot small calibres.

[I'll Make Mine]

You guys ever hear about REVOLVERS?

Yep, been shooting revolvers since 1981, but a six-inch .357 with large grips isn't easy to conceal (I'm not a big guy, and don't wear a jacket in warm weather); my .380 came from a search for a carry piece I could afford back in the late 80s. Now that I'm shooting more again, I'd like to be able to afford to shoot that one, too. And my .25 was free, cost little to fix, and the ammo is easier to find than .22 LR; I'd like to shoot that for less than thirty-six cents a round if I can...

[Big Rack]

For those with trouble bending to the ground: Harbor Freight has a blue "hand" extension they're always on sale for a coupla bucks, they're handy and cheap enough so you don't cry if they break will pick up change from a smooth surface so no problem with brass.
Boy, woulda have been real handy in my cowboy shooting days!