Brass Chasers

Status
Not open for further replies.

Remllez

Member
Joined
Mar 9, 2011
Messages
980
I shoot center fire revolvers almost exclusively and had a very close call with a "Brass Chaser" today at an indoor range. I noticed him when I first walked in because he was shooting two lanes to my right but was picking up brass in my lane from a previous shooter and I had to tell him to move so I could set up my gear.

I don't like people hovering/flitting about when I shoot and there is no real Range Officer there just a couple counter persons who are busy doing lots of other things. For the most part self policing seems to work fairly well and any complaints brought to the staff are dealt with quickly and fairly.

I ran a target out, loaded my revolver and shot almost a box of shells dropped the empties left my cylinder open sat my gun down ran the target back in, took a half step backwards and tripped on that scavenger who was on his hands and knees directly behind me picking up brass AGAIN!

My first inclination was to drill him in the jaw and twenty years ago that's exactly what I would have done. My impulse control is much better now but I still lit him up loud enough to make the range go quiet and draw the staffs attention who were there in seconds.

All of us went into the classroom and had a spirited conversation which led to him being told to pack up and then he was escorted to his car. He will not be allowed back for a year, Personally I think he should never be allowed back.

Just recently there was a thread on THR about people not being allowed to pick up/take home their brass and I thought it was bogus, but now I have changed my mind and no longer think it's unreasonable. All manner of bad things could've happened in this situation. I'm pretty sure that because of this guy there may be a similar ban put in place at this range.

So what do you think was this guy/situation dealt with properly?
 
Perfect solution. There is a time to pick up brass and a time when you let it sit. I pick up brass myself but only when I deem it is safe to do so.
 
I think it just shows the difference between me policing my own brass and someone being an inconsiderate jerk. I think you and the range dealt with him properly!
 
Sounds like a perfect solution and I don't think that this is an example that illustrates why no one should be allowed to police brass at a range. Rather, the brass owner should be able to police their own brass (and any other brass) found in their stall, and any other of their brass in adjacent stalls so long as those stalls are empty.
B
 
Perfect solution. There is a time to pick up brass and a time when you let it sit. I pick up brass myself but only when I deem it is safe to do so.
This.

I infrequently go to an indoor range and I would never think of picking up even my own brass even though I feel that it is mine and I have the right to do so. The lanes are very close together and there just isn't enough room to crawl around on the floor picking up brass without getting underfoot and creating a safety hazard as well as looking like a buffoon.

It sucks because there is always a ton of brass on the floor but sometimes you just gotta let it go...
 
Last edited:
Sounds like quite an overreaction to me. Probably a simple statement to move out of your range area would have been sufficient.

It worries me that people with guns can't control themselves any better than this, and a lot of people seem to support it.
 
I shot at an indoor range one time with a guy who marked his brass with a red magic-marker.

It so happens I marked mine with the same color.

By mutual friendly agreement, both of us spent more time sorting out brass by headstamp then we did shooting.

It justs shows there are extremes at both ends of the spectrum.

rc
 
Sounds like quite an overreaction to me. Probably a simple statement to move out of your range area would have been sufficient.

It worries me that people with guns can't control themselves any better than this, and a lot of people seem to support it.

Thievery itself bothers me more than people getting upset about it.
 
Am I a solution, or a problem?

I've recently gotten back into shooting and last year, I decided to start reloading. That said, I find myself walking around the range, looking down a lot. :D

I try to be courteous to others around me and show interest in their firearms as well as what I'm shooting. I'm always learning. Our range has a rule that if the person shooting doesn't mind, so long as the brass is on the floor, you can pick it up WHEN SAFE TO DO SO. If it goes in the trash can, it's the range's brass.

I've asked some folks around me if they reload and, if not, would they mind me picking up the brass if it's a caliber that I reload. Sometimes they say yes, sometimes they don't. That's fine and I respect that but, I still can't get past the feeling of being the kid in the lunchroom saying, "Uh, yeah, you gonna eat that?"

Some say you get over it, sometimes I think it also helps keep us courteous.

Either way, I don't believe there is any place for guns around heated tempers.
 
Indoor range had a guy who came every 30 minutes or so and a cease fire was called as he swept the firing line, to remove the fall hazard (and they had the OSHA signs and everything)

They also clearly stated that you either policed your own brass or they policed it for you.
 
Let's give it a name. You bought it, you brought it, you shot it and you were not given reasonable time to pick it up... That name is theft.
 
That brass rat was me before I learned better.:uhoh:

I don't scurry around anymore but be assured... I am watching. ;)

I generally ask the people around me if they're saving their brass. If not, I'll clean up the area. If they are, I generally help out with their collection. I've got plenty and most at my range don't reload.
 
Personally I dont mind when someone asks if I am going to be reusing my brass, usually its a no because I only have dies for two calibers .32 and 9mm. I dont mind reloaders who wait for the line to go cold to pick up empties, but if they intrude on my AO then its a completely different matter. :cuss:
I think some manner of dicorum needs to be set forth to keep scroungers out/off the line. I have tripped over two men trying to catch my brass as it litterally hit the ground. It wasnt until later when the RO chuckling came over and said that I did it while holding my weapon in a downrange mode the whole time which really impressed him. He was happy someone told both of those idiots to "get" as he was about to the next time the line went cold...why wait? Accidents with firearms are permanent and unforgetable and its best to avoid them completely. You cant fix stupid!
 
