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Any good tricks for sorting range brass?

RustyNailRustyNail Member Posts: 803 ✭✭✭✭
edited February 2007 in Perry Shooter Competition Shooting and Reloading Forum
I have had the good fortune of catching my range an inch deep in mostly handgun brass. I must have collected 100# or so before culling the steel, shotgun shells etc. I have been keeping two tumblers going for about three days. Now I have about 80# of assorted brass to sort. Any of you have any shortcuts for sorting?
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Comments

  • PearywPearyw Member Posts: 3,699
    edited November -1
    I usually sperate them by caliber before I seperate by headstamp. I usually get a number of plastic bowls and place them in a semicircle on my workbench around a bigger bowl that I keep at least half full of the brass I am sorting. As a bowl gets full I dump it into a plastic bag, one for each caliber. I like to have a bright light overhead to aid in quickly deciding what is what.
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  • sandwarriorsandwarrior Member Posts: 5,453 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Rustynail,

    Check to see if it is Berdan primed and throw it away if it is.... Oh well, a new stem wasn't that much.

    I separate as much by caliber as I can when I'm picking it up. Take three or four 1 gallon freezer bags with you. When you hit into a differnt pile of brass type have the bags right there on the bench. Other than that it's just looking at the headstamp and what I want for good groups goes into one bag. What I just shoot all gets mixed. So I have a .40 good and a .40 mixed and a .45 good and a .45 mixed.
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  • Tailgunner1954Tailgunner1954 Member Posts: 7,734 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Shortcuts?
    My wife sorts mine, but if you have a couple of carpet crawlers they can do it for you.
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  • jonkjonk Member Posts: 10,121
    edited November -1
    My local indoor range has a brass sorting machine that automatically sorts to (I think) 9mm, 40, 45, 38, and a few others maybe.... I haven't seen it in action yet though. Would be nice....

    I would think that if you had a tray with changeable bottom and started off with small holes (i.e. remove 22s), then larger step by step, if you shook it enough it would sort it.

    But more trouble than it is worth I'd say. I'd stick with using a magnet to get out the steel stuff, then hand sorting a few hundred at a time. Personally I don't sort by brand, but then I don't shoot competitively, I just wanna blast for fun- at least for handguns.
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  • BHAVINBHAVIN Member Posts: 3,490 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I hate setting through a whole movie doing nothing. I save my brass for when we watch a movie and then I set on the floor and seperte brass into piles on an old sheet. I sort mine before I tumble because I hate brass getting stuck together like 9mm in 40 and 40 in 45.
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  • RustyNailRustyNail Member Posts: 803 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    BHAVIN
    I would like to sort before trumbling but mine is mixed with cigarrette butts, perhaps tobbaco spit etc. I sping mine in a media seperator to get rid of the sand, cigarette butts and 22 cal cases and then I rinse/dry and then through the tumbler. I pull apart the telescoping brass and run em through a second time.

    Jonk
    I like the idea of using a magnet--I have one of those broad magnets on a stick like a miniature runway cleaner--I'll definitely try that.

    SandWarrior
    I forgot about those Berdans--I'll have to remember to check. come to think of it, I CAN selectively sweep areas for different caliber piles and put a significant dent in the sorting process by pre-segregating--I'll try that (next time[;)])

    PearyW
    The bowl sort is pretty much what I'm doing now only with thirty different calibers thats a lot of bowls. I think I could at least snatch out all the rifle brass into one pile, take out everything else that does not resemble 9mm/40/45--you know the belted cases and that would leave me with three managable categories to start from.

    Tailgunner1954
    The last time I "farmed out" my sorting I ended up buying a new decapping die after attempting to size/decap a 45 with a 9mm stuck in it but I like the idea[:D]

    Thanks to all for your suggestions.
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  • B17-P51B17-P51 Member Posts: 2,248 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Please be careful using range brass. I am a really cheap SOB and when I leave brass lay, IT'S FOR A REASON!
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  • victorlvlbvictorlvlb Member Posts: 5,004
    edited November -1
    The city range sells whats not picked up, to the recycle company.What do you do with the brass you don't use.
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  • RustyNailRustyNail Member Posts: 803 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Victorlvlb
    There is a guy who makes his livelihood re-selling brass collected from my range. He sells a good deal of it to reloaders and the remainder as scrap brass. I sweep up whatever I want and give him the leftovers. My brass eventually ends up back on the range so I'm not really biting into his action. The Range is "free" so it doesn't charge (or collect) for range brass.
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  • jonkjonk Member Posts: 10,121
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by B17-P51
    Please be careful using range brass. I am a really cheap SOB and when I leave brass lay, IT'S FOR A REASON!
    Absolutely, be careful. But it is 'safe' IF you inspect each case for cracks or other signs of incipent failure, measure and if need be trim, and note when you seat the primer of the pocket is loose. Not to mention sort by caliber, berdan/boxer, etc. If you don't plan on doing all this, yes, leave it lie.
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