This time I will tell you how to make a keychain cartridge. The keychain itself is made from parts of spent cartridges, and has a more “alive” appearance than machine-made Chinese-made cartridge keychains.
What do we need? A fired cartridge case and an undeformed bullet of the same caliber as the cartridge case. Everything else is just trifles.
What did I use? In order to make the keychain less bulky, I took a modern steel casing from a hunting carbine (caliber 7.62 x 39). But the bullet is old, from the Great Patriotic War, from a Mosin rifle... If you use the original cartridge case from a three-ruler, the keychain will be 75 mm long, but in my case it turned out to be only 60 mm.
It would seem that it couldn’t be easier, insert the bullet into the cartridge case, just business... Here lies a little secret. After shooting, the neck of the cartridge case increases slightly and the bullet simply will not hold in it any longer, it will fall out.
I tried many ways: rolling it somehow, crimping it... This all spoils the presentation, and the bullet still dangles... But, after much torment, I found a way. We drill a small hole in the bottom of the bullet and screw in a thin self-tapping screw so that it is no longer than the sleeve itself:
In order to connect all this, we need the so-called “cold welding”, which is sold in many hardware stores.
So, we prepare a small amount of “cold welding” and push it into the sleeve so much that there is still enough space for the bullet and screw. Carefully twisting, insert our bullet with the “tail” into the cartridge case to the desired level, level it so that nothing is crooked and wait until everything dries.
When the “welding” hardens, our keychain will become a single whole. Using a thin drill, you need to carefully drill a through hole at the bottom of the sleeve for the ring. Here it is important to make everything smooth and not crooked. Then, after all these movements, we clean and polish our “cartridge”. I used a drill with attachments for this, it is in the photo below (the keychain is not glued or drilled there yet, do not pay attention).
To complete the work, insert a ring into the drilled hole. You can use whatever you have on hand, I used a steel half ring.
What a cartridge is is known to many, in particular the male half. And what it is intended for is also known. But today we will use the ammunition peacefully and make a keychain out of the cartridge with our own hands.
A 5.45 caliber cartridge is ideal for manufacturing: its height is only 56 mm and it seems that a keychain of this size would be just right. For example, if you use a 7.62 caliber cartridge, it will be two centimeters higher than 5.45 and will be inconvenient in your pocket with keys. Well, at least that's what we think.
The problem is that the ammunition is real and you need to act very carefully and carefully so that you don’t have to call an ambulance, and a little later, already in a hospital bed, explain to the police all the intricacies of your craft.
So what tools do we need? Here, first, let’s clarify a little: we are talking about a keychain with our own hands, which means we will try to use a simple tool, one that almost everyone has. We definitely don’t need any kind of machine or complex mechanism - everything can be found in your workshop or in a tool box. At worst, you can buy something or ask a neighbor.
The photo shows the tools we used: 
Two slats. We have them with a cross section of 40*20 mm, but this is not important. A centimeter more or less does not matter much, because their role is simple: to hold the cartridge in a vice.
Sandpaper. It is advisable to use the finest grain that can be found. We also recommend using a fabric-based abrasive, because the paper will quickly become unusable. We will use sandpaper to polish the cartridge.
Acetone and a couple of cotton swabs. By the way, we will start making a keychain with our own hands from them - acetone will dissolve the red marks on the bottom of the cartridge and in the area where the bullet enters the cartridge case.
Skin trim. Very excellent material for polishing. In our case, a piece of leather belt will be used.
Core and hammer. Any sharp object, such as a nail, will also work. You will need to deactivate the capsule later, so look around for such things.
Vise. At least small, but they are needed. It will be difficult without a vice, and if suddenly you don’t have one, then find at least a couple of clamps.
Drill and drill. You will need to make a hole in the keychain for the ring. We used a drill with a diameter of 3 mm and a drill, which can be replaced with a screwdriver.
Felt attachment for drill. Also for polishing, although sometimes a piece of leather is enough. But still, it wouldn’t hurt to polish our keychain – beauty plays its role.
DIY keychain: step-by-step instructions
The first thing we'll start with is removing the red varnish on the cartridge. Some may say that there is no point in this, since further cleaning and polishing will remove the varnish. To some extent this is true, but from experience we know that it is better to remove the varnish with acetone at the very beginning of working on the keychain. Here's a photo of what comes out of it: 
it is clear that the bullet has been completely cleaned and we have already made polishing easier. Don’t forget to wipe the bottom of the cartridge with acetone; there is also red varnish around the primer.
Now we move on to the most crucial moment from a security point of view. You will need to drill into the cartridge to remove the gunpowder from inside. Let's make a small explanation about this: there are probably those who would prefer to pull out the bullet and not take risks with drilling. However, then it will be difficult to clamp the bullet back to its original place without scratching the cartridge case. That's why we decided to drill.
However, if you act carefully, there will be no consequences. In our understanding, the word “carefully” means low rotations of the drill chuck, precise guidance of the drill and a complete lack of haste.
We clamp our workpiece in a vice through wooden slats: 
The photo shows that before this we drew a line on the bars to make it easier to align the cartridge and thus drill as accurately as possible in the center. Also, a hole was drilled in advance on the first rail - it turned out to be a kind of guide.
