Tell me about tumbling

[TennJed]

I have a lee turret press and some dies coming in the mail. While I was shooting today and chasing some 9mm brass I kept finding brass in the grass I had missed from previous trips. Needless to say this brass was rather dirty and some were filled with dirt.

First off can I tumble and reload this brass (as long as it is not cracked ect.)?

If I can I would like to set a tumbler up in my carport (away from the rain) and tumble outside before I deprime. Because I will be using a turret press and will siz, deprime, and prime in one step I would like to tumble first.

How many of you tumble before depriming (or is the proper term decapping?)?


What media do you use to tumble? How much should I expect to pay for the media at a Big box store like basspro or sportsmans wharehouse? How many times can you use the media before you dump and change it

I am looking at a Smartreloader tumbler. It is a nano737 (I think). It is a little smaller than a typical tumbler. It holds about 300 - 9mm. Does anyone have any opinions on the smart reloader tumbler?

Thanks for all your help!

 

[Steve Koski]

TJ,

1) Sure. I'd sort through it and get the packed dirt out first though.

2) I do.

3) Unless you've got some mental disorder or a bad press, the right way to run a progressive press (and probably a turnit press) for pistol ammo is to follow the instructions. Clean cases go into the press (with their old primers), and loaded ammo comes out.

4) I use corncob media. 30 pounds of it for $15 or something cheap like that from www.greenproducts.com. I hear you can get it from Harbor Freight cheap too. My CRB polish is 50% Nufinish (orange bottle car polish) and 50% mineral spirits mixed in an old dishwasher soap bottle. Shake & squirt a little into the media with each batch. I let the tumbler run about an hour, brass is clean and shiny.

5) You can use the media until it stops cleaning. Guessing 40 - 50 batches of brass.

6) Don't know about that one. I have a very old Midwayusa tumbler that is still running.

Take care,

Koski

 

[mbopp]

Maybe I'm too picky but I run a Dremel brush inside my pick-up range brass before tumbling it. No use spitting dirt down my barrels. I started this after I lost a decapper pin & rod on a 38 SPL case that had a pebble stuck inside it that I missed.
My "tumbler" is home-made using a 3# coffee can as the drum. It's loaded with corn cob pet bedding and a splash of Nu Finish. Sure it's small & slow but 30 years ago I had more time than money.
You can also use walnut "lizard litter" from the pet store.

 

[altitude_19]

First off can I tumble and reload this brass (as long as it is not cracked ect.)?

Should be ok. Handguns typically are more forgiving with "found" brass than rifles. Lower pressures mean less likelihood they have been abused to the point of hazard.

How many of you tumble before depriming (or is the proper term decapping?)?

That's the only way I do it. Otherwise you have to clean media out of primer pockets. If you have time for such things, great. I don't (work too much).

What media do you use to tumble? How much should I expect to pay for the media at a Big box store like basspro or sportsmans wharehouse? How many times can you use the media before you dump and change it

I use lizard bedding from Petco (Zilla brand). It's about half as much as true "media." 6 lbs of Lyman media goes for $12-15. Lizard bedding can be had for less than half that.
I don't have a set number of uses for media. Use it until it's too black for your liking or the brass isn't coming out clean any more. You can throw used dryer sheets in with each use to catch some dirt and prolong it's service life.

I am looking at a Smartreloader tumbler. It is a nano737 (I think). It is a little smaller than a typical tumbler. It holds about 300 - 9mm. Does anyone have any opinions on the smart reloader tumbler?

Can't speak to the quality of the tumbler, but I know it's foreign made. Most smart reloader products are copies of American equipment, at the expense of domestic jobs. I can't endorse giving money to them if you have the means to buy American, but I can't fault a man for making choices due to economic necessity.

 

[GLOOB]

Doesn't really matter what media you use. Just be sure to wet it down with something before you use it. I'm in a dry climate, and if I run my tumbler dry, it just doesn't work very well. Add some polish and/or some mineral spirits, or even just plain water, and it makes a night and day difference. I spritz it down until I see media start to stick on the center cone. Even badly tarnished and stained brass comes out great if you leave it long enough.

I always tumble before decapping. Vibratory tumbling doesn't clean primer pockets very well, so it really doesn't matter if they're capped or not, except some media can get packed into the primer pockets.

I don't have a set number of uses for media. Use it until it's too black for your liking or the brass isn't coming out clean any more.

As far as I can tell, media doesn't wear out. As long as I wet it down, the brass still gets clean and polished. But what happens when it gets too dirty is that a film of black sludge will start to adhere to the rough areas, like the inside of the necks, in little patches or blobs. Also, this sludge seems to like sticking to the outside of nickel cases, for some unintuitive reason. That's when I toss it.

 

[Lost Sheep]

First off can I tumble and reload this brass (as long as it is not cracked ect.)?

Yes. Make sure they are the same length and within SAAMI specs. Semiauto brass may tend to shorten with use (bottlenecked rifle brass tends to lengthen). Not generally a major concern, though.

How many of you tumble before depriming (or is the proper term decapping?)?

Decapping or depriming, both terms are recognized as acceptable. Both practices (deprime before or after tunbling) are used. It seems to depend on personal style. I tumble with the spent primers in.

