Using purchased reloaded ammo brass

[TennJed]

i am wanting to get started reloading and i am in the proocess of reading a couple of handbooks first and i have a question as i am reading.

i have been saving brass (9mm, 38/357) to use when i get started. some of the brass i have been saving (most of the 357) is from reloaded ammo i have shot that i have purchased from a local gun store. the brass itself is from assorted companies.

would you consider this safe brass to reload or should i use only brass from traditional facotry loads.

sorry if this is a dumb question or been asked before....i am still learning

thanks

[Dragon55]

Some folks say it might be overdoing it ... but any brass I get from sketchy sources gets run through tumbler and inspected closely for splits, deep cuts, and bulges BEFORE I will use them.

[Ozzieman]

I think it would depend on the caliber and what you’re loading.
I shoot 44 mags that I work up for a Contender that are so hot I only load them once and throw them away. So you need to be careful on where they come from.
If your shooting light loads then just give them a good inspection and when in doubt throw them away.
Rifle is another issue. I had a friend that gave me once fired 308 bras. (He said) I later found out that he had only reloaded them once after buying them at a gun show. Machine gun brass. Had my first case head separation with it. All that brass is now in scrap.

[Uncle Buck]

Inspect the brass for cracks, if you find any, get rid of that piece and reload the rest. That is mainly how I started reloading .45 Colt, .38/.357.

[BigJimP]

I would tumble it clean ...and then inspect / and toss out anything that was suspect ...but if there are no cracks or dents - it should be just fine.

[overkill0084]

9mm & .38/.357 brass is pretty strong as a general rule. Unless it was subjected to ridiculously hot loads, it should be fine.
As previously stated: Clean, inspect closely & enjoy.

[Sevens]

Not a dumb question (has been asked before... I think nearly EVERY question has been asked before!) and you've gotten fine answers.

A great way to build your supply of brass is to purchase already fired used brass in lots. You can find it here in the classified section of TFL and on other forums and even at some web sites.

For most handgun brass, it can be used many times over and mostly without fail.

[Nnobby45]

If you've already shot the brass, then just clean it and use it.

We all reload our used brass multiple times. Always a good idea to insepect your cases. Sometimes cracks are found in relatively new after firing. The whole case can be split.

If you pick up range brass that's once fired, that can be a good source. Be careful you aren't picking up someone's old brass they reloaded numerous times and then left there. New (once fired) brass is easy to spot.

[Cascade1911]

If you buy range brass its gonna be once-tenth fired. Who knows what it has been through. If you're gonna load for target, tumble and inspect, discard suspect brass, all is good. If you want to load hot...Use known brass. I use my own purchased commercial brass for hot stuff and range brass for my target stuff.

[TennJed]

thanks guys