Seperate Reloaded Brass?

[kbm6893]

Just started reloading and have 1000 loaded rounds of reloaded ammo in 38. Have about 2000 once fired factory brass of 9MM and about 2000 pieces of once fired 38 brass on hand.

As I shoot the reloaded ammo, should I keep the brass that I reloaded seperate from what I know is once fired?

I'm thinking reload all the new brass first and just dump the fired cases into a bin, so that when I'm finally ready to reload them again that I know how many times it's been loaded. I just reloaded and shot 75 rounds of 9mm. Should I keep the fired brass seperate from what I know is once fired brass?

Only problem with that is that based on my shooting amounts, I won't be reloading anything for a while. I wanna keep cranking out what I have now.

Do you just chuck your brass into a communal bin and just shoot it until it splits? Is 9MM more dangerous to have split?

[arjay]

No experience with 9mm but all of my 38,357,44,45 acp and 45 colt go into their own coffee can until I'm completely out of that caliber and then they are reloaded until they split or in the case of 45 acp,lost.

[kbm6893]

Originally Posted by arjay

No experience with 9mm but all of my 38,357,44,45 acp and 45 colt go into their own coffee can until I'm completely out of that caliber and then they are reloaded until they split or in the case of 45 acp,lost.

That's what I'm doing now. I figured that was best.

[chuckster57]

I reload 9mm, 38spcl and 500 mag. I have a mix of new, once fired and multifired.

I too just check cases for split, length and overall appearance. If they are good I load 'em up.

[hanno]

I keep a couple buckets of once fired brass as my "reserve." The rest of my brass just gets dumped in a bucket and keeps getting reused until I see splits.

[brucev]

Ah... new to reloading. Your going to have lots of fun. As to segregating cases, I wouldn't be concerned about it. For target type loads using lead bullets, use a taper crimp which will for the most part eliminate concerns about variations of case length. For 9mm you will of course use a taper crimp. As you sort your brass for tumbling prior to reloading, you will be able to look for any problems w/ splits in the case body, etc.

If you use pistol brass long enough, you will have some cases that will crack. It is not the end of the world. The amount of pressure in pistol rounds is not going to damage a revolver/pistol. Use cases long enough and sooner or later some of them will fail. Just toss them in the scrap bucket and keep using the rest of the cases.

When (not if) you start reloading for rifles, you will want to separate brass by headstamp, etc. as variations in rifle brass will noticeably effect on target results, etc.

[savit260]

I own a grand total of about 125 pieces of 44 Mag brass, that I've reloaded so many times I lost count. Every now and then I'll get a split case and chuck it out.

Once fired, twenty times + fired... makes no difference to me.

[Krell1]

In my opinion, a person can go to the extreme of separating by brand name, number of times fired, etc, etc, etc. I shoot em, dump the empties in a tumbler to clean them and load em up again. I'm not particular about anything but split cases which get chucked in the trash. About the only thing I'm really careful with is the powder charge. A mistake there can be dangerous. Everything else, I never worry about.

[Biggfoot44]

For "normal" .38spl loads , use random brass, usual inspection. For .38-44 type loads, I only use once fired brass that I personally once fired.

[photobiker]

I'm with sacit, I shooting holes and paper or what ever shows up that day. I can guarantee that 99% of the fliers and missed shots are ME. Now if I were shooting some long range stuff it might matter, but once fired only comes around once which makes them kinda of scarce. I guess you could keep a few on the side for a special occasion.

[Alk8944]

Sort by brand, finish, etc. if you want, but for times fired, forget about it. Just load them until they split and chuck them.

[fredj338]

If you never use range pickups, sure why not segregate your brass. I do for precision rifle & my magnum handgun hunting stuff.

[webfarmer]

Guess I'm one of those extreme guys (engineering background but not a real engineer) so I know how many times the majority in each 50 round MTM or other brand ammo container has been fired. Is it necessary? Probably not but I like that kind of control in my handloads. I do separate headcases but it's most important to me with rifle - not so much pistol.

I'm about to reload 150 military 9mm cases shot a couple days ago that are on their 15th reload. OK - most of them - can't always find them so have to add newer ones to the mix. Shows it isn't super important but like I said, I personally want that kind of control. I also keep records of all reloads back to 1978 when I first started. That's something you might want to consider doing also. You'll learn as you go and of course develop your own habits. Good luck and enjoy!

[Krogen]

For anything but semi-auto uses, I keep my brass segregated into specific lots. When I start to see degradation (e.g. too many trims, loose primers, incipient separation, splits etc.) the whole lot is scrapped. Probably it's more important with rifle cartridges, but I do the same thing with revolvers and single-shots.

Semi-autos are a horse of a different applecart. They tend to chuck a few cases off into a parallel universe never to be seen again, so I quit obsessing about keeping them in lots. None of my semi-autos are accurate enough that it matters anyway.

[9mmsubgun-m11]

I personally keep once fired brass separate from the brass currently in use until I need to dig into it. I originally had 9mm brass that I personally loaded 40-50X. Once that batch became too weak I scrapped it and started over with a couple thousand fresh once fired cases. I also purchased a Case-Pro 100 roll sizer for the 9's and have excellent results in dealing with the bulge from firing in unsupported subgun chambers.

[rwsmith]

If a case splits or is otherwise worn I toss it. If I'm feeling picky I'll segregate into brands for a loading session.

