Using Harbor Freight SS Tumbler

[Bayou]

Man, this is getting better and better. Good man Bayou, I have a 1/2 gallon of Blue Coral sitting in the garage just waiting to be used. Great idea to use the media separator to spin dry the cases. I wouldn't have thought of it, but it is so cool once you think about it.

Bayou, thank you and many blessing to you and your loved ones.

Sincerely,
Joe

Thanks for your kind sentiments, Joe. They are appreciated.

If you use the Blue Coral, you'll note ths it doesn't suds up as much as Dawn, as you'd expect. So, I add two or so ounces per drum. Cleans really well and you'll have a bit of wax on your cases to protect against re-tarnishing.

Glad you like the spin dry technique. If you don't mind, how about posting how it works for you after you have a chance to try it out? I'd like to hear of your experiences.

Good Luck, and happy tumbling!

Bayou

 

[Joe R]

I will report back. Love that "U.S. Army Active Civilian".

 

[Joe R]

Ok Guys,
Much to my surprise UPS delivered the tumbler and pins last night at 6:00pm. That was really fast delivery. Put it together, hooked up an old timer to it and started the first batch with one gallon of water. It wouldn't spin because it was too heavy. Looked on YouTube for a few demos that used just enough water to cover the brass. So I removed some of the water and the tumbler started working perfectly. Went to bed.

This morning while drinking my first cup of coffee opened the tumbler up, separated the water and pins from the brass and looked don at what seemed like virgin brass. Closer inspection revealed that it is not like virgin brass, but way better than anything else I had ever seen. I did the "spin dry" routine as recommended by Bayou and sure enough the cases are dry. I used my bore scope to check a few cases and found a little wee bitsy of moisture in there as expected nothing that 30 minutes of air drying wouldn't cure. The primer pockets were basically 95% of what virgin brass looks like and to me that's fantastic.

I did a second batch with warm/hot water and that too came out amazing like the first batch. Both times the water was black as ink. The tumbler has earned a spot in my garage.

To me getting more carbon out of the cases not only makes it for a cleaner reloading process, but I suspect that it will also help in other ways. We all know that carbon is one of the hardest substances on the planet. With enough pressure it becomes diamonds. If that carbon remains in the case, when it's fired some of it must also get blown behind the bullet. That can't be good for the bullet or the barrel, but getting it out of the case is bound to help.

Have a great day.

Joe

 

[Bayou]

Great results, Joe! Sounds like you're now hooked, and you've come over to the "bright" side.

I see the Lemi-Shine on the shelf in your photo. What's the recipe you used to get your great results?

Just a tip from my own experience - if you are using standard (0.041") pins rather than larger (0.047") diameter pins, please be sure to check the flash hole in each case to make sure there are no stuck pins.

Bayou

 

[stool]

joe r,
if you did not get rid of you regular brass tumbler..try this..

ground corn blasting media, nufinish car polish.....

no, it does not clean like the pins do, but it does produce bright shinny brass.

no professional brass/commercial loader that i know of uses walnut.
walnut cleans very well, but ground corn cob POLISHES.
i have a sidewinder and may try pins on my 300 win mag br brass, but no way on my
commercial/retail brass....drying adds too much work.

 

[Joe R]

Stool,
I appreciate your advice. I have used both walnut and corn cob, my current mix is 50/50 and I've never even come close to the results that I've just seen. I was very reluctant and I truly didn't expect success. I figured I'd try it and then send the whole thing back to Midway. But this arrangement seems to work for now, however time will tell the whole story.

The fact that I'm dumping black water tells me a lot. That carbon would normally stay in the case or in the media in the vibrating tumbler. Not good either place.

Regards,

Joe

 

[stool]

ground corn cob( blasting media, not pet bedding) and nufinish will
produce like new bright shiney brass...
it will not clean the primer pockets as i said....
but your "regular" media is substandard to ground corn cob.

if you are good, you are good..

