Brass hounds

[fatelk]

Anyone else have this uncontrollable OCD-like problem when they see brass lying on the ground? For some reason you just have to pick it up?

What got me thinking about this was seeing someone's post where they mentioned thinning out the brass hoard to reclaim the guest room. I don't have enough to fill a room, but for the relatively small amount that I shoot, I'll never come close to using half of what I have. And yet I pick up more when I see it.

I was at the range a while back down at the rifle bay. I had it to myself and someone had apparently been doing a lot or shooting with an AR because I picked up several hundred pieces of LC 5.56 brass. The club must have a lot of brass hounds because it's pretty rare to find any rifle brass there. Another guy shows up and we both go down to put up targets.

I picked up a last handful of brass that I missed earlier and mentioned that I just picked up a whole bunch. I forget what he replied, but his reaction, facial expression and mannerisms made me think I was on his personal brass-scrounging territory and had committed a faux pas by picking it up. He immediately started scanning the ground and grabbed a couple stragglers.

I felt a little uncomfortable and offered him the brass I had in my hand, with the comment that I've already got more than I'll never use and I just pick it up because it's there. It must have been a subconscious reaction because he politely turned it down, saying that he's the same way and has literally buckets full already. Nice enough guy after that, just has that same brass-OCD thing. :) I suspect some guys go down there every day and have truck loads squirreled away.

It's a little more common to find huge piles of 9mm brass on the pistol bays (I think 9mm outnumbers anything else by ten to one). I can't help myself from sitting there and picking it up. I know I'll never load it all, and as cheap as 9mm is it's really not worth my time to clean it up and sell it. I can't seem to bring myself to take good brass to the scrap yard, so here it sits. No big deal; I don't have rooms full, or even buckets full so it doesn't take up much room in the garage. Mostly it just bugs me when I'm wasting time picking it up out of the gravel. Why am I doing this and why can't I stop? :)

[GOPHER SLAYER]

I had this problem for many years. I finally picked up so much brass I ran out of space to put it. When I mentioned it on this site a member offered to buy any size I had. I was shipping him a LFR box every two weeks. I just don't bother with it anymore. The only brass I will pick up now is an American case with a rim on it.

[Pigboat]

Not brass, but I can't pass up a lonely wheel weight laying on the ground. :D

[lightman]

A lot of reloaders are like that. I probably have more that I will ever be able to shoot, even though I give some away and occasionally sell some in calibers that I don't plan to ever own. Yeah, I'm the same way with lead! Stopping in traffic to "rescue" a wheel weight when I have six 5 gallon buckets in the shop needing to be smelted. Go figger!

[country gent]

I quit picking up brass other than my own when unexplained case failures started happening. Alot leave tired worn out brass lie and only pick up the better useable they shoot. I have plenty of brass of known history, using brass that is questionable isnt a big plus to me.

[LUBEDUDE]

My brother has it so bad that when we go to the range he would rather pick up brass than shoot!

[Rustyleee]

Maybe there should be a 12 step program for us.

[GoodOlBoy]

Been doing it for years. In fact years and years ago I use to know a fella that owned a cartridge company that sold both newly manufactured, and re-manufactured ammo. He would buy once fired brass, or trade it for re-manufactured ammo. In those days I didn't reload, but me and a buddy shot every weekend. On Saturdays we would spend the first couple of hours on the remote private range cleaning up all the brass from the concealed carry classes before we shot. I went about six or eight years shooting 45 acp, 357 mag, and 45 long colt where I didn't buy ammo at all, it was all trades with the man because of the sheer volume of brass we were hauling to him. Both that private range, and the ammo manufacturer are gone these days. I miss them both.

GoodOlBoy

[redriverhunter]

I go and check the trash can, and all the other nooks and cranny's that brass might be hidden in. I have sat a waited to see if someone would put their brass in the trash.
There is a guy that goes to the range before sun up with a light on his head looking for brass, he get up set when I tell him its time to shoot. He has said you can't see the target and I will tell him with a scope I can. The funny thing is he does not even shoot. I often wonder if he collects enough to make it worth his gas.

[CWME]

It's the guys that try to pick up my brass while I am shooting that need the 12 step program. Have had more than one.

