What to do with Reloads?

[Bottom Gun]

My first pistol was a Colt Series 70 Mark IV in .45 ACP that I paid the full retail price of $125 for in 1971. I’ve had a number of different 1911s since and have been hand loading .45 ACP for 47 yr. It was my carry round for decades.
Lately, however, things have changed and I now carry .357 Sig and 9MM. The 1911s I shoot now are 9MM. I don’t remember when I last shot .45 ACP.

I would like to get rid of the .45 ACP reloads I have and then I can sell my Les Baer 1911, which is the last .45 cal pistol I have.
To make a long story short, I have lots of my .45 reloads that I am not likely to use. I would like to do something with them but I don’t think I can legally sell or swap them. Also, I personally wouldn’t buy reloads from a stranger.

For a split second, I considered pulling the rounds and selling brass and bullets as components but that just wouldn’t be practical. I may not live long enough to see a return from that project.

So, the choices I see so far are to shoot it all up or give it away. Does anyone have any other suggestions?

 

[XJThrottle]

Build a PCC in .45ACP.

 

[Boriqua]

I am not aware of any legal reasons you cant sell it. When I first came out here I bought a fair amount of reloaded ammo at the one and only show I went to. I am sure someone with more knowledge will come along if I am wrong. I dont know if there are any licenses you need to sell it but with ammo prices still being high I am sure someone would buy them if the price is right.

Have you checked over here to see if anyone else is selling reloads online
https://gunsarizona.com/

I like XJThrottle's suggestion though!!

Edited to add
Went over to Gunsarizona and poked around and it does seem to have some reloads posted. Doesnt make it legal but .....

 

[thom]

I was told that you need a government manufacturing license ( Probably ATF sheeeet) to sell reloaded ammo. I was going to sell some 9mm ammo that I reloaded awhile back. I hope someone here can help.
Or you can sell it for components and the buyer can do what they want with it.
But if you are giving it away, I will take it.
Thom

 

[Joe_Blacke]

If you are selling as a business you need a license.

I wouldn’t worry about it if you are just getting rid of unwanted items.

 

[AZ Yugo]

Those would make a great B-day gift to someone...LoL.
you can also offer it in trade for 9mm... just saying.

 

[Bottom Gun]

I thought about possibly trading for something but wouldn't that be considered to be like selling?

 

[Boriqua]

If you are selling as a business you need a license.

I wouldn’t worry about it if you are just getting rid of unwanted items.

I agree with Joe. Here is the ATF site

https://www.atf.gov/firearms/qa/person-who-reloads-ammunition-required-be-licensed-manufacturer

Is a person who reloads ammunition required to be licensed as a manufacturer?

Yes, if the person engages in the business of selling or distributing reloads for the purpose of livelihood and profit.

No, if the person reloads only for personal use.

While it leaves it a touch open .. as they are want to do .. by stipulating "and profit" I cant see why you couldnt sell them for material costs just to get rid of what you have.

Of course there is always the potential liability should someone get hurt but if your confident in your ammo ...

 

[TheAccountant]

Selling reloads originally made for personal use after there’s no longer a personal use isn’t illegal, regardless of whether or not there is a profit. I think the quote posted above from the FAQ makes that clear (livelihood AND profit).

I do think you need to weigh whatever proceeds you expect from the sale against the risk someone you don’t know is going to do something stupid, hurt themselves, and then blame you for it. It’s likely even a consultation with an attorney will wipe out any benefit you received from selling them.

Your best option is to sell your 1911, buy another 45 and go burn through a bunch of ammo. Your next best option is to sell them to someone you know as components that need to be torn down, just like the military used to. A person can knock out a couple hundred rounds an hour with a collet puller, which isn’t a bad deal considering the price of primers.

 

[knockonit]

sell',m or trade to a associate, as for liability, who knows, these days, you get a whiff of someones gas, and they wanna sue you, so......
i'd say find a associate with a .45 machine gun and burn that crap, one last hurrah for the old venerable 1911 ammo
Rj

 

[omegaman]

Sell it as components only if they shoot it it's on them

 

[Boriqua]

had to look up collet puller .. Cool beans that there. Only had a need for something like that once but it sure would have been nice to have. My inertia puller just wasnt up to task.

