GeoDudeFlorida
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Good for you. Very proud. I was hoping you might be giving away one of those pesky, in the way dry tumblers. Oh well. Thanks for posting.
DRY TUMBLING VERSES WET TUMBLING
- Thread starter Highland Lofts
- Start date
irishlad
Contributing Member
Dry tumbling vs wet tumbling and Lee FCDs are my favorite threads.
GeoDudeFlorida
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My favorites are the, “I am the most important and knowledgeable person in the universe and you are a fool for not worshiping me!” threads.
irishlad
Contributing Member
CQB45ACP
Member
Except incorrect on every level.
Nature Boy
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I only wet tumble range pick up pistol brass because it’s usually very dirty.
Rifle brass gets the dry treatment because the wet process puts dings in the case mouth.
Rifle brass gets the dry treatment because the wet process puts dings in the case mouth.
nettlle
Contributing Member
It's a matter of preference. I dry tumble to save time. But on the other hand, although I can afford a RCBS Chargemaster, I prefer to weigh and hand trickle individual rifle charges on a beam scale. I think we all enjoy some of the particular reloading processes more than others.
Fine Figure of a Man
Member
No, but there are threads here disusing the "problem".
If you don't believe me I'll start a thread and it will go several pages, then descend into personal attacks and insults before being locked.
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irishlad
Contributing Member
Statements like yours are why dry vs wet tumbling are one of my favorite threads.
I believe it correct. I've done both. For me. It does add steps. It was messier. It did make my pistol brass more grabby when sizing and flaring on my LCT. Wet tumbling was a little more shiny than my corn cob blast media, not by much. But heck, if you prefer wet tumbling great. Choices are a good thing. I'll stick with these
.
nettlle
Contributing Member
Pic of some dry tumbled 308 brass. Us dry tumblers are no amateurs when it comes to tumbling brass.
irishlad
Contributing Member
That's why they're my favorites. Your post reminds me of the wet tumblers and anti LFCD folks who bash or belittle folks who prefer dry tumbling and use LFCDs. I find it very entertaining.
CQB45ACP
Member
Just stirring the pot. I actually use both from time to timeStatements like yours are why dry vs wet tumbling are one of my favorite threads.
I believe it correct. I've done both. For me. It does add steps. It was messier. It did make my pistol brass more grabby when sizing and flaring on my LCT. Wet tumbling was a little more shiny than my corn cob blast media, not by much. But heck, if you prefer wet tumbling great. Choices are a good thing. I'll stick with these
View attachment 1131657 View attachment 1131658
Soonerpesek
Member
gunmechanic
Member
I dry tumble but was thinking of getting a wet tumbler so many told me its better?Guess i will try one, what brand wet tumblers are good?
eddiememphis
Member
If you deprime then wet tumble, do you still need to scrape the primer pockets?
Varminterror
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Not if you use pins or chips.
MOST of my pockets are cleaned after wet tumbling even without pins, just a matter of giving the chemistry time to work. Roll for 30min, rinse, dry for an hour, spray with lube and start loading. But pins or chips make pockets shine, as well as the rest of the brass, inside and out.
eddiememphis
Member
What about using a cheap dehydrator to dry the cases?
Varminterror
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Bingo.
35 Whelen
Member
I use both methods and they both have their virtues and vises.
Nothing cleans like wet tumbling. I started with a Harbor Freight tumbler which I used for years. Recently I bought a Frankford Arsenal rotary tumbler to replace the small HF. Dawn dish soap, Lemi Shine and water is the cleaning formula. Primer pockets and the insides of the cases, they come out as clean as the outside. The downside is it's somewhat labor intensive. After the cleaning session the cases must be thoroughly rinsed and if one used SS pins (I do) then they have to be separated and there will always be a few stuck in primer flash holes that have to be picked or pushed out. After that they must be dried and it's best to roll them on a towel to remove some of the water so the cases don't tarnish. If it's rainy or humid, they dry more slowly.