[Blammer]

The 12 step program goes like this

1. pick up brass
2. clean brass
3. pick up more brass
4. resize deprime brass
5. pick up more brass
6. trim brass
7. pick up more brass
8. prime brass
9. pick up more brass
10. load brass
11. shoot
12. pick up more brass.

[quickdraw66]

When I used to go to a public range, I'd spend at least an hour looking for brass. .223, 9mm, and 40S&W were the most common cartridges other than the steel cases and .22 shells littering the ground.

[berksglh]

I go to the range just to pick brass up. Keep the 45 and 223, the rest is sitting in pails. My buddy laughs at me. But i remember when i bought mixed head stamp from cabellas for $80/500rnds.

[GoodOlBoy]

Am I the only one who even will pick up 22s? I figure even 22s will sell at recyc for cash....

GoodOlBoy

[bob208]

I pick up all brass. what I can not use gets tumbled and bagged and sold at flea markets. waste not want not.

[runfiverun]

i'll grab the 22's on the bench-top's, they make good bullets for the 223's.

I grab the brass on the range when I see it and the wife will go down sometimes during the week to see what's there too.
she puts it in the gun room and I go through it later, sometimes she gets some pretty good stuff I wouldn't ever see, and sometimes she gets garbage [shrug]
but she goes, and I didn't ask her to do it...
I usually end up with 9m's which prompted the purchase of a new 9m pistol, a bunch of 40's pop up now and then too [enough to purchase tooling to make them into 44 mag bullets] and the obligatory 20 or 223's are found now and then.
I doubt we could keep up with the brass we wear out, just picking it up off the range but it adds to the piles of what we do have.

[GRUMPA]

When I lived in Phoenix I would go out almost every weekend to practice and pick up brass.....that was at the beginning. It turned into what the other half called a "Brass Festival" but it was fun. Most of the time when I came back it was sorting and cleaning for the remainder of the weekend. Then I ran low on room, and came up with an idea. Went around to a few of the Gun Shops and traded the empties for all kinds of things.

Almost all my shooting needs were almost free, powders, bullets, primer, you name it......didn't cost me a dime.

[RKJ]

My brother has it so bad that when we go to the range he would rather pick up brass than shoot! That's me also. I spend more time picking up brass and lead than I do shooting.

[KnotRight]

I can not leave a piece of brass on the ground. I do not care what caliber it is (except 22), it is coming home with me. I have some rifle brass and do not own a rifle in that caliber (not yet). Also, every piece of brass get tumbled as soon as I get home and if I have the dies for it, it gets resized (trimmed if needed) and in the ready to load bucket.

YES, I have more brass than I will ever need but I can not help myself.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

At the club I belong to Folks who engage in such activities are called "Range Chickens." Humorous. I are one!

[BNE]

Its just part of the addiction. I often look where my brass went before I check out how my shot hit!

[rosewood]

Yep, pickup brass every time I go and when it is brass I am in need of I get giddy. That there piece of brass is usually worth at least a nickel just laying there waiting to go home with me.

Since I started casting, I am constantly scanning parking lots and curbs of roads looking for liberated wheel weights to give a new home.

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

I pick up everything I can , it's like free money, sort of

yes I pick up change on the side walk also

[Handloader109]

You guys have it worse than me, but not by much. I paid for some 9mm last year when I just started reloading and not much of anything was available. Bought a bit of .223 also. The public free range usually doesn't glean much as most guys either reload or pick up their shells to pass on to someone who does. The paid range usually gives me available brass 2 or 3 times what I shoot from floor. Now I'm shooting my 22tcms and jump on all my scrap quick so as not to lose

[2wheelDuke]

I'm guilty as charged, but I don't think I have it as bad as others. Some people are just scroungers to the bone, and picking up brass is just one outlet.

My mom will go with us to the range just to pick up brass and lead, she'll barely fire any rounds. My dad hates to bring a 1911 unless my mom is there to chase the brass. He gives me hell about being careless because I worry more about where my boolits are going than where my cases are going until my magazine is empty.

I love days where I can bring home more brass than I went to the range with. Same goes for lead pickups at ranges where I can pick up scrap. At my local club, I usually bring any boxer primed brass I find home. I leave the 22lr, the groundskeeper sells those for scrap.