You need to clamp the cartridge in a vice firmly enough. There is no need to be afraid - the gunpowder does not detonate, and even if you really wanted to, you would not be able to flatten the cartridge through the rail. We attach the drill and begin the operation at low speed: 
It is important to apply moderate pressure here so as not to break the drill, and also to feel the tool in your hands. As soon as the first wall is drilled, turn off the drill or screwdriver and unscrew the vice. Through the hole made, it is necessary to pour out all the gunpowder that is inside the cartridge. Naturally, there should not be any source of fire nearby. 
You can figure out what to do with gunpowder yourself. You can flush it down the toilet, scatter it in the wind, or simply set it on fire later to admire the fire. But now the cartridge is almost not dangerous and you can more safely continue drilling the second wall of the sleeve. To do this, we again clamped the cartridge between the slats, and so that it would accurately fall into its original place, we put it on the drill and only then clamped it in a vice: 
Now you can pull out the drill, insert it into a drill or screwdriver and continue drilling. The pilot hole, if it is made correctly and the chuck is installed correctly, will not allow you to drill along a curve. If you do everything correctly, you will get a neat hole running through the center of the cartridge: 
Now you should deactivate the capsule. By itself, it does not pose any particular danger until you hit it with a sharp object and a strong enough blow. But you never know what can happen in your trouser or jacket pocket, so let’s not take any risks. To deactivate we will use a hammer, a core and a vice with slats. As before, the chuck should be firmly clamped in a vice, but it is advisable to install it so that the drilled holes are not blocked by the slats. During a mini-explosion of the primer, a small amount of gases are released and they can slightly loosen the bullet - we don’t need this. 
For purely aesthetic reasons, try to install the core in the center of the capsule. There is no need to be afraid - you will expect at most a loud bang that even the neighbors will not really hear. One sharp blow with a hammer on the core and your workpiece is no longer completely dangerous. A small amount of smoke, a slight soot on the cartridge itself, but the danger has completely passed. 
The photo shows that we “missed” quite a bit, although this is no longer so critical. Now let's start sanding and polishing. We decided to simplify our task and clamped the chuck into the drill. And the instrument itself, in turn, was clamped in the same vice: 
And again we will make a small digression to clarify the need for grinding and subsequent polishing. Of course, the cartridge (or rather, an object that is visually similar to the cartridge) can already be used as a keychain. But during operation, the green paint will definitely peel off from the sleeve. Moreover, it will not be a completely cleaned surface, but rather a thickly scratched one. That's why we decided to remove the paint right away.
During the grinding process, certain conditions must be met:
The workpiece should not be tightly clamped in the drill chuck. Otherwise, marks will appear on the sleeve that will be difficult to remove. It is better to completely abandon the clamp with a key and trust the force of your hands.
The groove at the bottom of the case will require particularly careful grinding. You may need to fold sandpaper in half or even use a small needle.
Don't forget to sand the bottom part where the capsule is located. There are also recesses that are difficult to reach.
Only the sleeve is polished! If you start touching the bullet even with fine sandpaper, it will match the color of the cartridge case. And here the peculiarity is that the bullet remains red in color, and the cartridge case becomes silver. 
In the photo above it is noticeable that it is better to periodically turn on the reverse on the drill - pay attention to the remaining paint on the left side of the hole.
Having sanded one side, rearrange the workpiece and start using sandpaper again. As in the previous case, do not tighten the future keychain too much - only with your own hands and no key. 
Polishing is the longest step in the entire production of a keychain. The most interesting thing is that there is no understanding of when to stop. For example, if all the previous stages took us about 10 minutes, then polishing “stole” about an hour of time. And this is not the limit: more polishing could be done. At least that's what we think. 
And this is what happened after more than one hour of work: 
keychain from a cartridge, which was made entirely by hand. If anyone thinks that such a product will quickly succumb to corrosion, then they are mistaken. The keychain will polish itself during use, constantly being either in your pocket, or in your purse, or simply in friction with the keys. But the bullet itself will lose a little color and become a little duller. 
However, this is not so critical and can always be polished if desired. You can also try making a personalized keychain by etching a name on it. Here the imagination is limitless: even the number of the unit where you served, even a drawing, even the famous “For the Airborne Forces,” even the logo of your car. Or you can even turn the keychain into a pendant and put a chain through it instead of a ring. In any case, this DIY keychain turned out to be beautiful and quite original. Much better and more interesting than a cartridge turned to size on a lathe.
latest comments
“I’ll tell you how to make a keychain-cartridge. The keychain itself is made from parts of spent cartridges, and has a more “alive” appearance than machine-made keychain-cartridges made in China.
What do we need? A fired cartridge case and an undeformed bullet of the same caliber as the cartridge case.
What did I use? In order to make the keychain less bulky, I took a modern steel casing from a hunting carbine (caliber 7.62 x 39). But the bullet is old, from the Great Patriotic War, from a Mosin rifle. If you use the original sleeve from the three-ruler, the keychain will be 75 mm long, but in my case it turned out to be only 60 mm.
It would seem that it couldn’t be easier, insert the bullet into the cartridge case, that’s all. Here lies a little secret. After shooting, the neck of the cartridge case increases slightly and the bullet simply will not hold in it any longer, it will fall out.
