Most common round?

[Lead melter]

Don't know about you guys, but I've been scrounging the local pistol range for brass for the last year or so and have noticed something. The 40 S&W seems to be the most popular handgun round in these here parts, that is judging from the amount of brass I have picked up. The 40 outranks all others combined at about a 2:1 ratio.
Just curious to know what others in different parts of the country are finding.

[dubber123]

Alot of .40 here too, quite a bit of 9mm also. All the .45 guys at the club will fist fight over 2 pieces of brass, so I don't see much of that.

[theperfessor]

I see a lot of .40s on the ground at the local range. I also see a lot of Glocks in the hands of shooters. Most don't bother to reload like wheelgunners and 9mm/45 shooters. It's popular, but I don't think its the MOST popular, just the least reloaded hence the empty hulls on the ground.

[mike in co]

being in the brass(recycling) business, i see lots of brass.

you cannot make your decision based on what is left at the range.

some people pick up everything they shoot, others do not understand the value of an empty case, so they leave them.
revolvers dont shuck cases....so few are left on the ground.

i wholesale lots of 45acp and 223....casue they are the easiest to hand sort, i have high volume and there is a great market for them. last month i did over 50k in 45acp, and almost 20k in 223.
all my 9mm,40s&w, 38 and 357 brass go in bulk to commeercial reloaders, unsorted.

rent-a-cops still shoot and qualify with 38's, so i see a bunch, very little full house 357 brass is left on the floor.
far and away, the 45 acp is the most popular brass left on the 5 ranges i service( brass stays on the floor/ground...no picking it up).
the only real answer to the question is to look at commercial sales, not at what we find left on the floor/ground.

mike in co
THE COLORADO BRASS COMPANY

[fourarmed]

I think the perfessor has a point. When I used to go to the ballpark, they would sell out of Coors first, Bud second, then Schlitz. I finally understood the real meaning of the ad slogan "When you're out of Schlitz, you're out of beer."

[Ricochet]

On my range there used to be a good many .45s to pick up, and 9mms were everywhere, like .22s. I ignored "just another 9" as I didn't load those. Now there are .40s everywhere, and rather few 9s, with .45s uncommon though I usually find a few. I see lots of empty Winchester white boxes of .40s in the trash, matching the empty brass. I'm starting to see some .45 GAP show up.

[Sprue]

It all depends on how you look at. If you mean most popular as far as picking up range brass or in other words, what do you find most abundant at the range available for pick up. (I think this is what the OP is suggesting) Then I would agree. But here 9mm is neck-n-neck in that race. Its either 9mm or 40 cal (mostly) for pistol.

I do find a little this and a little that (stuff that I really want). But over the years I have accumulated a good quantity of 223, 45 and other popular rifle and pistol brass thats certainly valuable so to speak, even though I might not have that particular caliber.

So in essence, I would agree that 40 and 9mm are the most popular brass available for "pick up".

For that matter, you can't hardly sell 40 cal brass much less give it away. I had 500 40 cal brass in there original cartons for sale on evil bay a couple years ago. I did get the cost of shipping out of it. None the less I was glad to help someone out.

So in this respect, yes 40 and 9mm are most popular here as well.

[RP]

well around here most law inforcement are useing the 40 cal and its the new kid on the block that was brought up to the front of the pack to increase sells and alot of gun makers are selling at least one type . So like the 45 was the most common then the 9mm now its the 40. I got a 5 gal bucket of brass after sorting i had a handful of 38 357 45 gap 357sig 380s maybe 300 9mm 500 223 and 15 308s the rest was all 40 still takes a 5 gal bucket to hold them.

[Blammer]

the reason no one picks up the 40 is because you'll get "kabooms" from reloaded brass in 40 glocks.....

or so I hear.

[mike in co]

the reason no one picks up the 40 is because you'll get "kabooms" from reloaded brass in 40 glocks.....

or so I hear.

maybe you should be more discrete on what you listen to........

glock brass failures were due to unsupported 40 chambers, glock fixed the issue. the issue today with 40 is large chambers(in spec) glocks. this leads to reloading issues.brass not fully sized, limiting mag capacity, brass not lasting as long because it is worked more than other brass and has a high operating pressure.
brass in your non-glock 40 should last a long time.

mike in co

[fatnhappy]

Don't know about you guys, but I've been scrounging the local pistol range for brass for the last year or so and have noticed something. The 40 S&W seems to be the most popular handgun round in these here parts, that is judging from the amount of brass I have picked up. The 40 outranks all others combined at about a 2:1 ratio.
Just curious to know what others in different parts of the country are finding.

I wouldn't read to deep into the most commonly found brass as being a popularity indicator. A very large portion of .40 S+W brass laying on the ground is expended by guys that have it provided at taxpayer expense. They are not reloading it and there's a glut for scroungers.

[paul edward]

At the range I use, the most common seem to be .223 and steel case 7.62x39.
Pistol brass seems to be an equal mix of 9mm and .40 with fewer .45.

As he was leaving, one shooter gave me two boxes of .44 Special cases that he was going to trash.

Is it just me, or are there a lot fewer reloaders than shooters these days?

Paul

[jhrosier]

I shoot on an outdoor range and I pick up a fair amount of .40S&W because it is used by nearly all law enforcement in this area and none of them are bothering to save brass, even to recycle. There are so many handloaders and folks collecting brass for sale to scrap yards that very little except .22LR is left on the ground for long.
It has become common practice at our small local club for folks who don't handload, to pick up thier brass and leave it on the bench for those who do, rather than throwing it in the trash. There is never a lack of grateful recipients.:drinks:
40 S&W is probably more popular than 9mm by about 2:1, judging by what I see actually fired. 45ACP is probably second most popular, perhaps even first among non-law enforcement people. It is very unusual to find 45 brass for the picking as nearly all 45ACP users seem to handload.