[dsbock]

Hi, my name is David, and I'm a brass hoarder.

[MaryB]

We have a non-member hopping the gate and trespassing who has destroyed a berm, scavenged every piece of brass... the boy scouts get the brass from the pistol/22 range normally, they sort out the good reusable brass and sell it through the range and all the 22 brass goes to the recycler to buy ammo for their shooting. Well this guy was basically stealing and we finally got him when a member camped out over night. He was charged for the cost to rebuild the berm he tore down mining for lead and for the average the brass was worth according to the boy scout records. Got to spend 30 days in country for it too. Caught one of his kids hopping the fence and he was told he could join his dad in a jail cell... whole family are known thieves/druggies.

I only pick up my brass, unknown brass is something I shy away from.

[retread]

It's like Christmas after the local LEO's spend two days at our range practicing and qualifying. Once fired brass heaven. Do not mind closing the range for their use a couple of days a year! The newbies after Christmas with their new AR's , 40 S&W's and 9mm are another great source for OFB. Any time I go to the range I come back with more brass than I came with. :D

[bubba.50]

with brass bringin' 2 bucks a pound at the scrap-yard, I pick up all I find. even if it's trashed and/or nothin' I or anyone I know loads for.

[tomme boy]

I get close to a 5 gal bucket every week. Mostly 9mm, .40, 556. Pays for my shooting and fishing habit.

[FISH4BUGS]

I pick up everything that I can get my hands on. I have brass in calibers that I don't even own guns for. I use those for trading. Over the years I have accumulated more usable brass than I will use in my entire lifetime. I even have a 5 gallon bucket about half full for scrap brass - berdan primed, split necks, crushed necks, etc.
I have no shame. If I am shooting next to someone that is not picking up their brass, i will tell them "...don't bother to clean up. I'll take care of it"....then take all the brass.
I have more 223 than I will ever use. I am down to about my last 3000 or so 308's....those are a little more difficult to find at the range.....but my eyes are always open.

[daniel lawecki]

Brass at our club is hard to come by. You only see the Wolf steel laying on the ground.

[jcwit]

Don't forget the aluminum pop cans. I used to get a couple of hundred bucks every week at the Shipshe Flea Market. Not bad for a few hours work, 2 days a week.

[captaint]

I've got it bad, too. Always HAVE to pick up stray 9mm brass. It's ALWAYS laying around and while I'm bending over to pick up abandoned brass, I'm saying to myself "you have to stop doing this. You don't know what to do with what you have now ". And so it goes....

[Bad Water Bill]

Mom always said "cleanliness is next to godliness" so I must do what mama said.

One Sunday after a range closed I picked up over 38# of OFB,yes including the Win boxes.

No I will never use all of the brass I have BUT I love the smile on a persons face when I hand them a big bag of brass so they can start another addictive habit called RELOADING.:bigsmyl2:

[rondog]

Yep, it's an obsession, and I'm right there with y'all! Even if I pick up a bucketful of other brass, I still grieve over any of MY brass that I can't find. My club range has a bunch of separate bermed ranges, I'll usually visit each one and scour the ground, and paw through the trash cans.

Just like picking up nickles and dimes, IMO.

[Dave C.]

We call them Brass Rats.

[dtknowles]

I am cured but it took a long time. I collected cleaned bagged and sold range brass for years. I could not stand to see it wasted. The pit where I shot and collected that brass was shut down and at my new range you can be sure someone will clean up all the brass so I don't have to worry it will be wasted. I don't have to pick it up any more. I did by a lot of supplies and a couple guns with the money I made on the brass but it really was not worth my time.

Tim

[xacex]

Am I the only one who even will pick up 22s? I figure even 22s will sell at recyc for cash....

GoodOlBoy

I finallygot a brass sorter set a few years ago to sort through the range buckets of brass I was bringing home. Saves a ton of time taking out the trash, and further separating when you are dealing with 2.5-5 gallons of cases. I get a bunch of .22 at the end. I just fill gallon freezer bags and squirrel it away. I cant afford those swage dies yet, and may never go down that road. My grand plan is to make a rubber mold for 10/22 receivers in 80%, and do lost wax castings.I need to make one for the trigger housing as well so I have an all brass set. Ruger uses a similar process to make these parts. I made lots of stuff as a kid with my father this way. put the wax cast in plaster and put it in the furnace to burn off the wax, melt the brass, and poor it in. It is on my long list of projects to do before I die.

