What is the rarest single empty brass case, loaded round (just one) or shotgun shell you've ever found at a shooting range?

I didn't find these, but left them. When I got my first 1911 in the late 70's, early 80's, I bought some steel case 45 ammo, GI surplus, that was the least expensive 45 ammo I could find at the time. Plain white box, with some markings or the other on them. Twenty rounds to a box IIRC. I had never heard of steel cases at the time. It shot fine. I don't think I've ever seen any since.
 
CajunBass said:
I didn't find these, but left them. When I got my first 1911 in the late 70's, early 80's, I bought some steel case 45 ammo, GI surplus, that was the least expensive 45 ammo I could find at the time. Plain white box, with some markings or the other on them. Twenty rounds to a box IIRC. I had never heard of steel cases at the time. It shot fine. I don't think I've ever seen any since.
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Ive read accounts of WWII era soldiers and Marines putting a couple drops in oil on their magazines to lubricate those steel cased .45 rounds for reliable feeding.

Obviously I wasn't there so I have no idea if this was true or not, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was.

Stay safe.
 
I found this old 30-40 krag case while antelope hunting north of Cody , Wy a few years back . I once found a few 22 jet cases when I was a kid. Might not as been as rare then ? Lol . Found some 225 winchester cases on a ranch I worked on . And a bunch of 30- 378 brass at the range. When I was in middle school a friend of mine found some old 44 henry cases that we figured might of been from an Indian fight.
 

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500 nitro express... And a guy from the club was talking about another guy from the club that was annoyed he only had 19 and how one vanished. (Seriously how did he miss it, the thing is huge?) I returned it to the owner eventually. I thought it was an all brass shotshell at first.

Also, found 20 pcs. of .338-378 Weatherby Magnum in the brass bucket.
Up to then, I had never heard of it. Looks like a real thumper though, jeesus.
 
CajunBass said:
I didn't find these, but left them. When I got my first 1911 in the late 70's, early 80's, I bought some steel case 45 ammo, GI surplus, that was the least expensive 45 ammo I could find at the time. Plain white box, with some markings or the other on them. Twenty rounds to a box IIRC. I had never heard of steel cases at the time. It shot fine. I don't think I've ever seen any since.
Click to expand...
I've seen steel cased 30 carbine rounds from WW2. Steel cased 45 wouldn't surprise me one bit. My guess would be from late war....'43 or around the same time they made steel pennies :)
 
My lady took me to Wilcox Playa in AZ a few years ago. We drove out for about 10 minutes and got out of the truck. We walked around and found (and kept finding) dozens of 50BMG projectiles in perfect but fired and tarnished condition. I found one casing with the date of 1943 on it. They used that area for air to ground fighter training in WWII. If you Google earth that place and zoom in, you’ll see a giant bullseye in the north east of the playa.
 
While building a chairlift at the ski area one summer I found a UXB 106mm Recoilless HE projectile.
 
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When I was a member of my American Legion range I would often find a few pieces at a time of .45 ACP from WW2. All 1940s headstamp. Copper colored primers. I just processed them like regular brass and reloaded them.
 

What is the rarest single empty brass case, loaded round (just one) or shotgun shell you've ever found at a shooting range?​

Not at a "range," but right after we bought this place, our daughter found an old 38-55 Winchester case that I'd turned up while tilling the area for our vegetable garden. :)
I once found a spent 45ACP bullet on the sidewalk in front of our church in town (the "big" city of Pocatello). No idea how that ended up there. o_O
 
The .58 cal bullets were found in the same place as the flint and the ivory balls. the balls are sort of egg shaped, but mic .58 and we imagine used for short range stuff, perhaps Rabbits or birds, untill lead could be had or whatever. I think these might predate the cartridge case, as surplus cartridge guns were the rave up here as were lever action rifles.

The .50/70 shells and the .45/70 shell were found in the same place. The .45/70 has a split in the neck area and was put on an arrow shaft and used as a 'blunt' to hit birds, as the area they were found in is rich in birds.
WIN_20240115_19_46_04_Pro.jpg WIN_20240115_19_46_04_Pro.jpg WIN_20240115_19_46_27_Pro.jpg WIN_20240115_19_46_56_Pro.jpg WIN_20240115_19_46_59_Pro.jpg WIN_20240115_19_47_36_Pro.jpg

Back until 1890 or so, there was a prohibition on breech loading firearms that was universally ignored. Guns were first traded up this was in 1819 from the Jacob Astor's trading brig "Peddler".
Traders and whalers kept the Eskimo armed with the latest in firearms and stocked with powder, lead and cartridges.

One teacher Mr., Thorton, in Whales Alaska in the 1880's wrote his wife in the 48 "I left my beer barrel and my Winchester due to the purported Ban on both, yet I have discovered that no one here had heard of such laws nor obay such laws..... and laugh when I declare such laws are in force. This evening I enjoyed a warm brew and purchased a fine lever repeater with a supply of cartridges from a local trader at fair price."
 
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