Tumblers

[Hey_Allen]

I have that same FA kit.

I like the tumbler overall, and as it's been said, it's nice having the closed clear lid.
As to quiet, I may have been getting more noise due to the slab of my apartment balcony, but mine was pretty loud, just the rumble that it transmitted through the floor.


The case separator is something that I seldom use at all though. The baffles that are supposed to attach to the bucket kept catching the separator cage and either tipping or stopping the cage.
I haven't gotten around to doing it yet, but I keep intending to buy one of the case separator colanders, but I may just go buy a large colander from a cooking supplies shop instead.

 

[Berry's MFG]

Thanks for the nod on our Tumbler. You can't go wrong with the Cabela's tumbler, the motor is guaranteed for three years and the plastic is lifetime. When you fill out the warranty card you will notice you mail it to Berry's

 

[HOWARD J]

I have a Lyman tumbler that is approx 35 years old---still runs good
A thumblers tumbler about the same age---full of dust--too much trouble taking wingnuts off everytime you use it.
An RCBS tumbler--motor burned out after 15 years.
Another Lyman--20 years old---went out of balance--quit using it.
A Hornady tumbler---too new to tell ( looks like a RCBS )
Good luck with whatever you buy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[mmorris]

I located the source for my suggestion, and it's post #203 by heypete in the "clever inventions/discoveries" sticky thread.

November 19, 2007, 11:51 PM #203

heypete

My Frankford Arsenal tumbler has a threaded metal shaft in the middle. This shaft allows one to attach the clear plastic cover to the bowl by using a wingnut.

Unfortunately, brass hitting the shaft cause a fair amount of metal-on-metal noise that is most annoying. By cutting a drinking straw to the proper length and slipping it over the shaft, the noise is greatly reduced while still allowing me to tighten wingnut and secure the lid.

Works for me

 

[LiveLife]

Jay, I had a sneaking suspicion that Cabela's green tumbler looked strikingly similar to Berry's blue tumbler - like W231/HP38, it's confirmed to be the same tumbler after all.

Great tumbler by the way, quiet and tumbles a lot of brass.

 

[LiveLife]

And happy to support another domestic manufacturing company who employs veterans - you'll get my business whenever possible over a distributor selling "foreign" equipment.

After meeting with the manager, Ross Hart, with whom I had arranged the tour in advance, we went onto the Berry’s production floor. To our surprise, the first thing we saw were plastic Injection Molding machines, which were busy making the bowls for the Berry’s Vibratory Case Cleanser. Ross explained to us that Berry’s makes all the components for their products except the electric motors for the case cleaner, and that the Injection Molding machines were not only for making one part. The molding machines also make the flex tips for some of their rifle bullets, which are also sold to other bullet companies such as Barnes Bullets. Berry’s does all of the plastics for Cabela’s brand products as well as doing custom Injection Molding for local businesses.

As we moved to the next building, Ross turned us over to the man in charge of the Electroplating process, a retired Marine Corps sniper and Desert Storm veteran ...

... the new building will also have a “clean” room, where Berry’s makes medical supplies and prosthetic limbs.

 

[ranger335v]

"Would like to know if (Frankford Arsenal Quick-N-EZ Case Tumbler Master Kit with Quick-N-EZ Rotary Media Separator) are good or not?

Well, if I remember correctly, they've been selling them for some 18-20 years. Hardly seems likely they could be still doing so if they weren't useful.

Actually, protests aside, there's little average difference in any vib tumblers. They have a plastic bowl, lid and base, a few springs, a cheap electric motor and a power cord. Not much there and the motor is the weak link, they all use motors from the lowest cost source and today that seems to be China.

 

[LiveLife]

the motor is the weak link

I agree. The motor in the Cabela's 400 (Berry's 400) tumbler is a larger unit with a large cooling fan (W&W model YJF61/26). Although it is made in China, I imagine even the higher end vibratory tumblers (Lyman 2500 Pro Magnum Tumbler) use motors made in China. I think you need to go industrial before you see motors made in USA but they are costly - http://www.candmtopline.com/vibratory.html#fluid

 

[rtpzwms]

I have a Thumler's Tumbler, model Ultra-Vibe 18 I had to replace the motor about a year ago but I've had the thing since the early 80's. Clear plastic might be great to watch the brass roll around in but will it still be used in 30 years? I have a clock and know how long it takes to get clean brass and I don't want to watch it. I think watching brass tumble would be as much fun as watching laundry. Buy a good product once not twice keep it longer and use it often.

