Which way is best?

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Grassman

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When you guys tumble your brass do you remove the primers first or does it matter? And how long do you tumble the brass?
 
I tumble first.
I don't find any advantage to using a universal decapper, which I decided I needed for some reason. I don't find the media cleans the primer pockets. The media is more likely to get stuck in the flash hole.

Of course the size of the media, hole and how dirty the brass are factors.

If you are using a liquid, (chemical or ultrasonic) I think Decapping 1st would be a plus. I want to say I've seen some ceramic media that cleans the primer pockets also.

Tumble time depends on how dirty the brass is. I used walnut or corcob depending on brass condition. I like to get 2 batches a day. Put 1 on before lights out & try to get another going before heading to work. Just try to let it run while I'm doiing other things. 2 - 4 hours most of the time is what I do if I'm around to change it. 12 hours or more is not a problem.

If I'm in a hurry I clean the neck of bottleneck cases or any stubborn spots before tumbling. Trick is to not be in a hurry.

If I 'm getting lube off of cases it may only take from 5-15 minutes, again I'm multitasking so a little extra time is not a problem. The lube removal stage seems to really brighten up the cases.

OH Yeah! I can tell you a media separator is 1 thing I would not want to do without after having one!!
 
Graswsman, tumble before? after? before and after?

I do not have a universal de-primer, I remove primers when I size, partial neck size, neck size and neck size with partial case body size, the number one reason for cleaning brass is to clean the case to protect the die and chamber, I tumble first then size/decap, tumble again to remove lube. I have spent time getting ahead, meaning when I load I am not waiting for the tumbler to finish, the other reason for tumbling, appearance, I make a tool for that, the same tool can be used when loading test cases or cases that are formed or to be formed (20 cases), it takes less time to polish 20 than tumble 100.

Condition, getting ahead, I have acquired brass that no one wanted to clean, some would require days of tumbling, again I use vinegar in a 3 gallon jar to clean 'seasoned' brass, maximum time is 15 minutes then wash, it would be rare for me to tumble for more than 1 hour. Cleaning with vinegar, acid attacks the zinc after it gets past the dirt, in the old days, before the Internet, reloading equipment manufactures recommended diluted H2SO3, this process pickled? the brass for long time storage, and turned it black, rather than dilute the acid, I started with a diluted form of acid.

What is the best way? I do not have a clue, if I had an observation it would be the way someone else processes and cleans brass, their way in their opinion is the only way.

F. Guffey
 
I tumble about an hour, deprime/resize, trim if necessary, chamfer, use the Lee tool to clean primer pocket, tumble again with paint thinner (mineral spirits) for a few hours until the brass is shiny. Then box and label for reloading.
 
I don't like to pick tumble media out of the primer pockets so I leave the expended primer in the case to be removed after tumbling.
 
I tumble ALL cases before resizing or depriming, so there are no primer pockets to clean media from.

Bottleneck cartridges, because they require lube, are also tumbled after loading to remove that lube.

Straight wall cartridges require no lube if you use a carbide or equivalent hardness die.
 
The only advantage to removing the primer before would be if you tumble different size brass together. A removed primer would allow for an easy way to remove a smaller brass from inside a larger one.
 
The only advantage to removing the primer before would be if you tumble different size brass together. A removed primer would allow for an easy way to remove a smaller brass from inside a larger one.
Click to expand...
:scrutiny:

I did this ONCE. Never again. Separate your brass before tumbling. Otherwise, you'll be dinkin' around with a needle-nose pliers for about as long as you tumbled.

As for de-priming before tumble - don't. The media gets stuck in the flash-hole.
 
I use to deprime first. The one thing I noticed was on large pistol promer ammo, it didn't make a difference. But on my 9mm with a small primer they came out almost spotlessly clean. Same brand of primer, both standard primer. Go figure?:confused: I don't deprime anymore. It didn't make a difference in how they shot. So why waste the time.
 
For handgun rounds, I decap (Lee universal decapping die) and clean primer pockets (RCBS Trim Mate with primer pocket uniformer), then vibrate until shiny in corn cob media (same caliber of brass only), then check flash holes for stuck media, and finally store for future reloading.

Since I like clean primer pockets, this is the most efficient process for me. If you don't clean primer pockets, then my method is a waste of time.
 
Tumble first and deprime/size after. As for walnut vs. corn cob media walnut does the heavy work for removing heavy tarnish from cases and corn cob buffs them pretty. I have both and unless I get some pretty poor brass I mix them 50/50 and this works nicely. I also add 2 teasppons of an automotive paint restorer/wax product called Nu Finish 2000 which is cheaper by volume than similar case cleaner polish . You can also take used dryer sheets and cut them into 2 inch squares, throw 1/2 dozen or so of the pieces in your tumbler and the finer dust particles cling to them and can be disposed of each time you tumble to help keep the media fresh longer.
 
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