Once Fired Brass: Never Let Your Guard Down

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sigshepardo

New member
I went to a gun show a while back and found a old man selling reloading supplies. I asked him if he had any .45 ACP large primer brass. So he gave me 4 bags of 250 once fired brass. I quickly inspected the brass and paid the man.

Tonight I decided to put all that brass in with the rest of my stock. Upon closer inspection I saw a couple of small primer cases in with the rest. So I had to go through all four bags and inspect every case. Turns out he even sold me about 250 .40 S&W cases and about 30 small primer .45 ACP cases. So at the end of the day I only got about 730 large primer .45 cases.

Moral of the story, don't ever let your guard down when buying reloading components like this. I wasn't careful enough and got ripped off.
 
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lamarw

New member
I feel for you and have had similar experiences but not to such a large degree.

Brass is at a premium right now, and depending upon the price you paid may determine how badly you were ripped. The last thousand .45 ACP I bought was around 80 bucks including shipping cost. I have encountered about forty small primers in the five to six hundred I have reloaded.

It seems the onset of small primers in .45 will become even a larger headache for both sellers and buyers. I think we would all like to have a piece of the SOB who started the episode of small primers in .45 brass.
 
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Lemmon

New member
Was he grinning when you walked away from his table after you gave him your hard earned cash. I have been duped a few times myself........

Lemmon from Rural South Carolina....
 
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kilimanjaro

New member
I have heard enough stories about 'once-fired' brass at shows, that I will never buy it. I'll buy it from a friend, not a dealer. Don't trust 'em, sorry about that, but how it is.
 
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medalguy

New member
If it's pistol brass it probably doesn't matter if it's really once fired or not. I don't track how many times I reload my brass, but I have some .45 brass that I can't even read the headstamp any more it's been reloaded so many times. You're probably going to lose the brass before you wear it out.
 
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A pause for the COZ

New member
Usually when I get once fired 45 brass. If its range pick ups I expect some small primer pocket ones. and my offer reflects that knowledge.
Some places will hand pick them for you, but you pay for that service.
I have a few hundred in a big baggie, that I will reload when going some where I wont collect my brass. or I may trade it.

I almost always get a few 40's in the mix. 250 is allot though. How old were his eyes? May be he couldn't tell.

I am glad I got all the pistol brass I want when I could find it for 500 shipped for $35
I have seen what some of these yah hoos are asking now.

Worst I have done so far was being desperate for 303 brass. I purchased 200 off the web as once fired. What he meant was once fired past the last time I should have reloaded it.

Oh well have won more than I have lost.
 
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RC20

New member
I would not get all that excited about it.

You buys your tickets and youse takes your chances, thats why its a lot less money. If you paid full boat then.......

Its buyer beware and willing to take your lumps (the stuff could have been 20 fired for all anyone knows).

I would say you let yourself be had. If you got 700 some good once fired cases out of it then you came out a lot further ahead than you could have.
 
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chris in va

New member
I've only expired one MRE at Basic training. That was enough.:p

But anyway, save those SPP 45's. Sell/give them to someone that loads 9mm, such as myself.
 
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david_r

New member
I would be annoyed if I had purchased that brass sight unseen. Then I would just turn around and sell it on craigslist.

How did you miss that 25% of the cases were 40S&W? The brass was right in front of you.
 
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Cascade1911

New member
30 small primer 45's out of 1000 I wouldn't worry too much about. Now, when I bought 1000 pcs from Cheyenne Brass, and got about 160 pcs of small primer..... And then he wanted me to pay shipping back so he could replace them.....after I spent a bunch of time sorting 'em..... I don't do business or recommend Cheyenne Brass.

Now 250 40 s&w? Were they mixed in the four bags or was one bag all 40's?
 
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CMD-Ky

New member
I ordered .38 cal brass from Powder Valley. All of it arrived nickel plated with several .32 cal mixed in with the .38's. Fortunately, I inspected them before loading but I was not pleased with the nickel or the 32's.
 
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smuckie

New member
Another dumb question

Anyone have any 44 mag brass collecting dust they would like to get out of the way, just ordered a new Rossi model 92 44 mag and starting to get ready to reload some bigger ammo, thanks
 
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schmellba99

New member
Small primer .45 ACP is the debil!

I hate whomever decided that it was a good idea to go and screw up a perfectly good thing. It never fails that when I'm reloading, about 1 out of every 100 will end up being small primer. Stops the press cold and just is a PITA.

I'll have to start inspecting it one of these days before I jump into loading up a bunch - never used to have to worry about it. All small primer .45 ACP goes straight to my scrap bin. I want all of it removed from existence, so I refuse to trade or sell it.
 
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Live45

New member
I recently purchased 100 LP .45acp brass from https://www.diamondkbrass.com/home.php They offer the option of tumbling with or without the primers being removed. Being as I'm cheap, I ordered just the regular LP variety and what I got was 102 LP tumbled brass. Really happy as they were $15 per 100. I'll buy from these guys again.
 
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wpsdlrg

New member
Maybe you got "ripped off".....and maybe not. Perhaps the "old man" you dealt with just made a mistake. Maybe his eyesight isn't what it used to be (I know how that feels). No matter how careful I am in collecting range brass, which is where I get the vast majority of my 9mm brass, I ALWAYS end up with some 40 cal. cases.....and occasionally, a few 45 acp's in the lot. 40's and 9's are close in size and easy to mistake, if you don't look at every headstamp. Likewise, 40's and 45's can be hard to distinguish from each other. Lastly, I always had difficulty, when I loaded 45 acp, in sorting the LPP and SPP brass - they look so similar and the longer you look at them, the harder it is to tell.

So, just maybe, you were not actually undone by some master swindler....but instead are the "victim" of one (of the many) of us who isn't perfect. Just sayin'......
 
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