Have I damaged my brass?

[Mr_Flintstone]

Last night, I listened to a friend of mine without checking it out first. I washed some dirty (filled with dirt/covered with crud) 38 special and 30 carbine brass in 1:3 vinegar:water for about 5 minutes, and then Dawn:water for about 3 minutes. Then I rinsed three times in water.

Later I read conflicting reports. Some say that this might damage the brass. Others say that anything less than 15 minutes won't hurt. I examined all the brass, and there was no discoloration or anything (which is good I guess). Do you guys think that I have damaged the brass, or will it be OK to continue to use?

 

[muncie21]

I doubt that 5 minutes exposure to the vinegar had much effect. Load'em up and you'll find out. If the cases crack/split then you'll have your answer.

 

[243winxb]

Start at post #31 https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/cleaning-brass-using-citric-acid.708100/page-2

 

[.308 Norma]

Do you guys think that I have damaged the brass, or will it be OK to continue to use?

Nah, from what I've heard, Dawn is tough on grime, gentle on your brass.
Seriously, what muncie21 wrote - 5 minutes exposure to vinegar (and a rather weak solution at that) probably didn't have much affect. Go ahead and load them. If they split, you'll know we were wrong.

 

[LoonWulf]

ive used vinegar to remove tarnish from range brass quite a bit, never had an issue.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I agree, most probable no harm done.

Vinegar contains acetic acid which is a very weak acid and a derivative of alcohol. Many who wet tumble use Lemi Shine which also contains a weak acid with no ill effects.

 

[RussellC]

worse thing I've ever heard or seen happen from vinegar is a slight discoloration, sort of pinkish, steel pins takes it off.

Russellc

 

[Mr_Flintstone]

Thanks guys. I feel better now.

One more question. Is turtle wax ok to add to tumbler media? I know there's other, probably better, options, but somehow I wound up with a load of the stuff last year. I thought "what the heck, maybe I can use a little of it up".

 

[LoonWulf]

I dont see any issue with it, but its not something ive ever used.....no tumbler anymore either lol.

 

[JeffG]

No, I agree, you didn't hurt your brass. Just a dab of wax will be ok.

 

[Ole Joe Clark]

Get some Citric acid at Walmart in the canning section. Add about a tablespoon or 2 to a gallon of hot water with a dab of Dawn dish liquid. Put your hulls in the solution for about 10 minutes. Rinse well. You can thank me later.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

 

[hdwhit]

Mr Flintstone wrote:
Later I read conflicting reports. Some say that this might damage the brass. Others say that anything less than 15 minutes won't hurt.

Did any of the people who said it would damage the brass or who posited the fifteen minute limit explain the mechanism of action they believed was at work to damage the brass or give a reason for the time limit?

I load for the 5.7mm Johnson wildcat cartridge. The case is formed by necking down 30 Carbine brass to .22. During the necking process, the brass at the case mouth thickens and the excess has to be removed. This can be accomplished by neck reaming or neck turning, but I wanted a more precise method and so spent a year experimenting with acetic acid (vinegar) to "chemically mill" the case prior to forming. It takes 72 hours of exposure to a aqueous solution of 3% acetic acid (undiluted white vinegar) to produce a measurable chamge in dimension. To remove enough brass to approach the correct dimension required in excess of 288 hours (12 days) with several changes of vinegar along the way. During this time, the case does change to a dull pinkish-tan color but a shine can be restored by dry tumbling the cases after the "milling" operation is complete. Cases whose necks were "reamed" this way have shown no evidence of degradation, hardening or dimunition of tensile strength and last as long as cases processed using an inside neck reamer.

So, if 288 hours in a 3% vinegar solution damage my brassno, I can say with certainty that five minutes in a 1:3 vinegar:water solution did nothing harmful to your brass and probably made them a little more shiny.

 

[Archie]

I understand ammonia is bad for brass; a chemical reaction weakens it. (So Brasso is right out!)

Never heard anything derogatory about vinegar. Except now what H D Whit said. (And the information there isn't all that derogatory.)