Saving a buck (Tumbling Media)

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Ian Sean

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Been reading about folks using alternatives to the "store bought" kind out there and with the rise in cost of bullets, powder etc...I figured I would do some experimenting for those of us on a tight budget.

I bought a 10 lb bag of ground corn cob (Hartz brand) for $4 and gave it a whirl (with a squirt of Flitz) with some pretty dirty brass.

Results were pretty much the same as I get using Lymans Tufnutt ($14 for 5 lbs) and the same time period on the tumbler.

I'm going to try rice next and also heard of folks using oil dry as media.

I'm tempted to try cat litter too, I just better keep the lid on tight and the cat away from the reloading bench...I don't want to see if theres any truth to the old saying "you can't polish a turd'.

I'll try to keep this updated as results come in. :)
 
Ian Sean

Where did you purchase your ground corn cob at? Was it a pet store or other type of store?

Thanks
 
If you look in your Yellow Pages under "abrasives" you can find corncob and walnut shell media in 25 lb bags for less than $10. My buddy and I split a bag as I don't need 25 lbs. I use a cleaning solvent for media from Midway.
 
alternative media

Here is my home-made set up. I have a plastic , inexpensive rock tumbler(20 dollars or less). I use corn meal with some "brasso" dripped into it. I can easily polish twenty 30-30 or 30-06 at a time. Only about an hour or so, and they clean up very nice. These were cases as old as 15 years, and been reloaded 10 times or so. Gives you an idea of how tarnished they can be. Works pretty good, when I think to use it. I kind of like shooting the well used un-polished cases, as they look old time when shooting cowboy type events at my club.

mothernatureson
 
I've used pet store media for years. Both corncob and walnut shell and they have worked well for me.

mothernatureson - Brasso contains ammonia, which will weaken your brass. Better to use a case polish. They don't contain ammonia.
 
I'll have to keep this in mind for next time. However, I am getting quite a bit of use out of the Lyman walnut media. I just tumbled 600 rounds of .50ae, 2000 rounds of .45acp, and am in the process of tumbling 2000 rounds of 10mm as I write this. The media seems to be holding up nicely. I can tumbe 500 rounds in 3 hours and they come out looking like new. I use no chemicals. The thing I like the most is that the media doesn't get stuck in the brass.

But for next time, I am gonna compare the yellow pages "abrasives" and the pet stores.
 
brasso

thanks for the heads up, have not noticed any problems. I think it is such a small amount though. After all those years shining my Army brass, never had a belt buckle failure!
 
After all those years shining my Army brass, never had a belt buckle failure!
Click to expand...

Neither did I...Of course back then my gut didn't exert those kind of pressures on my belt buckle!
 
On the use of Cat Litter.

I have never used it, but over the years, I have read the guys who have tried it. Their comments were something like this: don't use cat litter, very dusty, don't use cat litter, dust has to be cleaned off brass, don't use cat litter, dust burned out motor of tumbler after about 10-12 batches, and OOOH!!!! did I mention they said don't use cat litter!
 
Pets-mart crushed English walnut, "Reptile Bedding" about $9.00 for a 25 lb bag. Add a couple of cupfulls of Nu-Finish car wax, or Turtle Wax.

Peace
Steel Talon:cool:
 
I have never heard of the car wax use. What does it do and wouldnt it leave a waxy build-up?

Jesse
 
I don't use any waxes in the media. I leave it untreated. If anything, I pour a couple tablespoons of mineral spirits in the tumbler along with half a dryer sheet. Mineral spirits seems to do a decent job of adding some shine and dusting off the brass. The dryer sheet collects the dust (dust sticks to the dryer sheet).
 
bought a 10 lb bag of ground corn cob (Hartz brand) for $4 and gave it a whirl (with a squirt of Flitz) with some pretty dirty brass.
Click to expand...

I'm going to try rice next
Click to expand...

I've tried both pet bedding corn cob and dry rice. Don't use either on cases with a small mouth, like .223. It's way more trouble than it's worth.

Corn meal with nothing added was quite dusty.
 
good tip thanks. I went to the feed store where I buy my dog's food, and found they have big bags of crushed corn cob for $7. Will try it out, at least for big mouth cases - like 45acp.

off topic from original post: I bought the Frankford Arsenal tumbler a few days ago, and it broke 2 days after I bought it (bolt broke between the motor and the bowl). Took it back and got a Lyman 1200 for $5 more.
 
If your corncob is too coarse for you, put it in your food processor or blender for a few seconds...
 
Hello Noresttill,

>>I have never heard of the car wax use. What does it do and wouldnt it leave a waxy build-up?<<


Cleans your brass most effectively, and no it doesn't leave any build up or damage to your brass. If you've ever used the Dillon additive it does the same thing for less, "Dollar" type stores carry Nu Finish for under three bucks and it goes a very long way.

Segregate some old brass and try it out..Woks like a charm..

Peace
Steel Talon:cool:
 
I've been buying my ground corn cob from livestock feed stores for years. What you will generally run into is it comes in two granulations, 1/8" and 1/4" size. Stay away from the 1/4" size, as it will stick inside the cases.

I'm currently paying $12.99 for a 40 pound bag and use Berry's or Midway brass tumbler polish in it. I go through several bags a year and it's saved me a whole lot of money.

I've experimented with all kinds of media in my 3 tumblers, and corn cob works the best. Rice didn't do it and cat litter will leave all kinds of residue on your brass which will scratch your dies. Cat litter is made from clay in most cases. Saw dust won't do it, either. It's not abrasive enough. I've also tried strips of rags, and that didn't work.

There is a reason the tumbler manufacturers have chosen corn cob and ground walnut. They work the best and they are the most cost effective. Walnut will clean quicker, but won't last as long, because it won't absorb impurities. Corn cob will polish brighter and will absorb impurities like a sponge until it can't absorb anymore. Then it's time to replace it.

Hope this helps.

Fred
 
Don't Use...

Cat litter, for all the reasons Shoney stated. And Oil-Dri is just expensive cat litter. (BTW, I do use cheap cat litter for oil-dri. Works just fine.)

Cat litter (and Oil-dri) are made of clay. Clay particles are extremely tiny. I expect they'd polish yr brass to a very high sheen, but it would take close to FOREVER!! It'd be like starting with a very dull, corroded knife, and using the finest Hard Arkansas hone to try to clean it and put on an edge.
 
Well I am a hard head and "show me" person....after having just tried it..DON'T USE CAT LITTER or OIL DRY...:banghead:

With that out of the way, I will give rice a try just for the heck of it.

Dark Helmet, I am using the cheap corn cob and saying to myself, "this stuff is just a bit to coarse, I need to figure out some ingenious way to grind down this stuff to just a little bit smaller size" Mental images of milling stones and windmills in my head, I come back to the thread and read your comment on using a blender or food processor. :banghead:

I think I need I need a vacation.

Oh BTW...the blender worked great.:)
 
A mixture of hard white rice and brown rice , bought at the bulk section of your super market is conveniant, cheap and will work. And NO , MINUTE RICE will not make it quicker.
 
Tried rice this weekend. Worked better than corn cob, and absorbed the impurities well. It was fortified rice, so it should strengthen my cases, right? ;)

Had fun telling my boys that we were going to cook the rice afterward. Make some "dirty rice". It took them a few seconds to figure out I was kidding.....:what:

Anyway, I will be heading to the local feed shop, or petco tomorrow to see about the walnut.
 
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