Disposing of bad cartridges?

[Squeaky Wheel]

I don't handload yet, but thought that this would be the best forum for my question.

I have a number of live (loaded) cartridges that are defective. What's the proper or recommended way of disposal? Should they be taken apart by pulling out the bullet and dumping the powder? When I was a kid I vaguely recall hearing my dad or uncle say that you should dig a hole and bury them. What should a non-handloader do with them? How do you dispose of old primers that you don't plan to use? Thanks!

 

[SHR970]

Pull bellets dump powder. If worried about primers, chamber emptied brass and pull trigger....primer is now deactivated.

 

[Hondo 60]

I guess it depends on how many you have.

Is $15 too much to spend?
If not, you can get a kinetic bullet puller at any gun store that has reloading supplies.
(it looks like a plastic hammer)
When you insert a round & whack it on the ground it'll pull the bullet.
Then just use the powder as fertilizer.

As far as primers go, they can be used/reused.
How about checking out the local gun range?
Maybe a reloader will take all that stuff off of your hands?

I know I'd appreciate if someone brought that stuff to me.

 

[cberge8]

Depending on where you live, your local sheriff's office may be of help.

My local range, is SE Louisiana, will take bad (or old) ammo for proper disposal.

 

[FROGO207]

Around here I have contacted local area government to let them know that I reload and will correctly and SAFELY dispose of any small arms ammo or components that are surrendered to them. I get a bunch of it every so often. Usually all I salvage is the lead to remelt and scrap the brass. A while ago I had almost a full plastic gallon jar full of .22 rounds that I pulled the lead from to remelt. The lawn likes me also as it grows fast with all the powder I spread on it each spring.

 

[Rmeju]

If it's just one round and you don't expect more, just ask your local PD. They'll take it for you. If you know a reloader, give it to them. If you really want to take care of it yourself, you can pull the pullet with some pliers, dump the powder on some grass. I guess you could submerge the primer in some water to deactivate, although on that part I'd double check with someone.

Hope that helps.

 

[mr.trooper]

Is $15 too much to spend?
If not, you can get a kinetic bullet puller at any gun store that has reloading supplies.

This for sure.

Even if you are not yet a reloader, if you are a shooter you will eventually end up with plenty of bad / scavenged / mystery rounds from visiting the range.

Pull the bullet, and dump the powder. You can save the bullet and the brass for when you do become a reloader. That or you can sell them to someone once you pile up 50 or so pieces of the same thing.

 

[BYJO4]

My local shooting range will dispose of bad ammo or as others have said, pull the bullet and dump the powder.

 

[Win1892]

I take them sailing.

 

[NWcityguy2]

When I am too lazy to pull and don't need the brass...

http://www.lowes.com/pd_284336-1687...rrentURL=/pl__0__s?Ntt=bolt+cutter&facetInfo=

...right below where the bullet stops does the trick.

 

[FROGO207]

DO NOT try to use a hammer type bullet puller on any type of RIMFIRE ammo it will detonate. Pull rimfire apart with pliers by twisting the bullet off the brass sideways staying AWAY from the rim.

 

[hAkron]

The collet style bullet pullers are good. I save up my bad ammo and pull it in batches

 

[Drail]

"I take them sailing" That's the funniest thing I"ve heard all week.

 

[Sport45]

Is there a dud bucket at your range? If so, that's a good place for them.

 

[gunner69]

On my backyard range I have a piece of scrap 3" pipe in the ground. ****bird rounds go in it.

 

[beatledog7]

Some people apparently just drop such rounds in the range brass bucket.

The last 5-gallon bucket I hand sorted contained a couple dozen unspent .22LR and a handful of various centerfire rounds.

I pull the .22LRs as described above and recycle the brass and lead. The powder goes into an old cottage cheese tub for use later as fertilizer.

A few of the centerfires have primers that look like they've never been struck, so presumably they were FTFs or loading fumbles that hit the floor and never got collected. I won't shoot these because I don't know their origin; I know they won't spontaneously go off, so they're safe to keep. Those that have been struck have very close to zero chance of going off after about 20 seconds, so they pose no danger either.

A few are common cartridges I don't shoot--.25 Auto. .32 Auto, 380 Auto, 9X18... Whenever I find an example I don't already have, it goes into my little collection of loaded cartridges.

Maybe someday I'll get around to pulling the rest, but for now I just keep them in a little box under my bench.

 

[Big Lew in NC]

Bad rounds

Question: What do mean by "bad?"

If they are center fire, you can do the bullet puller thing. To deactivate the primers once and for all touch them with oil and they will be deactivated.

 

[greyling22]

if you don't want to buy a bullet puller, just toss them. IF they explode (and that's a huge if) the bullet does not go zipping out like from a barrel. The round will go from you trash can, to a huge steel box, to being buried under a mountain of garbage and dirt. Nobody handles garbage anymore.

you could also hit the primers with wd40. the penetrating oil should render the primer inert. but if they're duds already, why bother.

 

[Sport45]

Don't count on oil or anything else to render primers inert. It just doesn't work that way.

 

[oneounceload]

Throw them in a burn barrel - they'll cook off and go SFFFFFFFFFFFFPT as the bullet pops out harmlessly

 

[kingmt]

Or just send them to me & I will take on the burden of dispose of them.

 

[homatok]

Quote "If they are center fire, you can do the bullet puller thing. To deactivate the primers once and for all touch them with oil and they will be deactivated."

NO they will not be deactivated by oil!! Modern primers have a protective coating to protect them from contaminates. A drop of vinegar on the primer MAY eat through the protective coating, allowing oil to penetrate. I say MAY because I have never tried it so it may not work! I had some primers in a little bottle, covered with oil that had been sitting for over 20 years I took them out, rinsed them off in alcohol, dried them out and put them into an empty 303 case. Most of them produced at least a spark when fired. The spark was weak so I don't know if it would have been sufficient to light off a case full of powder but I would not bet my saftey on it!! I would break down cartridges that FTF and throw the primers in a burning barrel or deep lake.

 

[benzy2]

If you don't plan to salvage any of the components, simple pliers will pull (and mangle) a bullet out of a case. It won't look pretty but they are trash to begin with and this is to make them disposable rather than reloadable. Do what you wish with the primer.

 

[kcshooter]

Don't count on oil or anything else to render primers inert. It just doesn't work that way

Yes it does. Well, at least in my experience it does.
Now, if you're talking about spraying the backs of primers in loaded ammo, then you're correct.

But if you're talking about squirting a drop of, say, WD-40 on the open face of a live primer after pulling the bullet and dumping the powder down the sink with water running, it kills them every time.

I've been disposing of bad or deformed brass this way for years now. Pull the bullet (if it got that far), rinse the powder down the drain, put a shot of WD-40 on the primer, next day or few days later I chamber and dent the primer to make sure, and never once had one go pop. I just throw away the brass when done.

 

[Certaindeaf]

They are to be considered.
How often do we really consider batteries? Right on the package it says to dispose of them "properly".. perhaps meaning a hazmat facility.. who knows. We throw them in the bin without a thought and snap our suspenders when the baby doesn't gnaw/teeth upon it.
They blow up.
Right over you balzac.. in your laptop there's a battery and they blow up all the time..