Bullets shouldn't be magnetic since they are made of brass, copper and lead, but I guess these ones had enough rusty ferrous material stuck to them that I pulled them out with a magnet anyway.
The little rod below the horseshoe is also entirely made of copper and not all magnetic, but it was held on to the magnet by some rusty scrap.
I also got a fair amount of loose change, and what I think is a door knob that I was a little worried could be a grenade when I pulled it out amongst the bullets.
They probably wouldn't do anything after sitting in a lake for years. It's unlikely you can completely dry the powder out. Even when bullets are brand new, they're not very dangerous when exploding in a fire. They really need the compression from the gun chamber to build up critical velocity. They can still occasionally puncture skin though, or give you a bruise, so it's not a great idea. It is however great fun when young, drunk, and invincible.
The cops would probably look at you like you're crazy if you try to turn in a bunch of non functional bullets. If you don't want them, just throw them away.
The police seem to not want to really deal with anything that isn't a serious crime so I wouldn't be surprised if they just didn't care at all about me having them. I definitely think it is illegal for me to own them, but I also think it's illegal to own the frame of a 1943 Colt 1911 that I have displayed in my home office. I'm planning to keep hold of them because they're pretty cool to find, and I'll apologise profusely in the unlikely event I do get told off at some point.
Yeah I think it's a cool find too. Some of those look like .45 ACP, so it would be neat to display them alongside your 1911. The caliber should be written along the outer rim of the bottom of the shells, just outside the primer cap. I originally missed that you're in the UK. I wonder if any of those are WWII relics!
Yeah I guessed that was what they were, I'll have to check what they say on them and confirm it. I think one might be a .22 LR or HMR but I'm only basing that on the fact it's small and long!
I'm definitely going to work out a way to display the better condition ones next to the 1911. There's a good chance they are from WW2, most of the guns used in crime here are old ones I think, so it would make sense that the ammunition is too.
That long skinny one is too big for a .22 LR. Idk what it is, but I don't think it's a .22. .22's are really tiny.