 

[Bayou]

I was very reluctant and I truly didn't expect success. I figured I'd try it and then send the whole thing back to Midway. But this arrangement seems to work for now, however time will tell the whole story.

Joe -

I've been wet tumbling with the Thumlers for almost 2 years. I'd be happy to share some practice tips/lessons learned, if you'd like them.....

 

[Smalltruck]

I've been using the Harbor Freight tumbler for over a year and like the results. The dual drum tumbler is a 6 pound model between the 2 drums. So I put in a pound of pins, pound of brass and a pound of water into each drum. Some Lemishine and some Armor all wash and wax with hot water. My tumble times are about an hour and everything looks great. Simple fast and everything looks great.

 

[amlevin]

The fact that I'm dumping black water tells me a lot. That carbon would normally stay in the case or in the media in the vibrating tumbler. Not good either place.

A lot of that black water is caused by the carbon that remains (and grows) inside the case. One of our local BR shooters has actually taken the time to document how much carbon accumulates inside a case over a series of firings. He started with a 30RR case and only wiped down the outside. After a dozen of so firings he weighed it then cleaned it in an ultrasonic cleaner. The case weight .2 gr less when he was done.

He now cleans his cases inside and out before loading. BTW, when he's entered in a match, everyone else just bets on who's going to come in second.

 

[amlevin]

amlevin said: The case weight .2 gr less when he was done.

Is it fair to say that the carbon build up inside the case, impacted the accuracy of subsequent reloads?

It certainly is another "variable". Why not remove it from the equation?

 

[Joe R]

One more report on the Tumbler. It works really well, what I have nagging doubts about is its durability. The drum, the liner, the lid and the motor are first class. My concerns are revolving around the aluminum rods, the plastic/Teflon rollers, and the mounting of the motor. It is cheaply/flimsy done and I can't help but question it's longevity. In my OPINION a five year life is being generous.

It's a shame because the main parts seem to have a much longer serviceable life. Since I've only had it over the weekend, I've decided to ship it back. Bayou was kind enough to mention the Extreme Tumblers Rebel 17, and after watching googling it and watching some YouTube videos I've decided that's the unit to have. The difference in price is only $36.

Thanks again everyone.

 

[Bayou]

One more report on the Tumbler. It works really well, what I have nagging doubts about is its durability. The drum, the liner, the lid and the motor are first class. My concerns are revolving around the aluminum rods, the plastic/Teflon rollers, and the mounting of the motor. It is cheaply/flimsy done and I can't help but question it's longevity. In my OPINION a five year life is being generous.

It's a shame because the main parts seem to have a much longer serviceable life. Since I've only had it over the weekend, I've decided to ship it back. Bayou was kind enough to mention the Extreme Tumblers Rebel 17, and after watching googling it and watching some YouTube videos I've decided that's the unit to have. The difference in price is only $36.

Thanks again everyone.

Hi, Joe -

I really don't think you made a bad choice. The Extreme Rebel 17 is being marketed as a "step up" Thumlers. As you can see, the basic design is quite similar, but the frame is sturdier, and the roller bearings are a definite plus. I believe the roller bearings allow the maximum capacity of the Extreme Rebel 17 to be 2 pounds over the Thumlers (from 15 to 17 pounds).

I also understand the Rebel 17 has a better powder coating on the inside and outside of the drum.

So, all in all, it does look to be a step up. Since the price almost the same, why not go for it?

I think that a significant step up would have been ditching the dinky belt drive in favor of something else but I suppose that would require a completely different design and a higher cost.

Anyway, after you get your new tumbler, how about a post on how it performs for you?

All the Best -

Bayou52

 

[Joe R]

I jus t saw a video of Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler (FART). That's the one I'm going with.

It's designed to be a brass tumbler not a rock tumbler. It has a gear drive, a timer, a media separator, comes with the steel pins and it has almost twice the capacity (30 pounds) of the other tumblers and it costs less than a rock tumbler. Frankford even makes a magnet that makes picking up the steel pins a snap. The only downside is that it seems sold out everywhere. But I can wait.

