After using the old walnut shaker and Sonic cleaner for the past 3 years I decided to try the SS tumbler method to see If I could get my brass cleaner but mainly the primer pockets. Well, after following the tips and tricks I found here I went ahead and tried it and am not that impressed with the results. Yes, the brass came out really "like-new" brass but the pockets were just so-so. Maybe I tried doing too many at once(about 300 .223 pieces) in a F.A.R.T tumbler with 5lbs SS, Lemi-Shine, and Dawn for about 2.5hrs. Even if the pockets would have come out nice, the process of rinsing, separating, rinsing again and then drying seem to be a bigger hassle than it's worth.
First Impression Using SS Media
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I've done about 6 batches with my F.A.R.Tumbler.
Smaller batches.
2 hours
RO or distilled water, I have an RO, buying distilled is expensive.
Separating and rinsing drying is a PIA but I like the results. Get a dryer. It's just a food dehydrator but it works.
I modified a RCBS media separator and while the quality of that tool is poor the utility is great. Wet or dry now works super.
My procedure is and was
Deprime
Tumble to clean, was walnut, now with SS media in the F.A.R.T.
Size. If neck sizing, I'm done. If I full length then I have to clean again the second time is walnut.
Check the primer pockets for walnut residue and ready.
Smaller batches.
2 hours
RO or distilled water, I have an RO, buying distilled is expensive.
Separating and rinsing drying is a PIA but I like the results. Get a dryer. It's just a food dehydrator but it works.
I modified a RCBS media separator and while the quality of that tool is poor the utility is great. Wet or dry now works super.
My procedure is and was
Deprime
Tumble to clean, was walnut, now with SS media in the F.A.R.T.
Size. If neck sizing, I'm done. If I full length then I have to clean again the second time is walnut.
Check the primer pockets for walnut residue and ready.
I forgot to mention I have a dryer which takes a few hours to do the job. I think the total time using the SS method takes about 3 times the amount than just either using the walnut or sonic method and just get a bit better shine with the SS. Maybe I'll get use to it, maybe not. At least I could probably sell it if I decide it's not for me.
After all I only clean them just so they work well in my guns, I really don't care that much how shiny they are. Don't get me wrong, shiny is nice but for my purposes, plinking does not require the shiniest case in town.
After all I only clean them just so they work well in my guns, I really don't care that much how shiny they are. Don't get me wrong, shiny is nice but for my purposes, plinking does not require the shiniest case in town.
Johnny_V
Silver $$ Contributor
I've been using SS to clean my brass for around 3 years now, and my results are phenomenal. Granted, some Primer pockets still have some residue, but overall, the cases come out like new. No other means of cleaning can get cases to this level of clean. And, as for rinsing in distilled water, I believe that to be a bit too anal. I rinse my cases in plain old tap water without any signs of spotting or tarnishing. Some cases that I cleaned 3 years ago still look like I had just cleaned them.
Stainless steel (writing "SS" makes my blood run cold) changed my reloading process, and I bought a separate die to punch primers. Now I punch primers (no sizing) before I clean brass.
It took some experimentation with the mix and the time, but I'm very happy with the results.
It took some experimentation with the mix and the time, but I'm very happy with the results.
Your "Formula" looks good but try 3:30 for the time. I used to do 4:00 hours and the primer pockets were spotless. I did a few batches this weekend and I used 3:15. The primer pockets were mostly clean but some had discoloration from fouling. No actual fowling. I also use a little smaller load of brass. I cleaned 225 .223's this weekend and feel that was the limit but I have a different tumbler.
A few comments from my learnings both from this board and six years of using this stuff. First of all, 300 is way too many pieces of .223 brass – I would say 100 or less would be my upper limit and that is with 10 lb of SS-media. Also 2.5 hour tumble with that many pieces of brass will lead to case mouth peening – I am now using only 45-60 min max.
Carbon is rubbed off by the pins – that is the method of removal with this technique. For this to happen effectively, always use as hot water as you can get out of the tab. This helps to soften the carbon for effective removal. It also makes the Lemishine more effective in dissolving the tarnish/oxidation.
Hot water definitely helps clean the primer pockets. I also split the cleaning time so that 1/2 the cleaning is done the first day and allow the cases to sit over night, then tumble again for the second 1/2 the next day. I use 7.5 lbs of pins and a match's worth (66 -70) of cases at a time.
Snuggie
F/TR
Like Bob I put a match worth in for one hour. Probably would do better with the half n half regimen. Only problem is that with .223 cases the neck diameter is small and only a few actually get pins inside them to clean well. I ( anally ) swab the rinsed cases out with a Q-tip to get them clean.
