SS Media for cleaning Brass

[Wally]

I am considering experimenting using SS media to clean my pistol brass. I have an older Tumblers tumbler Model B; it is not the high speed model that is now available today. I noticed most use 5 lbs of SS media...will 2.5 lbs work as well if I just run the tumbler longer? My plan is to clean/polish 9mm Luger cases to make them really sparkle, because they are a heck of a lot easier to find when ejected from my Taurus 99AF. I have used corn cob and Walnut media in a vibratory ... they just aren't shiny enough when I have.

[DeputyDog25]

Yes, 2.5 pounds will work just fine. Get yourself some Lemishine and use very sparingly and some Dawn dish soap, again use very sparingly. In both cases a little goes along way. Be sure and rinse the cases in cold water to keep the Lemishine from spotting your cases. I personally have an old food dehydrator that I dry my cases in, I bought it off ebay for about $10. Usually a .45 case or so Lemishine is all you need. If you have a bunch of soap bubbles in your tumbler after you finish, then you have used too much Dawn, just takes a couple drops or so.

[Johnny_V]

Wally,

I don't see any reason 2.5lbs wouldn't work. Just don't put as much brass in the bath. Go maybe 300 rounds at a time, with about a third of a teaspoon of Lemi Shine, a drop of Dawn dishwashing liquid, and run for about 4 hours, and your cases will look factory new...

[prs]

My model B is quite old too, maybe 15 years or more and has been used a lot with excellent performance, not sure if it is a fast or slow model; don't much care. I have used ceramic media and SS pins media and no media with the liquid of choice. The ceramic made the brass quite rough and matt finish. Very frustrating to get the ceramic rods out of the wet cases after cleaning. The SS pins produced a finer matt luster on the brass and were also a royal PIA to separate from the cases after the job. Using only the liquid detergent water and allowing the cases to be their own media was as good on the outside as SS media, the primer pockets were still a little fouled when the spent primers were removed. Then comes detergent water with citric acid and allowing the cases to be their own media. Clean inside and out, the primer pockets when the spent primers are removed are stained, but no obstruction or "crust". If brass were to be deprimed before tumbling, I suppose the pockets would be new whistle clean too. The SS media works, maybe makes the job go quicker up to the point where it becomes necessary to separate the wheat from the chaff. Tumbling time for me is about 3 hours while I relax or do something else, I often let it run over night. I run the B almost full of brass with enough liquid to cover and after all these years of regular use, the original belt is still just fine. The big plus for me, I dump the model B contents into a sink with strainer in drain and rinse with cool water until all the filth is gone, no pins to separate or to break a decap pin later. Dry in food dehydrator, again for a couple of hours or whenever I remember they are drying, record so far is two days -- oops.

prs

[Wally]

Yes, 2.5 pounds will work just fine. Get yourself some Lemishine and use very sparingly and some Dawn dish soap, again use very sparingly. In both cases a little goes along way. Be sure and rinse the cases in cold water to keep the Lemishine from spotting your cases. I personally have an old food dehydrator that I dry my cases in, I bought it off ebay for about $10. Usually a .45 case or so Lemishine is all you need. If you have a bunch of soap bubbles in your tumbler after you finish, then you have used too much Dawn, just takes a couple drops or so.

Thank you.... LemiShine is citric acid...as I understand it vinegar will also work very well as it is diluted acetic acid..have you tried it? Also, if 2.5 lbs of the SS media works...why do so many use 5 lbs?

