Creative uses for spent shellcasings?

[OCJ]

I don't know if this thread has been done before, and I appologize if it has.

Do you guys have any creative uses for your spent shellcasings? Obviously those of you who reload, wont have any brass to waste, but maybe the steel cased stuff. I've got a ton of brass AND steel cased stuff laying around and was wondering what I should do with the non-reloadable stuff instead of just throwing it out.

 

[Smokey Joe]

What to do with spent brass?

OCJ--What to do is recycle it! Sort the steel from the brass, put 'em in separate containters and take 'em to yr local scrap dealer. The steel won't fetch much, if anything, but at the worst, it'll get reused as opposed to dumped into a landfill. The brass will sell for cash money. If you have recovered bullets those will also sell.

If you sort your empties by cartridge and manufacturer, and have some less common ones, reloaders might be interested in buying yr empties, and they'll pay more than scrap prices and still be getting a deal.

Or, the ultimate in recycling, you could consider starting reloading yourself.

 

[Bummer]

When you mention selling them, how much can you usually get for brass?

 

[OCJ]

I'm looking for more along the lines of something that can be made out of shell casings or creative uses for them. I give most of my spent brass thats not reloadable to my club to recycle for the youth programs, but I have alot of steel and copperwashed steel.

 

[Smokey Joe]

Selling brass

Bummer--The market for scrap of any sort varies day-to-day, and also depending on where in the US you are. Best way to get a price is to call yr local scrap dealer and ask him what he's currently paying for what you've got.

OCJ--Good on you, donating the sellable brass! Now, as to CREATIVE uses for the steel stuff (copper-washed is the same, BTW) you got me. Would filling a hole in yr driveway count? Otherwise,

 

[Str8Shooter]

When I was in the Air Force, one of the NCOs I worked with did something really cute with a rifle shell casing around Christmastime. He stuck a dead twig from a tree in a small vase and put it on his desk with the shell casing stuck on the end of the twig. When anyone asked him what it was, he replied, "A cartridge in a bare tree."

 

[MikeK]

I've made chain pulls for a fan and light - they have bullets on the end which makes them look so much better. A friend uses spent .50 cal for wind chimes. I suppose they could be made with smaller calibers. When my daughter was younger she used some for 'doll' cups. A collection of various calibers made gifts for nephews (I am cheap, but we got them real presents as well.).

You could always make a necklace or bracelet for your significant other. I'm sure there are some more creative people here. I vaguely recall a similar thread a while back.

 

[mnrivrat]

"Trench Art "

It is a collectable art form that has it's history in the wars when soldiers would take brass shell casings and other items making them into sometimes usefull and sometime decorative objects.

Examples I have had included a P38 airplance made from 30-06 brass and bullets, ash trays made from the bases of artillary shell casings, letter openers with brass shell caseing handle .

 

[evan price]

Personally I save my common pistol brass and give it to a friend to exchange for reloaded range ammo. I give him a 5-gal bucket full every time. The stuff that's not reloadable, like rimmy .22s, or the SKS ammo that gets beat up on extraction or old corroded crap I find on the ground, all of that goes to a local scrap dealer and they give you $.75/lb for it, but be aware that some scrap dealers won't take cartridge brass unless it is shredded or crushed due to their fear of a live round or some unburnt primers/powder getting into the smelter.
The aluminum CCI stuff goes for aluminum and that varies as aluminum clip goes for abut $.50 a pound or less.

The steel case stuff goes in the big scrap tub behind the barn with the used oil filters, broken engine parts, bent wheels, dead appliances, etc and gets hauled out to the junkyard every few months for $65/ton. I usually haul out 2-3 tons of scrap a year, car body parts, dead transmissions, etc. soI get a couple hundred bucks.


As far as other applications besides scrap or reloading, well, that's up to you and how artistic you are.

 

[Jeff]

I always wanted to make chess pieces out of spent brass:

Pawns would be 9mm or something similar (small centerfire handgun cartridge).

Large centerfire handgun cartridges would be rooks, knights and bishops. And large centerfire rifle cartridges would be queen and king.

Some painting and welding might be in order, too.

 

[esheato]

A friend glued his tires valve stem covers into some cartridge cases. Makes for interesting conversation

Ed

 

[Hardtarget]

I use a spent .38 special case to measure the black powder charge for a little cannon.
One guy used either .38 or .357 as lock knobs on his pick up truck.
I used .38 cases to make "blunts" for small game archery hunting.
As far as the "trench art" stuff, My Dad has a piece,given to him buy his uncle. Its a flower vase made from a French artillery shell. It has Verdun stamped in relief arount it. Its a cool piece that will come to me when he gets tired of it.
Mark.

 

[Hoploholic]

I have a TW 43 marked 50 BMG case that a Japanese POW etched art on to trade with American GI's for cigarettes. You can find some cool stuff on Okinawa.

 

[Zen21Tao]

Pencil/Pen holders for your desk.

Picture frame.

Book Ends.

Glue them into circles then glue the circle on same type of material (e.g. Plastic) and use as Drink coasters.

Glue to a wooden backboard and hang on wall to use as key holders or if long enough coat holders. Also you could will them with cemement and build them out long enough to make a gun rack.

Glue at 45 degree angle (less) onto a backboard and use as back for a gun display.

 

[10 Ring Tao]

I use spent shotgun hulls for geocaching prizes.

Larger cases like .50, .308, and .30-06 make good wind chimes.

 

[BamBam-31]

The little wooden dowel thingy that locks my baby's cradle in place broke. I dremelled off the neck of a .308 casing and glued the shell on the end of the dowel. PRESTO! Tacti-Cradle.

 

[Sam]

It looks really arttractive as an exposed aggregate in walkways and floors in dry areas.

Sam

 

[10 Ring Tao]

It looks really arttractive as an exposed aggregate in walkways and floors in dry areas.

I think I know what you're talking about, but can you give an illustrating example?

 

[Azrael256]

Tap out the primer cups, melt it down, and make knife handles, pipe tampers, etc.

 

[Snap]

A while back, I saw a guy selling Christmas ornaments made out of 9mm brass. I think it was at www.bloomautomatic.com . It's an idea. I keep meaning to do the valve stem cover thing with some .40 brass, but haven't gotten around to it.

 

[mete]

I have a lamp made from an empty case . Of course this case is about 15" long !

 

[Legionnaire]

I know it's not what you meant by "making something useful" out of spent brass, but one creative use is using the casings as targets when shooting accurate .22s or air rifles. Use plastic-tack or modeling clay to stick the base of the cartridges to a board, set it out at 20 yards or so, and have at it. Especially good for non-reloadable cases.

 

[foghornl]

Mete beat me to it, but if you have some LARGE empties, as in spent artillery/navy ship-board gun, etc, they do make really cool lamps.

With some extra weight inside the case, 20MM/30MM empties make pretty good candle holders.

 

[ZenMasterJG]

Make a necklace. Scare the neighbors. Everybody wins.

 

[redranger1]

i also like to use junk brass for target practice. i do not have a gun cabinet, just a few gun racks and corners. so i have taken spent shotgun cases and slide them over then end of the barrels as muzzle covers. does a great job of keepin them clean.