Question on wet tumbling process.

Status
Not open for further replies.
I started reloading and went straight to wet tumble, i.e. I don't know any different.

I DO NOT deprime brass before cleaning and never had any issues.
I DO lube brass before loading because it's so clean that it's almost necessary even for pistols.

No dust, no mess. Brass is clean as new. I did once try to deprime after cleaning and then went through 2nd cleaning. Didn't really make any difference for my 9mm reloads. They all go bang and they all look new..
 
Lemishine is a product made to be used in dishwashers in the home!! It is used to remove soap film, etc. & freshen the inside of the dishwasher. I got mine at the local Wal-Mart. Several ways to separate pins, all have been covered above!
Having "squeaky" clean cases makes them easier to inspect, cleaner to use & most likely will contribute to the longevity of the cases & your dies!

Just don't overthink the process! It is like any other process: done right, it is no more labor intensive than any of the other "cleaning" processes! Plus, most "dry" media is going to leave dust & residue on the cases. I personally do not want this abrasive going thru my dies or going down my barrels.

Tuxedo007
 
Tuxedo007 said:
Lemishine is a product made to be used in dishwashers in the home!! It is used to remove soap film, etc. & freshen the inside of the dishwasher. I got mine at the local Wal-Mart. Several ways to separate pins, all have been covered above!
Having "squeaky" clean cases makes them easier to inspect, cleaner to use & most likely will contribute to the longevity of the cases & your dies!

Just don't overthink the process! It is like any other process: done right, it is no more labor intensive than any of the other "cleaning" processes! Plus, most "dry" media is going to leave dust & residue on the cases. I personally do not want this abrasive going thru my dies or going down my barrels.

Tuxedo007
Click to expand...

+ getting that dust on yourself and in your home and probably breathing some of it in as you go, especially when separating media.
 
I have a wet tumbler coming in the mail and I think after I get the brass rinsed off, just put em in a pillow case tie the end tight and throw it in the clothes dryer 5 minutes, might be a good idea to wait until the Boss Lady wasn't home:)
Best/picker
 
picker said:
I have a wet tumbler coming in the mail and I think after I get the brass rinsed off, just put em in a pillow case tie the end tight and throw it in the clothes dryer 5 minutes, might be a good idea to wait until the Boss Lady wasn't home:)
Best/picker
Click to expand...
I bet after couple of times you will find that it's much easier to just spread brass on a towel for a couple of days. I used to the fact that reloading and brass cleaning don't go "side by side" so I usually clean when I have enough to clean and load when I need to load. I never have a problem with "waiting"
 
picker said:
I have a wet tumbler coming in the mail and I think after I get the brass rinsed off, just put em in a pillow case tie the end tight and throw it in the clothes dryer 5 minutes, might be a good idea to wait until the Boss Lady wasn't home:)
Best/picker
Click to expand...

Dryers should all come with a shelf you can set inside. I'm not sure what it's for, delicates or hats or shoes or something you don't want clunking around.

You can even put the brass in one of the delicates bags intended for the washing machine/dryer and set that bag on the shelf. ;)
 
I just got mine UPS just dropped it off, I got a couple vibratory case cleaners and I thought mine was good until I bought some once fired Brass online, man that stuff looked like a mirror, so thought I would try the wet tumbler.
One thing is certain it don't need to like a mirror to reload chamber and go bang but if you're gonna clean it why not get it as good as you can, only thing Im not sure about is a good way to dry it, after going through the trouble of getting it right I reall don't want water stains on it...................Best/picker
 
Tomorrow I am going to clean quite a bit of brass, 400+ 40 cal, 800 9mm and 200 45 acp. Half of it was sitting in dirt/sand for an unknown time. I am going to use armor all wash n wax on one batch, another will be decapped, wet tumbled, dried and then a quick nufinish and corn cob tumble to put a wax on to prevent tarnish and aid in sizing. I plan on doing a side by side for the next month or so to see what holds the shine longer, wash n wax, nufinish and a dry tumble and the control group dawn and lemishine. All will be cleaned about equally well with ss pins and lemishine, but the resize ease and tarnish resistance is what I will try to measure
 
Look for Lemishine at Wal-Mart 12oz. for about $3.25 I use 1/2 tsp. and 1 tsp Armorall wash and wax
Just finished cleaning two .50 cal ammo cans full of 45 acp. Some cases dated 1918 I shot years ago they looked like old water pipe. They came out looking new.
 
This was just starting to take off when I was beginning to reload. I chose to go this route vs. dry tumbling due to the dust involved with dry. I've never regretted it.

Lemi Shine at WalMart.
 
For those of you who use wash n wax instead of dawn, how much do you rinse?

