The most expensive "scrap" I ever purchased. Worth it!

Status
Not open for further replies.
T

Tallestjudah

Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2020
Messages
4
I live near Fort Carson near Colorado Springs and I always slip a few bucks to my local scrap metal guy for when military brass gets dropped off to be melted down. I get a call in January, "Judah, you should come down here now." I drop everything, pull up in my truck to 4 guys looking into a 55-gallon drum. NICE, I get a grip of brass, right? Wrong. An Army officer is standing there with his arms crossed sort of frowning. I peer into the barrel and see HUNDREDS of crushed Colt M16A1 lower receivers. He said they must be from Vietnam or some other conflict, but all I could do is ask how much he wanted for the barrel. Long story short, he got a down payment for a new vehicle and helped load it in my truck. The top of the barrel had nice stuff, the bottom of it just shards, but I managed to get my metal buddy some work by making these. What do you think?
 

Attachments

  • 4ev546E.jpg
    4ev546E.jpg
    114.6 KB · Views: 332
  • ZEHm2GM.jpg
    ZEHm2GM.jpg
    123 KB · Views: 327
  • wH4nk4K.jpg
    wH4nk4K.jpg
    108 KB · Views: 328
Legal to own, yes. Entrapment, no. Trying to pay down my nursing school loans, yes. The M16A1 has seen some stuff. Packed full of history. I have sold them to guys who have riveted them to their cockpit, welded them to their racing vehicle dash, yet another to his chopper, welded to 80% for retro builds, made keychains, bottleopeners out of the rear pieces. One guy blocked them in epoxy for book ends, another guy mounted to block of walnut for display piece, paperweights. One guy turned the machine gun rental guys face white when he rented a full auto ar and then walked up with these pieces in his hand.
 
@Tallestjudah,
I am the moderator of the trading post here at THR where a "qualified" member can buy sell stuff. You are not a qualified member yet.
We frown up veiled threads to sell things in the discussion forums, so be warned the first reference to sales or selling will get you banned.
 
bikerdoc said:
@Tallestjudah,
I am the moderator of the trading post here at THR where a "qualified" member can buy sell stuff. You are not a qualified member yet.
We frown up veiled threads to sell things in the discussion forums, so be warned the first reference to sales or selling will get you banned.
Click to expand...
Copy that my good man. As of now, they are not for sale.
 
There is something rotten in Denmark.

FWIW I was assigned one of the last units on Fort Carson that had M16A1s and that was in 1992.

And when we turned them in they packed them up intact and I think they sent them back to Redstone Arsenal.

They most certainly did not store them on Ft. Carson for THIRTY YEARS before scrapping them out.


I'm also fairly certain that military brass isn't sent to civilian scrap metal yards to be melted down. My understanding is that it goes back to the factory and gets remanufactured
 
Last edited:
Trunk Monkey said:
There is something rotten in Denmark.

FWIW I was assigned one of the last units on Fort Carson that had M16A1s and that was in 1992.

And when we turned them in they packed them up intact and I think they sent them back to Redstone Arsenal.

They most certainly did not store them on Ft. Carson for THIRTY YEARS before scrapping them out.


I'm also fairly certain that military brass isn't sent to civilian scrap metal yards to be melted down. My understanding is that it goes back to the factory and gets remanufactured
Click to expand...
You're right, there has never been a blackmarket for military items. Also, I said brass in general, but yes I get some nice mil brass too. I know what I'm told, offer what I know, and that's all I know.
 
Trunk Monkey said:
There is something rotten in Denmark.

FWIW I was assigned one of the last units on Fort Carson that had M16A1s and that was in 1992.

And when we turned them in they packed them up intact and I think they sent them back to Redstone Arsenal.

They most certainly did not store them on Ft. Carson for THIRTY YEARS before scrapping them out.


I'm also fairly certain that military brass isn't sent to civilian scrap metal yards to be melted down. My understanding is that it goes back to the factory and gets remanufactured
Click to expand...

Most brass is auctioned off in large lots.
 
As an Armorer, I've seen a lot of M16A1 lowers. I'm not convinced these are the real thing.

1.) The rampant pony is larger than the issue rifles I saw.
2.) If they are legit, they were not produced for the US military, as Colt M16A1's thus are stamped with a smaller rampant pony and 'property of us govt. M16A1' above the serial.
2.) The stamping on the back lowers (trigger group area) looks more like that of an A2 than an A1; perhaps these were from test guns for the A2 program. I wish Hummer 70 still posted, he was in on that program.
3.) According to this chart, your demilled lowers were made AFTER the M16A2, though with other markings matching serial numbers in the 4,000,000 range.
USGI SERIAL NUMBER DATA BASE (serial numbers listed in chronological rather then numerical order):

101-14,484
1959-1963
US Air Force/Project AGILE/SEAL issue Colt's AR-15 Model 601, roll marked ARMALITE. Some sold commercially to police departments, small numbers to foreign militaries such as Malaya, India, Australia, Burma, and Singapore.

20,000-39,999
1963-1964
US Property marked AR-15 Colt's Model 02 issued to US Advisors in Vietnam, and US Air Force. Few hundred commercial/export examples were made that lack US Property markings.

