I need some ideas on storing brass

[mugsie]

I reload for many different calibers. I have buckets of dirty brass, separated by caliber of course. I have buckets of cleaned only brass, waiting on sizing, trimming etc. I have buckets of RFL brass (ready for load). I find because I don't do every operation on the same night, there is usually brass in various stages of being prepped. Any ideas on how to organize it other than as I already do, with lots of buckets labeled with lots of different stages?

How do some of you work your organization of brass?

 

[LKLive13]

I have been using lunch meat containers for my separate calibers and stages with a label telling me what they are... I also found that baby formula containers work well also.

 

[Bovice]

I load in batches of 200/300 at a time, so big ziplock bags are what I use. They're all at the same level of progress.

 

[kcofohio]

I drink plenty of brewed coffee, and so I have plenty of empty canisters. I label for each caliber as to needing separated by head-stamp and those sorted I place in baggies that go into another canister as sorted.

 

[oldpapps]

I batch load.

I clean and sort/inspect the brass, then it goes into one of those big plastic cat little buckets, they stack well.

When I get the bug to load, I pull one or more of those buckets and start.

I do ALL cases at the same time, what ever the step. Then when I'm ready for another go at it, I do the next step. The prep is the slow, tedious part. I just don't like to trim brass!

The bright side is for .40 S&W and .45 ACPs, after the initial cleaning, these get fed to my progressive. Wish I wasn't so picky about my .223/5.56, .308/7.62, '06 and .375 H&H brass.

When I do .44 Mag and .300 Blackout, I am normally working a specific load combination. Oh, they get the same cleaning, sizing, de-priming as the others but in smaller numbers.

Now for your storage.
Your system of buckets and labels or notes sound like it is working. It may be taking up more space than you like. Look to buckets/containers that will stack. You could use GI ammo cans. Cheap plastic paint pails would work for a lot less cost. (I've still got some of those old 'Bucket O' Chicken' paper buckets with some of my not so common cases.)

 

[Rule3]

I use the clear shoe box size Sterilite plastic containers from Wally Mart. They hold a lot but not to big and you can stack them on top of each other. Cheap also.

 

[oldpapps]

Rule3,

That's a good idea, cheap, stack and close up so they aren't as likely to spill.

May have to look into some now that the cat died, after 16 years....

 

[eeh]

I buy those clear container at Wally World they hold almost 5 gal.and stack on top of each other

 

[rondog]

More options for this than you can count! But the 3 qt. Ziploc storage containers are great. They're cheap, clear, stackable, durable, and easily labelable. I also use lots of the big red plastic Folgers coffee cans.

 

[rangerphil]

I use the same method as Rule3...

 

[9mmfan]

Started by just putting the empty brass back in the factory boxes. Now I use the big red plastic Folgers cans. Used a Sharpie marker to label 'em. They stack pretty well and have a lid. After tumbling they can go back in the factory box until I'm ready to load them, although the last batch is still sitting on the towel on my bench. Haven't spent much time out there this winter...

I'm still pretty new to the process, am only loading .38 spl and .45 Colt and not what anyone would consider high volume.

 

[119er]

I do various batches of brass and i like to keep them together until I can load them all again at one time. I keep the bulk of it organized in a closet on a shelf. I buy the plastic "Akro" style bins from a Northern Tools store near me. I label them by caliber and headstamp. When I come back from the range I separate my brass back into its designated bin. (Ex. Current 9mm, Current .45, LC11, etc.) Any new .223 pickups go into the coffee cans seen at top and pistol goes in 5 gallon buckets in the garage. Basically I have a home for everything that I use or pick up. The brass that I use frequently is kept under my bench in an organizer bin.

Here is the closet. I tend to go crazy with the label maker. The loaded ammo is kept in steel ammo cans in a small Stack-on safe/locker in the corner. when fired, it migrates to its designated location on the shelf. It continues this cycle until lost or worn out. I keep track of the number of loadings on the reloading label I use to load the ammo. (This process applies to my higher volume stuff using proven loads.) Basically, every piece of brass has two homes, one for when it's loaded, another for when it's waiting to be loaded.



Under my bench I keep the brass I like to tinker/experiment with. Mostly for surplus rifles and a few Rem 700's I like to shoot.



