Atkins obviously knows his stuff!

Like David Parkhill (and probably other graybeards on this list who grew-up 
in rural America), I did quite a bit of plinking from porches whilst 
growing-up. It was quite rare to have the privelege of shooting anything 
larger than .22-cal. shorts (a matter of expense), but if an uncle or 
grandfather or neighbor was willing to bear the cost of the cartridge(s), 
one never missed the opportunity of firing the larger bore handguns.

Atkins describes the EXACT method we (mainly of the Scot-Tennessee-hillbilly 
heritage) used to extract/salvage bullets and powder from misfires. We would 
always have a handy food-can (viz: usually a No. 303 can of peaches) sitting 
on the porch to receive the abundant misfires (non-fires).

After a 'mess' of misfires had accumulated in the can (and before some 
heartless uncle or cousin decided to co-opt your clean can for a spittoon) 
you sat down on the porch to "work them over." The necessary "hard surface, 
probably containing a groove" mentioned by Atkins, for us, was a convenient 
crack of "just-the-right-gap" between two floorboards. In my own case (and 
that of several cousins who I observed performing the same task), the tip of 
a sturdy hunting/skinning/butcher knife was used (attempted use of 
folding/pocket knives inevitably led to cut fingers). Lots of punctured 
casings got loose and rolled through wider cracks onto the ground beneath 
the porch (we were mainly interested in collecting the bullets and powder 
... so much less attention was paid to the brass).

I once remember peering through a crack between the porch floorboards at my 
grandfather's house and seeing a hen eat (at least it was pecking around on 
them ... can't swear it was actually ingested) one of the numerous .22-cal 
brass shell casings scattered on the bare ground beneath it.

Bob Skiles


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Cathy Spude" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 10:46
Subject: Re: Cartridge Case Question


> Hmmm...interesting responses you've gotten and all sound like viable 
> ideas.
>
> A co-worker of mine, Doreen Cooper, found a number of Colt .45 cartridge 
> cases that had been cut in a similar manner in a military context dating 
> to 1902 in Skagway, Alaska . Here is what her armaments analyst, Charles 
> Atkins, had to say:
>
> "A cut in the case, in the area that formally held the bullet, is rare but 
> not unknown in Alaska. This cut is used to unload the case and salvage the 
> powder and lead. This was accomplished by placing the loaded cartridge on 
> a hard surface, probably containing a groove to stabilize it.. Then a 
> knife like tool was placed in such a way as to cut the brass case 
> lengthwise over the bullet. The tool was then struck, cutting the brass 
> case and releasing the bullet. The bullet could then be removed and saved 
> for recasting into whatever shape or size was needed and powder could be 
> saved and reloading into another cartridge."
>
> Cooper went on to suggest that the soldiers inhabiting the small sheds 
> where these cartridges were found were salvaging bullets and powder for 
> use in personal weapons for hunting wild game in off-hours.
>
> Here is the citation:
>
> Cooper, Doreen C.
> 2004    Gold Rush Life in Skagway: The Second Avenue "Cabins." Report 
> submitted to General Services Administration, Auburn, Washington, by R & D 
> Consulting, Skagway, Alaska. p. 95.
>
> Hope this helps.
>
> Catherine Holder Spude, PhD
> 7 Avenida Vista Grande #145
> Santa Fe, NM 87508
> 505-466-1476 home
> 505-913-1326 cell
>
> "Life is not tried, it is merely survived if you are standing outside the 
> fire," Jenny Yates and Garth Brooks.
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Avery, Paul" <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 6:07 AM
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Cartridge Case Question
>
>> Hello all,
>>
>> We did some work recently at an 1830s plantation house in North
>> Carolina.  We recovered a fairly large number of cartridge cases from
>> what appears to be an early 20th century deposit.  It was located just
>> off of the front porch, so it looks like they were sitting on the porch
>> and plinking.  There were some unusual calibers, including several .32
>> Winchester Self-Loading Rifle and .22 Winchester Automatic.  The most
>> unusual thing though, was that there were more than a dozen .22 short
>> and .22 long cases that appear to have been jabbed with a knife.  The
>> cut goes through one wall of the case and runs lengthwise just above the
>> rim.
>>
>> Is this just random behavior indicative of boredom or is there more to
>> it than that?
>>
>> Someone suggested that the cases were sticking in the person's gun and
>> they used the knife to remove the case.  That makes some sense, but
>> there isn't enough space between the edge of the cut and the mouth of
>> the case on the .22 shorts for it to be stuck.  I can't imagine how they
>> managed to get the things to stay still while they punched the hole in
>> them.  Risky indeed to hold something that small and stab it with enough
>> force to puncture the case!
>>
>> I plan to try it myself as soon as I have a chance to create some empty
>> .22 cases, but in the meantime, I'd like to hear from the group.
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>> Paul G. Avery, RPA
>> Senior Archaeologist
>> MACTEC Engineering and Consulting
>> 9725 Cogdill Road
>> Knoxville, TN  37932
>> Phone: (865) 588-8544x1169
>> Fax: (865) 588-8026
>>