I used wet tumbling pretty much exclusively until recently when upon the discovery of this-
....I began using my dry tumbler with corn cob media again. I had used Brasso for years but the Weiman's cleans and shines brass so much better. Tumbling in corn cob, while it doesn't clean really grimy cases like wet tumbling, is far quicker and if one uses a small enough grit, it never gets suck in flash holes. Last night I sized and trimmed a couple hundred .30 Carbine cases (some of them SUPER sooty, almost black), tossed then into the vibratory cleaner and went to bed. This morning I turned the cleaner off, dumped the entire contents of the tub into a colander than was sitting in a bucket, shook it a bit and in a couple of minutes I was priming cases. Much quicker than wet tumbling. The Weiman's does a fantastic job and while the interior of the cases and primer pockets aren't as clean as they would be with a wet tumbler, this is of little consequence and the outsides really shine-
So, if a person needs to clean some really filthy cases such as those that have been exposed to the elements for a long time, wet cleaning is the way to go, but for cases that have been loaded, fired and immediately picked up, corn cob and a vibratory cleaner is all one needs.
35W
Nothing cleans like wet tumbling. I started with a Harbor Freight tumbler which I used for years. Recently I bought a Frankford Arsenal rotary tumbler to replace the small HF. Dawn dish soap, Lemi Shine and water is the cleaning formula. Primer pockets and the insides of the cases, they come out as clean as the outside. The downside is it's somewhat labor intensive. After the cleaning session the cases must be thoroughly rinsed and if one used SS pins (I do) then they have to be separated and there will always be a few stuck in primer flash holes that have to be picked or pushed out. After that they must be dried and it's best to roll them on a towel to remove some of the water so the cases don't tarnish. If it's rainy or humid, they dry more slowly.
I used wet tumbling pretty much exclusively until recently when upon the discovery of this-
....I began using my dry tumbler with corn cob media again. I had used Brasso for years but the Weiman's cleans and shines brass so much better. Tumbling in corn cob, while it doesn't clean really grimy cases like wet tumbling, is far quicker and if one uses a small enough grit, it never gets suck in flash holes. Last night I sized and trimmed a couple hundred .30 Carbine cases (some of them SUPER sooty, almost black), tossed then into the vibratory cleaner and went to bed. This morning I turned the cleaner off, dumped the entire contents of the tub into a colander than was sitting in a bucket, shook it a bit and in a couple of minutes I was priming cases. Much quicker than wet tumbling. The Weiman's does a fantastic job and while the interior of the cases and primer pockets aren't as clean as they would be with a wet tumbler, this is of little consequence and the outsides really shine-
So, if a person needs to clean some really filthy cases such as those that have been exposed to the elements for a long time, wet cleaning is the way to go, but for cases that have been loaded, fired and immediately picked up, corn cob and a vibratory cleaner is all one needs.
35W
GW Staar
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That's true.......but then you can become anal about it like me, and wet tumble just because I love how it looks, and I love not having to breath the contaminated dust from a dry tumbling session......of course now that we are all used to Covid masks, if you actually use one, you can make that a moot point.
Picture below is what my Thumbler's wet tumbled did for some MG LC brass I picked up....tumbled with some pistol brass in the same batch.
And gave me a great excuse for buying a Lee APP to make short work of depriming it all in a few minutes first!
As for drying it here in NW New Mexico, I just put it on my back porch year around and it dries in a few hours without any other dryer. You guys in humid areas might be better off with a dehydrator.
Picture below is what my Thumbler's wet tumbled did for some MG LC brass I picked up....tumbled with some pistol brass in the same batch.
And gave me a great excuse for buying a Lee APP to make short work of depriming it all in a few minutes first!
As for drying it here in NW New Mexico, I just put it on my back porch year around and it dries in a few hours without any other dryer. You guys in humid areas might be better off with a dehydrator.
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CQB45ACP
Member
The only reason I prefer wet tumbling is because I like my brass to look like jewelry inside and out. It’s unassailable dry tumbling alone simply cannot achieve the same quality results.
And occasionally I hand polish afterwards…
The two on bottom right must be hand polished as they don’t make the grade yet.
And occasionally I hand polish afterwards…
The two on bottom right must be hand polished as they don’t make the grade yet.
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CQB45ACP
Member
Half teaspoon lemishime? That’s all?
