Tumbling brass question???

[jonbearman]

I use tuffnut with the polish(red rouge) in it.It leaves alittle red coating inside the case,will this hurt the barrel? Should it be removed and how.I tried blowing it out and only some of it leaves still leaving the red coating. I really dont want to wash them in some kind of cleaner,but if I have to,which one works the best?

 

[jonbearman]

Lawrence does the red residue hurt anything if fired as is?

 

[bigedp51]

Plan "A" (or all I ever do)

Plan "B" (use dishwasher with good pre-cleaning cycle)

 

[Rock Knocker]

I knew something was wrong with my dishwasher, i must need a new one, my pre cleaning cycles seems to have run off.

but seriously 90% rubbing alcohol is great for cleaning. i wipe the outsides of all of my cases and use a Qtip to clean the inside of older brass.

 

[bigedp51]

The bigedp51 method is just as good, seriously. My concern when tumbling cases is removing the abrasive tumbling compound before resizing and firing. I don’t like the idea of what that stuff might do to my sizing dies and bore so I will take the time to wash it out. I haven’t done a scientific study on it but I don’t like the idea of wearing my tools and barrels unnecessarily.

LawrenceHanson

I wipe the outside of my cases with a terrycloth rag and brush the insides of the cases with the brush pictured above. At 50,000 cup and with a peak flame temperature 3,300 degrees I like to think the polishing compound is toasted carbon in the combustion process.

I have also read that any leftover carbon inside the case and primer pocket can act like sandpaper in the bore when the case is reloaded and fired again.

We are talking about residual polishing rouge and not valve grinding compound or sand inside the case.

What do you use to clean the stubborn carbon and copper out of your bore. What is softer, high carbon steel or polishing rouge? Methinks it is much ado about nothing.

 

[bigedp51]

I knew something was wrong with my dishwasher, i must need a new one, my pre cleaning cycles seems to have run off.

but seriously 90% rubbing alcohol is great for cleaning. i wipe the outsides of all of my cases and use a Qtip to clean the inside of older brass.

Why waste alcohol on cartridge cases when you can use it to lubricate your innards.

 

[bigedp51]

Why don't we ask a really serious question..............





Like how do you clean the excess carbon off your valves every 15,000 miles?

 

[necchi]

Is there an "IGNORE" button on this forum?

 

[tomj44]

Nice pictures big ed

tomj44

 

[jonbearman]

I understand and thanks,but some of those pics are funny.

 

[Rock Knocker]

Ive used the Iosso brass cleaning on really bad cartiges. That is some hardcore brass stripper, on the worst stuff i would shake them around in the bucket for about 30 seconds then rinse them under as hot of water as i could get out of my tap (150 degrees actually) untill there is absolutely no possibility of it still being around the brass.

LOL but if its tumbling media residue you are worried about you could probly skip the WHOLE Iosso brass cleaner prosses and got straight to step #2 and rinse the brass in really hot water.

 

[bigedp51]

Then I assume you do not clean your cases after tumbling? If so, how do you feel about sizing cases with a residue of tumbling compound on them? I believe that a sizing die could eventually become unevenly worn over time.

I will repeat what I said earlier, I wipe the exterior of the case off after tumbling with an old towel. I clean the inside of the case with a brush.

If some miniscule amount does get mixed with the sizing lube it wont matter and it will not harm your bore or resizing dies. It is polishing compound and it is softer than steel, red rouge is also used to polish the plastic lenses on prescription glasses.

The peak flame temperature of burning powder at 3,300 degrees does far more damage to your barrel than a polishing compound so fine it is used to polish plastic lenses.

Also please remember after reading below that all my firearms have the rosiest red cheeks of any firearms at my shooting range. :

"Also known as Red Rouge, Jewelers Rouge was originally developed for the Jewelry trade for buffing soft, fine and precious metals to produce a brilliant, high lustrous finish. This extremely fine compound will not scratch or cut away the finest or softest of metals. Use on gold, silver, platinum, and brass."

Polishing

A very fine powder of ferric oxide is known as jeweler's rouge, red rouge, or simply rouge. It is used to put the final polish on metallic jewelry and lenses, and historically as a cosmetic.

Rouge cuts more slowly than some modern polishes, such as cerium(IV) oxide, but is still used in optics fabrication and by jewelers for the superior finish it can produce. When polishing gold, the rouge slightly stains the gold, which contributes to the appearance of the finished piece. Rouge is sold as a powder, paste, laced on polishing cloths, or solid bar (with a wax or grease binder). Other polishing compounds are also often called "rouge", even when they do not contain iron oxide. Jewelers remove the residual rouge on jewelry by use of ultrasonic cleaning.

 

[bigedp51]

Is there an "IGNORE" button on this forum?

Google is a wonderful tool, you can use it to do research on any material or product you chose, you can also look up the MSDS sheets and find out what the product is made up of.

Now for the big news, do any of you overly worried people ever read any warnings on your tumbling media telling you that rouge polishing compound causes bore wear or does harm to your reloading dies. And how long do you think a product would last if it did damage your firearms?

Did you ever stop to think it was designed to cause "NO HARM" to your firearms.

And now for the latest internet rumor.

Research scientists have discovered that orange juice causes cancer in gay rats.

 

[RonAKA]

I think there is an option C. Just don't tumble. I never have. My thoughts are that what is inside your case is just what goes down the barrel every time you pull the trigger. It is like cleaning the muck off your duck hunting hip waders before you go into the swamp. The coating reaches a steady state pretty fast, and I suspect even has some lubricating properties. While I inside neck lube with graphite, I suspect the residual carbon may be just as effective.

But then, I don't degrease my cartridges after sizing either, and just give them a quick wipe with a paper towel.

 

[bigedp51]

option D

Reloading is a hobby, clean the cartridge cases to "YOUR" satisfaction and what makes you happy.

P.S. RonAKA, this is why I stopped hunting, I didn't want to get my guns dirty or clean my boots. :

If my cases are really dirty I put them in my mini-cement mixer, I add three shovels of sand and one shovel of Portland cement.

 

[jo191145]

I'm with Ron. i even own a commercial sized ultrasonic cleaner bought just
for cleaning brass ;D
After many years I finally thought WHY? They shoot just as good if not better dirty. My dies seem to not be getting worn. Most if not all comes off whenever I anneal. Let it ride....

 

[navyrad8r]

Jon,
i used rouge in the beginning and was okay with it but hated the dust and grime. then i read an article about barrels failing early. i think they were lilja barrels. when lilja checked them out they had red debris and corrosion in the grooves. i can't remember where i read the article but i switched over to corn cob hamster bedding from Tractor Supply Company with Mcguires car cleaner/wax. i switched to stainless media and after Ultrasonic cleaning left the cases really clean (sticky-squeaky clean). i am hooked on the Stainless media now. Corey sells an awsome product and the expense of the tumbler is the only drawback. i would ditch the rouge, just my opinion. i tossed mine and don't miss it at all, but still have some of the "frosted" brass and red dust.
cheers,
doc

 

[Scott Harris]

Plan "A" (or all I ever do)

Plan "B" (use dishwasher with good pre-cleaning cycle)

LOL, I've got a "3-tongue" pre-wash cycle and everything always comes out spotless!

 

[hayboy]

Plan "A" (or all I ever do)

Plan "B" (use dishwasher with good pre-cleaning cycle)

LOL, I've got a "3-tongue" pre-wash cycle and everything always comes out spotless!

I also have a 3 tongue pre-wash system. What I need is a washer for 120 lb dobie pincher.