I keep all my pick up handgun brass in the buckets in the garage. I separate by head stamp into the buckets. Rem, Win, Fed, Other. I usually pull 1K at a time as needed for a new batch. It lasts quite a while, good thing too because since the last scare it seems no one leaves brass at my range anymore.

 

[DeputyDog25]

I use the Sterilite containers from Wally World as well and stack in a Wally World put together bookcase, holds 48 of the containers stacked 2 high

 

[saltydog452]

Sounds to me as though you have a good handle on what works for you.

Jumbo baggies and translucent storage containers from arts and crafts stores like Jo-Anns have solved lots of our organizing/storage needs.

salty

 

[medalguy]

I use gallon freezer bags, zip lock type. Put a piece of paper inside with the count and whether cleaned or deprimed. I can dump a lot of bags of brass into some M548 ammo cans (these hold 1500 rounds of 7.62 linked). These cans can stack all the way up to the ceiling.

 

[rondog]

Freezer bags and ammo cans are fine, as long as you label the ammo cans with what's in them.

 

[gamestalker]

I use a combination of labeled containers, Folgers coffer cans, large zip lock bags, tuper ware my wife didn't catch me borrowing, you get the idea. Then they are kept in large bins, which drives me nuts and usually takes a long time to sort through to find what I'm looking for, I absolutely hate it. But I think every reloader probably finds their self in this situation at some point in time, unless they have the 10 or 15 large shelves to organize all the containers on.

Good luck with this!

GS

 

[rayatphonix]

Coffee cans here. Probably have 30 or so. Key is to label them well.

 

[W.E.G.]

Segregated brass (times-fired minium for rifle, and preferably by headstamp)

Homer buckets.

Ziplock freezer bags.

Large labels that can be read in poor light, and without glasses, inside the bags

 

[me26245]

storage

I use empty cat litter buckets, the 40 pound size we get from Sam's Club to store brass in the different stages of preparation for loading.

To segregate the brass by head stamp within those buckets I use zip lock bags.

I also use various sizes of plastic containers/ bags or cardboard boxes to keep brass separated that is at a different stage until it is ready to be put into the larger bucket.

For brass that I keep in the original boxes I use surplus 81mm mortar cans to store them in, I try to put the boxes in plastic bags.

All the above is for my boxer primed brass the berdan primed brass I just keep in plastic bags.

 

[poco loco]

Freezer bags and a filing cabinet, as I process each step it gets written on the bag and refiled until use as I will often size a few hundred extra or prime a few etc....

This way the case is visible for easy quick location and where it is in the process is marked....

Each drawer gets a different caliber range so I know app where what I need is...and the filing cabinet makes a small footprint....

Extra unprocessed at all brass is in buckets like yours.....

 

[gahunter12]

I use the clear shoe box size Sterilite plastic containers from Wally Mart. They hold a lot but not to big and you can stack them on top of each other. Cheap also.

Exactly! My dirty brass goes in Home Depot buckets labeled 9mm, .40s&w, .45acp, .223, and everything else. My dirty .300wm, and 7mm Rem mag goes in a clear plastic show box. Then I keep all my cleaned brass in the clear show boxes also. They are all well labeled and stacked on the shelf.

 

[WNTFW]

These are great for smaller amounts, stack and fit on shelves or into a range bag. They are good for keeping a group of brass segregated. I buy them at dollar stores. IIRC they store almost 400 .223 cases

http://www.sterilite.com/SelectProduct.html?id=701&ProductCategory=249&section=1

My cards have a check box for each step.

Other than that everything else I do has already been covered in this thread.

 

[refuse2bafool]

Lots of good ideas here. Depends somewhat on how big your batches of brass are. I generally have 500 to 1000 pieces for any of the four handgun calibers I shoot. Dirty brass stays in the collection containers I use at the range. Usually cheap plastic food containers I buy at the dollar store in packs of 2-4. Once cleaned I store brass and boolits in plastic tilt out containers I got on line from Global Industries. They are not real cheap, but it keeps my components handy and I can always see when I am getting low.

 

[dtalley]

I got a hand full of 2.5gal. buckets from the local deli with lids. use blue painters tape to use to label them in the various steps.. They also stack ok. For the smaller batches like rifle brass I use coffe containers and large ziplock bags.