I tried many ways: rolling it somehow, crimping it. This all spoils the presentation, and the bullet still dangles. But, after much torment, I found a way. We drill a small hole in the bottom of the bullet and screw in a thin self-tapping screw so that it is no longer than the sleeve itself:
In order to connect all this, we need the so-called “cold welding”, which is sold in many hardware stores.
So, we prepare a small amount of “cold welding” and push it into the sleeve so much that there is still enough space for the bullet and screw. Carefully twisting, insert our bullet with the “tail” into the cartridge case to the desired level, level it so that nothing is crooked and wait until everything dries.
When the “welding” hardens, our keychain will become a single whole. Using a thin drill, you need to carefully drill a through hole at the bottom of the sleeve for the ring. Here it is important to make everything smooth and not crooked. Then, after all these movements, we clean and polish our “cartridge”. I used a drill with attachments for this, it is in the photo below (the keychain is not glued or drilled there yet, do not pay attention).
To complete the work, insert a ring into the drilled hole. You can use whatever you have on hand, I used a steel half ring.
Many things are made from live ammunition: pendants, key rings, crosses, pens, headphones, laser pointers and even glass bottle openers. Let’s not now indulge in arguments about which from this list will look better and more beautiful - you know what the taste and color are. It’s better to try to make a keychain from a 7.62 mm cartridge, we’ll try to do it only with our own hands, without resorting to outside help.
First, a few safety suggestions. Whatever cartridge is in front of you (we mean caliber) is a certain danger. You can hold the cartridge in your hands, put it in your pocket, or even juggle it - we assure you that nothing bad will happen. But in our case, a number of operations are assumed in order to turn the cartridge into an absolutely harmless thing, and during these operations anything can happen. What you read below seems like harmless pampering and a simple matter. However, in reality, it is better to refrain from such actions and thereby insure yourself against broken eyes, severed fingers or lacerations. In our case, everything went without consequences, since we have some experience of “dealing” with ammunition. But our method cannot be called completely safe - if a stick shoots once a year, then you should be even more wary of a live cartridge.
From words to deeds
Let's move on to making the keychain and first take a closer look at the blank for it. In front of you in the photo is a 7.62 caliber cartridge, and those of you who served in the army have probably seen it in person. 
The bullet in it is simple, with a steel core, and this makes our work easier - we don’t have to worry, as we would with an incendiary or tracer bullet. Why exactly 7.62? Firstly, for a keychain this is, in our opinion, the most optimal size. And secondly, such a product looks much more solid than, for example, a 5.45 mm cartridge.
Since we are talking about self-production, a set of tools should not require any specific equipment. And in fact: if you work with your own hands on just one keychain, then why do we need machines? Take a look at the photo - this is the entire set we needed. 
What is it and why:
A hammer and core will be needed for just 5-10 seconds of work. With their help, we deactivate the cartridge primer.
Sandpaper, GOI paste and a felt attachment for a drill will help you sand and then polish the product. In truth, these are the most important tools, since you will have to work with them the longest.
Electrical tape will protect the surface of the bullet from scratches – we’ll talk about this below.
A drill (you can use a screwdriver) will save us strength and time. It is desirable that the model have a speed controller, although this is not so important.
Any vice will do. As a last resort, if you don’t have them, you can use clamps.
A pair of bars will perform two functions: they will protect the cartridge from dents and help accurately drill holes. The selection of bars in size depends on the width of the vice spread. In our case, slats with a cross section of 20*35 mm were used.
Manufacturing process
First, we remove the red varnish that is present in the bottom of the cartridge and at the point where the bullet enters the cartridge case. 
Since it is applied into recesses, it will be difficult to remove it by sanding. The bottom part deserves special attention - it is very difficult to remove the varnish from there with sandpaper or a felt attachment alone. It's simple: we steal acetone from our wife (or ask officially), moisten a piece of cotton wool and wipe the mentioned places on the cartridge. This stage took us no more than a minute.
Next, prepare the wooden blocks. The chuck will be sandwiched between them so that a hole can be drilled to mount the ring. It is advisable to do three things: draw a couple of lines to control the drilling process along them; pre-drill a hole of the required diameter in one block (depending on the diameter of the ring) and in the right place; squeeze an object resembling a cartridge in size between the bars - there will be a dent in which the cartridge will conveniently “lie”. 
Now comes a very important job: we have to drill a hole near the bottom of the cartridge. We set the speed to the minimum so as not to heat the cartridge case and thereby cause ignition of the gunpowder. Only the first wall of the sleeve needs to be drilled. 
When the hole is ready, remove the cartridge and shake out the gunpowder. In our case, the hole was 3 mm, but the gunpowder categorically did not want to be shaken out and literally fell out bit by bit. 
But it’s better to work slowly than to drill a hole that’s too large—let’s not forget about aesthetics either. After all, a hole that is too large will look like a gaping hole if the ring dangles in it.
Having made sure that there is no gunpowder inside the cartridge, you can again clamp the future keychain in a vice, as was done in the previous step, and drill the second wall of the cartridge case. The photo shows that the holes turned out to be even, on the same axis and right next to the capsule socket. 
In principle, the cartridge is no longer a cartridge at all, because its integrity has been compromised. However, the capsule interferes with us - when grinding, it can ignite due to heat. Therefore, the next step is to deactivate it. Everything is simple here: we clamp the cartridge between the bars in a vice, just install it so that the holes do not rest against the wood. 
