I've reloaded for years, vibratory tumbled pistol brass for hours, sometimes days with all sorts of walnut / corn cob media and polishing solutions. Never got the results I wanted. When I went to precision rifle, don't tumble at all. Use krazy cloth and lanolin for lube. Reading and looking at pictures here of folks wet tumbling with stainless chips and pins. Pictures of sun oxidized range brass looking shiney and new are amazing to me. I now have a used RCBS sidewinder and want to try it, and wanted to ask anyone here with experience doing this, how much brass, how much stainless media, how much water, what additives/products and how much, process and how long to tumble with the RCBS for best results.
Shiney Brass
- Thread starter JDBraddy
- Start date
Sidewinder Case Tumbler Instructions - RCBS
https://www.rcbs.com/on/demandware....rcbsPdf/SidewinderCaseTumblerInstructions.pdf
STM instructions below as comparison.
https://www.rcbs.com/on/demandware....rcbsPdf/SidewinderCaseTumblerInstructions.pdf
STM instructions below as comparison.
JD
I've been reloading for over 35+ years , the first 30 I was cleaning my brass with corn and Walnut media then I tried wet tumbling with SS Pins . I have the tumblers B tumbler it uses 5 lbs of pins , also have a tumbler from Harbor Freight a single drum holds one lb. of pins , for small amounts. I pop my primers first with a universal deprimer. The brass come out looking brand new inside and out , even the primer pockets. I will never go back to dry tumbling . Every tumbler will have instructions on the amount of brass and pins to use . RCBS is a great company , all my dies and press ChargeMaster are RCBS , lifetime warranty . Liquid detergent water and pins is all you need also if you want to try LemiShine only necessary if your in a area that has hard water , only a small amount is needed or your brass will have a pinkish look . If you try wet tumbling you won't go back to dry . Hope I helped in some way.
Chris
I've been reloading for over 35+ years , the first 30 I was cleaning my brass with corn and Walnut media then I tried wet tumbling with SS Pins . I have the tumblers B tumbler it uses 5 lbs of pins , also have a tumbler from Harbor Freight a single drum holds one lb. of pins , for small amounts. I pop my primers first with a universal deprimer. The brass come out looking brand new inside and out , even the primer pockets. I will never go back to dry tumbling . Every tumbler will have instructions on the amount of brass and pins to use . RCBS is a great company , all my dies and press ChargeMaster are RCBS , lifetime warranty . Liquid detergent water and pins is all you need also if you want to try LemiShine only necessary if your in a area that has hard water , only a small amount is needed or your brass will have a pinkish look . If you try wet tumbling you won't go back to dry . Hope I helped in some way.
Chris
I love my Frankford Arsenal Platinum Series Rotary Tumbler (F.A.R.T ) , it works real well .
Before
AFTER 1-1/2 hours
I tried tumbling some old 45 brass that looked pretty bad with corncob media and although it came out OK there were some that had tarnish marks on them still . They were clean and smooth ( very reloadable ) but not clean like the wet tumbling does .
I was looking at the directions posted and it appears your tumbler is pretty small . 3 or 4 pounds of brass is not very much . Most of these type machines capacity is based on weight . Yours does not hold much weight it appears . After adding water and pins to my F.A.R.T I can still put 300 -308 cases in it . I think it's max is 20lbs+ they claim 1k pieces of 223 . I've never done that many but think I've done 600+ before .
Before
AFTER 1-1/2 hours
I tried tumbling some old 45 brass that looked pretty bad with corncob media and although it came out OK there were some that had tarnish marks on them still . They were clean and smooth ( very reloadable ) but not clean like the wet tumbling does .
I was looking at the directions posted and it appears your tumbler is pretty small . 3 or 4 pounds of brass is not very much . Most of these type machines capacity is based on weight . Yours does not hold much weight it appears . After adding water and pins to my F.A.R.T I can still put 300 -308 cases in it . I think it's max is 20lbs+ they claim 1k pieces of 223 . I've never done that many but think I've done 600+ before .
Last edited:
If you want to shortcut the learning curve of how much soap and Lemi Shine, I recommend RCBS Ultrasonic and Rotary cleaner. It's concentrated so I premix into gallon jugs so it's ready to go. One additional advantage is has a preservative that keeps the brass shiny longer.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...ic/Rotary Case,in any ultrasonic case cleaner.
