Shotgun shell recycling machine

[Jaakko Fagerlund]

You will have to sort the shells by size first and have a quick changeover feature so each size can be ran separately.Otherwise trying to build a machine that does all gauge casing will be a nightmare to design and build and most likely will be tough to operate without constant supervision.
There are systems designed to process contaminated plastic that are fairly simple.Shredding would be done wet,so dust isn't an issue.The shreds would have to be washed in water with strong detergents,then rinsed with hot water and finally spun through a centrifugal dryer.The contaminated water at some point would be pushed through a high pressure paper filter and the water either reused or evaporated leaving only a small amount of concentrate.The paper filter can be pressed dry and burned in an inert atmosphere to recover any metals present.

Shredding has one big advantage,it replaces one very complicated machine,with several simple ones.And one other benefit,if the odd live shell makes it through,the shredder's hopper takes the hit,instead of the complicated machine and the person running it

The machine will only deal 12 gauge, everything else is just dumped out, including live shells so that isn't an issue.

Rosco-P, there will be no recycling for the plastic, it will still ed up as landfill. It is just shredded so it takes less space in the grabage can, which means less truck runs which means less money spent on garbage collectors. Why pay more when easily can pay less

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And to get back on topic, the topic is about the mechanical portion of the machine and not about reloading or recycling issues with different things.

[macona]

Considering the scrap price of steel and having to pay to get rid of the plastic I dont think the machine would ever make it's money back. Steel is around $25-30 a ton now.

Put them in boxes and ebay them with a minimum that covers time and box.

[flylo]

Someone is slicing the heads off & selling them on ebay as snap, buttons, etc

[andywander]

It sounds to me you are Europe, here in the states all shot gun shells use steel shot . I used to shoot a lot of skeet and trap my friend and i where able to reload the plastic shells 4 times and saved at least 75% of the new cost

Yes, pretty sure Finland is in Europe....

[Gary Paine]

The machine will only deal 12 gauge, everything else is just dumped out, including live shells so that isn't an issue.

Ok, a single size makes the task more manageable in my mind. Grippers for the plastic that rely on the hoop strength (inside grip) or the crush strength (outside grip) will have problems holding because of the malleable and slippery surface on the tube. My approach would probably involve a tapered mandrel shoved into the shell that provided a backing for the case. Outside jaws then could squeeze the case against the mandrel to take full advantage of friction or serrations for grip force.

I'd spend some time developing the feeder part. The heavier steel end could vibrate from hopper right side up into a track, progress into a fixture that holds mechanically by the flange as the mandrel and grippers do their thing and so on...or not. I'd be inclined to think about gravity and vibration first, but magnets are certainly worth consideration.

Sounds like a fun project. Keep us posted.

[The Artful Bodger]

I would try a heavily barbed plunger that would grip the plastic from the inside and a pusher rod that would push the metal part away.

[Jaakko Fagerlund]

Considering the scrap price of steel and having to pay to get rid of the plastic I dont think the machine would ever make it's money back. Steel is around $25-30 a ton now.

The machine would cost next to nothing to build (for us) as we have sponsors for the range and can get stuff for free or for far less than normal Plus, it will make money as savings, as we pay every time the truck comes to collect the shells. If the same stuff fits in a smaller space, then the truck doesn't have to come around so often, so instant savings. The metal itself doesn't give anything other than pennies, but we can then say we have recycling systems in place and thus qualify for a "green" range

[ironmonger]

Stripper



just a way of removing the plastic, sounds like you had a method of feeding the cases...
looks like I just guessed the scaling right. It's large enough to almost be like shouting :>)

[Gary Paine]

I would try a heavily barbed plunger that would grip the plastic from the inside and a pusher rod that would push the metal part away.

I like the way you think. Ok, synergistically, how about a single or double ring o f barbs only. Add a tapered section to the plunger/ram such that the taper pushes outward on the radial barbs as the plunger pushes the top off. Retracting the plunger would withdraw the barbs. The barbs could be made on the lathe in a ring form and cut apart into sections that could be loosely constrained within the body similar to chuck jaws.

[The Artful Bodger]

I like the way you think. Ok, synergistically, how about a single or double ring o f barbs only. Add a tapered section to the plunger/ram such that the taper pushes outward on the radial barbs as the plunger pushes the top off. Retracting the plunger would withdraw the barbs. The barbs could be made on the lathe in a ring form and cut apart into sections that could be loosely constrained within the body similar to chuck jaws.

I am thinking that a cutter attached to the barb section would cut the plastic when the next shell was pushed on. The cutter would just be one or more blades fixed after the last barb. No need to withdraw the barbs.


Just two pieces to make and I expect one could even make a manual model to try the concept.

[fastfire]

So that amounts to 1.6 tons of metal. figure what you would get for recycling.
Bet it isn't much, not worth the effort in my mind.

[Glug]

I like that approach a lot. It seems simpler and potentially more elegant than the alternatives. It also might lend itself to processing different gauges without any changes. Longer rollers would allow multiple processing channels, increasing throughput.

Can anyone with a slip roll test the concept?

[wierdscience]

So that amounts to 1.6 tons of metal. figure what you would get for recycling.
Bet it isn't much, not worth the effort in my mind.

And it will be the lowest grade of scrap and doubtful they even will take it if given to them.
The plastic is where the money (very little) is at.

[1-800miner]

the roller idea but with a clearance groove in each roller for a rod to pop the steel off before it hits the rollers. On the back side of the rollers the rod has two cutting edges that split the plastic in two and makes room for the next shell.

[Toolguy]

I think you could just use 2 parallel rails with the rollers underneath and the shells hanging down. As the shells pass through the rollers the plastic is pulled off and falls into a bucket and the brass goes off the end of the rails into another bucket. A caterpiller type track could be used to move the shells along the rails. Then it would be a continuous feed process with automatic separation of materials.

That should be cheap and easy to make too. Of course it is always cheaper and easier if someone else is doing it!