[chief38]

When I first started reloading I used to catalog, separate and keep track of how many times Brass was reloaded. That only lasted a few years and when I saw it was lasting so long I stopped doing that and now use this method:

For each caliber I shoot I use two very large Rubbermaid Tubs; #1 and #2. I reload from Tub #1 and all shot Brass gets dumped back into Tub #2. This way the Brass is constantly being evenly cycled and I load them until they split or are otherwise unusable. When Tub #1 is empty, I dump all fired brass from Tub #2 into Tub #1 and start the process all over again. If I am lazy and don't want to physically dump one Tub into another, I just simply swap out the #1 & #2 labels. Works for me..........

[ageingstudent]

For pistols I store prepped brass in stackable organizers. Shot brass goes into a coffee can and when full it gets cleaned and returned to an empty organizer. I keep track of firings by putting slash marks on the boxes of loaded ammo. It really is not that crucial, but I got in a habit of sorting and keeping track with shotgun hulls and .22-250.

Sorting comes in handy when my girlfriend wants me to do chores. It makes me 'look' busy.

[STCM(SW)]

Originally Posted by hanno

I keep a couple buckets of once fired brass as my "reserve." The rest of my brass just gets dumped in a bucket and keeps getting reused until I see splits.

Same thing I do...

[Mushki]

You should know that some of the once fired brass may have been fired more than once, aka reloads, to begin with��

[old&slow]

Most of my handgun shooting is at local matches or practice with less than max. loads. So, I seperate my brass by clean and dirty..

Rifle brass, I'm a bit more picky. After cleaning , etc. it gets sorted my mfg.

[MJFlores]

I separate by brand, and how many times they've been loaded. I probably dont have to, but for me it's easy to do so why not. All my handgun brass starts as new, unfired....usually Starline.

[dswancutt]

With my engineering background and being completely OCD, my brass is segregated by brand, boxes are color coded by caliber, # of times fired is recorded on the label and I have an Excel spreadsheet telling me how much brass I have, how many 50 round boxes and the number of primers required.
Yes, I know its unnecessary, but it makes me happy.

[ageingstudent]

Originally Posted by MJFlores

I separate by brand, and how many times they've been loaded. I probably dont have to, but for me it's easy to do so why not. All my handgun brass starts as new, unfired....usually Starline.

It's kind of a unique situation where I live. Lots of public lands laced with logging roads and empty quarrys where skads of 'new' to the sport shooters go and burn thousands of factory rounds and leave the brass laying. It's only a 30 minute drive:P. Tons of crimped .223/5.56 brass, .308/7.62x51. Tons of 9mm and .40 S&W and .45 ACP mostly fresh and all headstamps. Tons of reloadable shotshell hulls with brass bases. The last few weekends I have been getting firewood and on the way out of the cutting area there are 6 places to check for brass. Other guys do this also. I think the percent of reloads left on the ground is less than 1%. If it looks questionable at all I pitch it in recycling. It's a scroungers nirvana really.

I use this brass for low power target stuff. When I feel like trying a max load I use new starline or stuff I can verify is once fired or that I fired myself.

I thought about selling some, but I don't want my hobby to become a job. Not buying brass makes it possible to buy more powder and bullets, gas for the trip, and chainsaw upkeep. It's also good trading stock. I've scored some powder and other stuff during the shortage this way and the guys I traded with are super happy with the shiny decapped brass and my processing/sorting method.

Sorry I babbled OP...I guess my point is that even though I spend a lot of time with my brass it is not as crucial as I make it out to be. The only pistol cartridge that I load that I feel needs a bit more care is the .40 S&W, and that is because my Shield chamber is not fully supported. I keep pretty tight records on that one.

[Nevada Ed]

I shoot mostly 38 special and the first sort is by the head stamp.
If I get 50 I will put them in a Fac ammo box or one of my
plastic 50 case holders and shoot them until they get old
about 10-14 target loads.
I generally only shoot a case 3-4 times with a +P or magnum loading.

I sort the 9mm only for the +P head stamp the rest goes "as is"
into my loading cases or factory ammo boxes. The only Brand
that is hard on the resizer is the Tula case. Which needs lube
and more pressure on the ram to feed the case to be resized.

People "Picky" with their cases are usually shooting for points
prizes, trophy's or money. As mentioned, it might not do any thing
to improve your shooting. Some say 95% of shooting is
between your ears.

Have fun.

[MikeyB]

Only brass I separate is nickel vs. non-nickel. Other than that I reload until they split.

[M3Stuart]

Separate brass?

Two words: Why? and; Bother.

[Clovishound]

I separate my .38 and 9mm brass by loadable and trash. I load mid loads in both for paper punching.

I sometimes segregate my .223 cases by headstamp, but haven't really noticed a difference with the shooting I do.

[Moe Mentum]

Nope, I just load them until the start to split, then toss them.

[boatbum101]

For pistol calibers lead target loads & even std press loads I do not sort out headstamps & just load until they split . For jacketed loads @ close to full pressure I sort by headstamp & load . Once I get a split case the entire lot goes in the lead load bin . Rifle I seperated , match prep ( trim to same length after 1st firing , uniform primer pockets before firing , flashholes reamed & deburred , case necks chamfered & deburred after 1st FL sizing ) & after 1st firing I neck size only ( all my rifles are bolt guns ) . Again when I start seeing splits they go in the cast load bin . Only exception is loose primer pockets . When they get loose cases are regulated to the scrap bucket & get swapped @ recycle yard for lead , tin , linotype etc .