When the capsule fires, a certain amount of gases are released. They will put pressure on the walls inside, looking for a weak spot. As a result, either the reliability of the bullet’s fastening will be slightly compromised (we don’t need this, the keychain should be solid and not loose), or the capsule will pop out (we also didn’t really want it). That’s why we place the cartridge exactly as in the photo.
Hammer and core are our next tools. For aesthetic reasons, it is best to install the core strictly in the center of the capsule. 
It is better to try to hit with a hammer from the first swing, so that the core does not “move” to the side. It is quite possible that you will have to hit it several times (that’s exactly what happened to us), but it is the first hit that will decide whether the dent on the capsule will be in the center or in another place. By the way, a very important point: there can be several blows and the capsule can be considered deactivated only after a characteristic bang, reminiscent of the explosion of a weak firecracker. Sometimes even a deep dent is not enough and you have to make one or two more gentle blows with a hammer on the core. Light cotton, just a little smoke and that’s it – the cartridge is completely safe and now you can work with it safely. 
If everything written above took no more than 5-7 minutes, then the following stages take much longer. Sanding and polishing are for the patient. It’s also good if you have to work not only with your own hands and have a drill. Otherwise, the last stage will take you several hours. We decided to protect the bullet from scratches by wrapping it with electrical tape. 
Logic dictates that this was the right decision.
We clamp the drill in a vice, insert the chuck and prepare the sandpaper. 
Now let's digress a little to clarify for you our vision of grinding and polishing. You can work just a little to ensure that the cartridge remains the same color as it was originally and shines pleasantly after processing. But we decided to remove any traces of the reddish color and make the keychain a beautiful steel color. To do this, it was necessary to remove the coating from the surface of the sleeve using fine-grained sandpaper, and to give a glossy shine using GOI paste and felt. 
It is noticeable in the photo that even the first touch with sandpaper produces results - the protective coating gradually wears off. There are only two pieces of advice here: you need to remove as much paint as possible from the surface of the cartridge and not overdo it, so as not to erase some parts (the bottom, the bullet or the cartridge case). If you work with sandpaper in one place for too long, you can change the geometry of the cartridge, which is undesirable. 
Also note that it will not be possible to clamp the chuck into the drill from the bottom if the drill is designed to work with a maximum of 13 mm drills. Firstly, you need a large drill chuck (the bottom is slightly larger than 14 mm in diameter). And secondly, the jaws of the drill chuck will not be able to reliably hold our product by the narrow bottom part alone. So grinding and polishing the bullet will be done with your own hands in the full sense of the word. 
It took us an hour and a half to make this keychain. In this case, 98% of the time was spent on polishing. Look at the photo - do you like it? 
Agree that there is something in this: the cartridge, which until recently was a combat cartridge, has become a peaceful keychain in a very original color design. And if you add the satisfaction of working with your own hands, then these 90 minutes were definitely not in vain.
Nuances and clarifications
If you study the issue of making a keychain from a cartridge with your own hands, you can come across several options. Someone pulls out the bullet for greater safety and ease of removing gunpowder; someone boils the cartridge before drilling to eliminate the possibility of gunpowder igniting; someone refuses polishing in order to preserve the original color of the cartridge; someone does not drill the cartridge all the way through, but solders the ring mount onto the primer socket. In short, there are several options and each of them is good in its own way. Our version of the keychain seems no worse, and maybe even better, than other options.
For example, we refused to pull out the bullet for a simple reason: the factory rolling reliably holds the bullet. If it is loosened and pulled out, the reliability of the fastener will be lost. It is difficult to restore this same reliability at home. You can try to compress it with pliers, but scratches may remain, and the bullet will still become loose over time. 
The idea of completely erasing the paint, it seems to us, has the right to life. Over time, the keychain will certainly become covered with small scratches, which can easily be removed by re-polishing. If the paint remained, it would still have to be removed to restore the appearance of the product. In addition, we have long noticed that the red coating of the 7.62 caliber cartridge fades over time.
In general, we consider our version of making a keychain from a live cartridge entirely acceptable.
People... I need help with advice.
I bought a few of these keychains as gifts. They are marked with caliber, series, the capsule is cut out, and a ring is inserted. A fool understands that these cartridges are no longer military, but tomorrow I have to fly from Moscow to Vladivostok. How will police/aviation security officers react to these harmless key fobs? Maybe it's better not to tempt fate? Or what do you recommend? Perhaps some of you have encountered this?
Thank you in advance!
No duplicates found
So tomorrow you will tell us all
if you're lucky, put it in your bag shallowly so you don't have to scoop everything out of it
Try to hide them - put them in your store
I flew calmly with this one
I did this too)) but in our country it was considered chic to remove the paint with sandpaper. so that it becomes white metal. and polish with goya paste to a mirror
Is this pasta made from goyim?
once upon a time it shone too
In hand luggage?! Or did you check it in as luggage?
On the keys there was a 5.56 NATO cartridge fob, after checking the carry-on luggage they asked me to take it out, they looked and didn’t ask any questions.
