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10-09-2018, 06:36 PM
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Sorting brass,,, round 1
Been saving brass, for some reason, for a number of years and am seriously thinking about reloading after we get back from our 4 month winter getaway. Anyhow,,, I said round 1, because I realized halfway through that I had mixed .45ACP large primer and small primers together. Something tells me they should be separated as with the .38 Special and the .357 Magnum. I don't know how you folks who have a job have time to do all this sorting, then cleaning, then ? There gotta be an easier way, but then, I have nothing better to do.
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10-09-2018, 06:48 PM
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I keep my reloads in labeled zip lock baggies.Once they are used the brass goes back in the same bag.Saves lots of time!
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10-09-2018, 06:53 PM
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Looks familiar and I feel your pain. I just did the same thing last month after I finally decided to start reloading.
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10-09-2018, 07:01 PM
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You are going to check the brass anyway for cracks and such anyway...turn the casings over and it is VERY obvious between small and large primer.
One bucket for each, and you are done. The largest bucket in your photo would take about an hour or so.....
So many seem to have a fit over small primer .45 acp brass....I pick up or trade for all I can get.
Randy
Last edited by growr; 10-09-2018 at 07:02 PM.
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10-09-2018, 07:13 PM
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I do not save small primer brass. I check my .45 ACP brass when I come home from the range. When I find any small primer brass it goes in my junk brass bin. Part of the reason is I have about 40 pounds of Match brass that I picked up when I retired, so the small primer stuff is a nuisance.
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10-09-2018, 07:16 PM
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I was doing the same thing today got most of it sorted and the first batch will go into the wet tumbler tomorrow. My 4 month getaway is reloading that's what I do for most of the winter months that way I've got plenty to shoot when it warms up.
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10-09-2018, 07:38 PM
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PeterJ,
I will be in Meadville, in a couple of weeks. Want me to drop off the small primer stuff?
AJ
Quote:
Originally Posted by andy52
I was doing the same thing today got most of it sorted and the first batch will go into the wet tumbler tomorrow. My 4 month getaway is reloading that's what I do for most of the winter months that way I've got plenty to shoot when it warms up.
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Glad I live in south Florida and can shoot year round (of course there are those hurricances we have to dodge).
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10-09-2018, 07:46 PM
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Yeah, it’s a pain. Luckily I only use the large primer .45, so that’s one less thing I have to check. One mistake I made was to throw all the brass I collected from a few range trips all in the tumbler together, figuring I’d just sort it when it was clean. All of the smaller stuff like .357sig, 10mm and .40 had gotten stuck in the .45cases, wedged there tight by the grains of media. Some of it I had to pull apart with pliers. Plus the part of the smaller
case that was inside the .45 case never got polished. Now, I sort and inspect after I wash them in a mix of simple green diluted with warm water, then dry in a warm oven. I tumble by caliber or same size case (10 & 40 together).
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Last edited by tlawler; 10-09-2018 at 07:48 PM.
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10-09-2018, 07:48 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AJ
PeterJ,
I will be in Meadville, in a couple of weeks. Want me to drop off the small primer stuff?
AJ
Glad I live in south Florida and can shoot year round (of course there are those hurricances we have to dodge).
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Thanks AJ, but I am pretty well set right now,, but tell me, is there something inherently inferior with the small primer .45 stuff. I know most of mine is small primer.
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10-09-2018, 07:58 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PeterJ
Thanks AJ, but I am pretty well set right now,, but tell me, is there something inherently inferior with the small primer .45 stuff. I know most of mine is small primer.
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No, the small primer is not inferior to to the large that I am aware of. The Match brass that I have is all large primer as were all .45 ACP cases at the time. Would think there would be better ignition with the large primer. I have had this Match brass since the late '80's.
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10-09-2018, 08:10 PM
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I love brass cases. It’s a strange addiction. I pick them up. I get them from friends. I buy them buy the pound at the scrap yard. Sometimes I think I may like reloading more than shooting. That looks like a very nice collection to start reloading. Happy sorting and have fun.
David
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10-09-2018, 08:16 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by arjay
I keep my reloads in labeled zip lock baggies.Once they are used the brass goes back in the same bag.Saves lots of time!
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I do the same thing.............
You must be almost as smart, good looking and modest as I am.
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10-09-2018, 08:22 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bigedp51
I do the same thing.............
You must be almost as smart, good looking and modest as I am.
