Posted: 5/11/2008 1:17:29 PM EDT
| But, hey, gotta ask, right? What's the best way of getting a bullet out of a loaded cartridge when your in the field? This is in relation to using the powder as a firestarter. I know that I bullet puller would be best, but I don't usually carry one of those with me. I just tried to open up a 7.62x39 cartridge with a multitool, and I ended up having to use a second pair of pliers, one on the bullet and one on the case. Is there something I'm missing? |
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I've done it using a multi-tool. I squeezed the casing with the plier part of the tool where the round is held in the casing and it pushed the round out. Kind of like pushing toothpaste out of a tube. Cheap malable lead is alot easier to pop out with a multi-tool. If it's a shotgun shell you can easily cut into it and extract whatever you want. |
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Two ways I've used: Hold the bullet tightly in your multi tool or pliers, smack the tool on a hard surface letting the case hang into the air. Inertia drives the case off the bullet. This method isn't the safest thing in the world, but it works in a pinch. A better, faster way is to take your knife, put the edge on the case just below where the bullet ends... with the case on a hard surface (block of wood works). Then press and roll the blade into the casing, cutting it like a pipe cutter. If you blade is sharp, it takes only about 4 rolls back and forth to cut through a 9mm brass case. ETA: Edited for clarity... |
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For a rifle cartridge, hold the shell below the bullet. Push it hard against something hard, perhaps a tree. Turn it 180 degrees and push again. Then turn it 90 degrees and push, then 180 degrees and push. Repeat until you can pull the bullet out. I have done this with brass and steel case ammo. Can't do it with pistol ammo though. Toad |
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Held the case between your index finger and thumb, with pliers twist the bullet left and right till it spins, then rock it back and forth at an angle to the case until it pops out. Its not good on the bullet, but its a very unobtrusive way to get it off to get the powder. Idea is break the seal then pull the round. The old timers use to use a knife on lead rounds to cut down behind the casing crimp, then twist, and then rock off, same principle. Just a little advice though, before you bet your life on making a fire from ammo powder, I highly suggest you practice with about five grains of reloading power without tearing a round down. Its not as easy as it sounds and certainly not as easy as the movies. That little bit of powder burns really fast and your nest needs to be just right. You'll do a little better if you are use to the magnesium fire starters which pretty close to the same thing. As for using the primer and gun to start it, wow, that's one that really takes some practice. That primer puts out quite a bit of force and will blow the powder away rather than light it more often than not. I've had some great laughs watching folks try to start fires this way. Tj |