 

[BigNate]

So what does "lots" mean? 100 rounds? 1000 rounds? 100,000 rounds? That number should inform the answers.

I think that some of the other advice is good - particularly the "sell them as components" with a bill of sale as such stating that they are not being sold as functional rounds. I would think that doing this would buy you SOME cover from a legal perspective. My guess is that you've also got some PMs from folks (you might be getting one from me) saying that they are interested in buying them at a discounted rate.

Candidly - if they are rounds that were loaded within book spec and you will look me in the eye and tell me that - and the price is right - I'd consider buying them.

I miss shooting my .45s and would love an excuse to dust them off and give them some exercise...

Just my 2 cents...


Edit - another afterthought option... Before you throw them in the trash - reach out to your .45 owning buddies on AZS and say "I'm going to put together a .45ACP shoot - I have XXX rounds to go through - I'll be shooting mine - bring yours and help me get rid of these rounds. I'll be putting the same rounds through my gun - you'll be shooting at your own risk. You never know - you might make some new friends.

 

[Bottom Gun]

Thanks for the good ideas, Guys. I appreciate your suggestions.
I hadn’t considered the liability aspect. That’s an excellent point considering our current litigious society and a deal breaker for me. The risk certainly outweighs the reward.

I won’t bother pulling it. I would have to buy a collet puller since I only have an inertia puller. Also, a large number of my loads are SWC and plated bullets. I don’t think a collet puller would leave them in very good shape.

I won’t throw it away. I’ll just shoot it. I’ll make a point of practicing more with .45 cal. I won’t need to buy a different gun. I don’t think I would find one that shoots any better than the one I have now.
I had been considering having a few neighborhood shoots as suggested with free .45 ammo. I’ll probably do that.

I don’t load very many light target loads. Most of my reloads are full power loads and ALL are within spec. I use a Dillon 550 with a Lyman manual for data. Most of my loads are 200 gr bullets with either 6.5 gr Unique or 5.5 gr Win 231.

Actually, I haven’t had any PMs with any offers but I would consider selling it as components.

So, thanks again for your time and excellent advice everyone. I truly appreciate your responses. You made some good points that I hadn’t considered.
Shoot well and safely.

 

[338lapua]

I am not aware of any legal reasons you cant sell it. When I first came out here I bought a fair amount of reloaded ammo at the one and only show I went to. I am sure someone with more knowledge will come along if I am wrong. I dont know if there are any licenses you need to sell it but with ammo prices still being high I am sure someone would buy them if the price is right.

Have you checked over here to see if anyone else is selling reloads online
https://gunsarizona.com/

I like XJThrottle's suggestion though!!

Edited to add
Went over to Gunsarizona and poked around and it does seem to have some reloads posted. Doesnt make it legal but .....

Only thing you could legally do is sell them for pulldown only and make the buyer state they will pulldown the ammo on a piece of paper and sign it. Otherwise it is not legal to sell reloaded ammo without the license or the insurance that goes with it. The problem comes when someone shoots the ammo and they either have a squib and didn't know it or they had a hot load. Now you lose everything you own and get in trouble with ATF.

 

[needsmostuff]

Don't know how many you got but this could be fun.
Plus really gobble them up quickly.

https://www.hi-pointfirearms.com/hi-point-carbines/hi-point-45acp-carbine.php

I have a 10mm version and it is well worth the low price of admission.

 

[samnev]

I'd never sell my reloads. There's too much of an liability issue that might come back to haunt you.

 

[pcmacd]

I thought about possibly trading for something but wouldn't that be considered to be like selling?

If you offload some reloads, no matter the method, you are NOT in the BUSINESS of making and selling ammunition. No license needed.

Even if you have records for what went into the ammo, I surely would not personally shoot them unless I knew you well.

 

[Bottom Gun]

The liability issue remains and there is no solution to that.
I'll just dust off the old Les Baer and burn through all the ammo. Then I'll put the pistol up for sale and sell the fired brass.

 

[1bardan+]

Find someone with an M3 grease gun or Thompson. Both of you can have a fun day and at the same time empty that brass.