"Match grade" reloads

[cfullgraf]

Tumbler?. Not for me. So far I'm "handwashing" my cases but an ultrasonic is on the way,

I'm with Sam1911 on washing.

When I got into reloading many moons ago, I washed cases in n ultrasonic cleaner because it was what I had in inventory at the time and could not afford a tumbler (by the way, Amway LOC did a great job. I don't know if they still market it though).

I let cases dry for a week to make sure all the moisture was out of the case.

I guess you could accelerate the process by using an oven but that was not the way to win friends and influences wives in my household.

Dry tumbling is the way to go. Quick, easy and cases can be used immediately after they are removed from the tumbler. I run media until it absolutely does not clean any more. I probably change it once every couple years or so shooting 5000 plus rounds a year. The media would probably last longer if I would shut the tumbler off after a couple hours but I let it run all night. Pretty cheap cleaning.

I do wet clean with stainless pins once in a blue moon when the spirit moves me but again, it takes a while for the case to dry. I wet tumble when I have a ton of cases that I want to look pretty.

Does it make my rounds more accurate--no except that it makes me feel better about them. Do not discount the psych factor.

 

[primalmu]

If you're wanting utmost reliability, IMO tumbling is by far the way to go. Throw some Nufinish (or whatever equivalent car polish is available in Spain) in the media and you'll have SUPER smooth, clean brass. Far slicker than you'll get simply from washing.

I don't even like ultrasonic cleaners. They remove all the carbon residue from the brass, which at first sounds like a good thing, until you realize that that carbon is actually helping lubricate the case neck. Once you remove it the bullets are much more difficult to seat, and I would imagine adversely affects accuracy. This might only be a major consideration for rifle ammo, though.

 

[Kurastduuks]

Affecting accuracy? I shot the best group of my life two weeks ago with a browning 300 win mag and my sonic cleaned brass. .320" @100yrds. Do what you like but I will say if your sonic cleaning properly it's great not having to scrub primer pockets anymore. Made my nickel 19-4 real shiny inside and out too Also I dry all my brass in the oven @170° for 1.5 hours.

 

[primalmu]

Hey, note that I didn't say worsening accuracy. It stands to reason though that if you develop an accurate load with tumbled brass and then put that load in an ultrasonically cleaned piece of brass, the difference in neck tension may affect the accuracy of that load.

 

[Frag]

For me, that is excessive for IPSC ammo. Understand about a clean primer pocket, but for the intended application, if the primer seats, its clean enough.

For match grade ammo for accuracy, then sure. But if that was the intended application, and you were at the level where cleanliness was the difference beteeen first and fifth place, you would have a tumbler or use new brass.

All that said, the cleaner the brass, the easier it is to spot defects. But i reckon one wash is enough. And if you are cleaning it enough to make it easier to spot defects, then you can use your brass more than once.