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Help me buy a vibratory tumbler

I was at Cablea's today and purchased their Model 400, based upon reviews, warranty AND I had enough Cablea's cash on my card to cover it and a few other reloading items.

I appreciate all the good advice and input. Thanks for playing.
 
I started out with the Midway USA tumbler about 20 years ago and still have it along with a second one I bought. I since than bought two Harbor Freight tumblers when they were on sale for $24.95 and they work just as well. https://www.harborfreight.com/5-lb-metal-vibrator-tumbler-67617.html I don't think there is any difference between them when it comes to operation. I bought 4 more Harbor freight boles for $4.95 each on clearance and they fit both the Midway and Harbor Freight units. I use them for Polishing and Molly coating bullets. I do my basic first brass cleaning in an Ultrasonic cleaner Using Citrus cleaner from Home Depot cut 50/50 with water and vibrate for 20 minutes. After allowing to dry I just store my brass bulk. Before loading I tumble in the tumbler for about 1-2 hours just to polish it up a bit. Sometimes I don't even bother and just use it cleaned in the Ultrasound. It is usually more than good enough. I use the tumbler if the brass is becoming tarnished. If not, I just use it out of the ultrasound. One thing which must be remember is that the only way to harden brass is to WOK HARDEN it. This is done by firing it and in the tumbler. I anneal my brass every third time I use it. Annealing also helps provide a more consistent neck tension on the bullet. Since 75% of my brass is wildcat, Longevity is quite important. By annealing I can get as much as 10-12 shots out of my brass. If I do not anneal I get between three and five. This is fine for brass that you can pick up at the range and is free.
 
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I think they are pretty much all alike and work in the exact same way. The only differences are, the price, color, aesthetics. I would say, any one you choose will do the job the same as any of the others.
 
I have 2 of these and didn't like the dust coming from the slotted lid. I put a shower cap over the lids and it solved the dust problem. I use them to knock off the crud before decapping my brass. After decapping/resizing, I then wet tumble in the Thumlers Tumbler.

That’s a lot better than what I was doing to limp by which was sticking the center stud through a paper towel and tucking it under the rim the whole way around. It worked but it was a pain.
 
I like Berrys Tumbler, does everything the others do...but quieter.
Agree 100% I have a Cabela's branded Berry's and it has worked great and done thousands of brass... Just works great and through Cabela's you can get the tumbler , media and polish for like 70 bucks...
 
I have a slightly used Frankford Arsenal Vibratory tumbler if anyone is interested in a spare? I have 2 Thumler's Tumblers and wet tumble all of my brass now.
 
Thumlers tumblers, I have all three sizes and they are hard to beat for dry media case cleaning!!!
I have friends who wet tumble and the results are great.. My ultra vibes work just fine for my needs and they are bullet proof machines!!
 
Have the largest HarborF tumbler they sell. Have not put to many hours on it yet but it does hold a lot. Not enough though for what i do with it.
 
From my other thread, I have been convinced to purchase a vibratory tumbler to start-off with, so......which one of the following tumblers would you recommend? Keep in mind, I won't be cleaning a high volume of brass and quality is of utmost importance. That being said, price does not equal quality. ;)

Dillon CV750
https://www.dillonprecision.com/dillon-s-cv-750-vibratory-case-cleaner_8_8_23659.html

Thumler Ultra Vibe 10
https://www.brownells.com/reloading...-ultra-vibe-vibratory-tumblers-prod54712.aspx
Berrys Tumbler
https://www.brownells.com/reloading...rs-accessories/berry-s-tumbler-prod36851.aspx
Lyman 1200
Have had one forever (almost 30 years) can do up to 100 cases. never felt i needed a bigger one.
 
I've got 3 Lyman 1200's, and a Lyman 2200. I rarely ever use the 2200 because the "turnover" is very poor. The 1200's have excellent turnover and do a better job cleaning and polishing your brass. In a 1200 about 200 223 cases is the max. At 2/3 of brass capacity they are much quieter. Two of my 1200's have the slotted lids, and I don't find that to be an issue. But that could be due to the media and additives I use. I use plain 20/40 sieve size corn cob, and a variety of auto polishes. And when they start getting that dirty dust accumulating inside them, it is time to change the media. And yes, I do use torn up paper towels to collect the dirt.


I put a $1 (Dollar Tree) shower cap over my slotted top on my Lyman 1200. No more dust issues. I dry tumble with Walnut Shell (Lizard Bedding) and a little NuFinish Car Polish. Works great.
 
Does anyone make a vibrator with a 'speed' switch to slow it down? Sounds dumb, but I would leave it on overnight if I could drop the speed down a bit.
 
Dillon for sure.I have the bigger one and have used it for 23 years. Done 10's of thousands of cases in it without a hitch. Much better made than most of what is available.
 
Does anyone make a vibrator with a 'speed' switch to slow it down? Sounds dumb, but I would leave it on overnight if I could drop the speed down a bit.
I agree with danny that a simple speed controller would work like the one linked or any cheap lamp dimmer. These vibratory tumblers generally use a simple, inexpensive "shaded pole motor". Just make sure the motor doesn't have a fan blade on one shaft for cooling as if you slow the motor the cooling will also slow. I have a cheap dimmer laying here and maybe tomorrow I'll try it on a vibratory tumbler. Guessing it should work but would like to be sure. :)

Ron
 

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