I've been interested in all things gun-related for nearly 50 years, and have gathered quite a collection of cartridges. Many gun friends I know also have some "items" they've come across over the years. I just found a few pinfire shells, 12 mm French made, at a yard sale - couldn't resist. Are there more closet collectors, and how large is the display? I've nearly covered a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood

I've picked up a few myself. I have a small collection.

The most recent is a partial box of Super X 38 Special 200 gr RN marked Super Police, estimate 1950's vintage.

And a full box of U S Cartridge Co. 45 Colt; each primer is imprinted "US". the company went out of business in the late 20's.

Not officially, but I do have about 55 or 60 boxes, bricks and tins of old cartridges. I never really thought of myself as a true cartridge collector, but more of a nostalgic's collector.

I do not actively pursue old ammo, but when I am at the Range I will swap out more modern ammo for pristine boxed older ammo if I spot someone is just going to shoot it anyway.

I just inherited over 30 boxes of pristine 12 gauge Shot Shells from my Dad, and I now have so much that I have begun to actually hunt with it. I felt really good about hunting Pheasants this year with Shot Shells that are over 60 years old! You should have seen the look on my Hunting Buddies faces when I loaded my 1957 Browning Superposed with 60 year old cardboard Shot Shells!

Chief38

I've managed to amass most of the "major" rounds of the past 100 years or so, I haven't done a count but it comes to several hundred rifle rounds, and maybe 75 pistol rounds. The stars of the gathering are the African rifle cartridges, 40 caliber up to the mighty 700 Nitro Express. There are subcategories for military variations, blackpowder oddities, a real mish-mosh of stuff I have found, been given, bought at gun shows, etc. It's a fun hobby, and specialization can make it even more so. I deal with a lot of 38 Special brass, and segregate the ones with odd headstamps. I probably have a hundred of those, plus lots of other "collectable junk". I don't think most of the rounds are worth much, but some are downright valuable.

A few favorites..................

32 SLR, 351 WSL, 401 WSL



Oddball headstamps...........





The Newton Cartridges.....256, 30 and 35.



Rimfire shotshells



The Big Boys! 600 and 700 NE next to a 223.

I have collected cartridges off and on over the years. Sold off one collection and built another one...twice..I guess it's addictive, lol. Currently I'm trying to stick to rimfires, preferably full boxes though I never pass up a partial that I don't have or any really old one. It can be a fun sideline to gun collecting or a serious collection in it's own right.

Most of my collection is US military weapons. I have tried to accumulate the correct accessories for each. Bayonets, slings, cartridge belts, etc, for the rifles. Holsters, belts, mag pouches, etc, for the pistols.

Along the way I've also picked up quite a bit of period ammunition for each piece. WW1 .45ACP, WW2 ball, tracer, AP, etc. It adds to the display.

Years ago, while teaching in a community college police science program, we put together a bullet trap and started a specimen collection of as many different cartridges as could be found with a loaded round for each as well as some fired in different handguns. This displayed differences in rifling characteristics and other factors involved in forensic analysis of fired bullets and cartridge cases. Interesting stuff at the time.

Mine is more an accumulation than a collection; is pretty small about 200 specimens, many of them just fired cases.

Currently I'm down to about 2000 .38s and 500 .30-06s, time to start hunting up some more for my collection. I also collect .22lr .357 Magnum, .45acp, and .45-70.

__________________
Regards,
Guy-Harold Smith II

Well im not sure how many 4x8 sheets of plywood it will cover but after 50 years of collecting I have most of an large room full of collector ammo. Rimfire boxes alone I have over 500 different boxes. 30-30's boxes exceed 50 along with even 30-06 boxes.