Crazy to reload these, correct?

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berettaprofessor

berettaprofessor

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Occasionally, when looking for brass at my home range, I run across some previously overlooked cases that could have been laying outside anywhere from 0-4 years. These cases are tarnished, but structurally look pretty intact. Two hours through a walnut shell tumbler, and they still look like this: (the bright case is a "fresh" case for comparison):

tarnished%2045ACP_zpsud6bqvby.jpg
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Am I correct in assuming that it would be risky to reload these clean, but tarnished and weathered cases? Should I just chuck them and take as a loss the 10 cents represented here? Or are they actually okay to reload?

I'm not crazy, just wondering about it since occasionally the answers here surprise me.:rolleyes:
 
They look more like steel cases than brass to me.

So, assuming they are boxer primed, they are loadable, and don't really look all that weathered to me, except maybe the far right, which could be corroded or it could just be the light
 
I have reloaded ones that looked like that and they were fine. I shoot on my farm land in WV and pick up what I find and sometimes I don't find them for months and then a few will turn up like that. You can make them shiny if you went clean them, I use some dish soap and vinegar.
 
Just a matter of what you want your reloads to look like? The fact the brass is tarnished means nothing as long as the brass has maintained its integrity and nothing leached out. Me? Looking at a minuscule number like 5 or 6 cases I trash them. However, to each their own. They can also be cleaned with some effort as mentioned.

Ron
 
I clean 'em and load 'em, do it all the time. Dump 'em in a gallon jug, fill halfway with hot water, add some citric acid crystals, and shake vigorously. Soak, shake, soak, shake, rinse well, dry, add to the rest of the stash. Might turn a little pinkish, but that doesn't bother me. They shoot just fine.

Purists might cringe, but I'm a COB and like to have all the brass I can get. Truth be known, I've got FAR more than I'll ever need or use. I sure don't have to worry about wearing any out, pretty slim chance I'll ever shoot all my reloads more than once.

Yet I still keep dragging the stuff home from every range trip.....
 
If you need brass that badly I would be more than happy to send you some.

Sure they may be OK to reload, but why bother?
 
If for some reason I had thousands (and no other brass) I might consider it. Then I would do some careful tests. If I didn't have that many why risk it?
(I like shiny brass:), even though that doesn't make it shoot any better)
 
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Put a magnet next to them, If they are steel throw them out. If they are brass , clean them and inspect them. Reload if no cracks or splits. Make sure they are boxer primed as well, if not toss them.
 
Most reloaders don't like throwing anything away, so I say save them. when you get enough extra dirty brass, get some Lemishine and hot water. Let them soak a little while then inspect them.
 
I still find brass in my yard, or my dads, that have been outside for a looong time. I clean them and use them without worry. Just inspect like I would any other case.
Call me nuts, but I kindof like when they have a patina.
The only downside is that they are harder to find afterwards in the yard, than shiny brass is.
 
If you need brass that badly I would be more than happy to send you some.

Sure they may be OK to reload, but why bother?
Click to expand...

I think it has little to do with needing brass that badly.

My question would be why throw away good brass? You aint entering it into a show. You're shooting it.

I was vain about the way my ammo looked when I first started. Not anymore. It don't make it shoot better.
 
Yep as the OP said:

"Am I correct in assuming that it would be risky to reload these clean, but tarnished and weathered cases? Should I just chuck them and take as a loss the 10 cents represented here? Or are they actually okay to reload?"

Sure is worth it to keep them around for 10 cents.:rolleyes:
 
That's why I'm such a brass rat, it's just like picking up nickels and dimes to me. Rifle brass is like picking up quarters!
 
I shoot winter brass if it looks good structurally. Winter brass is still better than once fired nickle plated crap in my opinion.
 
I guess it like picking up a half eaten candy bar to me. Likely won't hurt anything but it's too cheap and simple not to just get a few "new" ones.
 
I can remember walking along the power line on the east side a few years ago and finding a clean nickle-plated .30'06 case that some hunter had left.

I haven't even reloaded it yet, but I was happy to find it. FREE, dontchaknow ... it brought a smile to my face.

I would be tickled to find an old pile of discarded cases, even if they were old and dirty. I would look forward to cleaning them up and see both what I had and what was usable.

Ayup, I subscribe to the opinion of some others here that many reloaders will try to take advantage of any free brass ... just because it is free. ;)

If I don't use the caliber, I will try to find someone who does.

For a lot of us older folks, that may stem from our early reloading days when we didn't have much money to spend. I can remember collecting rifle cases in the '60s on the slight chance of finding some boxer-primed 7.92x57.
 
Two hours through a walnut shell tumbler, and they still look like this:
Click to expand...

I would call the dirty cases the worst of the cases. When cleaning the worst of cases I use vinegar. I use vinegar to clean the worst of cases for 15 minutes maximum. The 15 minutes in vinegar saves me days and days of tumbling. I believe cleaning a case in vinegar is a bad habit. I wash cases cleaned in vinegar in boiling water, twice. I clean cases in vinegar once for the life of the case for a maximum of 15 minutes.

I do not add salt, I do not add an acid, I use straight 5% vinegar.

F. Guffey
 
From some of the above replies, I believe I'm one of those "cheap old bas___ds" that don't throw many cases away. I reloaded 12 years before I got a tumbler and just wiped each case with a solvent dampened rag as I inspected it, so I know "brown" brass works just as good as shiny, virgin looking brass. When I wanted "BBQ" brass I polished the cases on a hardwood mandrel in my drill using fine steel wool (but they shot no better than my brown brass").

I had a pretty good job for the last 25 years of my career and could have afforded factory ammo if it came down to it, but chose to reload for the enjoyment, so cost of a case has very little to do with my picking up range brass or using tarnished brass. Many times it's "why toss it?", and/or "I'm sure I, or a friend, can use this some day". I've even got about 200 .40 S&W cases and don't own or shoot a .40...

So, look at the cases in question and if they are just discolored (smooth w/no pits), use them. If you see any "etching" or actual pitting of the brass, then they are corroded and should be scrapped...
 
A "real" reloader would take those pieces of brass and some Flitz and extra fine steel wool and spend over 1 hour and 20 cents of Flitz and Wool to polish them up to save 10 cents.:D Then of course run them through a ss pins and wet tumbler just to be sure.;)
 
It had to be walk along or rc when asked along time ago replied the patina adds character load em and chootem! That's one thing that sticks in my mind and I have no problem w/it.
 
I have two bowls for my Lyman vibratory tumbler. One has pumice added to the corn cob media.
I use that pumice bowl to wring out the really black 50BMG brass that looks bad. When I amass a large quantity of small brass that is very tarnished, they get thrown into the pumice. Most come out without tarnish, but some retain tarnish. Those retaining tarnish get pitched as I figure the tarnish has invaded too far into the brass and weakened it.
Scavenging range brass is a hobby and physical exercise and good for you. Pick em' all up as God will not sort em' all out for you.
 
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