The WalMart case tumbler...

[Matthew N. Dodd]

Ok, so its not an off the shelf item...

I haven't found many DIY tumblers so I'm documenting and presenting mine, for the general interest.

http://www.jurai.net/~winter/tumbler/tumbler.html

 

[wixedmords]

Ah..

There's my jello mold. Found it.

 

[R.W.Dale]

WHY?

Are you that hard up for cash to spend all of that time and work to save $10


Frankford Arsenal Case Tumbler

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=317981

If you shop around you can probably buy local and save on the shipping.

 

[esheato]

Clean brass is clean brass...

Very thorough thought process and great tutorial...

Thanks.

Ed

 

[ATAShooter]

That looks like R2D2's love child.

 

[Matthew N. Dodd]

WHY?

Are you that hard up for cash to spend all of that time and work to save $10

Mostly because its easier to justify spending a few bucks here and a few bucks there.

As for time and work I suppose the same could be said about reloading or casting bullets.

Anyhow, the second one will be cheaper since I've got excess materials and my cost for additional bowls is essentially $1.

I added a top view of the "table" to the plans as there were questions about how the motor was mounted.

 

[Crosshair]

I use the paint shaker at work with really dirty brass.

 

[SingleStack]

I like my Lyman, but this DIY tumbler is brillant. Well done, man!

I love to see DIY projects like this. I once built a device using a rotisserie motor for turning epoxy head flies at low RPM so they form evenly as they set up. Wasn't the prettiest, but better than the $60 + models sold at the fly fishing shop.

BTW, didn't realize that pet stores sold crushed walnut that could be used for tumbling media. I'll have to check that out. Thanks for the post!

 

[SingleStack]

oops...duplicate!

 

[Schleprok62]

for about a $1.00 more you could have just bought the one from Harbor Freight...

 

[Dave P]

Matt, good for you! Nice to see that some folks just like to tinker for the fun and experience of it. Its not just about saving money.

Makes me wonder how many kids are growing up today not knowing how to make something in the shop or garage?

DAve

 

[R.W.Dale]

Makes me wonder how many kids are growing up today not knowing how to make something in the shop or garage?

Why would you say something like that? You might be suprised what us young kids can do in the garage
http://www.b-body.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=313&PN=2
http://www.b-body.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=321&PN=2

 

[mattcat]

I like the tumbler, I think projects like that are worthwhile even if it ends up costing more than the store bought version because when you are done you know exactly what you have

 

[ocabj]

Makes me wonder how many kids are growing up today not knowing how to make something in the shop or garage?

I agree. There are less DIY people. We're talking about a generation were most people change their oil with a credit card. I amazes me how the average garage doesn't even have a floor jack and jack stands.

 

[Shootcraps]

There's my jello mold.

There's always room for Jello.

 

[The_Antibubba]

I can do it for even less

Step 1. Pour media in a new paint can.

Step 2. Put in dirty brass, and seal lid.

Step 3. Put in the trunk of car, and drive a California highway.

WARNING! Be sure to use plenty of media, as it will also protect the brass from excessive pounding.

 

[sako_75]

really cool Matt. I went "do it your self" on my rifle rest. see pic
Feels prety good to buils somthing usefull out of some old junk and scrap.

 

[garrett1955]

sako 75. the bench rest looks real nice!
I also made one, cause I would rather tinker in the shop. then go purchase something. I made mine a little higher, more for field work.

...and the brass tumbler looks good too. how many .50 cal shells can you fit in there? I will need a tumbler when I take up reloading this summer. thanks for the plans Matthew N. Dodd.

 

[MarshallDodge]

Sorry to bring up an old thread but my first tumbler cost me about $2.00 to build.
I bought a large bowl that came with a snap on lid for $2.00. I bolted an old record player motor to the bottom and put a counter weight on the shaft.

To run it I would fill it half full of ground corn cob, Brasso(I was told that Brasso is hard on brass so I don't use it anymore. Midway polish is much better anyway), and brass. Snap the lid on and lay it on the lid with the motor up. Place it on a piece of carpet inside of a cardboard box. This will keep it from wandering all over the place. It did a pretty decent job but took longer than a true tumbler. When I finally saved enough for a Midway (now Franklin Arsenal) I became spoiled with a tumbler that will clean the brass in a couple hours rather than all night.

When I was young and poor, I would do all kinds of things to save a buck. Now that my income is better I have a lot less time to justify putting things together like that although I am building an ultrasonic cleaner from scratch right now.

 

[Sistema1927]

You could always seal up media and brass in a paint can, and let the kiddos roll it back and forth on the sidewalk. You can only do this once (unless you find more kids), because once they find out it isn't ice cream they are going to be mad at you.

 

[rbstern]

Nice home built!

Harbor Freight also has a rock tumbler that works great as a wet tumbler; it's $21 on sale. If you don't mind waiting for your brass to dry from being washed, it's a no-dust, no-media (except water, lemon juice and a bit of dish detergent) process.

 

[wuchak]

I agree. There are less DIY people. We're talking about a generation were most people change their oil with a credit card. I amazes me how the average garage doesn't even have a floor jack and jack stands.

Actually DIY, when it comes to homes, has exploded with more people doing it now than ever. Look at the growth of places like Home Depot and Lowes. My personal theory on this growth is not that people like doing it but that jobs that paid well enough for people to be able to afford to hire home construction out have dissapeared to Mexico and China.

When it comes to cars there's a good reason that a lot of people don't mess them anymore. Warranties are longer and the cars just flat out are much more reliable than they were 10 or 20 years ago. No carburetors to adjust, tires that last 60,000 miles, first scheduled tune-ups at 100,000 miles. There just isn't that much work to be done. Doing oil changes at home is also a pain. I used to do them and then I discovered that for about $10 - $15 more than it costs me to buy the oil and the filter I can have it changed at my local garage and get all my other fluids topped off. It saves me the time of doing the change, the cleanup, and the hassel of having to transport the used oil to a garage for disposal.

I do still do my own service on my lawn equipment but that nice little hardware store down the street with the full small engine service department is looking better every year.