Keychain, take with you
But I must say that there are careless comrades working at the Nizhny Novgorod airport))
I flew with a 16x300 drill in my backpack, but in St. Petersburg they forced me to check it in as luggage
Dude from the past. Such keychains lost popularity in 1998
There is also a bullet that unscrews from the cartridge case and there is a spoon for coke.
And at school they told us that we need to pour the soil there with this spoon from the place where we bought it.
To eat later?
Let it go up the nostril)
Let the earth go up your nostrils?
This is what they teach in Mexican schools.
Interesting by the way. Usually the cartridge seems to be drilled, but here it’s as if there’s a piece of junk with a key ring glued to the live cartridge. So it may not work like a keychain.
And no one will let you cut on the spot, I think, even if you have a hacksaw with you!
So these are not real. In our stores they sell them in stationery stores. And the ones in your photo are real. I once did these myself. In the army.
- Well, that means it’s fucked.
Looks like it's too subtle a joke for a post.
Columbo had such trolling, when the criminal already believes that he is above suspicion, Columbo returns with the phrase I still have one more question.
Yeah, dialogue at the airport, huh. what's in your ass? . ummmm. keychains! Certified.)
And pull the ring! :)))
In luggage with a certificate.
The certificate is issued only after shooting five pieces from the batch.
after such a shooting, the vehicle will only have two key fobs left
If we get lucky. An acquaintance flew and flew, and then one fine day they forced him to throw it out.
I had a similar one hanging from my keys, only the capsule was intact and in place. The cartridge case was drilled for a ring from the side and there was no gunpowder. I flew four times, there were no questions, and then in Adler they took it away, supposedly the whole capsule meant it could shoot, they kept murmuring for a long time, they wanted to draw up a report of the seizure, most likely they wanted money. Then, when boarding was over and they were only waiting for me, the cartridge was taken away and released onto the plane. So it's probably better to leave it at home.
I made sure that the capsule was missing from all of them, apparently drilled out. The cartridges were definitely once live. Tomorrow I’ll try to go up to the aviation security officers and tell them everything, show them, and then they’ll confiscate it, they’ll confiscate it, and if not, I’ll be glad.
My colleague also didn’t have a capsule, but airport workers spent a long time talking to him and eventually took him away.
“Never happened”, “supposedly”, “from the side”. fucked up 🙁
In Domodedovo they took away a keychain the size of a matchbox, in the shape of a TT pistol with the wording “you cannot bring any type of weapon.” I didn't argue.
I wouldn't just argue. I would totally fuck you! Wow, whores. watchman syndrome.
Before the flight, right? 🙂
Both before and after.
the main thing is not “instead of”
Yes Yes. And then not a vacation, but sitting for 15 days.
Brad Jayakody, 30, was stopped by airport security who thought his T-shirt was "aggressive". “They explained to me that since Megatron (the robot’s name) is holding a gun in his hand, I will not be allowed to fly,” said an indignant Jayakody.
Possible in the UK
“Moreover, the officers warned that if the passenger is again seen in the airport building wearing clothes that are “offensive” to other passengers, he will be arrested for carrying a weapon.”
Bitch, at this moment I was fucking fucking hot.
He could turn his T-shirt inside out and fly like that)
Without a piece of paper, most likely, yes, you will get screwed. They need it too. They are bored at work. Maybe you will use them as a psychological factor. To intimidate.
The same applies to dummies. Pistols, grenades, etc.
Although, what will actually happen. Only they know. Only they know what's going to happen to them
". chilled cartridges are firearms cartridges with a hole in the case, the propellant charge removed and the initiation agent used."
Federal Law of December 13, 1996 N 150-FZ (as amended on July 10, 2012) “On Weapons”
". Chilled cartridges: auxiliary cartridges with or without an inert primer and propellant charge, designed to test the operation of weapon mechanisms without firing."
"Civilian and service firearms, devices for industrial and special purposes. Safety requirements and safety test methods. GOST R 50529-2010"
Many things are made from live ammunition: pendants, key rings, crosses, pens, headphones, laser pointers and even glass bottle openers. Let’s not now indulge in arguments about which from this list will look better and more beautiful - you know what the taste and color are. It’s better to try to make a keychain from a 7.62 mm cartridge, we’ll try to do it only with our own hands, without resorting to outside help.
First, a few safety suggestions. Whatever cartridge is in front of you (we mean caliber) is a certain danger. You can hold the cartridge in your hands, put it in your pocket, or even juggle it - we assure you that nothing bad will happen. But in our case, a number of operations are assumed in order to turn the cartridge into an absolutely harmless thing, and during these operations anything can happen. What you read below seems like harmless pampering and a simple matter. However, in reality, it is better to refrain from such actions and thereby insure yourself against broken eyes, severed fingers or lacerations. In our case, everything went without consequences, since we have some experience of “dealing” with ammunition. But our method cannot be called completely safe - if a stick shoots once a year, then you should be even more wary of a live cartridge.
From words to deeds
Let's move on to making the keychain and first take a closer look at the blank for it. In front of you in the photo is a 7.62 caliber cartridge, and those of you who served in the army have probably seen it in person. The bullet in it is simple, with a steel core, and this makes our work easier - we don’t have to worry, as we would with an incendiary or tracer bullet. Why exactly 7.62? Firstly, for a keychain this is, in our opinion, the most optimal size. And secondly, such a product looks much more solid than, for example, .
