Favorite wet tumbling solution

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Dudedog

Dudedog

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Just got my Lyman Cyclone tumbler.
I was considering the F.A.R.T but the Lyman came with a "free" copy of Lyman 50 so I bought the Lyman. I will let everyone know how it holds up.


I have seen recommendations for Armor All wash and wax, Dawn and Lemi Shine and others.

99.99% sure that I don't need the over priced tumbling solutions for reloading companies.

Also saw hair of dog, eye of newt, ear of bat +.......
(oooppppssss that was for something else :) )

Just wondering if instead of Dawn you would want something low suds, dishwasher/laundry detergent?

Also, what the best place to pick up some extra pins?
I already noticed they like to try to escape.

Side note-Sort of disappointed in Lyman 50, no BE86 or CFE-P data, or any of the other newer powders, otherwise excellent just like #49.
I know some of the recent Hodgdon and Alliant rifle powders are very new but BE86 and CFE-P have been out for a while now.
 
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Dawn and Lemi Shine, just a drop of Dawn, 1/8 tsp of Lemi Shine works great for me. I see no reason to change to anything else.

As far as pins, having a good large strong magnet has work for me. 10's of thousands of cases cleaned and still using my original Frankford pins that came with my tumbler.
 
I'm a fan of the Armor All wash & wax and a 9mm case of Lemishine. 2hrs in the tumbler and the cases are good as new.

As for pins, I got mine at bullseye-reloading a couple years ago. They sell the stainless steel pins in quantities as low as 2.5lbs.

I'd also second the strong magnet on a telescoping arm. They're cheap on Amazon.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Small dollop of Armour-all Wash and Wax and a quarter tea-spoon of Lemishine. Lyman spinner.

+1 on the magnet.
 
Forgot to mention I ordered the FA magnet to chase down escaping pins:)
Not worried about losing a few pins just thought I might order extras when I am ordering something else and already paying shipping.

If my local Wally World has citric acid by canning supplies, that may be the way to go.
 
I have had my FART for a bit over 18 months and in that time have probably cleaned about 15,000 cases.

I started out using a little bit'o'Dawn and citric acid powder, but after a couple of months replaced the Dawn with AAW&W.

My AAW&W-washed cases stay bright for longer and may move a tad easier in the sizing die.
 
Guntap pins available through your Major online merchants are a good source and It's what I use. Their Brass Shine cleaning powder also works great for me. No guess work.
 
For handgun cases, I use the stainless pins at all. I don't even deprime before washing.

I do add additional Leminshine...a couple of .45ACP cases...and use a dollop of Armor-all Wash and Wax. Less suds and leave a nice protective coat.

You might consider larger pins if you do deprime. The small pins will sometimes jam in the flash hole. Member stilly, either here or on Calguns, sells the larger pins
 
:confused:

Why don't you wet tumbling guys just buy bulk citric acid.?? Heck you have a group buy and have enough for the rest of your life for less than Lem Shine.

Just passing it on, as I am not a Wet Tumble user but did buy 1 lb to pre clean some nasty 5 gal buckets of range brass

Free shipping

https://www.dudadiesel.com/search.php?query=citric
 
I use about a tablespoon or 2 of Armor all WW and 1/2 Tsp of lemishine from walmart. Seems cheaper than the bulk citric acid. Was 6.79 for 24 oz bottle at my local Wally mart.
On the pins, bullseye reloading is the best price . 35 for 5 lbs last I checked.
Also found a post on Cast boolits for stainless chips for less than half at 3.00 lb.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?296863
Seems to work the same as the pins. Sold thru a FB page, Southern Shine Tumblers.

What size pins does the Lyman come with? Find the .041 pins that come with the Frankford unit get lodged in the primer hole. They make .047 and xl pins in .062.
 
Dawn & Lemishine work for me.
Got this recipe from another thr member...

Take a 1 gallon jug and add 1 Table Spoon of Soap and a max of 1/4 teaspoon of Lemi Shine.

Fill your tumbler with media, shells & juice.

Regardless of container size, you will have a correct mixture of cleaner.

More is NOT better, especially when it comes to the Lemi Shine.
Click to expand...
 
Rule3 said:
:confused:

Why don't you wet tumbling guys just buy bulk citric acid.?? ...
Click to expand...
I am slowly working thru a stock of 10lbs(?) that I bought years ago (when I decided that I liked it better than phosphoric acid).

I also use it to remove rust & bluing.

I think that most folks use so little of the stuff at a go that the LemiShine approach makes sense to them.
 
+1 on LemiShine (~a 9mm case full) and ArmorAll Wash and Wax (too lazy to measure; "one glug" per FART tumbler volume of brass, pins & water).
The AAWW leaves a very thin layer of carnuba wax on the brass which keeps it shiny longer. Double plus good.
 
Since I load the drum at the laundry tub and laundry detergent is on the shelf, a dribble of liquid Tide and a sprinkle of Lem Shine and it's good to go.
 
Best tumbling solution

ArmorAll was a big improvement over Dawn since it eliminated most of the galling between the dies and brass. There was still some sticking since rinsing the dirty solution also removed some of the Armorall film. I added a final soak in a solution of 2 ounces of Armorall per gallon of water (reusable) followed by draining and air drying. Problem solved!
 
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BTW, I put the cases in the tumbler, add water, swirl it around, and empty it -- sort of a pre-rinse before adding the ArmorAll and Lemishine with fresh water.
 
jaguarxk120 said:
Since I load the drum at the laundry tub and laundry detergent is on the shelf, a dribble of liquid Tide and a sprinkle of Lem Shine and it's good to go.
Click to expand...
Same with me.
I'm using some kind of 3x stuff and it works fine. About a quarter cap and a quarter tsp. of LemShine in a gallon of water.
I was using Dawn but I read somewhere that dish soap isn't good because it's designed to do a number on grease and oil and over time it destroys the rubber liner in the tumbler.
Made sense to me at the time so I tried it and I can't tell any difference.
I don't think it makes much difference what kind of soap you use.
 
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GBExpat said:
I am slowly working thru a stock of 10lbs(?) that I bought years ago (when I decided that I liked it better than phosphoric acid).

I also use it to remove rust & bluing.

I think that most folks use so little of the stuff at a go that the LemiShine approach makes sense to them.
Click to expand...

$6.00 for 8oz, free shipping, How much does one container of LemiShine cost?:confused:
 
I have found that any dish soap will work just fine. One thing I found that DOESN'T work so well is using too much lemi-shine. You end up with brass that looks like WWI era steel:fire:

I use whatever dish soap I have laying around and about 1/4 teaspoon of lemishine.
 
I've been wet tumbling with SS pins for 4 years using a Thumler's model B high speed tumbler.

I typically tumble 5 pounds or so of brass per batch. My recipe is one ounce of auto wash and wax (Blue Coral or Armor-All - they work the same with plenty of suds), 1/4 TSP of Lemi-Shine, 5 pounds of pins with a 0.047" diameter.

Here are typical results. A batch of 30-06 and 45:

IMG_20160401_141930_zpsbhbdu1fp.jpg


IMG_20151210_112830_zpssx5feplu.jpg

Bayou5252
 
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