Do People Collect Old Shotgun Shells?

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  • calicojack

    American Sporting Rifle
    MDS Supporter
    May 29, 2018
    5,348
    Cuba on the Chesapeake
    I found these old 12 gauge shells. JC Higgins, Peters, and Hawthorne.
     

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    delaware_export

    Ultimate Member
    Apr 10, 2018
    3,144
    I have some old red 20’s in the garage someone give me when I bought a flat of modern 20 target loads. I think they’re 4? Or 5? Shot. Not much you can hunt with those loads where I am. Most places require steel/nontox as the best hunt spots are fed/state. Need to take a shotgun class with the 870/20 and use them up.
     

    trickg

    Guns 'n Drums
    MDS Supporter
    Jul 22, 2008
    14,599
    Glen Burnie
    I don't quite understand the collecting of vintage ammo. Even in my own case, I have a bunch of reloads that were loaded by my Dad - he passed away in 1997 - and I have absolutely no qualms about shooting them. I ran out of my Dad's 45 ACP reloads a long time ago, and I'm slowly working through some of the other stuff that I still have. Some of it was loaded clear back in the early 1980s - I was just a kid then. When I tell people about this, there are some who are like, "you shouldn't shoot your Dad's reloads," or "you should only shoot a few of them - save the rest." But why? Ammo is for shooting. That's why Dad loaded it. Had he lived longer, he sure as heck would have shot it!

    Ammo serves a functional purpose up to a point - there will come a time when vintage ammo becomes too old to shoot. I suppose it's interesting from an historical perspective to see the old boxes and old head stamps, but if it's saved, it loses it's functional purpose.

    I suppose the same could be said for old guns that become safe queens - what's the point if you never use them as they were intended?
     

    Cochise

    Ultimate Member
    Sep 5, 2008
    1,383
    Rockville
    Hey Trickg, for me it is either just cool stuff for decoration, or more often it is ammo I am matching with a vintage gun.
    I have several older 10 gauge shotguns that look cool with their original 2 7/8" shell boxes and I have a 10 gauge magnum Ithaca NID which is the gun the 10 gauge 3 1/2" magnum was originally built for in the 30's so having a box of original paper shells for it is cool.
    On the same note, i have a box of Argentine 11.25mm which goes with my Argentine 1927 45 auto.
    Having the ammo to go with the guns is cool, at least to me.
    I do like to shoot paper shotgun shells though, they smell so good.
     

    trickg

    Guns 'n Drums
    MDS Supporter
    Jul 22, 2008
    14,599
    Glen Burnie
    Hey Trickg, for me it is either just cool stuff for decoration, or more often it is ammo I am matching with a vintage gun.
    I have several older 10 gauge shotguns that look cool with their original 2 7/8" shell boxes and I have a 10 gauge magnum Ithaca NID which is the gun the 10 gauge 3 1/2" magnum was originally built for in the 30's so having a box of original paper shells for it is cool.
    On the same note, i have a box of Argentine 11.25mm which goes with my Argentine 1927 45 auto.
    Having the ammo to go with the guns is cool, at least to me.
    I do like to shoot paper shotgun shells though, they smell so good.
    That makes sense it becomes a collectible package - rather than just have the old gun, you also have the period correct ammo that would have been used with it.
     

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