live rounds

[colt 357]

I go to our shooting ranges about a hour and a half before they open for shooting to look for brass and shift lead out of the berm for range scrap. What really surprizes me is all the live round I find at our two ranges. So far this year I have found over 80- .22LR, 3- 9mm luger, 3- .40 S&W, 1- .45, 1- .17 hmr, 1- .38, 1- .223, 1- 7.62x39, and two other military rounds I'm not sure what they are but they are big rounds. I also found 2- 12 gauge and 1- 16 gauge shot gun shells.
None of these even had the primers hit. Beside being dangerous if they are hit on the range these people must have more money then me to leave a live round on the gound and not pick it up and use it. They probably drop the out on a jam or during load a clip. Now we shoot the ones we have guns for and all have shot. I give out the others. I would hate to be the poor guy that has to mow the range and I hope he's got a armor plated deck on the mower and a bullet proof vest.
I also find and lot of .22LR rounds that the primer has been hit but didnt go off. I found that when we put these in our bolt action rifle with the stike turn 180 degrees 98 % of these fire.

[RugerFan]

I never fire live rounds I find at the range. I always pull them even if they look like factory rounds. I won't take the chance on what kind of powder charge is inside (I have to assume they may be hand loads). Better safe than sorry.

[BruceB]

Live rounds aren't much of a hazard in themselves. My main worry would be if some irresponsible soul (like a child, for instance) should pick one up and either slip it into a firearm at the wrong time-and-place, or start PLAYING with dis-assembling it, hammering it, or whatever.

NRA tests have shown that parts of a cartridge igniting in the open air generally won't even penetrate a cardboard box. Eyes are still at risk of injury, however.

Live rounds that I find at our range are carried to some nearby open ground, a shallow hole is scuffed out with my boot, and the rounds buried. Problem gone.

[DIRT Farmer]

If you don't know who loaded it, or where it came from I wouldent fire it. A lot from one of the local range have went into the bottom of a post hole, no return.

[mooman76]

I find them out in the desert where I go to shoot all the time. Allot of people go out there. All kinds 22, 8mm or whatever. Some have light strikes and some look untouched. Wish I had that kind of money to throw around.

[fatelk]

I find them all the time, too. Last time I went out I found a .454 Casull amongst others.

I'm probably the odd one out here, but I will occasionally fire them, if they are obviously factory rounds. Please don't flame me on that- my decision, my safety. One thing I never do is throw them away. Burying them seems a waste, but better than nothing if you don't want to mess with them I guess.

I tinker a lot with oddball stuff, so I usually pull them apart for the brass and bullets. I have a big box of assorted bullets to use if I'm experimenting with some loads. The .22s go in a bag for plinking ammo if they look good, or pulled apart for the lead if they're ugly. All powder gets dumped of course.

[Frank46]

Same here, just pull them and save the brass and bullets. Got a plastic jug about half full of rifle and pistol bullets. Frank

[blueeyephil]

I shoot USPSA and IDPA locally. At the end of your stage you have to unload and show clear. There are allways some rounds that don't get picked up. Be careful esp with 9mm. Most will be light loaded or factory, but a few people load hot loads called 9mm Major. Probably not a good idea to shoot those in a normal 9mm. Best course of action is if you didn't bring it, don't shoot it.

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[JIMinPHX]

When I pick up brass from the shooting pits out in the desert, I usually find at least 1 live .22rf. I occasionally find other calibers as well. Over the years, I've collected about 2 quarts of live ones. I haven't decided what to do with them yet. Some day I'll probably recover the components, but I haven't tried it yet.

[colt 357]

I use all the .22 lr if they look good. most of the rounds I found I don't have a gun for. So far it only .22 that I have shot. I got a big pile here at home that I havn't figure what I'm going to do with them. .22 should be safe. Soon I well have over a hundred of them to shoot at the rate I find them. Any taker on running mower. I have heard they dont do much when the go off outside of a gun. But I am not going to be standing around when the mower shows up. My luck I would be that one in a million. MAN KILLED BY A JOHN DEERE GAUGE RIDING MOWER

[Ed Barrett]

.22 lr's are outside lubed so if they hit the ground they pick up dirt, if the drop on concrete the pick up concrete dust. Neither are good for a rifle barrel. saving a couple of cents can cost you a good barrel. I was taught to never use a 22 that hit the ground.

[fatelk]

Some day I'll probably recover the components, but I haven't tried it yet.