[Wally]

My model B is quite old too, maybe 15 years or more and has been used a lot with excellent performance, not sure if it is a fast or slow model; don't much care. I have used ceramic media and SS pins media and no media with the liquid of choice. The ceramic made the brass quite rough and matt finish. Very frustrating to get the ceramic rods out of the wet cases after cleaning. The SS pins produced a finer matt luster on the brass and were also a royal PIA to separate from the cases after the job. Using only the liquid detergent water and allowing the cases to be their own media was as good on the outside as SS media, the primer pockets were still a little fouled when the spent primers were removed. Then comes detergent water with citric acid and allowing the cases to be their own media. Clean inside and out, the primer pockets when the spent primers are removed are stained, but no obstruction or "crust". If brass were to be deprimed before tumbling, I suppose the pockets would be new whistle clean too. The SS media works, maybe makes the job go quicker up to the point where it becomes necessary to separate the wheat from the chaff. Tumbling time for me is about 3 hours while I relax or do something else, I often let it run over night. I run the B almost full of brass with enough liquid to cover and after all these years of regular use, the original belt is still just fine. The big plus for me, I dump the model B contents into a sink with strainer in drain and rinse with cool water until all the filth is gone, no pins to separate or to break a decap pin later. Dry in food dehydrator, again for a couple of hours or whenever I remember they are drying, record so far is two days -- oops.

prs

Thank you..I thought of that as well. but you are the first that has tried it and mentions that it works sans the SS media. IMHO it would not be a fun task separating the pins from the brass....many use a brass separator, something I don't as yet have.

[prs]

I greatly doubt that I am the first to try, it is more that I was ignorant of citric acid until after I tried the adjunct media. If you have the SS pins, go ahead and do a paired comparison. I also break some of the other rules expressed above by our experienced and helpful friends. Not that they are wrong, just that I sorted through some of this and came up with what I do. If there is not a good "head" of suds when I dump by cleaned brass, I figure the amount of detergent was lacking. A drop or two just won't do, a scant quarter teaspoon of Dawn Ultra Platinum and a teaspoon of LemiShine with hot water is my brew.

Another "trick" I apply is to let the rinsed brass stay in the sink, still wet, but drained. I apply a pea sized dib of Lee case lube to my hands and then run my fingers and hands through the wet brass like a miser with his gold. When dry, the tiny residue of case lube is still there on the outside of the cases. Evenwith carbide dies, it helps ease the levering of a long session.

Now, it is not that I am contrary or disrespectful of the others' ways. I figure their ways suit their needs, just as mine suite mine. I am NOT a bench rest shooter, but rather hand load in bulk; yet with care, for practice and plinking at rather large and close steel plate targets. My batches of brass are in the hundreds per tumble and reload in runs of thousands. So you, too, can tune your methods to fit your need. My way may not be "the" right way, but it is the right way for me; albeit I often do try the other ways to see first hand.

prs

['74 sharps]

I run my Thumler's for about an hour with citric acid and the dish soap I have on hand and about 4 pounds of pins. Shiny like factory brass......no. Clean.....yes. It just gets dirty again, and with my bp brass they take on a vintage look that suits the ammunition.

[Wally]

I greatly doubt that I am the first to try, it is more that I was ignorant of citric acid until after I tried the adjunct media. If you have the SS pins, go ahead and do a paired comparison. I also break some of the other rules expressed above by our experienced and helpful friends. Not that they are wrong, just that I sorted through some of this and came up with what I do. If there is not a good "head" of suds when I dump by cleaned brass, I figure the amount of detergent was lacking. A drop or two just won't do, a scant quarter teaspoon of Dawn Ultra Platinum and a teaspoon of LemiShine with hot water is my brew.

Another "trick" I apply is to let the rinsed brass stay in the sink, still wet, but drained. I apply a pea sized dib of Lee case lube to my hands and then run my fingers and hands through the wet brass like a miser with his gold. When dry, the tiny residue of case lube is still there on the outside of the cases. Evenwith carbide dies, it helps ease the levering of a long session.

Now, it is not that I am contrary or disrespectful of the others' ways. I figure their ways suit their needs, just as mine suite mine. I am NOT a bench rest shooter, but rather hand load in bulk; yet with care, for practice and plinking at rather large and close steel plate targets. My batches of brass are in the hundreds per tumble and reload in runs of thousands. So you, too, can tune your methods to fit your need. My way may not be "the" right way, but it is the right way for me; albeit I often do try the other ways to see first hand.

prs


Again, I thank you.... I don't have any SS pins yet. The separation procedure seems to be too much of a PITA. Many old time reloaders that I correspond with frown at the though of using SS pins to clean brass and prefer the Walnut & Corncob..which to them is "clean enough". I have used it for years, but with 9mm brass I'd like to really make the cases shine ..as they are so much easier to find.

