Folks Don't Save Brass. Why?

[ACP230]

Every now and then the ranges I use will yield a crop of once-fired pistol brass. Last year my son picked up about 40 once-fired .38 Specials for me in between shooting at one range. Recently I got some more .38s and a rare find, an assortment of .41 Magnum brass.

I squirreled away most of the centerfire brass I emptied starting about age 14. When I started reloading .45 ACP in the 1970s I had a couple boxes of brass to start with.

Why don't people, who obviously shoot quite a lot, just bag up their brass in case they start reloading?

Why don't they keep them to trade to reloaders they know, or "throw in" with a gun they decide to sell?

 

[sctman800]

I would love to find some .41mag brass, this is all I shoot that is reloadable, I also shoot .22lr. At the club range I belong to you are supposed to clean up your brass on the honour system, of course that doesn't work for some people. I guess people who shoot autos without picking up their brass are just too lazy to sweep it up, but if you shoot a revolver there is no reason not to dump it in the trash if you don't save it. Well, at least my revolvers don't throw brass all over the ground. Jim.

 

[Bacchus]

They probably don't think that the time is worth it. I know that I didn't save my brass before I started reloading and now I regret it. I just threw it in the trash.

Now I love scrounging for brass at the range. I once got 60 308 shells from a couple of SWAT guys who were running through their qualifying routine.

 

[Ky Larry]

Probably didn't want the bother. Some ranges sweep it up at the end of the day and put it buckets and let customers scrounge thru it. I recently found 2 boxes(40 rnds) of .264 Win Mag brass at an outdoor range. My cousin fed me a steak dinner for the brass. Evidently it's hard to get.

 

[WhoKnowsWho]

The indoor range I usually go to specifically says only your brass can be picked up... no scrounging for me, and I haven't started reloading yet.

 

[Ala Dan]

Greeting's All-

I don't like to shoot on a firearms range that won't
allow me to at least police-up my brass. Those that
do allow it, I generally ask the other shooter(s) if they
save their brass. If the answer is NO, then I quickly
gather in there's too!

That reminds me, I desperately need to scrounge
up some once fired .44 magnum brass; (he-he)
like that's really going to happen!

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

 

[cool45auto]

I'm shooting the cheap stuff: 9mm, 22lr and 7.62x39 so it's not worth it to me right now. My dad is getting into relaoding now that he's got his Quigley Sharps rifle so I may, too, later on.

 

[euclid]

I reload for all of my centerfire hanguns except for 9mm. In my opinion, 9mm is too cheap to justify the time it takes to reload for it.

I have also noticed that once-fired brass is getting pretty cheap. Maybe folks are buying buckets of once-fired brass so they don't have to worry about gathering their spent brass at the range. Just a thought.

poof...

 

[jdege]

I save the brass from the first case I buy in a new caliber.

It's once-fired, clean, from a single lot. Perfect for starting to reload.

But after that, there seems to be little point.

How many thousands of spent cases should I have cluttering up the basement, against the off-chance that I'll someday start to reload?

I figure 1000 rounds per caliber is plenty.

 

[BenW]

I'm on one of those "every other Monday off" flex schedules, and when I'm in town, I make a Monday morning trip to the forest service "rambo range". There's hardly a time I go there on a Monday morning that I can't find at least a couple of hundred once fired .45ACPs left over from the weekend shooters. I've also hit the jackpot on 10MM brass many a time.

To answer part of the "why don't people pick their brass up" question, I also notice a lot of Wolf and Berdan primed brass just laying around. Don't get me started on why people can't pick that stuff up just to keep the area looking good. Between empty shotshells, brass, old appliances used as targets and BROKEN BOTTLES, it's no wonder people have the impression shooters are a bunch of lowbrows (and yes, I always take a bag full of other people's garbage out with me).

Rant mode off. Back to the subject.....

 

[Mike Irwin]

Because some people NEVER intend to start reloading.

I'd say that the majority of gun owners actually fall into that category.

I don't save my 9mm brass, I just leave it lay. I do reload, I just don't reload 9mm given that it's so cheap.

 

[stans]

Most of the center fire handgun brass that I see at the range is 9mm and 40 S&W. This ammo, especially the 9mm, is just so cheap in bulk that it is barely worth reloading. Also, law enforcement agencies will frequently give ammo to their officers with instructions to go practice. They don't want the brass returned.

 

[AZTOY]

Because some people NEVER intend to start reloading.

I have a new Lee reloading kit still sitting in the box. It';s been in the box for the last 2 years:banghead: . I have never used it.

 

[Hkmp5sd]

I pick up all of my brass and reload and/or sell it, with the exception of 9mm. I have two 9mm subguns and do not shoot reloads in either of them. I buy 9mm bulk ammo and as a result, I'm normally up to my ears in once fired 9mm brass. Far more than I will ever reload for my 9mm handguns. I still bag them after the session, but generally give them to friends.

 

[Zedicus]

this reminds me of some questions I had on reloading, IE: how many times can you reload, how much does it cost vs buying new etc...