.22 ammo is real easy to pop apart. I just hold the brass in my fingers, a pair of pliers in the other hand, squeeze and twist and the bullet pops right out. The lead goes into the melting pot, the brass I smash with a hammer and toss in the recycle bucket, and the powder goes in the dirt.

I have a bag of a thousand or so rounds of .22 LR good enough for plinking, and a can of another thousand corroded ones that someone gave me. The corroded ones look good on the outside, but tend to split when fired, so they will be pulled apart for components. It may or may not be worth the time it takes to pull them apart, but I might as well be green and recycle- the lead into boolits and the brass into cash!

I was taught to never use a 22 that hit the ground.

No disrespect intended, but I have use hundreds if not thousands that have hit the ground, so long as they were clean and looked good. Most modern .22 rounds have dry lube, as opposed to the wax on the older ones. If I saw grit on a wax-lubed bullet it would get pulled down.

ADDED: the old pump .22 I use to plink with this ammo has a bore that has seem better days. It still shoots minute-of-tin-can and second rate ammo won't hurt the worn and pitted old barrel. I sure wouldn't shoot questionable ammo in an expensive target rifle.

[colt 357]

I have a old .22 too that just short of a bunderbuss. I think I could drop dirt down that thing I even shot bird shot thought it and never hurt it.

[6.5 mike]

3 years ago come jan, Russel the fellow that takes care of the maintance at the range I use, asked me if I could use the range drops he had picked up, told him if I couldn t' use them I might know someone who could. Talk about snowballing, when I got to 500 fac useable 9 m/m I bought one just to have something to shoot them in. 38/357, 44spl/44mag, 40 s&w, 45 acp. a few 32s long short & acp, 25 auto, 1-454, 2 old ballon case 45ar, 45 lc.
Rifle just as much 223, 243,ya doc this is where yours are coming from, 6.5x55, 7x57, 7-08 270,30 carbine,30-30, 30-06 308,7.62x39,7.62x54, 8 m/m,a few 32 win spl, 45-70. He handed me a full box of rem 30-40 krag one trip. Awhile back he gave me a box of rem 45-70s someone wanted to get rid of cause they where tarnished,lol. Works for me.
I check them over good when I get back to the house, toss the bad or miss loaded ones in the pulldown can, box up the rest.
Plus he has given me a clay target box bout 1/3 full of pistol brass, over 1000 useable 9 m/m, 40 s&w, & 45 acp alone in it. I like going to the range!!!!

[frkelly74]

Use or scrap, you can use your judgement and either way can benefit from other peoples wastage. I also am amazed at the number of pop cans that can be had, most are un-opened and just shot while full, makes an impressive splat if they hit them. They are worth $.10 each if the bar code reading machine at the store can read them. I have seen whole cases set up and blasted, I have recovered lots of cans that were not hit and washed them off and enjoyed them. I generally will recover anything that can be used , sold , or recycled and drag it home.

[fatelk]

It used to be called cheap, now you are being environmentally responsible.

[Hardcast416taylor]

I agree with not taking a chance on firing unkown found ammo. I also agree on tearing down the rounds for the bullet and case only. However it is the disposal of empty unfired .22 cases that is a concern. Yes you may crush the case and toss it in with your other scrap brass to be sold to a junk dealer, but you still have a live primed case there. I know of 1 scrap dealer that won`t accept empty .22 cases due to the chance of a live round mixed with them or a empty but primed case. Seems that he would smelt down large amounts of small pieces of brass before sending it on in the scrap business. He had several detonations in the smelting vessal that caused enough concern to stop buying scrap .22 cases.Robert

[WILCO]

I also find a lot of .22LR rounds that the primer has been hit but didnt go off. I found that when we put these in our bolt action rifle with the stike turn 180 degrees 98 % of these fire.

Yep. That's what I do too. Those mis-fire cans and range "drops" have given me plenty of 22lr for plinking and lead for the pot.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

My personal preference preference has always been to tear down any found ammo and reuse the components rhat fit in with your needs except for the powder; that I get rid of. I remelt the lead and keep the brass. On .22's, I pull the lead and remelt it. The powder is dumped in the garden. The unfired brass goes into a tin can filled with some old motor oil and then eventually disposed of. You don't know what other folks loaded and there is no sense in taking chances or "better safe than sorry". LLS

[oneokie]

Strangest thing I have found is a box of 47 Triple 7 50 cal pellets. Then there was the box of Winchester 30-30 with 17 live rounds and 3 empties. And the box of 18 Federal 12 ga. shells.