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I just went from a Lyman Pro Turbo!@#!@#! 2500 EXTREEEEM! tumbler (loved it but it broke after a year... I could put a RIDICULOUS amount of brass in there and it cascaded wonderfully) to a cheap Frankford arsenal. I now wish I'd just paid the extra 30 bucks and got another Lyman.
The frankford is pathetic. It will only cascade with a light load of brass, and the ratio of media to brass has to be great. Like a couple handfuls of brass will overwhelm it.
Are you adding mineral spirits and/or polish to the media or running it dry. I run Berry's Tumblers and the only time I have ever had trouble with circulation was when I added too much mineral spirits and polish to the media. Brass amount (too much or too little) has never been an issue.
Problem solved!!! Tonight, I borrowed a friend's Lyman 1200 tumbler to run a side by side comparison. The difference is incredible!!!!
I put the clear lid from Frankford on the Lyman to observe material flow. The Lyman is FAST! Several times faster than my Frankford ever was. Great cascading, and it will cut my cleaning time by about 75%!
The Lyman is only a fraction as loud as the Frankford. It is amazingly quiet and it makes a steady hum instead of the annoying rattle of the Frankford.
The bowl on the Lyman is somewhat smaller, probably about 80-85% of the Frankford's volume.
This machine is incredible! I'm ordering one as soon as I finish this post
Edited to add: I ended up ordering the giant Lyman Pro Magnum. Can't wait to load it up with a thousand 9mm cases.
I have this same tumbler and actually had the same issue tonight when loading it up with 300 cases of 40 S&W. The media and brass were moving in a circular motion until adding more media, which started the cascading effect. The funnel idea sounds interesting, I'll have to try that
Mine sits on a concrete floor, so none of the vibration is lost.
Corn cob is lighter and cascades more freely.
When carrying a good load of brass, it takes a few minutes for the contents to "boil".
I have a new Frankford and one of the previous design. The newer one is quieter and has a better tumble. One has used, treated corncob, and the other has virgin or near virgin plain corncob. One removes oxidation and imparts polish and the other shines 'em up. All my brass is liquid cleaned before handling. What I am doing with the sonic wash produces clean brass but not the appearance I want.
Since starting a sonic wash I stopped using the heavier walnut, which doesn't "boil" as easily as the lighter corn cob.
If I was doing higher volumes, I would get a larger capacity, heavy duty machine and pay some attention to warranty or optional service plan.
I use a Berry's 400, the one thing i have noticed is that Temperature and Humidity play a big role in your media's ability to tumble. I tumble in my shop that only has a window AC. I have noticed with high humidity and very cold temperature the media appears to be thicker and not as loose to tumble freely. The weight of the brass mixed with the thick media will cause it to only spin until it can start the cascade process. Just my two cents worth.
My FA tumbler cascades beautifully and as fast as any videos I've seen online. I always keep the media about 4/5ths full in the bowl and never have put more than about 350 cases in at a time (sometimes 223 mixed with 9mm). I might try the funnel mod eventually but it's working so well right now I don't know if I need to. I think others might be on to something when they mentioned temp/humidity affecting your tumbler. Do you have yours in a garage? I keep mine inside so it never sees hardly any temp variance and low humidity thanks to the A/C.
FWIW, my FA tumbler started doing the same thing after the first few uses because several the motor mounting screws and the counterweight had vibrated loose. I took it apart and locktited everything that I could, that was 5+ years ago and it hasn't given me any trouble since. I know you ordered a new one already but might as well try and fix it for a backup....
I also use the FA tumbler. I just put a few drops of brass cleaner in, let it tumble or a minute or so to spread it around, add my .45 cases and let them tumble alone for a minute so they fill with media to prevent my 9mm cases from getting stuck in them, then add a whole bunch of 9mm cases and let em go for 4 hours or so. I've never had a problem. It sounds like a mechanical issue with the tumbler.
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