What The Hell Happened

[TJMayer]

Alright guys, never fired Remington brass. I FL sized it and turned the outer necks down. I popped them in the US cleaner for 30 minutes with a tbsp of Dawn and a pinch of Lemishine. I have never seen this before. Has to have something to do with the newly exposed brass on the necks? Can I run these through my dies? Can I shoot them?

They are a dark bluish, to almost black, color...

I don't have the luxury of just tossing cases away...I obviously will if I have to, but that would suck.

Any help or info would be appreciated.

 

[itchyTF]

I'd just spin them in Scotchbrite. Must have been a chemical reaction to the raw brass.

 

[Preacher]

Nothing to worry about....

 

[JRS]

itchyTF is probably correct. Lemishine contains citric acid, and could quite possibly be the culprit on the raw brass.

 

[TJMayer]

That was I was thinking. Thanks much!

 

[Joe Salt]

Put them in the tumbler for a couple hours!

Joe Salt

 

[Brians356]

Just curious, why do you clean new unfired brass?

(This fast-growing new brass cleaning hobby continues to bemuse me.)

 

[jlow]

Actually Lemishine (citric acid) dissolves one specific type of copper oxidation i.e. Copper(II) oxide/cupric oxide/CuO which is black in color (thus giving the impression of tarnish) easily soluble in weak acid which citiric acid is one. This expose the un-oxidized brass underneath thus giving the bling.

Oxidation unless we are talking about extreme oxidation i.e. brass that has been in wet conditions for a long time or in a oxidation rich environment is usually only on the very top surface of the brass which is extremely thin compared to the thickness of say the necks. The OP can easily assess this by as suggested using ScotchBrite or some mile abrasive and it should polish off easily.

 

[Brians356]

Oxidation unless we are talking about extreme oxidation i.e. brass that has been in wet conditions for a long time or in a oxidation rich environment is usually only on the very top surface of the brass which is extremely thin compared to the thickness of say the necks. The OP can easily assess this by as suggested using ScotchBrite or some mile abrasive and it should polish off easily.

I'd be curious if 0000 steel wool wouldn't knock it off.

 

[jlow]

I'd be curious if 0000 steel wool wouldn't knock it off.

That's what I would use, and my guess is it would come off easily.

 

[TJMayer]

Just curious, why do you clean new unfired brass?

(This fast-growing new brass cleaning hobby continues to bemuse me.)

Well, with the FL sizing, I have lube inside and outside the case. Then, when I turned down the necks, some of those shavings go inside the cases. Because of the lube, those shavings stick in there. Air compressor didn't do well enough to clear them out...felt better just running then in the US. I'm not a fan of loading ammo with case lube all over and in it.

May I entertain you with any other of my case prep steps?

 

[jlow]

OK, the OP turned the neck and I imagine that he used some sort of lube when he did this. I think what we are seeing is the lube reacting with something in the Simple Green – to me there is a tinge of green on the necks.

 

[dedogs]

OK, the OP turned the neck and I imagine that he used some sort of lube when he did this. I think what we are seeing is the lube reacting with something in the Simple Green – to me there is a tinge of green on the necks.

Where in the OP's post does it say anything about Simple Green? He says he used Dawn and Lemishine. dedogs

 

[Joe Salt]

When I have lube on the outside I use Alcohol on a rag to clean it of the through them in the tumbler! Then call me in the morning!

Joe Salt

 

[TRG300WM]

turned the outer necks down

Looks like some over heating from spinning on the mandrel while neck turning with a drill. i've used a case spinner and liquid autosol fine metal polish with a small rag to remove it.

 

[RockyMtnMan]

Brass is perfectly fine. Use 0000 steel wool to clean the necks. Load, shoot, have fun

 

[Linko]

Switch to Dawn Detergent

 

[jlow]

Where in the OP's post does it say anything about Simple Green? He says he used Dawn and Lemishine. dedogs

Don't sweat it, just a mistake on my part because a lot of people use Simple Green.

But if my contention that it has something to do with the lube the OP use in neck turning still stands. Just look at where the coloration is, it's only on the neck and none on the body.

 

[dedogs]

Don't sweat it, just a mistake on my part because a lot of people use Simple Green.

But if my contention that it has something to do with the lube the OP use in neck turning still stands. Just look at where the coloration is, it's only on the neck and none on the body.

Not sweating it, just didn't want people thinking Simple Green was causing this. I'm with everyone else that thinks it has something to do with the raw brass of the turned necks. I also agree that spinning them in some 0000 steel wool should clean them right up and they should be fine to use. I'd be interested to see if the problem repeats the next time he cleans them in the US cleaner. dedogs

 

[dedogs]

Well, with the FL sizing, I have lube inside and outside the case. Then, when I turned down the necks, some of those shavings go inside the cases. Because of the lube, those shavings stick in there. Air compressor didn't do well enough to clear them out...felt better just running then in the US. I'm not a fan of loading ammo with case lube all over and in it.

May I entertain you with any other of my case prep steps?

TJ, you didn't mention if this dis-coloring is on the INSIDE of the necks? If so I would suspect some kind of chemical reaction with the lube you are using. dedogs