Range pick up brass...

I normally resist the urge to pick up brass at the range. Who knows what those cases were subjected to before they came to rest there? We had a guy at the club I belonged to 25 years ago...nicknamed "Ace" since he had blown up 5 different Smith and Wesson 629s. I wouldn't want to pick up his brass for anything.

But...the last two times I've been to the range. There's been a gold mine of once fired there. .270 and .308 in the cartridges I shoot and a metric ton of 30-06, .243 and a whole lot of .300 and .338WM.

It's all obviously once fired- few scratches on the cases, most in the factory plastic inserts...if not in the factory box. Being safety conscious, I feel weird about picking it up...but dang, I've scored 150 rounds of once fired .308 and .270. I likely wouldn't load premium hunting loads- but for practice loads or even light loads of H4895 they should last essentially forever.

Anyone else can't seem to help themselves to free brass?

For sure, when hunting season is around and average joe is going through boxes of new ammo sighting in.

I leave military brass behind.(7.62 and 223). Can’t say I’ve picked up magnum cases either.

I have a friend who likes me to load 308 for him,but he won’t pick up his own brass. He gets range brass. No sense in giving him good stuff.. he’s just shooting woodchucks, coyotes, and the occasional white tail.


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Save for a few rifles I had to buy brass for, all my shooting is done with previously fired brass. Not picked up at the range, but that makes no difference.

As far as premium hunting loads go, if you at least segregate the brass by brand and pick the brand you prefer, and follow you're normal careful loading techniques, it can be as premium as you want.

My model 70 has never had anything but Remington previously fired brass ran through it for reloads since I've had it. If they're inferior in any way somebody would have to show me how, and the buck killed with it last yr was only able to protest a few seconds. Pictures can at times make the point better than I can.

I no longer go to the range ( i shoot on my own property) but when I did, a great deal of my brass was castoff's from, other shooters. A good friend gets all his pistol brass from a range, we never had a problem with any of it. A close inspection, and common sense is all thats required. I still have 30:06 brass picked up from a range many years ago.

If there was a decent quantity of brass laying around that was obviously from factory new ammunition, I'd pick it up. I would often take the ammo boxes too and put the brass back in them. I kept this stuff on the side and eventually gave it to friends who were very happy to get new brass for free. I never heard a single complaint from the guys who used it.
However, I have heard that ammo which is shot in generously cut chambers, can sometimes not be resized adequately to fit smoothly into a more tightly chambered rifle. Virgin new brass is typically needed in these cases.

Range pick up rifle brass also helps when I anneal my own brass. It helps on setting dwelling times and experimenting instead of using my own brass.

I would not use range pick up rifle brass for accurate shooting since it will have different lots and volumes between them. I'll stick to one lot of a 100 or 200 pieces to be more consistent. But for plinking and fun shooting, range pick up brass will work but be prepared to do lots of prep work. I tend to buy Lapua and Norma brass which has less prep work.

at times there is a lot of brass at my local range .I've met up with a guy a few times that shows up early and gets the brass for scrap . the last couple years I've picked up a bunch of 223 brass . I think I'm going to buy a 223 rifle for my grandsons first center fire rifle . he is already interested in being with me in the reloading room . so I'm thinking he can learn shooting , and reloading as he grows up .

I have no problem with range pick up brass. Usually got mine when helping out on sighting in days. There's an awful lot of people who do not reload their ammo, preferring to hunt with new factory. If I can catch them before they throw it in the bucket it's mine. Used to be the range said if there was brass in the bucket you could use, then help yourself. Then they went to separating it out and selling at a nickel a round for rifle and two to three cents a round depending on caliber for handguns. Now if it's in the bucket or on the ground it's theirs period. The exception is your personally fired brass. As I've been shooting a lot of 7x57 and .280 Rem. lately along wit the .35 Whelen I haven't had any problem. Guys with the .308, 06 and .270 have a harder time proving what they are picking up is what they shot. Now they've gone to forbidding people from setting up a chronograph which is a whole nother thing. Problem is the club has new officers and they've made some rather stringent rules changes without asking input from the membership. Mine runs out at the end of the month and I'm not all that sure I want to renew. I can always run out into the desert and shot of the hood of my vehicle. Just not as comfortable and a solid concrete bench.
Paul B.

Paul, that’s a weird board.


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Usually the only brass I can find in quantity in 223 and 7.62x39. and various pistol rounds. .This time of year there will be 308, 270, 30-06, etc when guys are testing their deer rifles, but usually only 3-4 of each...I do grab up the .223 brass. I don't mind crimped primers and have a hornady pocket reamer to deal with them..I think if I were to find a pile of brass that I could use in one of my higher power rifles, I'd pick it up and stash it away.

mjcmichigan":1rkc2jax said:

Paul, that’s a weird board.


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You're telling me. Couple of the "newbie" board members are from California which may explain part of the problem. Many of the serious old timers that ran things have retired or passed on. I've been a member since 1979 and while it's been a nice place to shoot, it's gotten a lot more "regulated thanks to the new guys. I prefer setting my chronograph up so I can shoot for velocity and accuracy at the same time. Under the new regime, I can shot through the Chrony or at targets but not both at the same time. :x Total waste of ammo doing things that way.
Paul B.