I bought a 5 gallon bucket of range pickup brass at a gunshow a while back. What a bargain at $20. Well this evening with nothing better to do, I thought I'd start sorting just a little at a time. So I grab a few cut off powder containers and set to the task at hand.
I gotta tell ya'll, I do not have enough containers. There is brass from every corner of the known world, and some stuff I have never heard of.
Guess I'll just use the majority for some safe loaded blasting ammo.

What do you do?

mc223: methinks there are reloaders and there are handloaders. The former is often concerned with saving money while the latter orients to the load versatility and accuracy advantages. Most of us are somewhere on the spectrum between the two depending on priorities.

Initially I was attracted to the cost savings aspect but as time has passed I am far more interested in being able to tailor loads as I wish for various functions. Most of the brass I use is purchased, not only new, but in identical lots. Brass is carefully sorted, cleaned and prepped and I strive to make the resultant loaded ammo as consistent as possible, whether for plinking or competition or hunting.

With all this attention to detail, my handloads are probably no more useful in the hunting fields than those produced by any reloader. But, that's the way I like to do it.

Sortin' brass is a pain? I kinda sorta enjoy it. It's part of reloading. It comes under the heading of "Brass Preperation".....As I sort by head stamp and have choice brass set aside for those "Special Occasions". And brass that I use for "General Range Use". If you get bored sortin' all that brass, just send it to me. I can't promise that you will get any of it back though.

Handloader+1....couldn't have said it better myself

Blaine

Yep........... like handloader said. My brass is all purchased in at least 100 per lot and in some rifles different lots are used for different loads.

Bushy, what do you see as "special Occasion" stuff and "general" stuff?

A pain ,yes. But anything that get me outa da house ain't all bad. And bushmaster. I keep a stash of that special ocassion stuff.

While on the subject of Consistancy, there are variables in the intended use.
Match work gets new and lot controlled brass.
Target and load development get mfg and lot controlled brass.
Prairie Dogs get brass from the same mfg.
Tin cans get the other brass.

I do prep all my brass, Pistol and rifle in all the calibers that I use, including flash hole deburring. flash hole uniforming,and primer pocket uniforming. All of my brass is trimmed to a uniform length for uniform crimping. 100° Chamfered and deburred and sometimes for really special occasions I turn the necks, ream the case mouth, and sort by weight.
I trim the meplat to uniformity in all my HP bullets and sort by weight groups all my bullets.
I sometimes load 1 or 2 thousand rounds in a day and other days 20 special occasion rounds. Don't get me wrong I really enjoy handloading or reloading, But sorting brass is a pain!

gelandangan..."Special Occasion" brass is brass used for those serious jobs such as hunting and other needs when acuracy is a must. "General use" stuff is when you go to a range that you are sure that you won't find most of your brass and wherever you really don't care if you return with the brass. Another words "expendable" brass. Or "blasting" ammunition...

I sort it, but dont reload what I dont like, I have found that practice aint practice if you are not useing the same components you use to take game, some brass shoots diferently, I take the brass I dont use to the shop and sell to those less picky than me, use the funds raised to buy more bullets or primers.

I agree with Bushmaster… For me Sorting, trimming Weighing, De-burring, uniforming… is enjoyable… and somewhat of a comfort. The problem with “pick-up” brass is you just don’t know how it’s been treated… The cost of brass is not so high that I want to load up a poor round…