 

[flashhole]

I recently picked up a Lyman model 2200 with the auto flo feature. I've processed about a dozen batches of brass using walnut media and some brass polish. It works great. Mine has an on/off switch on the housing and it has a clear plastic lid. It's surprisingly quiet. I discovered the noise is tunable with the locking nut that holds the main bowl to the housing. I bought mine here.

http://www.opticsplanet.net/lyman-2200-auto-flo-reg-tumblers.html

 

[jcwit]

I have a Thumler's Tumbler, model Ultra-Vibe 18 I had to replace the motor about a year ago but I've had the thing since the early 80's. Clear plastic might be great to watch the brass roll around in but will it still be used in 30 years? I have a clock and know how long it takes to get clean brass and I don't want to watch it. I think watching brass tumble would be as much fun as watching laundry. Buy a good product once not twice keep it longer and use it often.

Not disagreeing with you, just giving another outlook on this. First I really doubt I'll ever wear out my Cabelas/Berry tumbler, its now over 10 years old and has tumbled 100's of thousands of cases, both andgun and rifle. But if it should sometime go bad before I do, I'll have a Bright Shiney New one, instead of the same old dusty one. Plus the cost of two Cabelas/Berry tumblers do not even come close to one Thumblers Tumbler.

Just a different way of looking at it.

 

[flashhole]

The Thumbler's tumblers are insanely expensive for a reloader. Maybe the cost is justified if you are tumbling rocks but brass cases are not that hard on a tumbler.

 

[rtpzwms]

yea but... remember that thirty years ago the choices of what we could get were somewhat limited and the cost of the tumbler then is not what it is today. Although throwing one out and buying a new one is not a "bad" thing it does have an effect on landfill. To fix mine was less than the cost of a new one. And I don't think I'll be judged by my tumbler but the quality of the clean brass it produces. I think back then the Lyman tumbler was 10 bucks less than Thumbler's and they were out of stock when I bought mine.

 

[ranger335v]

"I keep intending to buy one of the case separator colanders, but I may just go buy a large colander from a cooking supplies shop instead."

Allen, go to a Dollar General Store and get an expanded mesh office type waste paper basket instead. Mine works great and only cost me a buck. I stick it into a clean 5 gal. plastic paint bucket, pour in the tumbler contents and spin the basket a few time, no more media in the cases. I store my media loose in the same bucket so it does't really eat up a lot of storage space in my loading room.

 

[flashhole]

rtpzwms - (what the heck kind of a handle is that), I'm not criticizing your choice. I'd love to have one but today they retail for a lot of money. Generally you see the manufacturers pretty close in price for the same quality. Are they that much better?

 

[jcwit]

rtpzwms--I wasn't criticizing or judging you either, just giving a different outlook.

 

[rtpzwms]

handle is a combination of first middle and last for wife and I. Not taken as criticizing just explaining the difference in time. Pre internet if you saw one on the shelf in the store that was great otherwise you had to call EVERYBODY or see it in a rag somewhere. Times have changed some better some not so much. BTY tumblers are cheaper now than when I bought mine! Are they that much better not really but all metal with springs and you can buy replacement parts with a call. On the new fangled ones I just wonder how long will they last with all that plastic? I do like some of the dump tubes on the new ones maybe they will have an upgraded bowl for mine?! LOL

 

[MYREDTAIL]

Bought a Lyman about 30 yrs ago when I first got into reloading & still have & use it with no problem's it is a work horse of a tumbler.

 

[rtpzwms]

MYREDTAIL, if you don't mind me asking how much did you pay 30 years ago? I think mine was $90-100 dollars back then.

 

[roc1]

My Midway separator and tumbler works great. I have used mine for several years with no problems. I have mine set to run every Monday night for a 1 1/2hrs automatically. I use it weekly and have run thousands of rounds through it. Great product could not do without the separator now makes it a lot faster.
roc1

 

[Berry's MFG]

Unfortunately our choice of manufacturers making a C-frame motor in the USA are down to one, and the cost of the motor would make the cost of the product go up by nearly 40%! That would price our product out of a very competitive market. We have to compete with manufacturers that are having their whole product made in China. We have been able to keep it to the motor and cord that are made offshore in China, all the plastic components are made by us in Utah.

 

[Brad5192]

In the end I believe i will buy the Cabelas tumble.

Thank you all for your input.

 

[Berry's MFG]

Maybe I ought to raffle off a one of a kind colored tumbler with the proceeds going to the forum. I've got a handfull of odd colored bowls I can use.

 

[rtpzwms]

Bring on the raffle! Or just send one to Brad for starting all of this!

 

[flashhole]

OK, I'll participate as long as you don't give reference to a "Rainbow" selection. It will give this forum a bad name and scare away participants. Political correctness is not the order of the day.