Since we are talking about self-production, a set of tools should not require any specific equipment. And in fact: if you work with your own hands on just one keychain, then why do we need machines? Take a look at the photo - this is the entire set we needed. 
What is it and why:
— A hammer and a core will be needed for just 5-10 seconds of work. With their help, we deactivate the cartridge primer.
— Sandpaper, GOI paste and a felt attachment for a drill will help to sand and then polish the product. In truth, these are the most important tools, since you will have to work with them the longest.
— Electrical tape will protect the surface of the bullet from scratches—we’ll talk about this below.
— A drill (you can use a screwdriver) will save us strength and time. It is desirable that the model have a speed controller, although this is not so important.
— Any vice will do. As a last resort, if you don’t have them, you can use clamps.
— A pair of bars will perform two functions: they will protect the cartridge from dents and help accurately drill holes. The selection of bars in size depends on the width of the vice spread. In our case, slats with a cross section of 20*35 mm were used.
Manufacturing process
First, we remove the red varnish that is present in the bottom of the cartridge and at the point where the bullet enters the cartridge case. 
Since it is applied into recesses, it will be difficult to remove it by sanding. The bottom part deserves special attention - it is very difficult to remove the varnish from there with sandpaper or a felt attachment alone. It's simple: we steal acetone from our wife (or ask officially), moisten a piece of cotton wool and wipe the mentioned places on the cartridge. This stage took us no more than a minute.
Next, prepare the wooden blocks. The chuck will be sandwiched between them so that a hole can be drilled to mount the ring. It is advisable to do three things: draw a couple of lines to control the drilling process along them; pre-drill a hole of the required diameter in one block (depending on the diameter of the ring) and in the right place; squeeze an object resembling a cartridge in size between the bars - there will be a dent in which the cartridge will conveniently “lie”.
Now comes a very important job: we have to drill a hole near the bottom of the cartridge. We set the speed to the minimum so as not to heat the cartridge case and thereby cause ignition of the gunpowder. Only the first wall of the sleeve needs to be drilled. 
When the hole is ready, remove the cartridge and shake out the gunpowder. In our case, the hole was 3 mm, but the gunpowder categorically did not want to be shaken out and literally fell out bit by bit. But it’s better to work slowly than to drill a hole that’s too large—let’s not forget about aesthetics either. After all, a hole that is too large will look like a gaping hole if the ring dangles in it.
Having made sure that there is no gunpowder inside the cartridge, you can again clamp the future keychain in a vice, as was done in the previous step, and drill the second wall of the cartridge case. The photo shows that the holes turned out to be even, on the same axis and right next to the capsule socket. 
In principle, the cartridge is no longer a cartridge at all, because its integrity has been compromised. However, the capsule interferes with us - when grinding, it can ignite due to heat. Therefore, the next step is to deactivate it. Everything is simple here: we clamp the cartridge between the bars in a vice, just install it so that the holes do not rest against the wood. 
When the capsule fires, a certain amount of gases are released. They will put pressure on the walls inside, looking for a weak spot. As a result, either the reliability of the bullet’s fastening will be slightly compromised (we don’t need this, the keychain should be solid and not loose), or the capsule will pop out (we also didn’t really want it). That’s why we place the cartridge exactly as in the photo.
Hammer and core are our next tools. For aesthetic reasons, it is best to install the core strictly in the center of the capsule. It is better to try to hit with a hammer from the first swing, so that the core does not “move” to the side. It is quite possible that you will have to hit it several times (that’s exactly what happened to us), but it is the first hit that will decide whether the dent on the capsule will be in the center or in another place. By the way, a very important point: there can be several blows and the capsule can be considered deactivated only after a characteristic bang, reminiscent of the explosion of a weak firecracker. Sometimes even a deep dent is not enough and you have to make one or two more gentle blows with a hammer on the core. Light cotton, just a little smoke and that’s it – the cartridge is completely safe and now you can work with it safely. 
If everything written above took no more than 5-7 minutes, then the following stages take much longer. Sanding and polishing are for the patient. It’s also good if you have to work not only with your own hands and have a drill. Otherwise, the last stage will take you several hours. We decided to protect the bullet from scratches by wrapping it with electrical tape. 
Logic dictates that this was the right decision.
We clamp the drill in a vice, insert the chuck and prepare the sandpaper. Now let's digress a little to clarify for you our vision of grinding and polishing. You can work just a little to ensure that the cartridge remains the same color as it was originally and shines pleasantly after processing. But we decided to remove any traces of the reddish color and make the keychain a beautiful steel color. To do this, it was necessary to remove the coating from the surface of the sleeve using fine-grained sandpaper, and to give a glossy shine using GOI paste and felt. 
It is noticeable in the photo that even the first touch with sandpaper produces results - the protective coating gradually wears off. There are only two pieces of advice here: you need to remove as much paint as possible from the surface of the cartridge and not overdo it, so as not to erase some parts (the bottom, the bullet or the cartridge case). If you work with sandpaper in one place for too long, you can change the geometry of the cartridge, which is undesirable. Also note that it will not be possible to clamp the chuck into the drill from the bottom if the drill is designed to work with a maximum of 13 mm drills. Firstly, you need a large drill chuck (the bottom is slightly larger than 14 mm in diameter). And secondly, the jaws of the drill chuck will not be able to reliably hold our product by the narrow bottom part alone. So grinding and polishing the bullet will be done with your own hands in the full sense of the word.