This PART of the reason I hate indoor ranges. I normally shoot at private outdoor range, we put a large tarp down, shoot all day, fold the tarp, take it home, spread it out, and pick our brass up out of it. The 22 and steel cased goes into the recycling. No fuss, no muss.
 
My impulse control is much better now but I still lit him up loud enough to make the range go quiet and draw the staffs attention who were there in seconds.

Hmmm.....better, but not great. What he was doing was foolish, even unsafe. However, what you did will also be judged by others and was probably not necessary. If you were loud enough to distract other shooters, you also created a potential hazard; Get a few inexperienced or careless folks on the line, you may have hot weapons facing in all the wrong directions while people crane around to see what the ruckus is.

Seems that you were both lacking manners and a bit of common sense.

I'd not be happy about nearly tripping over someone on the ground behind me doing what he was, but I certainly wouldn't begin hollering at him right off the bat. More like "Hey, woah, what are you doing? That's dangerous, and you need to wait until the range is clear. Got it?"

Try that kind of approach first. If the other fellow gets lippy, then summon an RO or staff member. Otherwise, try to handle the situation like two adults in a controlled but potentially dangerous environment with no room for tempers.
 
My first inclination was to drill him in the jaw and twenty years ago that's exactly what I would have done. My impulse control is much better now but I still lit him up loud enough to make the range go quiet and draw the staffs attention who were there in seconds.

WOW, just WOW! Sounds to me like someone needs some people skills and instruction on how to handle folks without going off into an anger fit.

Regarding the drilling the guy in the jaw, try that with me, and you'd better have your attorney handy very shortly, you will be in court with all kinds of charges filed, and yes I do have a very good attorney that loves cases such as this, he's my nephew. I do not take anyone striking me for any reason lightly.

With all of the above said, what the other fellow was out of line, yes, but the whole deal was handled wrong. IMO
 
I remember when nobody paid attention to brass. I would go to some ranges with 5 years worth of old brass piled 6 inches on the ground, it was like unique artistic gravel for ranges. You could shovel it like dirt.


The only people that cared were those who reloaded and were trying to recover their own brass, they still rarely went after strange brass left on the ground even on an empty range.

This changed something like 5 years ago?


Now you got desperate Joe everywhere picking up single casings as they become available.


The word is out, the good ol days of that cool sounding metallic gravel made up of tens of thousands of pieces of brass is gone. Now you have to retrieve your own brass before it bounces if you are into reloading or some inconsiderate thief might swoop down on it before you finish your current magazine.




But my own brass, personally I wouldn't go to a range that didn't let me recover my own brass because reloading doesn't really save you money or let you shoot more for your money if you use a new case each time.
In fact I don't even like indoor ranges because the brass bounces off the stalls rather than nicely accumulating several feet to the side in a convenient spot.
 
Last edited:
Regarding the drilling the guy in the jaw, try that with me, and you'd better have your attorney handy very shortly, you will be in court with all kinds of charges filed, and yes I do have a very good attorney that loves cases such as this, he's my nephew. I do not take anyone striking me for any reason lightly.

If I was the guy picking up brass, which almost caused someone to trip over me, I would expect to get drilled in the jaw. This world is full of stupid people and the last place they belong is at a range.
 
The outcome may be reasonable. The process in gettting there is questionable.

This could have been a win-win, instead of a win-lose... but then, the chest thumping would seem out of place.
 
Perhaps the thing most lacking in the world today is good sense. The brass snatcher in this story exhibits a lack of it, no doubt. But the earlier thread about ranges disallowing brass pick-up of any kind is another example.

To most of us who have responded to either thread, neither extreme is sensible. Therefore, the right answer must lie somewhere in between.

If I ever own a range, I'll require each shooter to police all brass that lands in his or her lane aft of the firing lane, and whether he or she keeps it or chucks it in the bucket is a personal choice. Forward of the line, I'll have a range employee sweep up, and I'll market the brass in some way.

Those policies would not preclude shooters from offering the brass they police to other shooters, but it would make brass outside any given shooter's lane off limits to that shooter, thus keeping shooters in their own lanes.
 
Last edited:
I love how there has to be a hard rule at either end of the extreme. NOBODY EVER PICKS UP BRASS or I PICK UP MY BRASS WHEN I WANT ... and we're the ones touting "common sense" all the time?
 
Quote:
My first inclination was to drill him in the jaw and twenty years ago that's exactly what I would have done. My impulse control is much better now but I still lit him up loud enough to make the range go quiet and draw the staffs attention who were there in seconds.
WOW, just WOW! Sounds to me like someone needs some people skills and instruction on how to handle folks without going off into an anger fit.

+1 I can understand why you'd be angry, but creating a huge scene and having a first instinct to escalate things by starting a fight in a room full of loaded guns just seems like poor judgement. I think a calm word between you and the range officers would have been a much safer way to go about it and would have had the same end result. Frankly, if I were the range officer and I saw you go off on a guy like that, I'd be concerned about you coming to the range as well.
 
As a range officer I am always on the firing line. We made a "brass sweeper" out of wood. Not much more than a floor broom without the bristles. If I see a person that is saving brass I ask them if they care if it is general range brass. If so, I can redirect enough brass of their caliber into their stall to keep them happy and not interfere with other shooters. Otherwise we sweep it out into the shooting lanes to keep it out from underfoot. Usually everyone is happy with this solution.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top