What's your method for disposal of used tumbling media?

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ric426

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I've searched for the answer to this, I really have.
I'm also not trying to rekindle the perpetual "is it safe/unsafe" discussion. I choose to take reasonable steps to minimize potential risks. If you don't, so be it.

Having said that, when do you decide to change your tumbling media and how do you prefer to dispose of the used media?
 
Goes in a plastic bag with the rest of the trash. I'm looking at probably 2lbs every 6 months if that. I plan to switch over to steel media soon and will probably just poor the water down the drain or on the front lawn.
 
"used" is an interesting proposition.

I use two heaps : the dirty heap, and the cleaner heap.

The cleaner heap eventually becomes the dirty heap.

The dirty heap is used to clean field collected cases. The clean heap is used to finish ( dry) ultra-sonic cleaned brass, and then polish them after assembly.

I've never had to throw any of the dirty heap away....it has slowly slipped away a grain at a time, but i've never pitched any except when dumping it for purposes of relocating.....

That bit I had to toss went out with the garbage.

Last I checked, its not hazardous waste. If you were really concerned about the wastes' potential toxicity, any recycling center that takes paint would be able to accept that waste.
 
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Having said that, when do you decide to change your tumbling media and how do you prefer to dispose of the used media?
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I pre-clean pistol cases with soap and water followed by corncob media. The media lasts many 1000's of cases. I have way over 20K cases cleaned on hand. I started with 40# of media and have used maybe 12-15#.
I just change media if I see any change in the results or time it takes to get there. I like very shiny.

The tumbler holds about a coffee can/container full, and I put the used media in the trash. The pre-wash liquid is dumped on the ground.

I was raised in Trenton near I-75.;)
 
blarby said:
The clean heap is used to finish ( dry) ultra-sonic cleaned brass, and then polish them after assembly.
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So do you Tumble finished loaded ammo? It is not a good habit to get into. With some powders it can break it down causing it to burn faster. Alot of powders like ADI (Hodgdon) are extruded and by cutting it to a certain length that determines it's burning properties (ie: longer = slower, shorter = faster).
 
So do you Tumble finished loaded ammo? It is not a good habit to get into. With some powders it can break it down causing it to burn faster. Alot of powders like ADI (Hodgdon) are extruded and by cutting it to a certain length that determines it's burning properties (ie: longer = slower, shorter = faster).
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This issue repeats about every year.
Numerous testing for both set-back and powder changes have disproved the above statement. Tumbling multiple different rifle and pistol rounds for 24 hours was done by two forum members either last year or late the year before.

Members who have experience with ammo manufacturers say the manufacturers tumble the rounds after they are loaded to clean them up.

Powders are coated and tougher than you might think.
 
Damn good thing that powder doesn't get jostled on the way to stores and consumers ... you know, like bouncing around in semis or UPS trucks.
/Bryan
 
be careful if you do tumble loaded ammo. It could lure a giant carnivorous worm into your basement to eat you...... ;)
 
Throw it away. What else would you do with it?
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Considering all I've read about how nasty the dust from used media is, it practically sounds like toxic waste and I wondered if anyone took extra measures in it's disposal. Seemed like a reasonable question at the time.

So, how did a thread about disposing of used media turn into another debate about tumbling loaded ammo?
FWIW, I don't bother doing it, but that thread on AR15.com seems to indicate that it doesn't have much affect on the powder.

I was raised in Trenton near I-75.
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Hi! I'm actually way north of there, half way between Ann Arbor and Flint, but still considered to be SE Michigan.
 
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I was raised in Trenton near I-75.
Hi! I'm actually way north of there, half way between Ann Arbor and Flint, but still considered to be SE Michigan.
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I was born in Detroit, and resided most of that time within a few miles of the city core !

Ya for Michiganders :)
 
So do you Tumble finished loaded ammo? It is not a good habit to get into. With some powders it can break it down causing it to burn faster. Alot of powders like ADI (Hodgdon) are extruded and by cutting it to a certain length that determines it's burning properties (ie: longer = slower, shorter = faster).
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Totally false!


What do I do with used tumbling media, I put it in sealed cans and discard it when we have has-met cleanup once/twice a year along with the resisdue from smelting range lead and wheel weights.
 
I throw the old media in the back of the truck and it blows out as I drive down the road. :)
 
I pour it from container to container out side in a good breeze so the dust & trash blow away. I also throw a damp paper towel in while when it is running. Alot of the junk sticks to the towel then I just throw it in the trash.
 
"Considering all I've read about how nasty the dust from used media is, it practically sounds like toxic waste and I wondered if anyone took extra measures in it's disposal. Seemed like a reasonable question at the time."

Considering 'all you're read' your question is quite reasonable. What the guys are telling you is virtually all you've read is over-hyped BS dreamed up by overly sensitive, 'trust your government' type guys who wish to sound like safety experts and then it gets parroted on the web by Chicken Littles; meaning the comments aren't personal at you.

Toss your old media anyway you wish or scatter it on your lawn for mulch. It's such a low level 'poision' that as a land fill hazard it falls somewhere between old auto brake pads and empty cans of dog food, far below last Christmas' uneaten fruit cake.

So far as 'lead' being poison, of itself, I suppose that may be true but the "powdered" stuff is what gets into our blood stream, not solid lead. I have cast bullets, sinkers and fishing lures since '65 without issue but I have sense enough not to cast under a hood and I don't lick the gray smears off my fingers. Then an uncle of mine was wounded in WW2 and lived with the bullet lodged near his spine, we don't know if that's what got him but he died last November but the poor dude made it to age 92 so it must be a slow acting poison.
 
So do you Tumble finished loaded ammo? It is not a good habit to get into. With some powders it can break it down causing it to burn faster. Alot of powders like ADI (Hodgdon) are extruded and by cutting it to a certain length that determines it's burning properties (ie: longer = slower, shorter = faster).
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Politely put: bullhockey.
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Exactly. There are even a couple of guys on this forum that have done testing to prove it false.

I put my wore out media in a plastic bag, tie it up and throw it in the trash.
 
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