[exile]

I am fortunate in that I have the opportunity to shoot on private land, and thus no opportunity to pick up range brass. Some in similar circumstances, me included, would love the opportunity to buy your brass, uncleaned, for a good price. Just something to keep in mind in the future.

exile

[Charley]

One local range has a sign that says you are more than welcome to pick up your own brass, but don't let them catch you sucking up everything in sight. They'll ask you to leave first, then kick you out if you give them a problem. Picking up some of the brass that is mixed in with your is OK, accidents happen.

[country gent]

Several years ago the reseves used our rifle range as theirs was shut down due to richocets getting out. I was the range chairman at the time and would show up on the days they were there to unlock the rifle building ( incliment weather the range saftey speech, and instructions were much more comfortable inside) donate targets if needed and just be there as a club officer to answer questions and advice. They were great policed up the range into better shape when they feft than before they got there. ANd the big plus was the bags of brass they gave me afterwards Mostly 223 but also some 308 and 06. The 223 and 308 were cleaned and loaded with a standard match load for the juniors to use up. Mostly LC

[RogerDat]

You know it is like anything else it takes time to skid all the way to rock bottom, when you get there would you mind snagging that .357 brass I dropped up there and tossing it down to me? Good collection of stuff does take time. Molds, lead, dies, and of course brass all take years to build up a meaningful collection (aka stash or hoard) but for some reason people seem to have a harder time parting with brass. "Someday I might own the gun that some of the stuff in that bucket fits" That excuse does not really stand up to you have not bought that caliber in 25 years of shooting and have at least 10 other items you can name off the top of your head that are equally as expensive that you would buy ahead of that caliber of firearm. Just saying.... denial ain't just a river in Egypt.

[tward]

I was pretty good controlling my urges til I dropped my spent 22s in the brass bucket and spied a 45 Colt casing, picked it up and find it's Starline, had to dig out the other 11 cases. So not quite cured yet! Tim

[RogerDat]

Anyone else ever heard how they catch monkeys? They make a hole in a coconut just big enough for a monkey to get its hand into, put a rope through a hole in the other end of the coconut. Bait goes inside the coconut. Now a monkey once it gets its paw wrapped around the bait is making a fist so it can't pull it back out, and despite being dragged by the hand holding that chunk of bait food, it will not let go as it is dragged to its capture by the rope in the other end.

Wonder how many pieces of 45 colt brass it would take to drag me along by the hand holding it? We already know Tim is good to go at a dozen...... I would like to think I would hold out for at least 10 but I'm pretty sure 8 would be enough to capture me.

[matrixcs]

I am sure I qualify as a brass vulture.. I can not seem to leave any brass on the ground or even in the brass buckets. The only way to curb the desire is to hope there are lots of shooters at the range when I am there ( I do not go near the brass till the shooters leave ). The obsession seems to be getting worse since I started wet tumbling.. looks so nice when done. I know its worse when the 22s on the ground start to look interesting...

[GoodOlBoy]

somebody mentioned 'luminum cans too. Heck if you want to start a recyc topic I can't seem to let 'luminum, brass, copper, lead, or good iron or steel just lay out. gotta pick it up.

GoodOlBoy

[fatelk]

Along similar lines, does anyone else cull their brass heavily? I size 9mm bullets a little large, so if I load them in anything but U.S. commercial brass they tend to bulge more than I like, so I sort out anything military or foreign. Same with .45 acp. I don't load or shoot a lot so I get picky, sometimes even sort by head stamp. :)

[375supermag]

Hi...

I pick up range brass at my gun club. Generally leave with 50-100 cases more than I started with on an average range day, usually a mix of 9mm and .40S&W. I find some .45ACP but it is usually small primer, which I don't use. I find a good bit of .380 brass, but since that cartridge is of no interest to me, I don't pick it up.
I just recently bought my first .40S&W and although I have only fired about 300 rounds of factory ammunition through it to break it in, I already have well over a 1,000 pieces of brass. We accumulated the rest in about 5 trips to the range this spring.

