How to dispose of live rounds?

[kalielkslayer]

Way differing opinion.

Anything I’m not proud of goes in a bag hanging next to my bench. When it’s full; primer boxes, spent primers, garbage bullets, it goes in the trash to go to my local landfill.

 

[milsurpguy]

Take them apart and save what you can.

 

[Captain Quack]

I never considered trying pliers/vice grips on them. A lot of them I'd have to measure out the bullet weight and diameter and I'm not sure if that's really worth the effort. I'm in good shape for bullets. Some of them are quite obviously folded or bent or ripped rims. Probably early attempts from when I started back when. I am curious about punching out the primers though. We know what the price of those are and my local store hasn't seen any in 3 months and they went in less than an hour. I checked yesterday and the local PD will take them so that is resolved. But I am just a big concerned about the "alleged" tracers. Anything particularly risky about those? It's just the bullets. not whole rounds. When I cleaned them off most of the orange on the tips came off. I have no idea how tracers work but they sure where pretty back in the old days out of a .30 browning.

Captain Quack

 

[AgPilot]

So in my beginning efforts at reloading there are going to be a few primed cases and even a few fully loaded rounds that are suspect and I prefer not to fire or are damaged. So what do I do with these? Not a lot, but I don't think putting them in the trash is wise. What have you all been doing with such things?

You can send them all to Me!!!

 

[EricBu]

Break down bad rounds, either a collet puller or kinetic, your choice. Old projectiles if not mangled get reused, otherwise go in the recycle container. Powder is dumped in yard or garden. It's crack for your tomatos...fantastic but expensive fertilzer. If primed case can be reused go for it. If not, punch the live primer (I'm sure hundreds of virtue signalers will be along to tell you how dangerous this is...whatever, makes them feel good). Unuseable brass goes into the brass recycle can. Every so often when that get's full, I swing by the recycle place and they give me enough money for a case of decent beer.

 

[Average Joe]

Take them apart and reuse the components

 

[kcofohio]

This reminds me, I was given 30-40 rds. of 9x19. Headstamp says they're from 1942 and maybe produced in Australia. I don't feel froggy enough to shoot them. Pulled about 5 using a kinetic puller. They took over a dozen whacks to come out. I think I'll use pliers to get the rest out.

 

[lightman]

I never considered trying pliers/vice grips on them. A lot of them I'd have to measure out the bullet weight and diameter and I'm not sure if that's really worth the effort. I'm in good shape for bullets. Some of them are quite obviously folded or bent or ripped rims. Probably early attempts from when I started back when. I am curious about punching out the primers though. We know what the price of those are and my local store hasn't seen any in 3 months and they went in less than an hour. I checked yesterday and the local PD will take them so that is resolved. But I am just a big concerned about the "alleged" tracers. Anything particularly risky about those? It's just the bullets. not whole rounds. When I cleaned them off most of the orange on the tips came off. I have no idea how tracers work but they sure where pretty back in the old days out of a .30 browning.

Captain Quack

To pull bullets with pliers you put the cartridge in the press without a die and raise the ram until the bullet is above the press frame. Lay the pliers flat across the top of the press, grab the bluet and lower the ram, pulling the bullet. It the cartridge is not long enough to stick up past the press frame place a pipe coupling over the ram, raise the ram and grab the bullet when it sticks up through the pipe coupling.

Either of these ways damage the bullet so I only do this when I'm planning to scrap the bullet. I'm a caster so the junk bullet gets remelted. But don't melt military tracers or incendiary type bullets! But you knew that!!!

Tracers are ignited by the burning powder and pose very few problems unless a heat source is involved. They are pretty safe to handle or to store.

I've never considered re-using primers from salvaged ammo unless I was the one that loaded them and knew what the primer was. You can deprime cases with live primers if you go slow and easy. I would still wear safety glasses. I probably wouldn't try to remove primers that are crimped.