Wet Tumbling with SS media - The How and the Why.

[bob4]

^Use some of that brass before you decide. I bought wet tumbled brass before. After sizing and flaring (and galling), I decided I'd rather have dry tumbled brass.

I'm curious as to what problem you may have had with wet tumbled brass ?

 

[USSR]

Agree. The only thing different is the brass is much, much cleaner.

Don

 

[jaguarxk120]

Could it be the dry tumbled brass has a very slight wax coating on it from the media. Many of the polishing agents use wax as a carrier for the abrasive, buffing compounds.

 

[USSR]

Could it be the dry tumbled brass has a very slight wax coating on it from the media. Many of the polishing agents use wax as a carrier for the abrasive, buffing compounds.

Well, that can be accomplished easily with wet tumbling. Here is what I do: wet tumble; apply lanolin based lube; resize; and dry tumble to remove the lube (don't want the lube to attach itself to the rubber-lined inside of the drum).

Don

 

[GLOOB]

Can't see how you had troubles with SS tumbled brass, it comes out just like factory new.

Maybe you have never used factory new brass.

I have the same problem with factory new brass - galled expanders and scratched up necks. My expanders are all high polished, too. So I have to use neck lube on new brass, even pistol cases. In fact, I just experienced this with my new Starline 10mm brass. I bought a new expander and polished the heck out of it. And I galled it up - a couple dozen streaks of brass all around the expander and stiff expanding - after loading only FIFTEEN rounds. Once the expander is galled, it takes a long soak in Hoppes and a lot of scrubbing with a stiff brush before it is clean, again. I try to avoid sanding off the galling, because my expanders are already where I want them.

that can be accomplished easily with wet tumbling. Here is what I do: wet tumble; apply lanolin based lube; resize; and dry tumble to remove the lube

That's just too high maintenance for me. To each their own. I don't lube my pistol cases, and I actively avoid getting any lube on the inside of my rifle cases. My brass sizes and expands great (using M dies for rifle). I don't neck lube, I don't tumble twice, and I don't get powder clumped up in my case necks.

Could it be the dry tumbled brass has a very slight wax coating on it from the media. Many of the polishing agents use wax as a carrier for the abrasive, buffing compounds.

I use NuFinish, and I'm sure it helps. Dry tumbling also leaves a film of carbon on the inside of the cases.

Another member has been using Armor All Wash and Wax in his wet tumbler to provide some lubrication.

 

[jaguarxk120]

As I and others have said the cases come clean outside and inside. If you have carbon inside the cases, they are still dirty! The cases look good outside but there is still the carbon inside wearing on your expanders.

Please note one tumbler has moved duty to case waxing, the media (new) is loaded with JPW and 15 -20 minutes will give the clean cases a nice coat of wax.
A little bit of wax will work wonders when sizing with carbide dies.

 

[Toprudder]

Another member has been using Armor All Wash and Wax in his wet tumbler to provide some lubrication.

I noticed the dragging/galling when I first started wet tumbling brass with Dawn/Lemishine. I also noticed that (on the Dillon 550) if I simply rubbed the powder funnel with my fingers every other round, it no longer happened. Shortly thereafter I started using Armorall. No more galling. To be sure, I ran a dozen cases tumbled with Dawn and a dozen cases tumbled with Armorall as a test, back to back, and it was night and day difference.

I never really thought about factory new brass, but I think if I ever use any I will go ahead and wet tumble them for a short time with AA, only I won't use the pins as I don't think that would be necessary.

 

[konertjm]

I use an RCBS media separator, go slow, reverse directions every 4 or 5 turns.

Pins are wet, so the stick to anything else wet.

After tumbling, I dump the cases onto a large towel. One trick I picked up, is to flip the edges of the towel under on all 4 sides, creating a slight lip. Doesn't stop cases from rolling off, but it sure slows them down.
Try to spread the cases down to one layer with my left hand, while looking for the elusive pins. Ready to grab them with the large magnet in my right hand.

Another little trick I discovered involves the drain in the utility sink. I place a 1 inch round magnet in the very center of the metal drain. I am not sure it gets all of the pins that escape, but it will get a lot of them.

As one poster stated in another thread, the pins will never wear out, but they will disappear.

