Used Shotgun Shell As Tb?

[+W4G_SOTAGoat]

My wife and I are avid sporting clays shooters. We will be going to San Antonio for the National Championships in Sep 06 and was going to do a TB to try to meet us in SA. We were thinking of a used, totally inert, empty shotgun shell hull. Is this a no-no? There's no danger since it's only a piece of brass and plastic. Used primer will be punched out also.

 

Thanks!

[4wheelin_fool]

Yes. It should be fine.

[+Renegade Knight]

Back east some states require a permit to handle that shell. However they should know that if they find it so I'd not worry about it. Here the things are just litter.

[+W4G_SOTAGoat]

What states require a permit? We've shot in competitions all over the East and have never come across such a rule. I know there are restrictions for PRIMED shotgun hulls to a few states, but I know of no legal restrictions for hulls.

 

Some people look at them as litter. They help support my subgauge habit. Normally 28ga shells are about $65 per flat (case) vs about $40 for 12ga. I save up about 500 28ga hulls and sell them for around $50 on eBay. That offsets the 28ga prices and brings it more inline with that I pay for 12ga.

[+New England n00b]

Mass requires a permit for ammunition, as I recall. Even if it is spent.

Edited November 27, 2005 by New England n00b

[+Team GPSaxophone]

Boy am I glad I live in the "Wild West". Guns and ammo are commonplace around here - no permits needed unless your weapon is concealed.

[+the hermit crabs]

Mass requires a permit for ammunition, as I recall.  Even if it is spent.

 

Yep, it was discussed in this thread in the New England forum last spring.

 

Back east some states require a permit to handle that shell. However they should know that if they find it so I'd not worry about it.

 

I had no idea about it before I read it in the thread linked above. I had picked up empty shotgun shell casings from the trails behind my house without realizing that it made me a criminal. I'd bet that only a very tiny percentage of the MA population is aware of this absurd law.

[+W4G_SOTAGoat]

That's absurd. I guess I'll put a note on it asking it not to be taken to MA due to Draconian laws on the books there.

[+Rich the Bushwhacker]

Drilling a hole in the plastic part of the shell will render it permanently unusable and that should make it ok for Mass, and other localities in the US that ban these things. I'm not sure about other countries. Malaysia and Japan have a total ban on ammo and guns.

[+BlueDeuce]

If I picked up a open ended shell casing I wouldn't think twice about it.

 

That said, how about this for a signature item?

 

Get some wooden dowel rods, cut them to length, paint'em up. Heck, you could even add some wording, like your caching name.

[+Snoogans]

That said, how about this for a signature item?

 

Get some wooden dowel rods, cut them to length, paint'em up. Heck, you could even add some wording, like your caching name.

OK. That's a very cool idea. I'm into sporting clays myself and a sig item like that would be a prize for my collection.

 

Drilling a hole in the plastic part of the shell will render it permanently unusable and that should make it ok for Mass, and other localities in the US that ban these things. I'm not sure about other countries. Malaysia and Japan have a total ban on ammo and guns.

 

I agree. A drilled shell with the primer knocked out is NO LONGER ammunition.

[+W4G_SOTAGoat]

I think what we're going to do is drill a hole in the plastic near the brass base and run the TB chain through the primer hole and then the hole in the plastic.

 

That's a pretty good idea about the wooden dowel. I'm not very artistic (my wife does my Visio drawings for work) so I'll have to play around with it.

 

Snoogans, where do you shoot at?

[+Snoogans]

Snoogans, where do you shoot at?

Mainly at American Shooting Centers (ASC) in Houston.

 

The private courses are a bit too pricey here, but I get invited to shoot at West Side G.C. about once a year. I'm still waiting for an invite to the Greater Houston G.C. and considering that I worked there (starting at age 12) for 8 years, I feel a bit snubbed.

 

(psst. - I was instructed how to shoot from NSSA/ATA Hall of Famer, Grant Ilsing, and I used to pull skeet for Jess & Terri Briley when they were perfecting their famous Briley Tubes.)

Edited November 28, 2005 by Snoogans

[+terri and billy]

Mass requires a permit for ammunition, as I recall. Even if it is spent.

That is sooo stupid. Is Mass that built up that they don't have hunters? I just can't imagine.