Never seem to find any revolver caliber brass.

Never any brass on the rifle range...too many dedicated reloaders in that bunch.
I have clay bird boxes full of 12ga hulls, probably several thousand hulls. I don't even own a shotgun reloading press, but when I get one I have plenty of hulls to reload. They are not taking up any useful space sitting in the garage on one of my work benches.

[Plate plinker]

Hi I am a addict myself. I am not ashamed.:D

[Tackleberry41]

A friend worked at an outdoor range, he would give me partial buckets of brass. It was pretty much all the same, 223, 9mm, 45ACP, and 40S&W. I did get a decent haul of 30-30 over time. It was rare to find anything else. Just before hunting season would bring the occasional partial box of 270 or whatever, people sighting in before they head out to the tree stand. I don't even mess w crimped military 223. Its rare to find anything outside the ordinary. I got a whole 7 45 colt cases in a year. 1 10mm, the occasional 357 sig or something like that.

I do wonder about some of the brass I pick up, is it okay to use, 40 S&W with glock bulge, how many times was a particular 45 reloaded. Comes down to making precision ammo, I generally go with new stuff or once fired factory stuff I fired.

[RKJ]

I shoot at a public range (Conservation Area) and find mostly, 223, 45, 9mm and 40. During the run up to MO's deer season I find all the major rifle calibers and some odd ball, (anyone need about 20 204 Ruger?) but I'd say 99 % of the brass I pick up is once fired. I have found some that were split (45 colt) but I just toss them out of the way and move on. It's like a treasure hunt, and I do enjoy it. I have more brass (pistol & rifle) than I (or my family) will use but I still pick it up. Maybe I need therapy. :)

[mjwcaster]

A few years ago one of the members of our club put up separate brass bins.
He takes all the brass and sorts it and sells it.
But he also is at the range most days and keeps it cleaned up nice, so it doesn't bother me. Very worthwhile trade off.

While not the official range master, he is the range master.

Brass used to just get dumped in the trash before, if people even bothered to pick it up.
As much as I like brass, I'd rather have a clean range, even if it means paying for brass.
So I don't get much brass there unless I am there while someone else is shooting and get it before it goes in the brass container.

At our private range I get all the brass, as I have to pick it up after class.
So I get enough handgun brass to keep me happy.

[fatelk]

A while back I glanced in the trash can at the range, a very large oversize trash can. I noticed maybe a half gallon of brass in the bottom; I recognized .223 and 9mm along with some 270 or 30-06. Obviously a lot of shooters don't share our affliction and nice shiny once-fired brass is just garbage to be thrown out to them. :( (No, I'm not desperate enough to go dumpster-diving)

[rondog]

Wheeee! Lookit all the brass in here!!!! (yes, I've done it.....)

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b150/rinselman/funnies/dumpsterdiver.jpg

[GoodOlBoy]

Been there.....

GoodOlBoy

[brassrat]

I got a bunch of plastic boxes coming today. Its hard keeping up with the new brass. They must get loaded, but not until 50 or 100 pieces get matched up.

[lightman]

I got a bunch of plastic boxes coming today. Its hard keeping up with the new brass. They must get loaded, but not until 50 or 100 pieces get matched up.

I have found the large plastic coffee can to be a great brass storage container. Before that, I used beer cases (remember them), large ice cream tubs, metal coffee cans, and now the plastic. I like the plastic best of all.

Yeah, I'm one of them too!

[dtknowles]

I have found the large plastic coffee can to be a great brass storage container. Before that, I used beer cases (remember them), large ice cream tubs, metal coffee cans, and now the plastic. I like the plastic best of all.

Yeah, I'm one of them too!

I use shotgun shell boxes, 25 shell boxes sorted by headstamp in 100 shell boxes of one caliber. If I have not sorted by headstamp I just fill 100 shell boxes with one caliber.

Tim

[lightman]

Its amazing how creative we can be. Recycling at its best!

