Brass Cleaning Problem

[Theditchman]

I took everyones advice and put ss pins 22lr cases after annealing and de rimming and wet tumbled with dawn and Lemishine for 6 hours...The result was fabulous..brilliant shine and clean.....I gave them a thorough rinse with fresh water and laid them out in the sun to dry (I live in the sunshine state) an hour later I went to check on them and they had lost all there shine...a cpl of hours later they looked like they had never been polished...I tried drying the next lot in a low oven but they looked as bad ...so....where am I going wrong? Have I missed a step?....What do you think??:killingpc

[BT Sniper]

Did you rinse in hot or cold water?

I have found that if I rinse in cold water I get better results.

I don't know if there is a difference between tumbling in hot or cold water though, I have had good luck tumbling in hot water and rinse in cold.

BT

[M Hicks]

When I first tried SS pin tumbling I air dried the cases. I had what sounds like the same results as you mentioned. Now I run them in my vibratory tumbler for 30 minutes with a little bit of Nu-Finish. They come out looking as good or better than new brass and I think the additive helps keep them that way for longer.

I use the garden hose to fill my tumbler with water and for rinsing. So for the most part it is cold water for both steps.

[Theditchman]

I will try the hot and cold method although I did everything in cold water....I just cant believe it changed so fast ..I wonder if its something in the air

[M Hicks]

Getting them dry as quickly as possible is key in my experience.

[w5pv]

You may try a table spoon of baking soda in a quart of water,I don't know about lemishine but it seems to help with citric acid,

[Theditchman]

you may be right about neutralizing the acid...I'll try it and report back

[DCM]

I try to rinse mine in Hot water then Roll them on a old large bath towel before spreading them out to try to get them to dry as fast as possible.
Tumbled hot and cold with little difference, but found that getting them dry quickly was key.
Do you have hard water there?? The minerals or chemical treatment may be messing with you too, a batch or 2 with distilled may answer that.

[elginrunner]

I put mine in a dehydrator for half hour or so, It seems to work nicely.

[MrWolf]

^^ what he said on food dehydrator. Mine never worked well for food but works great on brass.

[kweidner]

^. what they said. I use a little wax in rugular tumble after ss. Brass oxidizes pretty quick when it is that clean. I use dehydrator too. 82153

[kweidner]

Here are some once I figured it out. Closing the hp more these days but these shoot fantastic. 82155

[Zymurgy50]

Distilled water for the wash and final rinse, never had a problem.

[Utah Shooter]

Here are some once I figured it out. Closing the hp more these days but these shoot fantastic. 82155
Those look fantastic!

OP! If you are looking for a good shine I have not found SS Media to fit the bill. It sure does clean it well though.

If you want them shiny I would suggest going with a less abrasive method. Think of it like sand paper. Sure the 120 grit works good for stripping but 600 works better to create a nice smooth surface.

[John Allen]

I rinse mine in super hot water than I put them back in the my RCBS media separator and give them a good spin back and forth for a minute or two. I then dump them in a plastic pan so they are only one layer thick. I have two of the Utility fans on them on each side. I usually let them dry for about ten minutes then shake the pan and give it another ten. I then throw them in the vibratory tumbler with some nu finish and I am good to go.

[MOcaster]

Mine have always worked well by rinsing them a lot with out well water then towel drying as much as possible then setting them out to dry but old hair dryers are my best friend. I heat up lube in the lam, heat up bullets to tumble lube, dry stuff, melt wax, the list is endless. But reading this I guess I am lucky how easy it has been for me for with citric acid polishing.

[RP]

I also rinse with well water lots of it even filling the sink up with water after rinsing and dipping the brass basket in and out a few times then rinsing under running water. I air dry out side in the sun on a table with a cloth to help dry up water rolling them around a little. I do have my brass change from a bright white yellow to a more golden yellow over a few days but that's it,

[hawgfan]

I have heard to add Armorall wash and wax soap to the mix. I have never tried it so I'm not sure if it works or not.

