Handgun reloading: how do you track brass usage?

[higgite]

I haven't been reloading long enough for tracking brass to not still be fun for me, but I'm sure that time will come. I want to see how many times I can reload a batch of brass, pistol and rifle. I numbered batches of brass as I collected them, mostly once fired, a couple of new batches. #1,2,3,...etc. Then when they are loaded and fired, they become batches #1.1, 2.1, 3.1....etc. They are kept separated in either used clear plastic rice jugs or plastic food storage containers, depending on how big the batch is, identified with the batch # written on masking tape with a Sharpie. High tech, I know, but it is the 20th century, ya know.

 

[jediagh]

I put the following codes on the primers.

I keep the spent brass sorted in coffee cans or zip locks bags or small nut trays.

 

[ExMachina]

I keep the spent brass sorted in coffee cans or zip locks bags or small nut trays.

Cool code!

I've been collecting Costco cashew containers with a similar sorting idea in mind.

 

[lightman]

I don't really track them. When I find a load that I like, I load a lot of them. Maybe several thousand. I keep them together in an ammo can, and keep the fired ones in a marked plastic tub in my ammo cabinet. I call it my working stock. When I start getting a high failure rate, I scrap the lot and start over.

 

[Mad Chemist]

I don't track it and I primarily load 9x19. I shoot them until they split or until I lose them.

 

[BigBore45]

i keep track by split and not split

 

[mstreddy]

My method is quite involved, but here is the Cliff Notes version --

Chapter 1 Dirty brass

Chapter 2 sort caliber and Clean Brass

Chapter 3 45 ACP Sort for Small or Large primer pockets

Chapter 4 Revolver sort by head stamp
Subtext - check for splits

Chapter 5 Load

Chapter 6 Shoot

See Chapter 1

 

[OYE]

Labeling brass

Yes, I do keep brass labeled. I always have and I've reloaded for a long time.
I don't consider it to be a waste of time. Simple really. All brass is kept in either plastic boxes or small cardboard boxes with loading labels on. When fired
the brass that came out of the plastic boxes go back in. The bulk handgun brass
that was in the cardboard boxes get transferred to another small cardboard box
with the batch number it came from and number of times it was fired on top and any other relevant data. We've been able to identify, pretty quickly, certain brands of brass that don't last as long over the years. So we stayed away from them

How do I deal with range brass that is unknown ? If I do not know how many times it's been fired, I don't pick it up.

I'm not a particularly a high volume shooter. I live a mile or two from BLM land
(public) where I can shoot. When firing semi autos I spread a canvas tarp on the ground to catch spent brass.

So why do I keep track? I don't want any ammo around that I don't know for sure how it's loaded or what it's loaded with. I want reliable ammunition no matter what. I know myself really well. If I did start getting sloppy on the brass, pretty soon I'd get sloppy on the loading labels and then pretty soon I'd leave them off. Then pretty soon I wouldn't pay much attention to amount of powder weighed or dispensed. And then I wouldn't pay as close attention to what powder was being used. It is easy for me to get complacent. I just don't want to go there.

Does it take extra time? Yes. Is it worth it ? All I can say is when I read problem threads here in the reloading section, I just don't seem to have those problems. OYE

 

[gamestalker]

There really isn't much of a purpose to tracking how many times it's been loaded, inspecting it for signs of impending failure, especially bottle necks, is always the key determining factor, and the recommended method of knowing when it's expired. If it's in good condition, load it, if it's not, recycle it. Other wise, your just tracking it, to be tracking it, IMHO.

Wheel gun brass, even magnum stuff, will last for a very, very long time. If you plan to track wheel gun brass, you'll need a dozen or two different storage containers. I have .357 mag. brass that has been loaded full tilt at least 15 times, probably more, and it's still just fine. Again here, it's all about inspecting it for signs of impending failure, loose primer pockets or mouth splits.

GS

 

[Candyman87]

Autoloader brass? I shoot until it splits, shows unusual signs of wear, or I lose it. I also load a bit under maximum to keep the shooting a bit more comfortable for a long day at the range.

On the other hand, revolver brass gets boxed back up and kept together in lots. Much easier to keep sorted by lots and keep them together when they aren't flying all over the place!

 

[SlowFuse]

There aren't many calibers I keep up with. But on the ones I do I use a center punch. I put a mark in any free space on the headstamp each time fired.

http://m.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?q=Center+punch

 

[Zeke/PA]

I don't. I load it until it splits. I have brass that is 50+ years old in my rotation.

YEP, I do the same!

 

[LOLBELL]

I load straight walled brass until it fails. In my 8 years of reloading, the only revolver brass I've had fail is some American Eagle 327 mag brass on factory load firing.

 

[SlowFuse]

Same here on the American Eagle 327, lolbell. Still reloading my stash of 150 or so pieces (started with close to 200 saved from factory) and get 8-12 splits per loading out of that amount.