Brass Washing

[THe Dove]

Am I alone? I have been reloading for about 20 years and have never washed brass then put in in an oven to dry. I never have soaked used brass in water, or soap and water period! I tumble to clean the gross contamination, then I reload, even if the brass is mud soaked, stained or what ever. I just tumble and loadem'.... Just wondering if I'm the only one that doesn't wash the brass???

The Dove

 

[rcmodel]

I used to wash brass, about 48 years ago.
Then I got smarter.

I made a drum tumbler, then I bought a vibrator when I got enough money to afford one.

Washing is a royal PITA, what with the drying and all.

rc

 

[W.E.G.]

Mud soaked brass?
Is this just miscellaneous, unknown-heritage stuff you pick up off the ground at public ranges?
I wouldn't trust that stuff in my guns.

I resize with water-soluble lube, then wash in hot water.
Shake dry, and leave out to finish air drying for at least a day.

Some folks don't remove lube before loading.
I don't like leaving any lube inside the case necks.
I don't know how to remove lube from inside case necks once a bullet is in place.

 

[jcwit]

I pick up all kinds of brass at both the indoor and outdoor ranges I go to and maybe rinse out a few cases that are packed with mud or sand, never more than 5 or 6 at a time in a period of a month.

My system is to

1. Deprime with a punch and dead blow hammer while watching TV.
2. Resize
3. Tumble
4. Prime with a hand primer ie: K & M, or Hornady
5. Reload

If any cases need rinsing out its done between steps 1 & 2. I have enough brass for the 25/30 calibers I reload that speed in drying is not an issue.

I totaly agree, keep brass out of the oven, if for no other reason than I eat stuff coming out of the oven. I don't do my tumbling in the kitchen either.

I might add if resizing rifle brass when I need to use a lube I rinse the cases in white gas after sizing. Its dry within 10 minutes after rinsing. Dangerous? No more so than gassing up the lawn mower.

 

[medalguy]

I tumble brass in walnut with a splash of mineral spirits, then load 'em up. One quick final tumble in corncob with NuFinish polish after they're all loaded and into cartons. If the brass is so dirty it needs to be washed, or is so tarnished it needs to be chemically cleaned, into the scrap bucket it goes. Brass is just too plentiful and cheap to bother.

 

[Maj Dad]

I have a Lortone Rock Tumbler (not vibratory, used by me to polish nifty rocks) that I used to wet tumble when I was shooting black powder in my 45-70 Trapdoor. Slow, inefficient and not worth the effort by any means: gigantic PITA, finally gave it all up & went back to smokeless. I did use it to tumble brass with polishing media early on and it did fine, just took longer than a vibratory, and held less. I use a big Dillon now and it does a super job.

 

[Hondo 60]

I'm with medalguy - if it's mud-caked it just goes in the scrap.
But I've never washed brass.