Only problem is that is seems to be out of stock everywhere.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...ic/Rotary Case,in any ultrasonic case cleaner.
Only problem is that is seems to be out of stock everywhere.
dgeesaman
Gold $$ Contributor
I tumble mine in SS pins and a FART Lite. I use hot water, squirt of dish soap, and a sprinkle of lemishine. I only tumble for about 1/2 hour because I’m trying to clean up the major surfaces and avoid neck damage. I tumble after FL sizing/depriming but before I run the expander mandrel. I clean primer pockets manually whether that matters or not, it seems that 90% of tumble time is for the pockets.
David
David
I'm also an SS media tumbler; lemishine being the key to shiney brass; I've also tumbled in simple green for those really grungy range pick-ups.
Things I've learned;
Get a Lee universal decapper and decap before tumbling.
Lemishine- less is more. I think you could do the same with citric acid, or perhaps white vinegar.
Hot water and as others have said tumble 2hrs max.
5lbs of pins to start works well; however tumbling without pins works well too; primer pockets and case necks being the difference.
Check for pins after sizing, or up-end the cases to be sure. I've had pins stick in the neck of all the unexpected cases. No problem they pop right out, but I imagine that's loading a case with powder and SS pins is not a good thing.
Finally; sort your brass before tumbling. Darn 9mm / 40 / 45 and 223 seem to best together in ways to be a pita.
-Mac
Things I've learned;
Get a Lee universal decapper and decap before tumbling.
Lemishine- less is more. I think you could do the same with citric acid, or perhaps white vinegar.
Hot water and as others have said tumble 2hrs max.
5lbs of pins to start works well; however tumbling without pins works well too; primer pockets and case necks being the difference.
Check for pins after sizing, or up-end the cases to be sure. I've had pins stick in the neck of all the unexpected cases. No problem they pop right out, but I imagine that's loading a case with powder and SS pins is not a good thing.
Finally; sort your brass before tumbling. Darn 9mm / 40 / 45 and 223 seem to best together in ways to be a pita.
-Mac
rockhound78
Silver $$ Contributor
I also add about a tablespoon of automotive wash/wax to a gallon of water in addition to the dawn/lemishine.
One Eye Pete
Gold $$ Contributor
I use the Thumlers Model B with 5 lbs pins
For really dirty brass (deprime brass first)
fill tumbler with hot water to about 1 in from top.
1/2 teaspoon Lemishine
A few drops dish detergent
About a tablespoon full of ZEP heavy duty citrus de-greaser (available at Lowes) This stuff will clean anything and it cuts down the cleaning time.
Tumble for 1/2 hour and then check.
Once done the real trick is to pour off the water without losing the pins. I bought a round fine mesh strainer normally used to put over a frying pan in order to keep the grease from splattering. Cut holes in it to match the tumbler lid. I fasten it on in place of the lid with two or three of the wing nuts with washers and then pour off the water.
For my competition rifle brass I don't tumble at all. If the necks aren't too dirty after firing (and they shouldn't be if the brass is sealing properly) I clean the necks with a paper towel soaked with rubbing alcohol (cleans, dries fast, and no residue). If they are really dirty sometimes very lightly with 0000 steel wool. At a match you don't get any extra points for shiny brass. I'd rather have perfect necks. For primer pockets I use either a standard RCBS or Forster primer pocket cleaner but I go lightly!
For really dirty brass (deprime brass first)
fill tumbler with hot water to about 1 in from top.
1/2 teaspoon Lemishine
A few drops dish detergent
About a tablespoon full of ZEP heavy duty citrus de-greaser (available at Lowes) This stuff will clean anything and it cuts down the cleaning time.
Tumble for 1/2 hour and then check.
Once done the real trick is to pour off the water without losing the pins. I bought a round fine mesh strainer normally used to put over a frying pan in order to keep the grease from splattering. Cut holes in it to match the tumbler lid. I fasten it on in place of the lid with two or three of the wing nuts with washers and then pour off the water.