[kweidner]

Those look fantastic!

OP! If you are looking for a good shine I have not found SS Media to fit the bill. It sure does clean it well though.

If you want them shiny I would suggest going with a less abrasive method. Think of it like sand paper. Sure the 120 grit works good for stripping but 600 works better to create a nice smooth surface.

Thank you sir. I have about 2000 ready for cores. I have the cores cast. Now to squirt em, stuff em, and point em. That is what I am working on this weekend. Well that and watching some college football!

[Racenviper]

I have heard to add Armorall wash and wax soap to the mix. I have never tried it so I'm not sure if it works or not.

Just tried it this past weekend, works great. I'm on a well and distilled water is not an option, not going to spend money on that. My brass turns in a matter of minutes after rinse. Did not mater if I wash hot or cold and the rinse hot or cold, they turned. Used the wash and wax and they came out yellow not the tarnished gold.

[Reload3006]

for swaging purposes does it matter if you are just wanting to get all the oils off so you can seat cores I would say it would be good if it were purple. once cores are seated you could throw it in a tumbler shine it up with new finish or something similar and it will stay nice and shiny for you. at that point it won't matter if it has some contaminants on it or not as long as no grit is on the brass to damage your point forming die. Or wait until after point form and throw in a tumble with some walnut hull media and nufinish you will have pretty bullets.

[monmouth]

Any recommendations on type of dehydrator for brass? Should I go to Walmart and get one of those stackable models?

[500MAG]

I was soooo close to picking up a thumlers and starting to use the ss pins. I'll stick to my midway vibrating, walnut media and Nu-Finish. I'm not rinsing, drying, vibrating and dehydrating. No way.

[monmouth]

I run a Lortone C40 to clean 20-30 lbs of brass at a time (yes, I do fill it up, it's a sickness) so I need a unit to keep up with the flow :)

[Lizard333]

Any recommendations on type of dehydrator for brass? Should I go to Walmart and get one of those stackable models?

Go cheap. Better/more expensive won't dry your brass any better. I use a stackable one.

[supe47]

Harbor Freight heat gun and a stainless steel wire mesh basket salvaged from a broken deep fryer. Fast.

[fredj338]

As noted, possibly the water itself. I lay the cleaned jackets on a towel & get them as dry as possible, then into the oven on newspaper @ 200 until dry. They stay shiny.

[Theditchman]

I tried everything spoken about and what finally what worked was after tumbling for 5 hours I rinsed them for 20 minutes in the shower with hot water then dried with a towel....been a week now and still shiny

[2tiredandlazy]

I tried everything spoken about and what finally what worked was after tumbling for 5 hours I rinsed them for 20 minutes in the shower with hot water then dried with a towel....been a week now and still shiny

5 hours tumbling with ss pins. Are you trying to clean them or wear them down .001 ?

[Theditchman]

This is 22lr brass..you have to make sure the junk inside is cleaned out before derimming

[gimling]

I combine the 2 methods I tumble with SS pins dry them out then put in tumbler with walnut media and nu finish, since the water and SS pins washed them clean you will just about NEVER have to replace your walnut media.

[Prospector Howard]

It seems like alot of swagers are using SS pins to clean the brass before derimming. How is that going to get out the priming grit between the rim? Those pins aren't small enough to get in there and clean that grit out. The only way I've found to get most of the grit out of there is with a sonic cleaner. It basically vibrates it out with the sonic waves. After I started using a sonic cleaner I was amazed at how much more of that stuff came out of there. It's impossible to get it all but it will get most of it out.

[Bonz]

I wet tumble, rinse with cold water but never expose them to the sun. I then shake them around in a towel and spread out the towel under a ceiling fan for drying. Giving them a "suntan" is definately a bad thing...