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Without a doubt!
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10-09-2018, 08:25 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PeterJ
Thanks AJ, but I am pretty well set right now,, but tell me, is there something inherently inferior with the small primer .45 stuff. I know most of mine is small primer.
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I don’t know the veracity of this...heard it from a guy who sold his commercial reloads at gun shows...but I was told the small primer brass could safely be loaded hotter because the brass in the web area around the primer pocket is thicker. Anyone else hear anything like that?
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10-09-2018, 08:44 PM
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Sounds like BS to me, tlawler. 45 Auto isn't a high pressure round to start with and if that was true they would use SPP in the 44 mag instead of LPP. The reason that they came out with 45 Auto cases using SPP is due to them loading with lead free primers. which only come in SPP size.
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10-09-2018, 08:47 PM
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That is definitely possible in theory.
In practice... in .45 ACP and it's sedate pressure, it's pure baloney. By the time it would matter, you'd be far beyond SAAMI max for .45 ACP.
Something like 10mm Auto would have benefited from being designed around a small pistol primer from the start for exactly the reason you state. In .45 ACP, no.
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10-09-2018, 08:50 PM
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I find SP 45acp brass to be a pain in the *** only because I become mind numbed sorting it out. At some point, my brain can't tell the difference.
That said, I shoot them both cuz they load the same and shoot the same.
Even when I'm careful to keep them separate, I can still can an oddball in the group when I'm shooting at my club and can sometimes pick up someone else's case among mine.
So even when I think I've got a batch of one size primer, I still go through the whole bunch before I start the reload process of a batch.
When the guy who thought up the idea of making SP .45acp cases is sitting in the lowest level of hell, I hope he reconsiders and asks for eternal forgiveness.
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10-09-2018, 09:05 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by growr
You are going to check the brass anyway for cracks and such anyway...turn the casings over and it is VERY obvious between small and large primer.
One bucket for each, and you are done. The largest bucket in your photo would take about an hour or so.....
So many seem to have a fit over small primer .45 acp brass....I pick up or trade for all I can get.
Randy
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An HOUR to sort all the brass in a 5 gallon bucket ? You are a better man than I will ever be !!!!
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10-09-2018, 09:29 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by growr
You are going to check the brass anyway for cracks and such anyway...turn the casings over and it is VERY obvious between small and large primer.
One bucket for each, and you are done. The largest bucket in your photo would take about an hour or so.....
So many seem to have a fit over small primer .45 acp brass....I pick up or trade for all I can get.
Randy
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FWIW, I do this step when I'm actually loading it. I always check for splits before inserting the case into the shell holder anyway, and an extra half second to check the primer is no big deal.
The 500 piece bag of once-fired brass I bought at the gun show, and the range brass I've picked up, has (so far) contained less than 5% small primer brass. When I come across one I just drop it into a separate container. I won't bother loading any of the small primer stuff until I have at least a couple of hundred or more in that container. Until then I just load the large primer cases.
I figure once I get enough to load up a batch of the small primer stuff I'll save it for use when I'm shooting somewhere that I don't expect to be able to recover almost all of my brass. That way if I loose a fair amount of it, I'm still gonna have my preferred large primer brass for future reloading.
Last edited by BC38; 10-09-2018 at 09:50 PM.
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10-09-2018, 09:45 PM
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Your just getting started and trying to sort that muck is tuff. Take your time develop a system that works for you and do smaller quantities. I use coffee cans for brass in progress and larger cans or whatever for saving.
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10-09-2018, 09:49 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tlawler
Yeah, it’s a pain. Luckily I only use the large primer .45, so that’s one less thing I have to check. One mistake I made was to throw all the brass I collected from a few range trips all in the tumbler together, figuring I’d just sort it when it was clean. All of the smaller stuff like .357sig, 10mm and .40 had gotten stuck in the .45cases, wedged there tight by the grains of media. Some of it I had to pull apart with pliers. Plus the part of the smaller
case that was inside the .45 case never got polished. Now, I sort and inspect after I wash them in a mix of simple green diluted with warm water, then dry in a warm oven. I tumble by caliber or same size case (10 & 40 together).
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Yeah, I learned that one the hard way too.
I learned to only put different length cases of the same approximate diameter together.
For example; I don't tumble 38 and 357 together - too big of a pain to sort. I'll tumble 9mm and 38 or 9mm and 357 together because they won't fit one inside the other, and the length difference makes them easy to sort.