 

I think this sounds like a fine idea for a tb.

 

Years ago, like in the mid 70s, a bunch of friends and I would go shot clay pigeons in one of their back fields. It was a blast! We would all bring our rifles and one of the other guys would "make" his own shells and we would shot until we ran out of things to hit or shells. We also would throw model boats into the Chesapeake Bay and shot to sink them.

 

Use to drive me nuts when I would have commanders that wouldn't listen to me when we'd do live fire excerises. I would tell them, if I can see it, I can usually hit it. When given a helmet that knocks my glasses off or covers my eyes, I can't see anything! They would tell me that if I had grown up around weapons, I would know how to shoot!! Imagine the surprise when the few who did listen let me get an extra small helmet (or take it off) and I would qualify first time.

 

Terri

[ElmoClarity]

My wife and I are avid sporting clays shooters. We will be going to San Antonio for the National Championships in Sep 06 and was going to do a TB to try to meet us in SA. We were thinking of a used, totally inert, empty shotgun shell hull. Is this a no-no? There's no danger since it's only a piece of brass and plastic. Used primer will be punched out also.

 

Thanks!

Instead of using the shell as a TB and having to worry about all the crazy laws, how about doing something with a clay piegon instead? I know a normal one would be too fragile to be used as a TB. Maybe someone makes a key fob shaped one that could be used?

 

I could see where someone might be offended by the shell itself (personal feelings towards firearms, hunting, etc), but I would guess the piegon would offend fewer folks.

[+BlueDeuce]

I could see where someone might be offended by the shell itself (personal feelings towards firearms, hunting, etc), but I would guess the piegon would offend fewer folks.

I can see that some people might.....misunderstand...and have a concern about a shell casing. I know gc.com will not allow you to use a fake hand grenade, but to be offended?

 

Well, too bad for them.

Edited November 28, 2005 by BlueDeuce

[+AuntieWeasel]

I agree. A drilled shell with the primer knocked out is NO LONGER ammunition.

Ha! I wouldn't count on it in Massachusetts. You have to have a state weapons permit to buy BB's in this state! No lie. I walked into a Decathlon Sports store and tried to buy some once, to the general shock and horror of the staff.

 

However, I got pulled over for an expired registration with a trunkful of ammo, and they had to give it back to me and let me go, on account of I had a valid permit from Rhode Island. Poor Officer Friendly; he was so very, very disappointed.

[+worldtraveler]

I've had my carry-on luggage stopped and given an extra swab, sniff check, and search just for (apparently) having been in the proximity of other luggage that contained explosives or drugs on a previously flight. I'm guessing the residue from the spent propellant in a shotgun shell may trigger the screening equipment at airports; so if you decide to launch one as a travel bug, you might want to consider attaching a tag warning finders of possible complications if they try to transport it by air.

[+W4G_SOTAGoat]

I'm guessing the residue from the spent propellant in a shotgun shell may trigger the screening equipment at airports;

Nope...been there and done that. I brought back over 1000 spent hulls from a competition a couple of years ago. They did the explosives test on it and it didn't pick up a thing. I even told them beforehand what it was and they just did the test, saw a negative, and waved the container through.

[Mustcache]

Mass requires a permit for ammunition, as I recall. Even if it is spent.

That may be, but I've been here all my life and have never heard of anyone getting pinched for carrying around an empty shell.

I suppose some rookie could try to make an arrest but would be laughed at for doing so.

The cops I know have better things to do.

 

[+worldtraveler]

I brought back over 1000 spent hulls from a competition a couple of years ago. They did the explosives test on it and it didn't pick up a thing. I even told them beforehand what it was and they just did the test, saw a negative, and waved the container through.

Thanks. That's good to know. Assuming the couple of years ago was post-9/11?

[+W4G_SOTAGoat]

Yep. Dec 2002 when they were even more anal about security than they are now.

 

When we check our shotguns through, I always have to let the airline see they are unloaded (and broken down as well...easier to carry). Then I sign an unloaded declaration, put it in the case, and walk over to TSA. There they put it through the high-tech 3-D imager and the guy spins the image around for about 90 seconds and then spits it out at the other end. Sometimes they open it for a visual inspection, sometimes not. The case is locked and apparently flagged as pre-screened so that some overzealous TSA agent don't pop the lock on out $350 case.

