What Can I do with old reloaded ammo?

[HighRoadRover]

I have a large ammo can full of .38, .40, .327 Fed Mag, and .45 ammo -- all handloads -- all in calibers I no longer shoot or have any guns for. By its nature, some of this ammo is hard to take apart (crimped cases).

Some of this stuff is 15 years old, most about 10 years old. It's been a long time since I had that Ruger SP-101 in .327 Fed Mag, that's for sure.

What can be done with ammo like this that is no longer needed?

It is impossible to sell it (illegal, actually, since it takes a Type 06 FFL to sell ammo).

Internet searches turn up the idea of taking it to the local police station. That doesn't seem like a good idea for this amount of ammo. Is there a commercial re-processing facility somewhere that I could send it to?

Thanks, its a dumb problem, and I shouldn't have let it happen, but I am looking for a good (legal) way to solve it.

 

[jar]

Rent guns and shoot it. Enjoy!.

 

[HighRoadRover]

I thought about that as an option, but most ranges won't let you shoot reloads in their guns...

 

[.308 Norma]

Internet searches turn up the idea of taking it to the local police station. That doesn't seem like a good idea for this amount of ammo.

A few years ago, I took literally 2, 5-gallon buckets full of old, reloaded ammo (and some old, corroded factory ammo) that I kind of "inherited" after Dad passed to the County Sheriff's Office. No muss, no fuss.
Just to give you some idea of how old that ammo was, it was mostly .308 Winchester ammo that Dad had stockpiled shortly after JFK was shot. The only thing I regret about hauling it to the Sheriff's Office is that I didn't get my 5-gallon plastic buckets back.

 

[trackskippy]

You can pull pretty much anything down with little trouble. A collet type puller works the best if you're doing a lot. I used one to pull down about 2500 rounds of 357SIG I had loaded when I got out of it. Primers, powder, and bullets all went to load an equivalent amount of 9mm.

If you arent up to doing that, how about giving/selling it to friends with the caveat its for either pull down and components, or "at your own risk" use sort of thing.

 

[bearcreek]

It is impossible to sell it (illegal, actually, since it takes a Type 06 FFL to sell ammo).

At the federal level it's perfectly legal to sell it. Don't know the specifics of VA law on the subject.

Internet searches turn up the idea of taking it to the local police station. That doesn't seem like a good idea for this amount of ammo.

One ammo can worth isn't that much ammo. If you decide you want to take it to the police station and you're not sure about the quantity, call and ask them. No reason to guess on that or ask strangers on the internet.

Put it up for sale or give it to a friend.

 

[AK Hunter]

It's not imposable to pull if you have a lot get a collet puller.
If you don't have a lot you can use a hammer puller but the trick to it is you need to use a channel lock plyers to gently squeeze the round at the crimp line. This reduces the dia of the bullet right at the crimp line & the hammer puller will work with only a few hits.
If you have kept records of the type of powder & primers you can recycle them into calibers you do shoot.

 

[halfmoonclip]

We had a bunch of our late Range Officer's reloads, which we put out for the members, with the understanding of its provenance. Still have some.
Been known to water soak old ammo, and then simply throw it away.
Moon

 

[Bazoo]

Plenty of people would be more than happy to take it for components. I say, offer it in the PIF thread for local pickup and someone will take it. I know I'd take it just to break it down for the primers alone.

 

[HighRoadRover]

Plenty of people would be more than happy to take it for components. I say, offer it in the PIF thread for local pickup and someone will take it. I know I'd take it just to break it down for the primers alone.

I like this suggestion and will give it a try. A dedicated reloader could find a lot of primers and some useable cases in this ammo box full of rounds.

If that doesn't work, I will bite the bullet and visit the local police department and ask them what they suggest.

Thanks.

 

[Bazoo]

I like this suggestion and will give it a try. A dedicated reloader could find a lot of primers and some useable cases in this ammo box full of rounds.

If that doesn't work, I will bite the bullet and visit the local police department and ask them what they suggest.

Thanks.

Dang shame I'm not local, I'd be first in line.

 

[LiveLife]

Plenty of people would be more than happy to take it for components. I say, offer it in the PIF thread for local pickup and someone will take it. I know I'd take it just to break it down for the primers alone.

I like this suggestion and will give it a try. A dedicated reloader could find a lot of primers and some useable cases in this ammo box full of rounds.

Offer them in the "Buy, Sell and Trade: Reloading Components ..." subforum for pickup and I bet some members will pick them up in a flash (I would if I was local) - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?forums/buy-sell-and-trade-reloading-components-and-gear.50/

 

[Charlie98]

Plenty of people would be more than happy to take it for components.