 

[USSR]

Another little trick I discovered involves the drain in the utility sink. I place a 1 inch round magnet in the very center of the metal drain. I am not sure it gets all of the pins that escape, but it will get a lot of them.

Excellent idea, konertjm!!!

Don

 

[nemloc]

How do you 'mass' dry the cases after wet tumbling?

 

[OilyPablo]

Super simple, in layers in a food dehydrator.

 

[GBExpat]

How do you 'mass' dry the cases after wet tumbling?

After towel-drying them, I spread them out in corrugated cardboard flats in front of a fan for acoupla days. Works great for me.

 

[GLOOB]

FWIW, tumbling in vibratory tumbler with corn cob media with the lid off works great. No streaks or tarnish. Just get most of the water out using your media separator, first.

I always wash my brass in water before I dry tumble it, even if it's not visibly dirty/dusty. The little bit of water gets the brass clean, faster. If the media doesn't look wet enough, I add mineral spirits until the media looks damp.

 

[USSR]

How do you 'mass' dry the cases after wet tumbling?

Put them in an aluminum lasagna pan and pop them in the oven set as low as it goes for 30 minutes.

Don

 

[picker]

When you use AA wash and wax do you still add Limishine ?
Best/picker

 

[Toprudder]

When you use AA wash and wax do you still add Limishine ?

I do.

 

[GBExpat]

When you use AA wash and wax do you still add Limishine ?

Ab-so-lute-ly ... the citric acid is what makes the brass BRIGHT again.

 

[OilyPablo]

It's amazing how little Lemishine it takes.

 

[USSR]

It's amazing how little Lemishine it takes.

Yes, 1/4 teaspoon per gallon is all you need. More is not better with Lemishine. Use too much and the brass comes out dark or you may even be leeching zinc from the case (brass turns pink).

Don

 

[USSR]

Using their directions, you can load up to 13.5 pound of brass in the drum without exceeding the tumbler capacity. This is a ratio of brass to media of greater than 2.5 to 1. What you want is something close to 1 to 1. There is no benefit to adding more water (it’s heavy and does nothing for you), but there is a big advantage in having your tumbler clean faster and better by increasing the amount of stainless steel media. I settled on 8 pounds of media, which allows me to use up to 10.5 pounds of brass, which is much closer to the 1 to 1 ratio.

One other reason to "up" the SS media rate is, while from a weight view point, by using only the 5 pounds of SS media Frankford Arsenal recommends, you can load up to 13.5 pounds of brass, volume-wise, you cannot get that much large, bottleneck rifle brass in the drum. Using the 8 pounds that I recommend, you pretty much tap out at both weight and volume.

Don

 

[jmorris]

Lots of ways to tumble both wet and dry. I read that Frankford didn't offer spare parts for the FART.

Just talked to Frankford Arsenal about replacement parts for their rotary tumbler. Very upfront about their product. No parts will be sold for repairing and they have no plans to take back and rebuild units after the warranty expires. They do state that within a reasonable time, if a unit seems to have failed from normal use (not commercial), they would probably make an adjustment on a case by case basis. The gears are plastic and they say the unit only pulls 1.5 amps when running.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?269634-FART-parts

 

[wild willy]

jmorris I can't believe I just ordered a FART

 

[jmorris]

That's OK your wife understands, what ever makes us happy right?

I have a vibratory tumbler made by the midway group too that is several decades old with no problems yet. The link I posted is why I generally don't get the first run of anything.

 

[cfullgraf]

Lots of ways to tumble both wet and dry. I read that Frankford didn't offer spare parts for the FART.

Frankfort Arsenal certainly offers replacement parts. It is buying a second unit.

As long as part failure is random and not a single part with a poor design and high failure rate, that is not a bad option. Not desirable, but still an option.

We are talking about a $10 or $15 thingy here. I suspect if Frankfort Arsenal does not begin offering replacement parts, sales will drop and the unit will be discontinued.

 

[USSR]

I suspect if Frankfort Arsenal does not begin offering replacement parts, sales will drop and the unit will be discontinued.

Or, someone else will. Something I have begun to do is: I spin the drum in the direction that it turns as I start it up. I figure the greatest strain on the gears will be at start up, going from a dead stop.

Don