 

At the desintation, the fun begins....

 

Since most airports have no security at baggage, I haul butt as fast as possible from the plane to baggage, sometimes leaving my wife behind in a cloud of dust. I've never had a problem with them getting safely through, but then you're sending about $9k worth of shotgun and accessories, you want to err on the side of safety.

[+Mad H@ter]

Boy am I glad I live in the "Wild West". Guns and ammo are commonplace around here - no permits needed unless your weapon is concealed.

Boy am I glad I live in the "UK"

[+BBWolf+3Pigs]

Could you cut off the plastic portion of the shell, and then stick a suitable diameter length of dowel or PVC pipe into it, and then paint it an appropriate color? A screw eye where the knocked out primer sat would be the attachement point for the tag.

[+BlueDeuce]

Boy am I glad I live in the "Wild West". Guns and ammo are commonplace around here - no permits needed unless your weapon is concealed.

Boy am I glad I live in the "UK"

[Der Fallschirmschatzjägern]

One item we often leave in caches is a spent casing of 6.5x55mm. Long story short, I used to have a Mauser chambered in that caliber, and saved all the brass in case I ever got into ammunition reloading. Sold the rifle due to financial reasons, but still had all the brass.

 

Figured it'd be a nice trinket for whomever'd want it. Whenever I go shooting, sometimes I'll pick up casings of calibers I've never seen before.

 

Plus, not very many guns use 6.5x55 Swede anymore... even if it's reshaped to 6.5x50 Japanese.

Edited December 6, 2005 by Der Fallschirmschatzjägern

[+saxdiva and mr. vibes]

One item we often leave in caches is a spent casing of 6.5x55mm.  Long story short, I used to have a Mauser chambered in that caliber, and saved all the brass in case I ever got into ammunition reloading.  Sold the rifle due to financial reasons, but still had all the brass. 

 

Figured it'd be a nice trinket for whomever'd want it.  Whenever I go shooting, sometimes I'll pick up casings of calibers I've never seen before.

 

Plus, not very many guns use 6.5x55 Swede anymore... even if it's reshaped to 6.5x50 Japanese. 

Hmm... my dad has one of those rifles sitting in a closet at home. Far as I know, it hasn't been fired in years. I should bug him to take it out sometime.

 

-Leanne

[+Colorado Cacher]

Boy am I glad I live in the "Wild West". Guns and ammo are commonplace around here - no permits needed unless your weapon is concealed.

Amen! And I do have the permit.

[+Colorado Cacher]

Yep. Dec 2002 when they were even more anal about security than they are now.

 

When we check our shotguns through, I always have to let the airline see they are unloaded (and broken down as well...easier to carry). Then I sign an unloaded declaration, put it in the case, and walk over to TSA. There they put it through the high-tech 3-D imager and the guy spins the image around for about 90 seconds and then spits it out at the other end. Sometimes they open it for a visual inspection, sometimes not. The case is locked and apparently flagged as pre-screened so that some overzealous TSA agent don't pop the lock on out $350 case.

 

At the desintation, the fun begins....

 

Since most airports have no security at baggage, I haul butt as fast as possible from the plane to baggage, sometimes leaving my wife behind in a cloud of dust. I've never had a problem with them getting safely through, but then you're sending about $9k worth of shotgun and accessories, you want to err on the side of safety.

Reminds me of the locksmith that delivered a safe to a satellite tracking military base in Co. Springs one time. Military checked all of his truck inside and outside. NEVER asked to open the safe in the back of the truck or look in it. What a nice grenade that would make with explosives in it. Kinda makes a person wonder sometimes.

[+AuntieWeasel]

When we check our shotguns through, I always have to let the airline see they are unloaded

This is the protocol for handguns, as well. You have to take it out of the case and demonstrate that it's unloaded.

 

Got that? You have to pull out a handgun at the ticket counter and rack the slide back, very likely in view of that security agent across the terminal who wakes up every morning praying that today's the day he gets to shoot somebody...

 

I haven't tried it since September 11. If I ever do again, I'm going to disassemble the bloody thing before I get there, down to its constituent springs and screws.

[+Colorado Cacher]

Just like being able to walk up to the sporting goods dept. with a bullet in your pocket and asking to look at a gun. And then...........