Likewise I won't tumble 380 with 9mm, but will tumble it with 38 or 357. Another combination I avoid is 44 mag, 44 special, 45 Colt together, but I'll tumble any one of them with 45 acp.
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10-10-2018, 12:10 AM
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I do pretty much like BC38 does when I tumble brass too. 9 MM and 38 or 357 (but not both) is a good tumbling combo as is 45 ACP and 44 Mag.
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10-10-2018, 01:38 AM
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This is the method I use for sorting by headstamp. Should work for sorting by primer size as well.
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10-10-2018, 01:56 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crankyoldlady
This is the method I use for sorting by headstamp. Should work for sorting by primer size as well.
YouTube
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That is AWESOME!
How well does this would work with rimmed brass?
Since there really isn't a common caliber that is "one bigger" than 44spl, 44mag, 45Colt, how well does it work for those larger rimmed cartridges?
Obviously there isn't a common caliber "one bigger" than 45acp either, but I don't think that using an "upsized" tray would be as critical for the rimless brass.....
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10-10-2018, 03:29 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by muddocktor
... and if that was true they would use SPP in the 44 mag instead of LPP.
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Exactly. Look no farther than the 454 Casull. They went with a small rifle primer thinking it'd be stronger. Later they figured out it didn't matter but the die was already cast (literally).
(The small primers look stupid in those large 454 cases. That's why I upgraded to a 460 S&W. )
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10-10-2018, 02:43 PM
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I used to sort my rifle cases when I first started reloading but eventually found I could never tell the difference on the target from one brand to the next. Old GI brass shot the same as Federal or Rem or WW. So I just stopped. If you're trying to shave .001" off your group size at 500 yards, go ahead and sort if you think it helps, but otherwise, I'm done with the sorting.
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10-10-2018, 02:55 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SMSgt
I used to sort my rifle cases when I first started reloading but eventually found I could never tell the difference on the target from one brand to the next. Old GI brass shot the same as Federal or Rem or WW. So I just stopped. If you're trying to shave .001" off your group size at 500 yards, go ahead and sort if you think it helps, but otherwise, I'm done with the sorting.
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I think you're talking about a different kind of sorting than what is being discussed in this thread.
Re-reading the posts, for the most part it has been about sorting 45acp LP from SP - with a little discussion of sorting by CALIBER thrown in for good measure.
Not much discussion of sorting by headstamp - which I fully agree is pointless unless you are a top contender in long range shooting sports.
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10-10-2018, 02:56 PM
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I load my 45acp on a Dillon 650. It is a pita to sort brass by primer size so I generally try to not pick them up. If I get one into the case feeder, I stop & sub a deprimed/sized lp case, keep moving forward. The sp case get tossed.
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10-10-2018, 04:01 PM
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I sort newly acquired range brass by headstamp to eliminate military, Amerc, Perfecta, R-P, and S&B. Other than this initial sorting, all brass is mixed headstamp.
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10-10-2018, 06:49 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BC38
That is AWESOME!
How well does this would work with rimmed brass?
Since there really isn't a common caliber that is "one bigger" than 44spl, 44mag, 45Colt, how well does it work for those larger rimmed cartridges?
Obviously there isn't a common caliber "one bigger" than 45acp either, but I don't think that using an "upsized" tray would be as critical for the rimless brass.....
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Works fine with any pistol caliber brass.
For .45ACP I use wood loading blocks (Midway #6). No longer available, these are only found on the used market. You can find them on eBay, or post a want-to-buy in our forum classified section.
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10-12-2018, 10:26 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 68Dave
I love brass cases. It’s a strange addiction. I pick them up. I get them from friends. I buy them buy the pound at the scrap yard. Sometimes I think I may like reloading more than shooting. That looks like a very nice collection to start reloading. Happy sorting and have fun.
David
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I am suffering of the same sickness;I remember as a young kid,I'd pick up .22 brass and keep tham as if it'd be gold...
Seriously,SP .45 auto brass is as good as LP brass(tests have shown but a slight difference...in the area of 10 to 35fps difference all else being equal).
Segregate them once and keep them as such.And each and everytime you get some new brass,inspect and put in the appropriate bin.
BTW,one easy way I use to keep differenciated them is that I use my SP brass for my .45ACP revolver while the LP get reloaded fot the autos.
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