Tumble once or tumble twice?

[josephbw]

For what it's worth, here's my regimen.

1. Deprime with universal deprimer.
2. Drop in vibratory tumbler with walnut media.
3. Drop in ultrasonic cleaner with Dawn and 50/50 mix of vinegar and reverse osmosis water.
4. Thorough rinsing under hot water.
5. Dry thoroughly.
6. Polish in tumbler with Flitz liquid brass polish.
7. Sit back and admire pretty brass.
8. Wonder why I wasted so much time.
9. Remember I am retired and don't have anything better to do.
10. Forget how much work it was and do it again next time.

 

[mcdonl]

What about cast lead boollits lubed with Liquid Alox lube? Will the lube in the crimp ring be enough after finished loading? I have no worries tumbling jacketed bullets, but nervous about taking too much lube off....

 

[jcwit]

I would not reccomend tumbling lead bullets no mater what kind of lube is used. One would have a tumbler full of media REALLY contaminated with lead. Why would you want to tumble loaded lead rounds?

 

[rcmodel]

Don't tumble lead bullets.

Media dust will stick in the bullet lube and it's a bitch to clean it off!!!

rc

 

[mcdonl]

Got it. After the loading process they look dull, but no big deal. Just ammo.

 

[ArtP]

Anyone want to comment on how to clean tarnished, live ammo without tumbling? After reading the different opinions, especially the manufacturers quotes, it seems like a gamble I don't want to take.

I've got a couple dozen, expensive, HD rounds that tarnished over time. It's for a caliber I do not relaod for and a gun that would only be used as a last resort in an emergency.

 

[rcmodel]

Chuck the bullet or case rim lightly in a cordless drill and spin it with 0000 (Extra Fine) grade steel wool.

rc

 

[jcwit]

Don't use Brass-O.

 

[Walkalong]

Some commercial ammo makers do it but that doesn't make it safe for the hobbyist.
If factory ammo is tumbled, it's done in a controlled environment using industrial vibrators under strict supervision by qualified personnel.

Commercial ammo makers also blend powders, by your logic that would be ok for reloaders as well.

That is ridiculous. Tumbling is tumbling, and I made no such leap into blending powders. Keep it real my friend.

 

[jcwit]

Ok, I did the search...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Quote:
No! No! No! Tumbling loaded rounds will not degrade the powder, or hurt the loaded ammo in any way. Do a search, this has been hashed to death.

Federal: Can I put unfired ammo in a case tumbler?
A: No. Placing ammunition in a tumbler can be very dangerous. The risks are detonation inside the tumbler or changed powder characteristics that can result in serious injury during firing.
http://www.federalpremium.com/resources/faqs.aspx

Hodgdon: It is the policy of Hodgdon Powder Co. to recommend against ever tumbling or vibrating loaded or reloaded ammunition. Vibration for even short periods of time may degrade propellants or change their burn characteristics. Vibrating propellants may cause coatings to wear off and edges or
ends to erode. Dave Campbell Hodgdon Ballistician.

RCBS: Do not attempt to clean loaded ammunition. To do so could result in cartridge detonation causing serious personal injury.
http://www.rcbs.com/downloads/instru...structions.pdf

Lyman: Q: Can I tumble loaded ammo?
A: No, this can be very dangerous. Tumbling loaded ammo can break down the powder causing extreme pressure problems. http://www.lymanproducts.com/lyman/f...mblers_faq.php

Sierra: Q: I have some loaded ammo that is pretty badly tarnished. Can I just put it in my tumbler and clean it up?
A: No. The deterrent coating of the powder may be damaged, which speeds the burning rate. The simple answer here is, "No, don't do it."
http://www.sierrabullets.com/index.c...rvice&page=faq

Did it ever occur to you that just maybe the above manufactures have the foresight to listen and heed the advice of their lawyers who know nothing about loading ammo.

Remember the bag of Peanuts has a warning lable on it that it contains peanuts and nut products.

Just picked up a pair of Multipurpose Scissors from Harbor Freight
The warning lable cautions the following

To prevent serious injury and property damage
1. Keep away from children
2. Use as intended only
3. Inspect before every use, do not use if parts loose or damaged
4. Wash thoroughly before every use. Do not wash in dishwasher.
SAVE THESE WARNINGS

Lets use a little common sense and advice from those that have gone before us. Instead of running hither and dither screaming, The Sky Is Falling.

 

[Jesse Heywood]

Anyone want to comment on how to clean tarnished, live ammo without tumbling?

Chuck the bullet or case rim lightly in a cordless drill and spin it with 0000 (Extra Fine) grade steel wool.

You can also use gun-brite, fine valve grind compound, turtle wax rubbing compound. Don't use anything with ammonia, such as brasso. The cordless drill makes the job easier.

 

[1SOW]

You can also buy 'fine' walnut and corn cob as a "blast media" cheaply from Harbor Freight/Graingers.

Walnut is for 'cleaning'. Corn cob is for finer polishing.