 

[stool]

the "steel" pins are ss right ?? which may or may not be magnetic.

good luck with that machine...midway does not have a great rep getting things right

 

[Joe R]

Hi stool,
yes the pins are steel, I already have bag that I got with red tumbler and they definitely stick to a magnet. But removing them from my bar magnet is a little tedious. That's why I like this magnet from Frankford magnet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9rIyue6RC4. Anything that saves time and hassle captures my money.

Regarding Midway, I've been dealing with them for years, they've always done right by me. I am a satisfied customer of theirs.

Joe

 

[Bayou]

I jus t saw a video of Frankford Arsenal Platinum rotary tumbler. That's the one I'm going with.

Sounds like a good choice, Joe. Be sure to let us know how she works for you. I've seen the vids, and the Franklin Arsenal Rotary Tumbler (FART) looks like it will do a good job.

All the Best ...

 

[Joe R]

Hi guys,
The good news is that I received the FART (Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler) yesterday evening, the bad news is that the magnet that they make is out of stock, so I have to wait for it. As some of you know, dealing with the pins and magnets is a little tedious. So, after dinner I ran a batch of 308 cases.

The instruction say it can handle 500 cases, I did about 210 cases (6 pounds) because that's what I had segregated to be cleaned. I used 1.25 gallons of water (according to the instructions), 1 oz. of Blue Coral and 1/4 teaspoon of Lemi Shine. It weighed 25.25 pounds, the tumbler has a capacity of 30 pounds.

I plugged it in and cranked the timer and off she went. The first thing I noticed is that it spins a little faster than the Thumbler Model B, about 20% faster. This morning I got the brass out and the flash holes were even cleaner that the red tumbler, up from 95% to 98% of virgin brass. However, the brass was not as bright. A side by side comparison verified that, the water was really dirty. My guess is that because there were a lot more cases the water reached a saturation point with the carbon and some of it got left on the cases, hence a little duller in color. My next batch I'll use 3 pounds of brass and see how that works.

Regarding the tumbler itself, it is a really nicely made product that should have a long service life. I just opened the box, no assembly required, it has rubber feet , so I didn't have to make/used a rubber base to dampen the noise/vibration. No O-ring to break, no motor sticking out of the side. You don't have to worry about the wing nuts hitting the side, and no drum wobble. The rollers are rubber/plastic and look to be well designed and durable. Another nice thing is that you just unscrew one of the caps instead of messing with 6 nuts and washers. Another nice feature is the built in timer. And here's the real kicker: because it comes with a bag of pins included it is actually about $35 cheaper than the Thumbler Model B and pins.

All in all I believe that Frankford Arsenal has a winning product on their hands. Now if they would only send me the magnet I would have it made. This is not an incremental improvement over vibratory cleaning this is a huge leap forward.

Joe

 

[Bayou]

Great report, Joe -

Congrats on that new FART. I hope you get many years of continuous tumbling use out of it.

It sounds as though it is a definite advancement over the Thumler's Model B and the Extreme Rebel 17 in that there is no drive belt and no exposed motor. Given the competitive price, I think you've made the best choice.

I'm sure your report will help others make the best decision on which wet tumbler to go with.

All the Best -

Bayou

 

[amlevin]

the bad news is that the magnet that they make is out of stock,

Personally, I don't see the benefit of the magnet unless the pins get spilled on the floor.

I've been using the SS Pins for several years now and merely separate them using a regular media separator left from my "corn cob days".

I pour the brass, solution, and pins, into a large coffee container that I lined with an old T-Shirt. This lets me separate brass and pins from the solution and give a first rinse.

The "filter/strainer" is then emptied into my media separator and when done I then can give the cases another rinse in the hottest water I can get from the tap.

I'm not sure how a magnet would be a benefit, at least in my operation.

As for Frankford Arsenal "making" the magnet, I've seen them all over the place. They're used in industrial or retail operations for picking up items like nails from a bin. They're for sale on Amazon.