For my competition rifle brass I don't tumble at all. If the necks aren't too dirty after firing (and they shouldn't be if the brass is sealing properly) I clean the necks with a paper towel soaked with rubbing alcohol (cleans, dries fast, and no residue). If they are really dirty sometimes very lightly with 0000 steel wool. At a match you don't get any extra points for shiny brass. I'd rather have perfect necks. For primer pockets I use either a standard RCBS or Forster primer pocket cleaner but I go lightly!
There is one other consideration to keep in mind when setting up the tumbling drum with dirty brass - insufficient amount of water. Bottle neck cartridges (i.e. rifle brass) tends to trap air inside of cases when you are initially filling the tumbling drum with water. You'll really notice this with 6mm or smaller bullet diameter case mouths. 200-500 cases of .223/5.56 represent a fair amount of volume that needs to be filled with water. You'll want to agitate/shake the drum to encourage the water to fill the cases and force the air out of cases. Now when you fill to your desired level it will remain there.
If you don't get the water to fill the cases in advance of tumbling then the actual water level will be 20%-30% lower than what you thought you had poured. Once the tumbler starts turning then any trapped air inside the cases will be displaced with water, and now there isn't enough water around exterior of cases to provide adequate lubrication
Trapped air is not a concern with pistol brass, straight-walled rifle brass, or bottle neck cartridges that have very large diameter mouths.
If you don't get the water to fill the cases in advance of tumbling then the actual water level will be 20%-30% lower than what you thought you had poured. Once the tumbler starts turning then any trapped air inside the cases will be displaced with water, and now there isn't enough water around exterior of cases to provide adequate lubrication
Trapped air is not a concern with pistol brass, straight-walled rifle brass, or bottle neck cartridges that have very large diameter mouths.
Last edited:
And not just water, the SS media migrates into the cases too, leaving less to cushion and clean cases externally. It's important in tumble cleaning to get the right ratio of media to cases while not overloading the drum. I dump my tumbler contents into a bowl to rinse thoroughly. This gives me opportunity to see if the media is properly distributed around the brass, and if not I'll add more in the next batch, or reduce the brass count.
I’ve got one of their tumblers with that polish. It’s been sitting over in the corner for a couple plus years now, I guess I should try it sometime. Just a FYI for new reloaders, this may not be a necessary purchase to start out with.
I think the difference is clean vs shiny.
I do about 200 deprimed 6.5CM in the Frankford Arsenal at a time. Hot water from the sink. A healthy squirt of dawn. Pinch of Lemishine. Run it with steel chips for about 45 mins. Then drain the nasty water and refill with fresh water. Run with half a squirt of dawn and lemishine for 45 mins or so. I never really saw a difference in running them for 3-4 hours versus 90 min.
I concentrate more on having the necks and insides clean than have the outsides shiny.
I do about 200 deprimed 6.5CM in the Frankford Arsenal at a time. Hot water from the sink. A healthy squirt of dawn. Pinch of Lemishine. Run it with steel chips for about 45 mins. Then drain the nasty water and refill with fresh water. Run with half a squirt of dawn and lemishine for 45 mins or so. I never really saw a difference in running them for 3-4 hours versus 90 min.
I concentrate more on having the necks and insides clean than have the outsides shiny.
Ohh man , I have been using that Cabela's brand tumbler, which I think is a Berry's brand for years now.... I honestly couldn't be more happy with it... I bought it when I first started reloading because of the price... I have heard the new one are made by someone else.. I would definitely buy another one like the one I have... It works and it comes ready to run for cheap...
I believe that all RCBS has in their case cleaner is citric acid.
Detergent is really only there to keep dirt suspended.
Hot water generally works better than cold water.
It takes my 6-8 hours to get clean cases (from cases I have been happily firing for 45+ years) using tumbler and SS pins and 12 minutes with ultrasonic cleaner--but, I will grant, the ultrasonic cleaner does not shine like SS pins.
Guess what--Shiny cases don't shoot any better than normal cases, but have fun.
Detergent is really only there to keep dirt suspended.
Hot water generally works better than cold water.
It takes my 6-8 hours to get clean cases (from cases I have been happily firing for 45+ years) using tumbler and SS pins and 12 minutes with ultrasonic cleaner--but, I will grant, the ultrasonic cleaner does not shine like SS pins.
Guess what--Shiny cases don't shoot any better than normal cases, but have fun.
Upgrades & Donations
This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.