40,000-49,999
1964
US Property marked US Air Force M16 Colt's Model 604.

50,000-199,999
1964-1965
US Property marked US Air Force M16 Colt's Model 604 & US Army XM16E1 Colt's Model 603.

14,500-14,916
1965
Commercial/export CAR-15 series and US Property marked GX series for S.A.W.S. contract (note, CAR-15 refers to a family of Colt's weapons, not just short ones).

15,000-19,999
1965
Commercial/export CAR-15 series.

200,000-202,446
1965
Commercial/export CAR-15 series.

202,447-379,353
1965
US Property marked US Air Force M16 Colt's Model 604, and a few commercial export models. There are also examples of commerical/export marked models using the 20X,XXX serial number range produced in the late 1960's.

400,000 series
1966-1973 or so
Only a few rifles/carbines made in this serial number range and known examples are spread out over several years of production. Zero US Property marked rifles have been observed. Highest know example is 418,XXX and dates from the early 1970’s.

500,001-749,999
1966-1967
US Property marked XM16E1 Colt's and M16A1, both Colt Model 603. There are also a small number of US Air Force M16 Colt's Model 604 found in this serial number range. Serial numbers in this range were not run in order. M16A1’s have been observed with serial numbers as low as 604,505, and XM16E1’s have serial numbers as high as 741,12X.

750,000-752,443
1966
Experimental HBAR.

752,444-899,999
1967
US Property marked M16A1.

900,000 through 909,999
1966-1970
US Property marked Govt. Carbines.

910,000-919,999
Unconfirmed, only know of one Colt in this range, it is in US Air Force inventory, and I do not know the model number.

920,000-999,999
No known examples.

1,000,000-1,999,999
1968-1969
US Property marked Colt's M16A1

2,000,000-2,24X,XXX
1968-1971
US Property marked H&R M16A1.

3,000,000-3,469,217 (approximate)
1968-1971
US Property marked Hydramatic M16A1.

9,000,0000 series
1970’s & 1980’s
In general these are 1970’s and early 80’s “A1” type 600 series commercial/export marked weapons. There are some exceptions, for example US Property marked Govt. Carbines.

AL prefix
1970
Lebanese contract rifles, some 14,000 made.

Note on 4,000,000 series Colt’s, there are quite a few commercial/export marked rifles/carbines mixed in.

4,000,001-4,060,000
1970
US Air Force M16 Colt Model 604.

4,060,001-4,221,800
1970
US Property marked M16A1.

4,221,801-4,285,400
1970
US Air Force M16 Colt Model 604.

4,285,401-4,521,000
1970
US Property marked M16A1.

4,521,001-4,521,850
1970
US Air Force M16 Colt Model 604.

4,521,851-4,638, 400
1970
US Property marked M16A1.

4,638,401-4,643,400
1971
Model 613 for Malaysia.

4,643,401-4,701,400
1971
US Property marked M16A1.

4,701,401-4,701,900
1971
Model 613 Commando

4,701,901-4,844,400
1971
US Property marked M16A1.

4,844,401-4,849,400
1972
Model 613 for Taiwan.

4,849,401-4,926,000
1972
US Property marked M16A1.

4,926,001-4,928,000
1972
Model 613 for Philippines.

4,928,000-4,936,400
1972
US Property marked M16A1.

5,000,000-5,4X,XXX (app)
1973-1982
US Property marked M16A1 Colt's Model 603 (not aware of any Air Force M16 Colt Model 604's with serial numbers this high). Also some export/commercial models.

6,000,000-6,590,478 (approximate)
1983-1986
US Property marked M16A2 & US Property marked XM4 prototypes Colt's Model 720.

8,000,000 series
1980’s
In general these are 700 series commercial/export marked models of the M16A2.

7,000,000-7,429,766 (approximate)
1988-2003
US Property marked FN M16A2. There are also Balimoy M16A1 lowers restamped A2 in this serial number range. These were used as replacement parts by Anniston.

W prefix
1994-current
US Property marked Colt's M4/A1 Carbine, Colt's Model 920/921.

A prefix
1990’s on
900 series Commercial/export versions of the M4 Carbine.

10,000,000 serial number range
1997-
US Property marked Colt's/FN M16A4
Click to expand...

Source: MachineGunBoards.com

Some of these same serial number series lowers were available for sale commerically.

I think you've been had.
 
These horrific and graphic pictures should be predicated with a warning for those with weak constitutions or those with very big hearts...

Those poor firearms!:(

I keep hearing “In the arms of an Angel...”
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

T
  • Locked
Scrap brass prices
Replies
12
Views
9K
joneb
joneb
G
  • Locked
I think my gun may be "famous"
Replies
1
Views
857
4v50 Gary
4v50 Gary
E
  • Locked
I got sick with guns
2
Replies
41
Views
3K
hso
hso
electricfactory
  • Locked
Your most 'interesting' gun purchase
2
Replies
36
Views
2K
Legionnaire
Legionnaire
J
  • Locked
Christmas for a enlisted man
Replies
3
Views
530
1 old 0311
1
Back
Top