It took us an hour and a half to make this keychain. In this case, 98% of the time was spent on polishing. Look at the photo - do you like it? 
Agree that there is something in this: the cartridge, which until recently was a combat cartridge, has become a peaceful keychain in a very original color design. And if you add the satisfaction of working with your own hands, then these 90 minutes were definitely not in vain.
Nuances and clarifications
If you study the issue of making a keychain from a cartridge with your own hands, you can come across several options. Someone pulls out the bullet for greater safety and ease of removing gunpowder; someone boils the cartridge before drilling to eliminate the possibility of gunpowder igniting; someone refuses polishing in order to preserve the original color of the cartridge; someone does not drill the cartridge all the way through, but solders the ring mount onto the primer socket. In short, there are several options and each of them is good in its own way. Our version of the keychain seems no worse, and maybe even better, than other options.
For example, we refused to pull out the bullet for a simple reason: the factory rolling reliably holds the bullet. If it is loosened and pulled out, the reliability of the fastener will be lost. It is difficult to restore this same reliability at home. You can try to compress it with pliers, but scratches may remain, and the bullet will still become loose over time.
The idea of completely erasing the paint, it seems to us, has the right to life. Over time, the keychain will certainly become covered with small scratches, which can easily be removed by re-polishing. If the paint remained, it would still have to be removed to restore the appearance of the product. In addition, we have long noticed that the red coating of the 7.62 caliber cartridge fades over time.
In general, we consider our version of making a keychain from a live cartridge entirely acceptable.
RazSV 14-09-2012 21:40
I need keychains as gifts for foreign guests who are very far from Lebel and Mauser. The only thing they know in this area is the Kalashnikov assault rifle. This is something from this series that I would like.Mechanic86 14-09-2012 21:42
Uraltrak sold keychains
RazSV 14-09-2012 22:54
quote: Mechanic86
thank you, wrote to R.M.
Costas 14-09-2012 23:48
That's right - keychains.
RazSV 15-09-2012 20:07
And thank you for the science.
KillerHunter 15-09-2012 21:02
There are 2 key fobs 300 WinMag, 5.45*39. 400 rubles for 2 two. Interested?
RazSV 15-09-2012 22:12
I need 20-30 pieces.
KillerHunter 15-09-2012 22:29
There are only 2 pieces.
RazSV 15-09-2012 22:50
ed4mk 16-09-2012 12:27
quote: Originally posted by Costas:
That's right - keychains.
Borrowed words are often assimilated into the language over time and become just as subject to its norms and rules as words consonant with them. The word shooter is arrows, for example. However, some people, on the contrary, really like to use an outdated form and are proud of it
Costas 16-09-2012 19:16
quote: ed4mk:
Borrowed words are often assimilated into the language over time and become just as subject to its norms and rules as words consonant with them. The word shooter is arrows, for example. ...
Somewhat wrong. The shooter is not approaching. And they assimilate - in colloquial speech, in written (literary) - rarely, and only if the masters approve.
“But people in keychains are highly grumpy
And they sting politely, like snakes in oats.”
(c) Parsnip. “My sister is life in flood today:”
Aries_22 16-09-2012 19:59
And I make these things from 7.62x39:
The technology is simple: drill an F5 hole, fix the sleeve in a vice, and first wrap the sleeve with some thick fabric such as a terry tent. We cut the M6 thread. The aluminum rod also has a thread and a hole. We grind down a drop of moment-type glue and screw it on. I twist the rings from stainless wire. You can click on a spring of suitable sizes...
Actually nothing complicated...
Copper-plated sleeves are especially good...
pakri2 16-09-2012 22:58
quote: Originally posted by RazSV:
I need 20-30 pieces.
They are often found in military stores - such as "Splav", "Voentorg"...
For a keychain, I simply drill through a bullet or casing and insert a homemade D-ring of the required size.
Aries_22 17-09-2012 07:40
If you are going to make a keychain, make it from a solid cartridge. And the bullet is carried on a chain on the chest. A friend of mine has one and he covered it with silver. I caught him in the first company in Chechnya. And the keychain should not be small in size, no larger than 7.62x39. There is no point in doing anything else: it’s heavy, large, it pulls the fabric and other troubles...
pakri2 17-09-2012 09:08
Well, as you like - a cartridge or a bullet, on your chest or in your pocket.
But I want to note that a pointed bullet (separately or in a cartridge case) contributes to the appearance of holes in the pocket...
NR-2000 17-09-2012 09:10
Aries_22 - if you are from Moscow, you are interested
floyd87 17-09-2012 16:05
quote: Originally posted by Aries_22:
And the keychain should not be small in size, no larger than 7.62x39. There is no point in doing anything else: it’s heavy, large, it pulls the fabric and other troubles...
7.92x57 no problems at all in carrying, it fits very conveniently in your pocket.
