Brass - flood waters

[ampleworks]

Would there be any reason not to use brass that has been in flood water if they were cleaned?

[dillon]

The brass is probably fine, unless a lot of contaminants were in the floodwaters. The bigger issue is that moisture inside the spent primer can cause corrosion to the primer cup- when you deprime the case, the end of the primer and the anvil get pushed out, leaving the sidewalls of the primer still in the pocket. This fiendish occurance is usually referred to as a"ringer". If you try to seat a new primer into this pocket, the usual result is detonating the new primer.

[JimmyZip]

This is sound advice for sure. The one time I had this happen I nearly had to change my shorts. Back in the 70s we used to reload on a mobile bench in front of the TV in the living room. I was priming casings with one of those hand priming tools. POW! Everyone jumped, and I fell out of my chair.

Definitely jumbles the nerves.

[SiG Lady]

Flood waters, almost by definition, are contaminated--some quite badly so. The contaminant soup that is generated in a flood is often corrosive and hazardous in some way or another and I'd toss the brass if you can afford to.

[Chris Keen]

Brass is so cheap and easy to find on many ranges for free, why waste your time with something that is out of the ordinary?

[Sarge]

Maybe he is a brass "escort" like me.

[GrumpyOne]

Think of this...Ships bells and props are made of brass. There is very little more corrosive than a salt environment, so other than the "ringer", I'd think there wouldn't be an issue.

[SiG Lady]

Ya' gotta be a SERIOUS 'brass escort' to want to save brass that's been irrigated by cow/dog/human/other fecal waste matter, road grime, mud, motor oil/transmission lube drippings, cast-off food, overturned garbage cans, dead animals, dead people, decomposing matter of all kinds...... Think about it.

[Merlin Orr]

If it worries you send it to me....

As to the ratio of contaminates in flood waters...? If that worries you read a USDA report about acceptable contaminate levels in food....

[Sarge]

Ya' gotta be a SERIOUS 'brass escort' to want to save brass that's been irrigated by cow/dog/human/other fecal waste matter, road grime, mud, motor oil/transmission lube drippings, cast-off food, overturned garbage cans, dead animals, dead people, decomposing matter of all kinds...... Think about it.

Yuck! I draw the line at Mud and road grime!

[ampleworks]

Brass is so cheap and easy to find on many ranges for free, why waste your time with something that is out of the ordinary?

Very true...I guess it just seems like when your world is turned upside down, if brass is the one thing you can "save" it feels you make better.

Seeing the home you grown up in completely destroyed by floodwater just churns my gut.

Thanks for the input guys.

[SiG Lady]

I endured some of the major flooding that tends to happen in Western Washington all too frequently. To wake up at 0530, hearing the potted plants tinkling on the front porch because they're floating--and seeing your car submerged up over the seats--was nearly enough to give me a coronary that winter. I was lucky about the house, and FEMA paid for the car clean-up (believe it or not I was able to start it and drive it to the dealership), but many others were not so lucky... repeatedly. Flooding is AWFUL. It's exquisitely messy, it smells, its aftermath is toxic, it destroys everything it touches, it causes injury and illness and huge losses. I can relate. It's why I moved out of Western Washington.

If your sheepskin seat covers ever get wet, destroy them. The smell of the seat covers right after the water level went down was indescribable and was the only thing about the car that had to get thrown away.