I wash my pistol range brass and deprime, then polish with corn cob with NuFinish or other.
They are shiny and slippery in the mag. I like that.

I also wax the inside and outside of the mags. They're slippery too. I like that too.

 

[LiveLife]

I do something a little different as I segregate brass by purpose:

- I tumble plinking brass in rice to get them clean for resizing/depriming
- I tumble target/match brass in walnut to get them clean for resizing/depriming
- If I want shiny cases after resizing/depriming, I tumble them in corn cob with Dillon/MidwayUSA brass polish/NuFinish


I have used 50/50 mix but prefer to do it separately now - the 50/50 mix does work well. For me, rice/walnut get the cases clean enough for resizing and reloading.

 

[Rollis R. Karvellis]

I've tumbled loaded ammo for over a day, and only had 3 or 4 guns blow up. Oh damnit I used that line before. Need to work on my routine some more.

 

[788Ham]

Otto,

Thanks for taking the time and research, and then adding it on this thread, appreciated!

I have one of the largest Lyman tumblers, it has a huge bowl on it, so when 1/2 ful of walnut, there's quite a bit in there, also this amount of TW used will last a long time, 6 or 8 big tumbling jobs. Thanks for your concern on the amount used tho.

 

[jcwit]

Regarding tumbling live rounds note this

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=530645&highlight=tumbling

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=495611&highlight=tumbling

 

[jcwit]

Thanks for your concern on the amount used tho.

Try a smaller amount once, you might be pleasently supprised. For your size tumbler 2 to 3 teaspoons max. I been tumbling brass since the 60's, and I find most have the American idea bigger/more is always better. Not ture in many cases.

BTW your tumbler is only 1 qt. larger than my largest one, I currently use 4 tumblers.

For those wanting a reasonable priced media that will not clog flash holes or pack into the primer pockedt, here you go, BTW shipping is free delivered to your door

http://www.drillspot.com/products/521055/econoline_526040g-40_40_lbs_blast_media

 

[Jesse Heywood]

Here's a photo of what a polishing compound can do. Center is what I started with. Left is after tumbling in walnut a couple three times. Right was cleaned with valve grind compound and has been fired and tumbled in walnut a couple three times.

 

[GW Staar]

This sounds like a good idea to me. I think I may try this out.

Does anyone see any cons to it?

Just one....Walnut is a courser grit than corncob. Therefore you are wasting your time with the corncob. Corncob won't polish to its potential as long as you have the courser walnut in it. Finish will be limited to the capability of walnut.

That's like using 600 grit sandpaper, then 1200 grit, then 600 grit. As long as you use 600 grit that's as fine as you are going to get.

Walnut's advantage is faster cleaning and polishing due to its courser grit. Corncob's advantage is brighter smoother polish. Corncob without polish in it, is extremely slow. Polish speeds it up and too course a polish makes it polish like walnut.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I also use a 50/50 mix of walnut and corn cob media. It seems to work well for me but if I had to pick just one it would probably be corn cob media.

 

[Walkalong]

I tried the walnut/cobb mix, but just use cob now. I am patient when it comes to tumbling. Run it while at work, or while I sleep. Once range cases are clean, the next tumble takes little time.

 

[Shrinkmd]

Any idea on how to remove walnut slime from the walls of the tumbler? I think I overdosed on Hornady case polish one time, and there are some sticky brown deposits of the Lyman walnut media stuck to the inner walls of my tumbler. It doesn't affect the function, but it looks gross. Any ideas?

 

[LiveLife]

Take the plastic bowl off and wash with dish soap and warm water.

Dry and reassemble.

TIP: Once you add brass polish to your walnut/corn cob media, run the tumbler without case for 5-10 minutes or more to make sure the polish has evenly distributed on the media (no more clumps). If you add brass cases before the polish had a chance to evenly coat the media and not clumpy, you will get polish smears/stains on the brass cases. Also, don't add too much polish to walnut media as walnut won't absorb brass polish much and will end up on the brass or the inside of tumbler bowl.

 

[qajaq59]

I just use walnut lizard litter and car polish. But someday I'm going to try cedar chips just for laughs and see what it does.

 

[rscalzo]

vibrating loaded or reloaded ammunition. Vibration for even short periods of time may degrade propellants or change their burn characteristics.

How do they ship their peoducts then?

I've tumbled ammo after loading since the late 60's. Never had a problem. But that's me and others mzay chose not to do so. Nothing wrong with that. Quiter frankly I want
clean ammo. I'm not interested in a fashion show on the range.

Lyman walnut media

Paying for the name. Go to a pet store and pick up Lizard Little walnut. Usually the Kaytee brand is what is on the shelf. It goes on sales from time to time. I found corn cob absorbs the dirt and doesn't last as long. But I'm not interested in a ultra bright shine.

I don't use polish on empty cases as from time to time a clump can get caught in a case taking up a portion of the empty space possibly causing a pressure issue.