[Lizard333]

It seems like alot of swagers are using SS pins to clean the brass before derimming. How is that going to get out the priming grit between the rim? Those pins aren't small enough to get in there and clean that grit out. The only way I've found to get most of the grit out of there is with a sonic cleaner. It basically vibrates it out with the sonic waves. After I started using a sonic cleaner I was amazed at how much more of that stuff came out of there. It's impossible to get it all but it will get most of it out.

The SS pins work great. MOST of time.

83366

These cases were tumbled all night long.

[R.Ph. 380]

Back in February of this year, I posted the following thread on one of the forums I visit. It typified the results I have had using a sonic cleaner alone. I find I have to use both sonic and SS pins to get the most of the primer material out. So, here for your reading pleasure:



Well, today was a day off work and I had big plans. Wife was gone to Fort Worth.(That's another whole day's story). So I have these approximately 3,000 22LR expended cases which are just crying out to be cleaned and gotten ready to turn into .224 bullets for my AR 15's.

OK, first thing was to get the Ultrasonic cleaner out from the cabinet and charge it with 1 tablespoonfull of Lemi-shine and ½ teaspoonful of Dawn in HOT water. Now it is especially important to not overload the cleaner, so you only clean about 1 cupfull each go-round. Then they have to be rinsed in HOT water in a collander in the sink and put out to dry. (guess what's a better way to dry damp 22lr brass that's handy in a kitchen?) Well, there I was, all alone in the house and not going to be interrupted for a while and I thought, "Why Not?" So, I fired up the ***oven*** to 450 and took a Pyrex baking dish out of the cabinet and put an even layer of brass all over the bottom of the glass.(Good thing Pyrex is tough in addition to being heat resistant.More on this later)

Meanwhile, the oven is still increasing in temperature and I'm cleaning more and more brass in the ultrasonic cleaner. Remember, this has a mixture of Lemi-shine, Dawn and water which has to be changed often due to the extremely dirty residue washed off the tarnished brass and the residue(remember this word) of the gunpowder from their firing. SO,,,, while I am rinsing and washing, rinsing and washing, the oven has reached it's programmed 450 degrees and the brass is basking in the drying atmosphere of the oven. Sort of like John's stories of the Desert he sends 22lr brass into out there in AZ. So as my dog "Bruce"(a black Lab I like to think of as "King of the Scots") and I enjoy a day to ourselves with not a care in the world,,(Now remember up in the previous paragraph when I cautioned you to remember?)

We were startled at a series of reports that sounded suspiciously like 22lr rounds going off in close proximity to the kitchen. Glancing around nervously I noticed a whisp of smoke curling up ftom the Pyrex(remember, well this is later)

I opened the oven door, (probably not the smartest move I could have made at this point) and glanced in just as another """dud""" 22lr """empty""" case let go and announced it's rebirth. Anyone who still believes that you can kill primers or rimfire rounds with water, lemi-shine and Dawn dishwashing soap can now disabuse themselves of that notion. I'm here to tell you that a "dud" round without the bullet in it that has ben soaked and ultrasoniked for an extended time, dried out in the mild warmth of a 450 degree oven will POPwith sufficient force to scatter multiple pieces of 22lr brass from the upper oven to the lower Broiler Oven with alacrity. It will also startle the normal homeowner into releasing the oven door he momentarily opened so that it pops closed to contain said errant brass.

So, judicious use of spatula and soup ladle enabled me to clean up the evidence of my culinary efforts and leave no evidence.............................So I thought. Guess who left the oven light on and who never cooks anything in the oven? Well, as I was returning from my afternoon Dr's appointment, my wife(remember the one who was away in Fort Worth?) Called and asked were you cooking something in the Kitchen today? The light was on in the oven as was the overhead light which we never use, but works well for seeing errant pieces of cleaned 22lr brass hiding around the floor and under the edge of the cabinets. Like I SAID,,,,BUSTED. So laughing I told her the whole episode and restored equilibrium to the day. Funny, I've been banished from the kitchen and the stove. What'sup with dat???????????????????

Bill

[fredj338]

I would suspect the water. Hard water will tarnish brass much faster than filtered.