The Accurate Reloading Forums
Powder Disposal
Powder Disposal
I have just finished pulling bullets from several big bore cartridges. What is the best way to dispose of the powder? Anything wrong with flushing it down the toilet and into my septic?
"There are worse memorials to a life well-lived than a pair of elephant tusks." Robert Ruark
21 April 2005, 03:03
JBabcockJust go throw it out in the grass in your front yard.
21 April 2005, 03:25
<JOHAN>SBT
I prefer to use matches
Cheers
/ JOHAN
21 April 2005, 03:39
short44I have the same prob, I have 1/2 lb or so of AA2520 and no damm use for it any more !!! I rather through a match to it than through it out....
Dwindling the worlds lead supply one cat at a time!!
Put it in a coffee can and throw matches at it from a distance.
Be sure you are far enough away from the house and any low hanging branches. Pistol powder throws about an 8 foot flame. Really slow rifle powder is boring.
Travis F.
21 April 2005, 04:53
FjoldI'm always picking up loaded rounds at the range and I just pull the bullets and save the powder in a old can. When it gets too full I just pour a line along the cracks in the sidewalk or driveway and light it. Smokeless powder burns so slow that there's no real hazard and it gets rid of the weeds.
Frank
"I don't know what there is about buffalo that frightens me so.....He looks like he hates you personally. He looks like you owe him money."
- Robert Ruark, Horn of the Hunter, 1953
NRA Life, SAF Life, CRPA Life, DRSS lite
21 April 2005, 05:21
delloroput it on an anthill and let them incorporate it for a while....
21 April 2005, 05:32
onefunzr2Spread it thinly for fertilizer on yard or garden.
21 April 2005, 05:45
lawndartIf it is pistol powder, put it into an IMR 4381 can, shake it to mix the powders and leave it next to the coat rack at the gun show
.
lawndart
21 April 2005, 18:00
El Deguelloquote:
Originally posted by JBabcock:
Just go throw it out in the grass in your front yard.
"Bitte, trinks du nicht das Wasser. Dahin haben die Kuhen gesheissen."
21 April 2005, 19:15
CossackSeriously, this stuff is some of the best fertilizer, just spread it where it will do some good.
quote:
Seriously, this stuff is some of the best fertilizer
Seems like modern powder is made to NOT decompose easily...so how long does it take to break down when partially buried in the lawn? I hear stories about bringing up WWII ammo from shipwreacks and the cases are cracked and corroded enough to open with a fingernail, and the powder lights immediately and easily when hit with a match...
I need to run an experiment or 3, but my gut instinct is that it is quite a while, even in our S. Texas heat!
Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.
21 April 2005, 21:52
DodisCDH,
Having been in South Texas in the summer, you had better finish those experiments before June, or it may ignite on it's own!
Mike
22 April 2005, 04:53
onefunzr2I have not run any experiments so this is mostly conjecture, but what causes other organic compounds in the soil to decompose? Microbes! All those tiny balls, flakes or cylinders are getting gobbled up by microbes releasing NPK into the soil for the plants to uptake.
I don't know about it being the best fertilizer but I can damn sure guarantee it's the most expensive!
If you store your gunpowder in a cool, dry enviroment like is recommended it will last for decades.
22 April 2005, 09:12
500grainsquote:
Originally posted by lawndart:
If it is pistol powder, put it into an IMR 4381 can, shake it to mix the powders and leave it next to the coat rack at the gun show
.
lawndart
Hey, are you the guy who has been leaving loaded rounds of 30-06 at the range stuffed with a full charge of Bullseye powder?
22 April 2005, 10:45
Bigdog2I'm too much of a fire bug. Pour a long line of it out and touch a match to one end. Keep it a distance from any thing combustible, it is a hot flame.
22 April 2005, 20:09
OddBall2I put all my disposable powder into a clearly marked can until I get about a pound. When the desired amount is aquired it goes into a pickle jar or any glass or metal container with a
slightly resticted neck and drop a lit punk or cigarette in and let her go. The results are quite spectacular.
quote:
Originally posted by 500grains:
quote:
Originally posted by lawndart:
If it is pistol powder, put it into an IMR 4381 can, shake it to mix the powders and leave it next to the coat rack at the gun show
.
lawndart
Hey, are you the guy who has been leaving loaded rounds of 30-06 at the range stuffed with a full charge of Bullseye powder?
I think he works on the show "Candid Camera".
23 April 2005, 06:25
baboonWork it into cigerettes and give them to people who always leach a smoke.Its even more fun on the homeless beggars on street corners.Especially if they are really drunk.
Cry 'Havoc,' and let slip the dogs of war;
That this foul deed shall smell above the earth
With carrion men, groaning for burial.
23 April 2005, 12:57
Ropesmix it with tannerite...