I did a large batch the other day and they came out looking great, I let them dry and a fee days later they are darker in color. Very clean, just not that brilliant color it once was. I dumped the dirty water, filled the drum and then dumped that, then used the rcbs media separator overflowing with water and churned the brass and changed the water until the suds stopped. It was then a simple air dry. I suspect I rinsed the wax off in the process
 
wet tumbling is the way to go!

i started off with a Thumler Tumbler but later sold it to get a rebel 17 cause it was much more heavy duty, plus it came in my favorite color!

stainless pins work fantastic for cleaning brass along with a squirt of dish soap and a few shakes of Lemishine. i use a Harvey deprimer to pop out the primers before i size or tumble just so i get the pockets cleaned out nice!

i bought my tumbler and pins from STM and they usually have a combo deal going on so check them out if your looking?

right now i just drain the water and put the brass in a heavy towel and shake them around to dry the brass but i want to get a food dehydrator that has a bunch of trays that will air dry the brass quickly. there are a lot of videos on youtube you can check out any of these types of tumblers to see if you will like before buying so look around and good luck!

standardkittrans.png
 
That Extreme looks mighty inviting! I'm liking that package deal!;) You had to make it that E-Z on me Thanks N-26 and all the input from the rest of you guyz!
 
The draw back for me getting into wet tumbling was the small batches. 200-300 cases at a time didn't appeal to me at all.

So I started bidding on gear motors until I won a 40 rpm 100% duty cycle motor for $35. Then built a bearing block and face plate to mount a 100lb chlorine bucket and attached agitators to the inside of the tumbling bucket. The tumbling bucket just nests inside the motor driven bucket so you don't have to pick the entire machine up, just the bucket of brass. 3000 cases a load is not a problem and there is more money in the pins than the tumbler itself.

DSC02490.jpg


A gallon of .223 and a few hundred 458 socom are "just a drop in the bucket".

2.jpg

7.jpg
 
Good point Jmorris. One video on u-tube claims 500 cases 9mm. 50 308? Shipping is pretty pricey but it looks solid. How much you charging?:D Yours looks very well built!:)
 
With the frankford arsenal I have run up to 100 308 and 200 556 together. I have also run around 1k 9mm through, I didn't count but it was a lot of brass, with water and 5# of media weighed 30#
 
In the Frankford, I've done 1000 .40 cases, and around 1250 9mm cases. Pretty much full at that point, but under the 30lb total limit (drum, cases, SS pins and water). You should be able to load up to 10 lbs of any kind of brass in it. I've seen where some people use a small concrete mixer from Harbor Freight, which costs less than the Frankford.
 
Good point Jmorris. One video on u-tube claims 500 cases 9mm. 50 308? Shipping is pretty pricey but it looks solid. How much you charging? Yours looks very well built!
Click to expand...


Not in the tumbler building business really but I have built a few really big ones for one company.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlZOYjmAnO0

Cost didn't include the crane work to load and unload them (built 3) but looking at the price of this one.

http://www.stainlesstumblingmedia.com/stm-40-tumbler-24.html

I should have charged them by the gallon. $900 for a 3.5 gallon tumbler...I'll beat that price.
 
Even though I admit that wet tumbling produces very good results, IMHO, it isn't worth the hassle unless you need to process large amounts of brass. For me, ultrasonic cleaning produces very good resuts, with cases clean inside and outside, including primer pockets. If I want that shiny finish I throw them into the tumbler and they come out like jewelrely, with the plus that my media stays clean for a long time, and I don't have to worry about lead particulate flowing into the air of my house. All that is gone down the toilet with the water of my sonic cleaner. But to each their own.
 
I changed my mine some and ordered the frankford arsenal tumbler.( Total 200.00 and some change).
Midway had them on sale and I just got an email for 10 to 20% off 100/200+ order. Its on back order and I might have time to call them back and try to snag that? It don't look as well built as the extreme but man it holds a load! Will-C?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Nature Boy
  • Locked
Wet vs. Dry tumbling - effect on rifle accuracy
2
Replies
32
Views
4K
Dentite
D
trigga
  • Locked
why do people dry tumble and not wet tumble?
2 3 4
Replies
91
Views
21K
Rule3
Rule3
coloradokevin
  • Locked
Wet Tumbling Brass - Strange Discoloration
Replies
19
Views
3K
Toprudder
Toprudder
S
  • Locked
Is there an Auto Decapping Device ?
Replies
19
Views
5K
ArchAngelCD
ArchAngelCD
T
  • Locked
How do you deprime your filthy brass?
2 3
Replies
50
Views
4K
lordpaxman
L
Back
Top