As I understand it SS pins scuff up the brass slightly and will also put small nicks on the case neck edge... Those small nicks can lead to splits. However as my Tumbler Tumbler Model B is not a high speed model, I probably would not have that issue, as the tumbling is too slow for it to occur.

[Beesdad]

Again, I thank you.... I don't have any SS pins yet. The separation procedure seems to be too much of a PITA. Many old time reloaders that I correspond with frown at the though of using SS pins to clean brass and prefer the Walnut & Corncob..which to them is "clean enough". I have used it for years, but with 9mm brass I'd like to really make the cases shine ..as they are so much easier to find.

As I understand it SS pins scuff up the brass slightly and will also put small nicks on the case neck edge... Those small nicks can lead to splits. However as my Tumbler Tumbler Model B is not a high speed model, I probably would not have that issue, as the tumbling is too slow for it to occur.

Based on my experience of + 100,000 cases cleaned with SS pins in a high speed Thumbler Tumbler I have seen no evidence of scuffing or small nicks... Nothing that has caused any case to split.. SS pins are just too light to cause any damage...

Separation could not be easier... Just place the brass mixed with the SS in a media separator and turn it about 10 times and your done.. No PITA at all...

Most of my brass can be cleaned in less than 1 hour... Brass that has been left on the ground for months may take 2 hours... From my experience the slower speed Thumbler works just as well but takes longer.. I use the full 5 lbs. of pins not sure what is accomplished by using less.

[Johnny_V]

Also, if 2.5 lbs of the SS media works...why do so many use 5 lbs?

I use 5 lbs because I have a tumbler that will hold about 3.5 gallons and I can tumble around 1200 9mm's at a time....

Everybody has their own recipe, but the results are usually the same.....

[JASON4X4]

I use a case seperator half submerged in water and all the pins come out on there own when rotating. I drain and refill the water a couple times so the cases are stainless free and rinsed. I them spread them out on a towel and the are dry when I get home the next day

[Wally]

Based on my experience of + 100,000 cases cleaned with SS pins in a high speed Thumbler Tumbler I have seen no evidence of scuffing or small nicks... Nothing that has caused any case to split.. SS pins are just too light to cause any damage...

Separation could not be easier... Just place the brass mixed with the SS in a media separator and turn it about 10 times and your done.. No PITA at all...

Most of my brass can be cleaned in less than 1 hour... Brass that has been left on the ground for months may take 2 hours... From my experience the slower speed Thumbler works just as well but takes longer.. I use the full 5 lbs. of pins not sure what is accomplished by using less.

Thank you...good to hear that the pins don't do any damage....some state that they work harden the brass...but I cannot believe that would happen.

[Wally]

I did a batch of 300 9mm Luger cases....no pins with detergent & citric acid in hot water. Cleaned up ok but not factory shiny... However after they dry I can polish in corn cob with some polishing compound with a vibratory tumbler. While it sounds goofy to polish twice this procedure will prevent any dust and keep the cases from tarnishing. I make my own bullet lube (50% beeswax/50% lithium grease) and it really makes the cases quite filthy. Often I get lube gobs stuck top the cases with the black dust on them when I vibrate w/ walnut...with .30 M-1 Carbine it is even worse. This new procedure seems to be the solution.

[Beesdad]

I did a batch of 300 9mm Luger cases....no pins with detergent & citric acid in hot water. Cleaned up ok but not factory shiny... However after they dry I can polish in corn cob with some polishing compound with a vibratory tumbler. While it sounds goofy to polish twice this procedure will prevent any dust and keep the cases from tarnishing. I make my own bullet lube (50% beeswax/50% lithium grease) and it really makes the cases quite filthy. Often I get lube gobs stuck top the cases with the black dust on them when I vibrate w/ walnut...with .30 M-1 Carbine it is even worse. This new procedure seems to be the solution.

