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Price of Brass!!

hicky1300

Well-Known Member
Hi all wasn`t sure where exactly to post this so humour me if you think I`ve got it wrong!!
Still here in dreary Brussels so went out to Waterloo Market to see if anything worth buying.
Got some nice brass shell cases (75mm, 205, 40mm, 20mm, 12.7) & managed to haggle with a few of the sellers - most of them though all went on about the price of brass!!!.
I know of one other collector who has a fair few spare/damaged cases that he is keeping ready to take to the scrap yard. Seems a shame to me but I suppose that at the end of the day if it is worth more in metal value & you need the money/space then it is inevitable.
Anyway, more to the point, I was wondering if we will see a rise in prices or less brass available due to this?
Waterloo market is still great to go to - plenty of helmets, bayonets & knives - so worth a visit if your in the area on a Sunday.
I`m saving my pocket money now for the Wavre Fair 1st sat in oct.!!!
 
Scrap dealers are n't generally allowed to take shell cases unless mangled beyond recognition . There is , as usual , an EU directive that prevents the resale of brass that may be contaminated with mercury . This would include military cases due to residues from the fulminate in the primers . Please don't ask me how a few nano grammes of Hg in scrap brass could be deemed a danger to health but there you go...................
 
I saw an oil drum full of fired 9mm cases here at a scrap dealer here in the UK. I was told that they had come from a local police range.

I have a few spare 18 pounder and 40mm bofors cases that I was considering scrapping. It seems a shame but if I can't sell them then what else should I do with them?
 
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I have a few spare 18 pounder and 40mm bofors cases that I was considering scrapping. It seems a shame but if I can't sell them then what else should I do with them?

You should hang onto them, one day they will be wanted and worth more than scrap value, but of course if you want to scrap yours it will only make mine more valuable.
Best Weasel.
 
The trouble is that at every show the only type of shell cases you seem to see these days are 40mm Bofors and 18 Pounder. There are just so many of them they they are practically worthless.
 
I took in the metal remains of our old garden seat to a scrap dealer last year. In the weighing bay I saw a wooden pallet with a layer of ammo boxes that contained fired SAA - 5.56 mm & 7.62 mm, each box having its own FFE certificate. I assume that the military these days are allowed to scrap their own brass.
 
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