[David2011]

Realistically, I probably have all I need in every caliber I load save .375 H&H but then how much of that do I need? Having shot at a lot of USPSA matches, I really prefer to pick up only my own marked .40 S&W brass. Recently we have had a bunch of Federal LEOs shooting at our USPSA matches and they have all the taxpayer supplied ammunition they want so they don't reload. That's a nice source of replacements for the brass I lose. I never pick up 9mm because it might have been used in a USPSA open gun at very high pressures loaded to "9mm major" power levels. I still can't help myself pick up .45 ACP and .45 Colt if I see any lying around. I don't NEED it; just can't help it. Trying to break myself from picking up any more 5.56/.223. I've concluded after dealing with about 5000 pieces of surplus brass that if I had it to do over, I would buy new brass for .223. I have way too many hours invested in prepping surplus 5.56. Just when I thought it was ready to load I started using CCI arsenal primers which don't slide into the primer pockets as smoothly as regular CCI small rifle primers so I started chamfering all brass that was going to get arsenal primers. Just one more step; they had already been swaged with a Dillon Super Swage. It's getting easier all the time to leave brass on the ground.

BUT IT'S SO SHINY!!

David

[brassrat]

Caw Caw

[Four-Sixty]

I bought a .223 handi-rifle so that I could make use of the .223 brass I keep finding.

[375supermag]

Hi...

I use my wife's empty plastic Folgers coffee cans.
I fill up a can, separate by caliber, then wash and/or tumble.
Back into a can until time to process.
I drop the sized cases into Akro bins, then I flare the case mouth and back into an Akro bin, then prime and then in cartridge case holders from ammunition boxes until ready to dump powder and seat bullets.

I have coffee cans and Akro bins with cases at various stages of the reloading process stacked up all over the place.
Disorganized chaos.

[xacex]

I use shotgun shell boxes, 25 shell boxes sorted by headstamp in 100 shell boxes of one caliber. If I have not sorted by headstamp I just fill 100 shell boxes with one caliber.

Tim

It is bad when you collect certain types of shotgun hulls, and have tubs filled with bags of 100.

[lefty o]

i pick up mine, and maybe some of what i can use. if i dont need it, im not taking it. let someone else who could use it find it.

[fatelk]

I tend to really try to pick up any questionable brass I shoot, on it's last legs, for three reasons:

1. I'm a good environmentalist and must recycle
2. It goes in the scrap bucket because it's worth money
3. I don't want some newbie reloader picking it up and reloading it when it really belongs in the scrap bucket

I actually just got done organizing a bunch of brass this evening. From the sound of it, I'm pretty sure I don't have near as much as some of you all, but I think I'm about done collecting it up. I have more than I'll ever use, at least the common calibers. No, actually all calibers I use, for the limited amount I shoot.

I'm going to make a conscious effort to walk right on by that next big pile of 9mm brass I come across. :)

[dsbock]

I'm going to make a conscious effort to walk right on by that next big pile of 9mm brass I come across. :)

Good luck. Let us know how that turns out. ;-)

[GoodOlBoy]

if you ain't measure your finds in pounds or tons, you ain't winnin' at this game.... FYI

GoodOlBoy

[MaryB]

Can sweep up pounds of 22lr brass at my pistol range. I usually bring a broom and bag a bunch for the boy scouts plus it clears the concrete making it easier to find my 380 and 9mm brass!

[SeabeeMan]

Sister in law and a half dozen friends are local PD or Sherrif's, and they are always nice enough to let me know when they are going out there. They've even picked up the brass for me on occasion.


It's like Christmas after the local LEO's spend two days at our range practicing and qualifying. Once fired brass heaven. Do not mind closing the range for their use a couple of days a year! The newbies after Christmas with their new AR's , 40 S&W's and 9mm are another great source for OFB. Any time I go to the range I come back with more brass than I came with. :D

[Harter66]

About 5 yr ago they closed our public range ...... man how I miss that ...... and all that 45 ACP I gave away that I need now and the 223 I gave away that I need now and the 500 6.8 I sold that we'll you get it.....

Too bad I actually convenced myself that I was only keeping what I would use.... now I have to leave town and scrounge informal ranges for scraps iv actually had to buy brass for a new toy it aint right .