Wally, I have found that 2 or 3 squirts of any brand of car detailing spray will keep the cases from tarnishing.. Have some that are over a year old and the still look good.

Not sure if it will help but when I first started with SS pins the STM folks advised not to use hot water in their instructions.. I know it want damage the brass but if I remember correctly it reduced the cleaning effectiveness.

[Blanco]

I have a buddy who swears by tumbling with SS pins. All his cases come out nice and shiny. it also puts a lot of little dings in the case mouth which turns it into a small serrated blade. It also makes strange sounds going thru the reloader. Kinda crunchy like.
Personally I deprime and resize all my brass first. Then a run thru the ultrasinc cleaner in LemmiShine and Dawn Ultra.
At this point they are very clean, even the primer pockets. Next i run them thru my big tumbler with walnut media and i add just a touch of mineral spirits and a touch of nu finish car polish. I run it for about 2 hrs, they come out looking better than new and they are super slick. They glide through the reloader.... But thats just me. Oh BTW my Ultrasonic cleaner and tumbler both came from Harbor Freight.

[Beesdad]

I have a buddy who swears by tumbling with SS pins. All his cases come out nice and shiny. it also puts a lot of little dings in the case mouth which turns it into a small serrated blade. It also makes strange sounds going thru the reloader. Kinda crunchy like.
Personally I deprime and resize all my brass first. Then a run thru the ultrasinc cleaner in LemmiShine and Dawn Ultra.
At this point they are very clean, even the primer pockets. Next i run them thru my big tumbler with walnut media and i add just a touch of mineral spirits and a touch of nu finish car polish. I run it for about 2 hrs, they come out looking better than new and they are super slick. They glide through the reloader.... But thats just me. Oh BTW my Ultrasonic cleaner and tumbler both came from Harbor Freight.

Blanco, what you have observed is much different than what I have experienced ... What type of tumbler setup is you buddy using and what power magnification are you using.

I have inspected 100's of my cases that I have personally tumbled +15 times and I can not visualize any significant difference when comparing them to my once fired brass under 15 x magnification. Do I see a ding or 2 ... Yes but I would think that it came from hitting the concrete floor rather than from tumbling and most show little to no unusual damage. Or they could be damaged then the primers are removed as they drop 24 inches unprotected into a 5 gal. bucket.. But I have no scientific way to definitively prove my case... Nothing even comes close to looking like a serrated blade with the exception of a large batch of 1992 LC 5.56 brass that I fired and it must have been originally processed with a dull trimmer and it has 25-30 large chatter marks that resemble saw teeth under the 15 x lupe ..

[Nueces]

I have seen once fired factory cases with those 'serrated' mouths, put there by the manufacturer, not the result of any tumbling process.

Do a bit of a thought experiment on tumbling with the SS pins, buffered by a water solution, which greatly slows any relative motion between cases and media. Since the relatively heavy cases banging into each other cause no observable damage whatsoever, we can be sure that the little pins are entirely benign. I think we can comfortably dismiss all reports of dings, case mouth damage, peening and work hardening from SS pin tumbling. Not that folks are misleading us, they're just mistaken about what is going on.

Rock on, Mates! My Model B and 0.047" pins give me gorgeous bright, clean cases, inside and out, no matter how grungy they were.

[Blanco]

Ok I will add this after thinking on it. My buddy's set up uses a 5 gallon bucket as the hopper on this tumbler.
He tumbled close to 3000 9mm cases at one time. With that being said it was the first and last time I had him tumble clean any brass for me. It very well cold have been an issue wit the brass before tumbling. His SS pins are shaped like they were cut with wire cutters or dikes, as the ends are a bit flattened out.
The cases did make a crunching feel and sound as they were resized. After that is when I picked up my Ultrasonic cleaner and vib tumbler.
Since then I do not get the crunching action and the brass I use is still coming from the same source.
I actually have a very old rotary tumbler and tossed the idea around of using some ss pins to test it with .