Susanin Old man 17-09-2012 18:05
It turns out to be an interesting keychain! But I went a different way! I took the spent cartridge case and carefully drilled out the primer so as not to damage it. Then, I made a U-shaped loop from copper wire, which I inserted into the hole in place of the capsule and carefully filled it with epoxy. After it hardened, I took very fine sand and poured it into the cartridge case in such a way that it would not reach the barrel of the cartridge case a little, and then, using the same epoxy, I glued the bullet.
valerman5112 17-09-2012 18:20
quiet 17-09-2012 19:10
The dull bullet of the 1891 model does not make holes in your pocket, and the keychain looks quite interesting.
Susanin Old man 17-09-2012 19:13
Hmm, so I’ve been carrying it in my pocket for a year and three months, until I noticed the holes! )
Susanin Old man 17-09-2012 19:18
quote: Originally posted by valerman5112:
Uraltrac does great things, exactly different from others
Why are they great?? Where can I look at them, maybe I can pick up something new for myself!
fun22 17-09-2012 19:24
I’ll sign! If someone has a keychain ready, I’ll take it
Susanin Old man 17-09-2012 19:45
We need bullets, we have 7.62x54 casings with a steel rim, business for half a day! If only there were bullets I would have made a couple of key rings long ago!!! If anyone has non-cut ones, I’m ready to buy inexpensively 3-5 pieces for the production of keychains!
TECHNOTEAL 17-09-2012 22:53
]We need bullets, we have 7.62x54 casings with a steel rim, business for half a day! If only there were bullets I would have made a couple of key rings long ago!!! If anyone has non-cut ones, I’m ready to buy inexpensively 3-5 pieces for the production of keychains!
Send me the address in a personal message and I’ll send you your heels (the barrel wasn’t used, as for the roughness, I can’t judge).
Susanin Old man 18-09-2012 14:06
I threw it off, see the PM.
vovan55555 18-09-2012 16:15
Regarding the holes from sharp bullets, I think if you don’t play with the cartridge in your pocket, there won’t be any holes. I’ve been wearing a keychain with a Mauser cartridge for 98 for half a year and the norm is more than one hole) it’s also a carcano, but there’s a rounded bullet) and I did it in a hurry, I just drilled two near the capsule the holes of the arcs are opposite each other, and inserted a large ring for two cartridges, but whoever likes it suits me with my model..
vovan55555 18-09-2012 16:17
typo near capsule)..
vovan55555 18-09-2012 16:17
as apa)
Susanin Old man 18-09-2012 17:06
quote: Originally posted by vovan55555:
vovan55555
Can you post some photos to look at? In general, what difference does it make HOW it’s done, the main thing is it’s done and it suits you and you like it, everything else, the little things in life!! :-D
vovan55555 18-09-2012 18:57
photo
It’s all just a ring, we’ll just take a larger one) I don’t really have enough... the ring.
Susanin Old man 18-09-2012 20:14
Oh, cool! I'll have to try to do the same. )
TECHNOTEAL 20-09-2012 13:15
quote:
Susanin Old man
new posted 18-9-2012 14:06
I threw it off, see the PM.
I wrote in a personal message.
DerSerpent 21-09-2012 23:31
Gentlemen, manufacturers of key fobs, please sell a hundred deactivated cartridges without converting them into a key fob in MSC?
Aries_22 23-09-2012 19:05
quote: Originally posted by HP-2000:
Aries_22 - if you are from Moscow, you are interested
Alas and ah, dense taiga, this is my place of residence. Boundless expanses, mountains, forests, meadows and rivers.
Caterpillar8970 01-10-2012 21:29
Mexan16RUS 01-10-2012 22:27
Making a keychain yourself is as easy as shelling pears, all you need is a dummy cartridge, a small pin and epoxy glue. I don’t think it’s worth explaining how everything is done. I can also give you an idea - take a needle file and a piece of plexiglass (you can use colored ones) and make a rather unusual keychain with an inscription (if you know all the technology, an unpolished keychain will take 3 hours of free time). If anyone is interested in the process, write to me and I’ll write out everything in detail (in advance - I don’t sell them because my friends are too lazy to sell them and are already in line)
Practik 02-10-2012 02:26
I'll check in
Aries_22 13-02-2013 07:21
After some thought and searching for solutions, the order was completed. 30 keychains were made.
RazSV 13-02-2013 08:05
received the order. The quality is excellent. Best recommendations.
RazSV 13-02-2013 15:58
The topic is not closed, I think that it will still be of interest to those who need keychains.
Aries_22 13-02-2013 21:50
Thank you... contact me... :-)
Chamomile11 14-02-2013 20:34
quote: Originally posted by Caterpillar8970:
I can offer keychains 5.45x39. Handmade keychains made from spent bullets (the rifling from the barrel is visible) and deactivated cartridges (there is a hole with a diameter of 0.8 on the chamfer of the groove).
Made very high quality and well - I try. The bullets are soldered into a pre-rolled cartridge case. Exactly soldered! So they hold on very tightly. At the bottom of the sleeve there is a loop made of stainless wire. The loop is also soldered in. And it is soldered in such a way that the manufacturer’s markings and the year of manufacture are visible, which also gives the souvenir a certain specialness.
The cartridge cases along with the bullets are polished to a shine. Some people order engraving, but this is a separate issue.
If you are interested - write. There is a certain quantity (about 25 pcs.) Similarly, I can make MMGs of these cartridges.
Is 5.45 still available?