 

[Standing Wolf]

I always keep my own brass, but never scavenge: I assume it's worth something to the range owner, and don't know who's shot what through it.

 

[Ala Dan]

Yet Another Continuation-

When I pick up "range brass", once home I sort it by
caliber; and each piece of brass goes into corresponding
empty five gallon pail's. I always discard any and all
brass that looks defective; spurs, burrs, case mouth splits,
cracks, etc. I'm very, very pickey about what goes into
and out of my firearm's!

As an extra bonus, any one that is too lazy to police-up
"range brass" can get some really good deals from an
outfit called Scharch Manufacturing Company in the
great state of Colorado. It comes pre-packaged, and
has been inspected, cleaned, and full length resized.
I recently ran out of reloadable brass, and had to turn
to the alternative method of purchasing 500 each of
.38 Special, 9m/m* Parabellum, and .45 ACP. If you
like their brass; you will love their prices!

*FootNote- yes, I do handload 9m/m. Why? Cuz, its
target grade ammunition tailored to my SIG-Sauer
P228.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

 

[MoNsTeR]

Many (most?) new and casual shooters, particularly those not familiar with internet information centers like this one, don't even know that such a thing as reloading exists. A few weeks ago at the range, there was a guy shooting a bunch of factory .45, and he wasn't picking it up, so I asked him if he intended to save his brass. He sort of stammered, as if he didn't know what one would save brass for.

Most of the rest either have decided not to reload, or just don't know how much they can save. Another guy who put 150 or so pieces of fresh brass on the floor, and who graciously let me take them, asked me if I reloaded. "Yep," I says, and he asks how much it costs me, and I say about $6 a box. On hearing that, his eyes got really wide and he just says "Wow." The poor soul had just bought at least 3 boxes of .45 at $14 a box. I bet he asked his shooting buddies about reloading soon after that.

As an aside, if anyone out there doesn't reload, doesn't ever want to, and doesn't know anyone who does, you can always sell your brass. 45 and 357 in particular fetch decent prices on eBay ($25-$40 per 1000).

 

[Navy joe]

I guess even the ones that never intend to reload don't know the sight of money laying on the ground. Many don't shoot enough to shoot and collect, I guess that's why I'm there to help them. I will save for reloading, sell, or give to friends that load that caliber. I'm back up to my need a Dillon levels of a 20mm ammo can each of .45 and 9mm. Best find recently was about 30lbs of FC .308 on a training range. All commercial with no crimp, all nice and shiny, all mine. I pick up the .50 BEO there too, as soon as I get enough I will hopefully sell the brass. The alternative is to buy an AR upper for it.

Absolute worst. Saw a guy shooting .50AE and tossing the brass.

 

[David4516]

"how many times can you reload"

That depends on the reloader. You can make "light" loads and your brass will last longer. Or you can make your own "+P" stuff and reduce the lifespan of your brass (and maybe the lifespan of your gun too...).





" how much does it cost vs buying new etc..."

Again, depends on the reloader. If you shoot cast lead bullets for example, you can save alot more, but the downside is that it takes time to do the bullet molding.

Saving $ isn't always the best reason to reload. Alot of people like to reload because you can customize your ammo to match your gun, or you can make loads that you couldn't normally buy, or some people just think it's fun...

 

[Mike Irwin]

"I guess even the ones that never intend to reload don't know the sight of money laying on the ground. Many don't shoot enough to shoot and collect, I guess that's why I'm there to help them."

If they don't shoot enough to make a reloading press worth the cost, then it's not money lying on the ground all around them.

It's garbage.

Some people just never will shoot enough to make the purchase of a press and all the associate equipment worthwhile.

There's nothing quite as funny as finding out someone has sunk $300 or more on a reloading press and only shoots 2 or 3 times a year, and fewer than 100 rounds a session.

I know quite a few people who have done that, and have expensive rigs just gathering dust.

 

[Navy joe]

That's why I'm there to buy their (barely)used reloader! It just annoys me to no end that folks will toss 200 empty .45 casings only to have the range staff sort them into a bucket. All the brass gets boxed up to sell! I'm never shy asking them for their g

 

[10-Ring]

I only pick up brass if I need it which I suspect that is what most do. I have buddy that gets a discount from the guy he buys his reloads from if he turns in brass with his purchase...

 

[444]

I encourage this practice. Why should I pay for brass when other people are nice enough to give it to me ?

I load for every caliber I own. Any cost savings due to handloading has never been of even the slightest concern to me. Can I buy factory ammo cheaper than I can handload ? I don't know, or care. Never did, and I have been handloading for over 20 years.


"I figure 1000 rounds per caliber is plenty."

 

[V-fib]

I shoot exclusively at my own range outback. I save all brass even the .22lr. I lay a small tarp on the ground and collect it. When I get a large box full I stop off at the metals dealer and maybe I get only a few bucks, but I’m a firm believer in recycling. I don’t reload never plan to. I save my 30:06, .38, and .357 with the idea of selling it in the future. If I can’t sell it I’ll throw it in with the other shells and scrap brass I save and sell it to the metal dealer.