Thanks guys for your input, I didn't use hot water so there's one problem. Next time I try it I'll cut down on the pieces maybe 75 or so and add more media also. Like I mentioned before, I was more concerned about getting the pockets clean than anything else. Right now I only have 5lbs of media but I have 5 more coming in the mail.
Oh, is there any particular SS media that works better than others? The stuff I have now measures .040" diameter and .275" length or really close to that.
Oh, is there any particular SS media that works better than others? The stuff I have now measures .040" diameter and .275" length or really close to that.
Yes, no hot water = poorly cleaned pockets. Keep the case number down as the ratio of # of pins to # of cases is what determines how clean you get and how fast it cleans. The case mouth peening is NOT a small issue and you should do what you can to avoid this problem.
In terms of media size, about the only thing I have run across is with 6.5 cases. If you shoot any 6.5 definitely buy the pins that are made with that case in mind or you will have pins that get caught side-ways in their necks.
After testing, I've concluded that peening from small stainless pins is an urban legend.
I think the largest I shoot is the 7.62 x 54R then down from that is the 300 Blackout
Make sure you do not fill the tumbler to the top with water either. An 1"-2" works great. Also I bought a cheap Cabela's media separator. Pour almost all the water of and then use the separator and rinse under water. Then I use a cheap food dehydrator to dry the brass. I also like to run my brass in some media and polish after that. I think it makes Bullets feel like they seat more consistently. That's just my crazy opinion.
I have caused case mouth peening by loading too many cases in walnut hull media. Just the cases hitting each other caused the peening.
I've bent case mouths by overloading them. That was in a concrete mixer. But I digress.
That was why I specified the source of peening in my claim.
That was why I specified the source of peening in my claim.
Here's my take. I only shoot single shot without an ejector, so I can place each fired case on a towel; i.e. the brass stays clean. Therefore, after I get a batch of 150 or 200 cases, I lube them and, using a progressive press (with an automatic case feeder), deprime and neck size (to slightly smaller than finished diameter) in station one, shoulder bump in station two, and insert a special sizing mandrel down the neck on station three to achieve the desired neck diameter. Then I chamfer and, when necessary, trim. At this point the brass is ready for tumbling.
I put the brass in a bucket with a couple of squirts of Simple Green and massage them to remove the water resistant, lanolin based lube. Then I rinse with a tea kettle of boiling water, rinse again under the tap, and put the cases into my F.A.R.T canister with 5# SS media. I use a spoonful of Lemishine and a healthy squirt of automatic dishwasher detergent (little or no foaming). I completely fill the canister and tumble for 90 minutes. A canister full of water and limited cleaning time reduces neck edge damage.
I dump the cases and pins into my Frankford media separator, which is a deep sided colander designed to fit down into a standard 5 gal drywall bucket; it costs less than ten bucks. Violently twisting and then gently shaking the separator gets rid of most of the pins. Two rinses in a seperate bucket half full of water and a little more shaking take care of the rest. I have never experienced a stuck pin in either .223 or 6mm BR.
Then the cases go into a bath towel for 30 seconds of shaking after which they go into a metal baking pan that I put in my wife's clothes dryer using the optional tennis shoe drying rack. Twenty minutes later, they're dry and ready to anneal.
A large sieve and a special "pick up" magnet make it easy to get the pins back into their storage container.
This sounds like too many steps, but the routine is really very easy and it produces clean, sized, and annealed cases while requiring me to individually handle the cases only once when I chamfer/trim them. Of course I have to handle them individually once again when I charge them and a third time when I seat the bullets.
I put the brass in a bucket with a couple of squirts of Simple Green and massage them to remove the water resistant, lanolin based lube. Then I rinse with a tea kettle of boiling water, rinse again under the tap, and put the cases into my F.A.R.T canister with 5# SS media. I use a spoonful of Lemishine and a healthy squirt of automatic dishwasher detergent (little or no foaming). I completely fill the canister and tumble for 90 minutes. A canister full of water and limited cleaning time reduces neck edge damage.
I dump the cases and pins into my Frankford media separator, which is a deep sided colander designed to fit down into a standard 5 gal drywall bucket; it costs less than ten bucks. Violently twisting and then gently shaking the separator gets rid of most of the pins. Two rinses in a seperate bucket half full of water and a little more shaking take care of the rest. I have never experienced a stuck pin in either .223 or 6mm BR.
Then the cases go into a bath towel for 30 seconds of shaking after which they go into a metal baking pan that I put in my wife's clothes dryer using the optional tennis shoe drying rack. Twenty minutes later, they're dry and ready to anneal.
A large sieve and a special "pick up" magnet make it easy to get the pins back into their storage container.
This sounds like too many steps, but the routine is really very easy and it produces clean, sized, and annealed cases while requiring me to individually handle the cases only once when I chamfer/trim them. Of course I have to handle them individually once again when I charge them and a third time when I seat the bullets.
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