Homemade Tumbler?

[Warthogga10]

I just bought an old medical centifuge and wondering if it could be used to make a case tumbler.

Any Ideals?







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USAF Ammo Specialists - We Live So Others May Die.

 

[Warthogga10]

Ever seen a centifuge fly apart?

Scratch the centifuge ideal. Now I know why it had the sticker stating that the load needed to be balanced. :banghead:

Glad I sat it behind a piece of 1/2 plywood before I tried it.




EOD - If you see me running, Run like Hell!!

 

[Vern Humphrey]

A centerfuge only spins the load, it doesn't tumble it. Stuff in a centerfuge winds up pinned to the outside of the circumfrence. What we want is something that keeps the cartridge cases and media moving in opposition to each other.

One way is a tumbler, the other is a vibrator. If you have an old vibratory sander, you can make a wooden base for it, and put a fence around it to keep a tupperware container in place. Fill the container with media and brass and turn on the vibrator.

 

[Berek]

My ex-wife got upset with me when I brought home a dryer I found on the side of the road. I disabled the blowers and heating unit so only the motor ran. I loaded about 100 lbs of brass into it and corncob media. Tilted it back and in the time it took to run perm press cycle, the brass was almost perfect. My ex kept screaming everytime I turned it on until I moved it to the barn...

Burned out after 5 loads.

Berek

 

[357SIG]

A guy I know uses a big cement mixer from Harbor Freight.

 

[Wedge]

Berek...only in the Southern Tier

I use the cheap tumbler from Midway USA. I think it is a Frankford Arsenal. Works fine for me, but I don't do a whole lot of production either.

 

[bogie]

I second the Harbor Freight cement mixer - nice, not too fast, and since brass and media are significantly lighter than concrete, it should last pretty long.

 

[trickyasafox]

a while ago didnt someone say they tossed a bucket of brass in thier trunk with either water or polish or media? some combination there of, anyway that seems like it would be the cheapest homemade tumbler. others have said ice cream makers work well.

 

[PzGren]

I know a guy that tumbled his brass in a water-tight container with media inside his front-loading washer. He swore it's the greatest invention since the rocket.

Midway has a cheap tumbler, it's kind of noisy but holds up well. Re-inventing the wheel is kind of fun, though. I always try it and finally figured out that it just got to be round.

 

[caz223]

I figure that you could modify an old front-load dryer or washer.
You can find 'em on any street corner, or in the paper for less than a new tumbler.

 

[Sam]

Here is what I whipped up with an old swamp cooler motor, bearings, shaft and pully, a bedframe and a 10 gal hyd drum. Total cost $20 and 3 hrs labor. More compact than a cement mixer a lot quieter, and it doesn't get media all over the shop floor like the cement mixer
Capacity is 50 lbs of brass and 20 lbs of corncob media.

I tested it with 150 lbs of lead ingots, which it handled very well.
Cleans 50 lbs of dirty brass in 2 hrs.

Sam

 

[DT Guy]

Based on your tumblers, I feel confident in saying I'm not reloading enough.



Larry

 

[BigSlick]

Capacity is 50 lbs of brass and 20 lbs of corncob media

I hate you so very, very much.

Everything was cool here, until the 50 lbs of brass and no media on the floor comments. A voice from deep within started chanting.

'You're tumbler isn't big enough... do what Sam did... go BIG.. quit messing around with a few hundred of brass at a time... do a bucket at a time... make it strong... do ALL your brass at one time... make it easy on yourself...run a whole bag of Lizard Litter at once... it'll last forever'

Lawnmower wheels - got 'em
Welder - got it
Shaft - easy to find
Bearings - even easier
Old motor - no brainer
Pulleys - easy to find
Belt - auto parts store
Barrel - a pony keg somes to mind

Thanks Sam

BigSlick

 

[trickyasafox]

big slick

your jealous of the tumbler? i just wish i had enough brass to fill a normal one, let alone a 50lb capacity! as of today i only load 1 caliber, and by thursday ill be up to three, but to say the least, that aint nothing

 

[boo586]

Sam,

How does the smooth barrel cause the media and brass to tumble? I have the same setup as you (much smaller scale) and I had to put a flat area inside my barrel to cause the media to tumble instead of just sitting and spinning. Are there fins inside of there that I can't see?

I went from doing 50 cases at a time in a small (very small) vibratory to doing 3 to 400 cases in a rotary setup. I am going to make myself a watertight barrel using Schedule 40 PVC so I can try a wet cleaning method that I learned about.
Good Luck

 

[Sam]

The inside of the drum is smooth, the rotation is so slow that things stack up and fall over naturally inside I guess. There is a small flat but that is just a dent in the side of the drum, don't think it makes any difference.

This same rig would easily power one made with a 55 gal drum id you really needed a big rig.
That 150 lbs of lead bars didn't even come close to making it bear down and grunt.

Sam

 

[boo586]

Sam,

I bet if you welded or bolted some flat areas inside that thing the tumbling action would be even better and clean the brass faster. However, I am one for not messing with something if it ain't broke.

Boo586