What to do with handloads in calibers I don't shoot anymore?

Kirk930 said:
I have quite a few handloads left over from some rifles I've sold.

Is my only option to disassemble into components?
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If you could tell me what powder and primers were used, that is the sort of thing that I would buy to take down to components and use. But, if seller not sure what is in there, if his story does not make sense, I would pass. I have used components that were previously loaded - but, I've never fired hand loads made by someone else.

And, yes, I know that factory ammo is someone's "hand loads" - except I trust that it has been appropriately pressure tested to comply with SAAMI - I do not know any home hand loader who owns or has access to the gear to do that.
 
Here's the breakdown:

These are hand loads that I made and am now stuck with because I sold off the rifles. I was considering breaking them down, but it's an undertaking.


- .257 Weatherby: Hornady cases, and reformed Rem 7mm Mag cases, Winchester large Rifle Magnum primers, Nosler BT 115 gr. bullets, Reloader-25 powder (70.0 gr.)

- .223 Remington: Remington and Winchester cases, CCI BR4 primers, Nosler BT 60 gr. and Hornady A-Max 52 gr. bullets, Varget powder (26.0 gr)
 
Get a Hornady bullet puller and a couple of collets. Unless it's a bucket of ammo, it won't take long to pull them. Put on some music or a podcast, have a beer and pull away.
 
Hornady puller you say?

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legi0n said:
Hornady puller you say?

RkHu1tw.png
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I've seen that happen (not to me) when used to pull bullets seated with a tight crimp, surplus ammo or had been seated for a long time. The solution is to run the ammo through a seating die and push the bullet in a tiny bit further, which breaks the crimp. Like many things, if a person is "forcing it" you risk chance of breakage.
 
I recently used a kinetic type bullet puller to disassemble 20 rounds of .303 Brit handloads of u/k origin. The bullets were some kinda flat base generic 180 gr round nose soft point. Brass was old Imperial/Dominion.

The powder was purported to be IMR 4064 which it certainly 'looked like" when dumped out onto a dish. Didn't actually weigh it but all 20 loads looked to be uniform. Not worth chancing, though.

Bullets & brass salvaged, powder sprinkled on lawn during last rain shower.

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NAA.
 
NAA said:
I recently used a kinetic type bullet puller to disassemble 20 rounds of .303 Brit handloads of u/k origin. The bullets were some kinda flat base generic 180 gr round nose soft point. Brass was old Imperial/Dominion.

The powder was purported to be IMR 4064 which it certainly 'looked like" when dumped out onto a dish. Didn't actually weigh it but all 20 loads looked to be uniform. Not worth chancing, though.


Bullets & brass salvaged, powder sprinkled on lawn during last rain shower.

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NAA.
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I did about similar a couple years ago - thought that I was buying a bag of previously fired Weatherby brand 7mm Weatherby Magnum cases - was like 25 or so loaded rounds mixed in there. Did not even bother to ask seller - if he thought he was selling brass cases, not likely he would know much that was useful to me about the loaded rounds. I pulled the bullets - found 3 different weights - I believe they were Hornady brand - the Round Nose ones were identifiable before I pulled them, but I could not tell difference between 140 grain and 160 grain Spire points, until they were pulled. Might have made perfect sense to whomever did those up. I dumped out the powder - for sure two different colours - not the same to each other. Then pressed out the primers because I had no clue what they were. And found that three of those loaded cases had head stamp "270 Weatherby Magnum" - even though they were loaded with 7mm bullets. I burned off the powder and the primers. Was surprise to me about the primers - had soaked close to a year in 0W20 motor oil - and all went "pop" when I lit them with a propane torch - I had assumed they would be dead, but they were not. I never tried to fire any with impact, though - just playing the torch flame on them
 
Slimbo said:
Never tried the hornady but my rcbs collet puller works like a champ.
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My RCBS puller mars the #$%$#@ out of bullets and is so sprung it doesn't work in .30 caliber. I picked up a Forster puller at an auction and it is superior in every way.
 
Potashminer said:
I did about similar a couple years ago - thought that I was buying a bag of previously fired Weatherby brand 7mm Weatherby Magnum cases - was like 25 or so loaded rounds mixed in there. Did not even bother to ask seller - if he thought he was selling brass cases, not likely he would know much that was useful to me about the loaded rounds. I pulled the bullets - found 3 different weights - I believe they were Hornady brand - the Round Nose ones were identifiable before I pulled them, but I could not tell difference between 140 grain and 160 grain Spire points, until they were pulled. Might have made perfect sense to whomever did those up. I dumped out the powder - for sure two different colours - not the same to each other. Then pressed out the primers because I had no clue what they were. And found that three of those loaded cases had head stamp "270 Weatherby Magnum" - even though they were loaded with 7mm bullets. I burned off the powder and the primers. Was surprise to me about the primers - had soaked close to a year in 0W20 motor oil - and all went "pop" when I lit them with a propane torch - I had assumed they would be dead, but they were not. I never tried to fire any with impact, though - just playing the torch flame on them
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All of my 270 Wby brass is head stamped 7mm Wby. I would never load a larger diameter bullet than what the head stamp says for the simple reason that if I were to pass away suddenly and someone takes those 270 caes with 7mm bullets in them and fires one in a 270 Wby there will be a lot of pressure and possibly a bad accident. By only loading down in caliber then if someone takes one of my 7mm cases loaded with a 270 bullet and fires it in a 7mm then the bullet will rattle it's way down the bore without much accuracy but there should be no blow up.

I did the oil on primer thing with some 44 mag cases a few years ago and the primers were completely dead in about 8 days.
 
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