That. You aren't 'selling' it, so no Federal violation, real or imagined.

I've been given old ammo as scrap for components, before. I've got a knetic hammer that I pull the bullets with... I just sit on the garage floor with a beer and play whack-a-mole.

 

[JTQ]

It's been a long time since I had that Ruger SP-101 in .327 Fed Mag, that's for sure.

I've got to admit, "long time" and ".327 Fed Mag" didn't seem like they belonged together. I did have to look up the .327 Fed Mag introduction to remember it was introduced in 2008. Still, I think most of my wardrobe is older than that. Maybe that's more of a statement about me, rather than that you link "long time" and ".327 Fed Mag" together.

 

[Bazoo]

I've got to admit, "long time" and ".327 Fed Mag" didn't seem like they belonged together. I did have to look up the .327 Fed Mag introduction to remember it was introduced in 2008. Still, I think most of my wardrobe is older than that. Maybe that's more of a statement about me, rather than that you link "long time" and ".327 Fed Mag" together.

I had to read his post twice myself.

 

[goon]

I’d either pull it down myself for components or give it away. No sense in surrendering it to the police: there’s no need, and it costs the taxpayers money to dispose of it. Some local reloader would probably take it.

 

[HighRoadRover]

I've got to admit, "long time" and ".327 Fed Mag" didn't seem like they belonged together. I did have to look up the .327 Fed Mag introduction to remember it was introduced in 2008. Still, I think most of my wardrobe is older than that. Maybe that's more of a statement about me, rather than that you link "long time" and ".327 Fed Mag" together.

Ha! I was a "first-adopter" on the .327 Fed Mag. So that was what, about 15 years ago? The rounds I have look old -- heavily tarnished Starline brass -- but are not really ancient, as some ammunition holdings tend to be. There is probably some very old ammo sitting around in attics and the bottom of closets...

I agree about the idea of giving it away to a local re-loader who can salvage at least the primers.

 

[Otto]

What can be done with ammo like this that is no longer needed?

It is impossible to sell it (illegal, actually, since it takes a Type 06 FFL to sell ammo).

Perfectly legal to sell ammo that you manufactured without a license as long as it’s not part of your “livelihood”.

And it’s always legal to sell ammo (for profit and livelihood) without a license manufactured from someone else ie. Federal.

You aren’t clear as to whether you reloaded this ammo yourself or if it’s some one else’s ammunition.

 

[Savage30L]

From my late uncle's estate I ended up with some 30-06 reloads (also .22 Hornet) that his neighbor made decades ago. The 30-06 has the component data for it, detailed, except for the date, which is just written as "<1970". The powder is IMR 4320, bullets are 180 grain Speer. I'd like to shoot it up, as I could use more brass. The rounds look fine. Do you think I should?

 

[trackskippy]

As long as it was stored properly, its probably fine. Id pull a couple of bullets and see what the base of the bullets look like and what the powder smells like.

If you see blue-green corrosion on the base of the bullets, its starting to go, and as long as the brass looks good (press sideways on the bullets in the other cases and see what happens, look for cracks in the shoulders and necks), Id shoot it up right away.

Personally, I wouldn't bother reloading that brass either. If you're seeing that corrosion, the powder is attacking the brass too. If you do decide to reload it, Id keep a close watch on it.

 

[goon]

Back when I first started reloading, I picked some 38 special brass up out of the snow and left it in a bag for several days. It took on an ugly corrosion, and tumbling still left some staining. Still, I didn’t have a lot of resources so I loaded it with moderate loads and used it. Worked fine. Anything less severe than that would probably tumble off ok in an hour or so. I have had some handgun brass fail, but almost always a split in the body or the case mouth and after several loadings. I’ve personally never had corrosion bad enough to compromise the casing. I’d think the brass would probably clean up ok too.

 

[Dan-O]

Like others have said, unless you’re commercially selling your own manufactured/reloaded ammo as a business venture you don’t need an ffl.

I’d give it away if you really have no use for it.

 

[epags]

One ammo can worth isn't that much ammo. If you decide you want to take it to the police station and you're not sure about the quantity, call and ask them. No reason to guess on that or ask strangers on the internet.

This
Now just go do it.

 

[Highland Lofts]

You can give it away as components.
Don't scrap it.

 

[gnappi]

I'd pull them and light the mixed gun powder on the 4th... Somewhere safe, without children or idiots about