Question about once fired brass

[Jstudz220]

I don’t currently reload but have always felt like one day I’d like to and have been saving my spent brass after range trips. All of my brass is from factory new ammo. I collect it and store it in empty containers with a desicant pack inside. My question is, is there anything else I should be doing to the brass before storing it? Does it matter that I don’t clean it or deprime it before storing?

 

[340six]

I don’t currently reload but have always felt like one day I’d like to and have been saving my spent brass after range trips. All of my brass is from factory new ammo. I collect it and store it in empty containers with a desicant pack inside. My question is, is there anything else I should be doing to the brass before storing it? Does it matter that I don’t clean it or deprime it before storing?

No other than mark all the boxes.
And when you end up with many boxes. And have Box A,B,C,D ect. make a list of what's in Box A 9mm, Box B 45acp, C ...... so you know what ya have.
NOTE) When you get past Z put AA, when ya get past box ZZZ ya might want to sell one box. You don't want to be accused of being a hoarder

 

[Bolt Head]

I keep fired brass organized, separated by cartridge and headstamp. After tumbling they're full-length sized, primer pockets cleaned and/or corrected, flash hole deburred, trimmed to minimum length, case mouth chamfered/deburred, then a final tumble.
I wear a nitrile glove when pulling cases from the final tumble to keep fingerprints off the cases (fingerprints tarnish/corrode brass over time), wipe cases with a clean paper towel, make sure flash holes are free of tumbling media.
Afterwards cases are seperated by headstamp and labeled with every detail.

Side note: Hoarding is not illegal. LOL

 

[gunnut]

I keep fired brass organized, separated by cartridge and headstamp. After tumbling they're full-length sized, primer pockets cleaned and/or corrected, flash hole deburred, trimmed to minimum length, case mouth chamfered/deburred, then a final tumble.
I wear a nitrile glove when pulling cases from the final tumble to keep fingerprints off the cases (fingerprints tarnish/corrode brass over time), wipe cases with a clean paper towel, make sure flash holes are free of tumbling media.
Afterwards cases are seperated by headstamp and labeled with every detail.

Side note: Hoarding is not illegal. LOL

Wow!! That sounds like a full, time job!!

 

[Bolt Head]

Wow!! That sounds like a full, time job!!

Some people watch TV in their spare time, some play video games.
I prep brass in my spare time. It's a lifestyle.

 

[Bolt Head]

My brass process, step by step, in order:

1) Initial tumble.
2) Wipe cases with clean paper towel, no gloves needed.
3) Lube cases then Full-length size (decaps in this operation).
4) Clean and/or correct primer pocket.
5) Trim to minimum/trim-to length.
6) Chamfer/deburr case mouth.
7) Deburr flash hole.
8) Final Tumble.
9) Wear gloves, wipe cases with clean paper towel.
10) Clear flash holes of tumbling media.

If you're turning and/or reaming case necks, that is usually done before sizing.

 

[sksshooter]

I sort by calber. For handgun i dont sort by headstamp. Rifle i do and only load one headstamp for a particular load. Pistol doesnt much matter for my purposes. I sort my in 6qt tubs from dollar general. They will hold 1k 223, 2k 9mm/40 1500ish 45 and 357. I keep all my brass and everyone at my hunting clubs as well. I recently went through and sorted out all the stuff i will never use. Kept a couple hundred matching headstamp of calibers i dont currently have but may buy at some point and sold off/traded off everything i didnt need. Some calibers like 300wsm etc. can pull good money in the right forums. I dont store my brass with dessicant or anything. But it is in a climate controlled room.

 

[Jstudz220]

I keep fired brass organized, separated by cartridge and headstamp. After tumbling they're full-length sized, primer pockets cleaned and/or corrected, flash hole deburred, trimmed to minimum length, case mouth chamfered/deburred, then a final tumble.
I wear a nitrile glove when pulling cases from the final tumble to keep fingerprints off the cases (fingerprints tarnish/corrode brass over time), wipe cases with a clean paper towel, make sure flash holes are free of tumbling media.
Afterwards cases are seperated by headstamp and labeled with every detail.

Side note: Hoarding is not illegal. LOL

Yea I’m not there yet lol. I’m just saving because I know one day if it’s not useful to me than someone I know I’m sure would appreciate it. I use empty protein jugs that have been washed and cleaned then separate by caliber. I make sure they are completely dry before storing the brass. I labeled the top of each jug with a date, what type of brass, and how many are in the container. I throw a desiccant pack in it as well just to help with moisture. They are all stored inside in a spare bedroom.

 

[Bolt Head]

Yea I’m not there yet lol. I’m just saving because I know one day if it’s not useful to me than someone I know I’m sure would appreciate it. I use empty protein jugs that have been washed and cleaned then separate by caliber. I make sure they are completely dry before storing the brass. I labeled the top of each jug with a date, what type of brass, and how many are in the container. I throw a desiccant pack in it as well just to help with moisture. They are all stored inside in a spare bedroom.

You know how I am though. I'm addicted to going off topic. LOL

 

[Mitch Dufour]

HANDGUN
Hand gun brass is thrown into whatever is handy. Even range brass I dig up from the dirt. No sorting, no cleaning, no desiccant. When I need hand gun brass, I will sort a few thousand by caliber then clean and prep what I want to load. One exception is when I shoot new high $$ self defense nickle plated, I will keep it separated and labeled. Pistol brass is not separated by head stamp, I don't try to keep track of how many times I load it, nor is it trimmed to length . I throw obviously bad brass in a recycle bucket and load the rest. It is range fodder, not match grade ammo.

RIFLE BRASS
My bolt gun brass is handled with care and kept in labeled ammo boxes. The 556/223 for the AR's is treated the same as my pistol brass except I do trim it to length before re-loading.