I am looking at a Smartreloader tumbler. It is a nano737 (I think). It is a little smaller than a typical tumbler. It holds about 300 - 9mm. Does anyone have any opinions on the smart reloader tumbler?

Thanks for all your help!

Do a forum search on "smartreloader". Enough said.

I loaded for 3 decades without a tumbler. I wiped off any grit with my hands or a towel. You can even run ammo through a dishwasher or clothes washer. Or just stir them around in a bucket of soapy water. My ammo looked a little grungy, but shot just fine. Now that I have a tumbler (vibratory style), they look prettier, but shoot just the same.

Lost Sheep

 

[evan price]

You can buy crushed walnut shells or ground corncob to use as media for a lot cheaper at a pet store, or you can order a big 30# sack of Zilla delivered t oyour door through Amazon for 65 cents a pound.

 

[john16443]

I have a lee turret press and some dies coming in the mail. While I was shooting today and chasing some 9mm brass I kept finding brass in the grass I had missed from previous trips. Needless to say this brass was rather dirty and some were filled with dirt.

First off can I tumble and reload this brass (as long as it is not cracked ect.)?

If I can I would like to set a tumbler up in my carport (away from the rain) and tumble outside before I deprime. Because I will be using a turret press and will siz, deprime, and prime in one step I would like to tumble first.

How many of you tumble before depriming (or is the proper term decapping?)?


What media do you use to tumble? How much should I expect to pay for the media at a Big box store like basspro or sportsmans wharehouse? How many times can you use the media before you dump and change it

I am looking at a Smartreloader tumbler. It is a nano737 (I think). It is a little smaller than a typical tumbler. It holds about 300 - 9mm. Does anyone have any opinions on the smart reloader tumbler?

Thanks for all your help!

TennJed - You've got good information here, allow me to add my own experiences.

I have the NANO tumbler and love it. Will buy another if I ever have to, maybe the DREAM for a few bucks more. I know it'll do up to 300 9mm cases at a time, but I limit the loads to 200 9mm or 150 ACP

I deprime before I tumble, and since I use the fine walnut media from Harbor Freight, http://www.harborfreight.com/25-lbs-fine-grade-walnut-shell-blast-media-92155.html
I don't have an issue with media stuck in the flash holes as the media is smaller than the holes. There MAY be 1 in 200 that have a piece in there, and a quick twist with a primer pocket cleaner takes care of it. I started with the Zillo stuff, but found it was too coarse and always stuck in the flash holes.

There is also the fine corn cob media from Drillspot: http://www.drillspot.com/products/499763/econoline_526020g-40_40_lbs_blast_media

I use the NANO tumbler for at least 2 cycles per week, many times 3 times per week, and toss in about 3/4 cap of NuFinish every other week. Because I have a ton of the media from Harbor Freight, I just change it out every month. The only reason I do this is because there are a number of reloading related activities I do at certain times of the month, this is one of them. The media isn't worn out by any means. Don't fill it higher than the instructions say.

I also tear up a baby wipe into 4 pieces and toss it in the tumbler, this helps to absorb some of the crud and keeps the media working better longer. It also adds the moisture noted above to help.

 

[AK_Maine_iac]

I do not have a tumbler as of yet. This works for me. I put the media in a 3lb coffee can. Secure it well, and to be on the safe side. (my luck the cover would come off) I place it in a pillow case tied close. Toss it in the cloth dryer along with a few towels to cut down on the noise. Let it run for about an hour.


My tumbler is on the way. Ordered it two weeks ago. It must be traveling by dog sled. That would be faster than our mail service. What was i thinking.

 

[bubbacrabb]

Get you a tumbler, I like the Berrys tumbler. It comes in many colors under different names. I got one from Cabelas with their name on it. Its still a berrys just green. Usually can be found for under 50 bucks.

Range brass, especially pistol in my experience you cant kill the stuff. If it aint cracked load it. I dont clean primer pockets on pistol brass. The rifle brass Im about to start loading I do clean it. I still will load range rifle brass.

Media, I know Im not the first to say it on this thread, but I dont think you can beat that deal from drillspot. Devlivered to your door, 40 pounds of corn cob media for 25 bucks or so? The stuff is great. I use a little nu finish in the media let it run for 15 minutes it works great. Pick up that nu finish at wally world or so. Greeeaattt! Stuff like Tony the Tiger greeeatt! Happy reloading my friend.

 

[Strykervet]

Just a note about range brass: Some reloaders will use their brass x times, then stop picking it up after they are done with it. Then someone comes along, with little experience, and picks it up and uses it more... If the brass has been reloaded too much, or worse, trimmed too much, then you could have a bad situation.

The brass may appear to be fine. If it has been trimmed a lot, you can't really tell without a guage (and unless you are reloading very expenive, obscure cartridges, you probably don't have one --easier and cheaper to discard after so many uses). The side of the case wall can be stretched thin, and it may only take one or two more loadings before failure. They guy that left them may have known this, hence why he left them.

The only pick up brass I use is the stuff I see someone fire from a factory box next to me. But I fire on a military range where there is no old brass laying around. Be safe. Not worth your eyes or your hands to save a few bucks.

Knowing this, I always pick up my brass. Even if it is useless. If it has no more life left, it gets recycled.