Jack

[jhalcott]

The range I use most ofren has a "pick up your brass" rule. They have a 32 gallon barrel they empty once a month and send it to the recycler. Some months this pays the electric bill. If I see any one heading for the barrel ,I ask for the empty brass. Some guys give it to me some don't. The 40S&W shooters usually are NOT reloaders.

[Wayne Smith]

A

Is it just me, or are there a lot fewer reloaders than shooters these days?

Paul

I hope so. That means that there are a lot of new shooters who haven't yet learned the virtues of reloading. Many of them will. This is the new blood the sport has been needing. When you notice someone leaving brass mention to them that it is reloadable and how much they can save. A new reloader is worth infinitely more than a handful of brass!

[corvette8n]

At my range I also see a lot of .40SW and a ton of steel 7.62x39, and steel case .22 rimfire.
A lot of people at our range are slobs leaving shotgun hulls used targets trash all over even though there are brass buckets and garbage cans every 10 feet.

[Ricochet]

Steel case .22s? I've never seen any. Who sells it?

(I know they used to be common many decades ago.)

[USARO4]

The .40 short&weak may be popular with the masses but I would guess it ranks near the bottom with handloaders. I would be curious to see a current list of most popular die sets sold. I know 38/357 used to lead the pack.

[Echo]

At our county range it seems that there is no clear winner. Many 9mm's, .40's, some .45's, .38's, &cetera - rifle rounds - lots of steel - 7.62x39, .223, .308, and Berdan-primed European stuff. Being non-commercial, I only picked up what I load.

But now the Powers That Be have decreed that the only brass we can take home is our own, that we shot - no picking up. See, the county sells the brass to recyclers (for about 1.75/lb) and seems to need the money. Did I mention a majority of Dems on the Commission? And a wimpy immediate boss?

[fourarmed]

Ricochet, I haven't seen them lately, but the Russian Junior brand used to be available in steel cases. Only ones I have seen.

[WildmanJack]

Our range is operated by the state fish and wildlife people. Every Monday and Thursday it stays closed till 10:00 In the morning. During this time the trustees from the local jail come over and rake up all the brass laying around in the grass, and sweep the concrete pads. If you want to pick up brass there's no problem. Most guys leave it. I load for a guy that just bought 1000 rounds of .45 acp brass from Starline. He told me that when he get's done shooting it he just wants to leave it. I personally think he needs his head examined !!!!

[miestro_jerry]

The last public range I was at, you walked on rusting steel 7.62 x 39 Russian and Chinese cases. Not much else.

Jerry

[EMC45]

Russian Junior in the aqua colored boxes. I got a bunch of misfires using that stuff years back.

[1Shirt]

Just my two cents on this. I am yet to pick up a 357 left on the range, and have only a couple of times picked up a 44S or 44M. Have picked up quite a few 38S. Think that part of that is the difference in the mentality(s) of revolver shooters vs auto shooters, that and that revolver shooters don't have to bend over to pick up empties. As to power, and defense factor, will take a 357 any day over any 40 auto, particularly with Elmers load.
1Shirt!:coffee:

[rugerdude]

Just my two cents on this. I am yet to pick up a 357 left on the range, and have only a couple of times picked up a 44S or 44M. Have picked up quite a few 38S. Think that part of that is the difference in the mentality(s) of revolver shooters vs auto shooters, that and that revolver shooters don't have to bend over to pick up empties. As to power, and defense factor, will take a 357 any day over any 40 auto, particularly with Elmers load.
1Shirt!:coffee:

+1! I think most revolver shooters, especially those that shoot the Magnums and big bores, are more often than not reloaders. Add to that the price of ammo (white box .44M is $33/50 around here versus $10/50 for white box .40 S&W) and its not surprising that you find more .40 brass. I know that in the last year, I have started scrounging all kinds of scrap metal to sell for extra shooting cash and look for lead and wheelweights for casting everywhere I go. I also check every range within easy driving distance (price of gas hurts!) for empty brass. I keep calibers I load for and sell or trade off everything else.

[Freightman]

Why shooters not re-loaders? might be like a man I know who shoots his 45 Colt "says that reloading is dangerous and he wants to shoot only "GOOD" ammo in his SAA"!
One told me it was to expensive to start as the cost of equipment would buy a lot of factory ammo!
Good as that leaves the lead, primmers and brass for me.

[Wicky]

Over here it is 40 S&W as the cops leave heaps on the range, next is 9mm. No more 45's as our 'new' and improved gun laws make it illegal for the ordinary shooter to have any calibre over 38/9mm. Only the cops can be trusted with large capacity mags and anything larger than 9mm!!

[monadnock#5]

Far and away, the caliber found on the ground most often is .40S&W, followed closely by .357Sig. I think that has more to do with least popular amongst reloaders than popularity of the caliber. If I'm very lucky, I'll occasionally find a ton of once fired .45acp brass. It sure doesn't stay on the ground long. 9mm seems to be going the way of the dodo. Aluminum Blazer ammo is developing a very strong following.

[TexasJeff]

The .40 short&weak may be popular with the masses but I would guess it ranks near the bottom with handloaders. I would be curious to see a current list of most popular die sets sold. I know 38/357 used to lead the pack.

I'd buy that, for sure.

At one of the ranges I shoot at, 40S&W brass is everywhere. Even the reloaders don't want it.

I don't want it because I'll never own a 40S&W. I do separate the 40 brass from the good stuff, and toss it in a scrap bucket. Will trade it to my local scrap dealer for WW.

So, all you 40S&W shooters--KEEP ON SHOOTIN'! (just don't pick up your brass)

Jeff