Is it possible to clean and polish in a single step?

[MaterDei]

Call me a sissy but I like the look of shiny brass. My current set up just isn't cutting the mustard when it comes to polishing my brass. I use a Lyman 1200 tumbler with corn cob media and regardless of how long I tumble the only brass that comes out looking new is the brass that went in looking new!

I've seen posts both here and on other forums regarding polishing brass. Everybody seems to suggest a two step process. The second step involving some sort of polishing agent (car polish, etc.).

Is a two step process mandatory? Is there a powder of some type that can be added to the corn cob or walnut media that will allow me to clean and polish in the same step? How about Comet cleaner? In the book "The ABCs of Reloading", there is a picture of a tumbler and a canister of Comet side by side but no mention in the text as to why. Can they be used together in a single step?

Thanks in advance,

Michael

 

[JoeHatley]

You might want to try "pet store" walnut, with a little Brasso. It's been keeping my brass looking like new for years.

Joe

 

[SASS#23149]

My .45colt cases get fairly black,and i just use corncob and Flitz media polish.about an hour and they look great,three hours and you can use em to signal high flying aircraft.
no reason you cou'ndt use 1/2 cob and 1/2 walnut in the tumbler along with the Flitz.
If you can't find flits most any liquid plisher will work.....just put a squirt/capfull in and let it tumble a few mintures before adding the brass.
with the Flitz,I dont squeeze the bottle but just run a ring aroung the media while gravity lets it come out in a small stream.

 

[MaterDei]

That's great. Does the polisher get added to every batch of ammo or just everytime you change out the media?

 

[W Turner]

Another option that I have heard of is to use rice in your tumbler. Yep, regular old white rice. I ahve used it once to tumble some .45acp brass and it worked fine.


Mino

 

[Archie]

Basics...

Generally, one uses walnut hull to clean, in terms of removing nasty stains and soot and interior gunk. I put some Hoppe's #9 in the media to help cut the burnt powder residue.

Corn cob is typically used to polish. Gives a high lustre and all that.

I've never tried combining the two. It might work. Usually mine get clean enough just using the walnut compound.

Whatever you do, don't use anything with ammonia... tends to weaken the brass.

 

[HSMITH]

Corn cob media with Flitz tumbler additive. Shines like crazy in one step.

 

[Len_in_Phoenix]

I use corncob and Dillon brass polish in a MidWay vibratory tumbler. Starting with new corncob I add about a tablespoon of the polish, and then add a capful with every new batch of brass. All one step.....no walnut......grungy ground pickup brass from an outdoor range comes out looking new.

The secret?

Don't be in a hurry. My tumbler is set up in the garage, so each night before I go to bed I set up a batch of brass and turn on the machine. In the morning when I get up, I turn it off. That evening I seperate the brass from the corncob and set up a new batch. I generally have the tumbler running 4-5 nights a week.

Len in Phoenix

 

[Steve in PA]

Corn cob media (pet store) and a few capfuls of Iosso case polish. In about an hour, the cases look like a brand new penny. Very clean, very polished.

 

[Sisco]

Corn cob media and car polish (without ammonia) there is debate over the use of polishes such as Brasso which contain ammonia and the long term damage it can do to brass.
I tried rice once. Worked OK until I tossed in some brass that was already sized and deprimed. Getting rice kernels out of primer holes is a real b**ch.

 

[BluesBear]

Having used both nut and cob for over 20 years and having loaded several million rounds of ammunition commercially I prefer walnut.

The absolute BEST media I have ever used is Thumlers #500 Brass Polish Media, treated crushed Black Walnut shells. When it gets dirty I wash it and then use Thumlers #501 Reactivating Cream. Then it's as good as new.
Lyman "Tufnut" media works almost as well. It also has rouge added to it.
If that's still not shiney enough for you in one step, add a little Lyman "Turbo Brite" to the media.

I wear photofinishers gloves when I handle cases. Those are the cheap disposable white (¿cotton?) gloves used to handle film and photographs. I try to totally avoid touching the brass with my bare hands after they're cleaned.

 

[g56]

Corn cob with FLITZ will give you bright shiny cases, it only takes a little FLITZ to do the job!

I wear brown cotton gloves when handling the cases, keeps the fingerprints off.

 

[WESHOOT2]

perfect pair

Corn-cob case-cleaning media (NOT kittylitter) and Dillon RapidPolish; follow instructions.

Really.

I will admit I cycle dirty cases for 6-20 hrs. I use timers. I clean in an older Midway 1200 or whatever it was called and the small Dillon.

BTW, clean shiny cases are better because, and easier to find in the grass. Clean cases will improve your scoring ability, make you taller, and add years to your life.

Really.

 

[gwalchmai]

Three hours in walnut with a teaspoon of NuFinish makes my brass clean and shiny.

 

[Dave R]

I use a tablespoon of Turtle Wax in corncob. No ammonia. Just petoleum products. Works fine.

 

[DBR]

Use dry walnut shell from the pet store to clean. Any polish added to the media is abrasive and can cause problems with resizing etc. The dust left by the walnut shell acts as a low grade lube. Walnut shell used dry actually CLEANS better than the treated media I have used. It leaves the cases with a dull but clean finish inside and out. I run the unit for about 2 hours. If you are really obsessive about the final appearance of your reloaded ammo then put it in the tumbler with treated corncob for 15-30 minutes after it is loaded like the ammo companies do. [But, it won't make it shoot any better!!!]

 

[JPM70535]

Like many of you, I would prefer a one step cleaning/polishing process that didn't take all day and that was not wasteful of either the media or polishing liquid added to it.

What I finally decided on was a two step process. First, wash the cases with a non ammonia dish liquid, dry same in oven set on warm. Takes about an hour per batch. Second step, tumble brass in Thumblers Tumbler filled with corn cob media which gets pretreated with Midway polish. I let the batch run overnight and out comes shiny brass. The media lasts for monhs and does not need recharging very often

I store dirty brass until I have a large quantity of eaxh caliber and then do them all at the same time, (1 caliber at a time so the smaller cases don't end up indide the larger ones, and run usually 2 batches per day

Don't know about the vibrating tumblers, but the Thumblers can be run constantly for days with no ill effects, plus as a bonus it is relatively quiet as compared to a vibrating drum.

Always remember

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH!

 

[gwalchmai]

First, wash the cases with a non ammonia dish liquid, dry same in oven set on warm.

Once again I must question the logic of introducing lead residues, no matter how dilute, into an appliance which you will later use to prepare food. It would seem to me that brass could never be made clean enough by such a procedure to justify the risk.

 

[larryw]

Crushed walnut hulls from the pet store, Dillon rapid Polish, and a couple hours in the vibratory tumbler and my brass comes out clean and shiny in one easy step.

It has made me taller and my scores have improved; rest is TBD.

Adding the polish is an occasional task, I do it when you can't smell it any more or when I get dust while sifting.