[petroid]

If you just want the brass to shine on the outside you don't even need the ss pins. Dawn and lemi shine work just fine. To get the insides clean and shining you need the pins. You could just dry tumble in cob or walnut then wet tumble without pins for shine. But the pins make it a one-stop shop and get the primer pockets in the process

[Bayou52]

Again, I thank you.... I don't have any SS pins yet. The separation procedure seems to be too much of a PITA. Many old time reloaders that I correspond with frown at the though of using SS pins to clean brass and prefer the Walnut & Corncob..which to them is "clean enough". I have used it for years, but with 9mm brass I'd like to really make the cases shine ..as they are so much easier to find.

As I understand it SS pins scuff up the brass slightly and will also put small nicks on the case neck edge... Those small nicks can lead to splits. However as my Tumbler Tumbler Model B is not a high speed model, I probably would not have that issue, as the tumbling is too slow for it to occur.

Sir-

I've been SS wet tumbling for 2 years. I use a Thumler's model B high-speed. My recipe is 5 pounds SS pins, 1/4 tsp of Lemi-Shine and instead of dishwashing liquid, I use a couple of ounces of auto wash & wax. The wash & wax impedes the return of tarnish.

You certainly can use fewer pins - just increase your tumbling time.

As far as neck "peening", I consider this a non-issue. Any such peens minute and are removed by your trimmer or your chamfer/debur tool. Moreover, you will see minute peens on brand new brasses resulting from the pre-sale tumbling.

Happy tumbling...

Bayou52

[MOA]

Bayou52,
You are right on is the method.

I use Frankford Arsenal tumbler, 1/4 teaspoon, couple squirts of dawn, five lbs of stainless pins, and depending on now dirty the brass is I run it from 1 to 3 hours. Here are my results, the before and the after. 3 hour run, 5 minute flush with cold water, dumped into a large cotton pillow case and carefully manipulated back and forth til most of water is absorbed by pillow case, dump on towel, spread out and let air dry.

130840130841130842130843

[1066]

I use an old rock polishing tumbler with SS media - I've tried many ways over the years but can't see me going back to dry tumbling now.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcyAkj-LzA8

[MOA]

Wally, just finished doing some brass today that had been sitting in an old box since 1999. Really nasty looking, but here is what they look like know after three hours in the tumbler, steel pins, dawn and lemishine, as soon as done into the fresh cold water for a five minute flush with agitation, then laid out on a towel under a ceiling fan for a few hours to dry.

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab136/nitroexpress450400/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_080214_zpsvl5ngkr1.jpg (http://s857.photobucket.com/user/nitroexpress450400/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_080214_zpsvl5ngkr1.jpg.html)

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab136/nitroexpress450400/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_080220_zpsecjfk7ql.jpg (http://s857.photobucket.com/user/nitroexpress450400/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_080220_zpsecjfk7ql.jpg.html)

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab136/nitroexpress450400/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_152310_zpslfa5kyjj.jpg (http://s857.photobucket.com/user/nitroexpress450400/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_152310_zpslfa5kyjj.jpg.html)

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab136/nitroexpress450400/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_152342_zps5wraxphw.jpg (http://s857.photobucket.com/user/nitroexpress450400/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20150214_152342_zps5wraxphw.jpg.html)

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab136/nitroexpress450400/Mobile%20Uploads/Screenshot_2014-12-31-04-36-33_zps7375e30e.png (http://s857.photobucket.com/user/nitroexpress450400/media/Mobile%20Uploads/Screenshot_2014-12-31-04-36-33_zps7375e30e.png.html):bigsmyl2:

[Bayou52]

Spectacular results, MOA!

Happy Tumbling.....


Bayou52

[MOA]

Thx 52:bigsmyl2:

[leeshall]

I was going to mention losing the dish detergent and using auto wash/wax liquid instead to prevent spotting but it's been already mentioned. BTW, the ultra thin wax coating left on the cases not only prevents spotting but also helps prevent tarnishing and helps with sizing cases.
One more thing, the saw edge case mouths previously mentioned are likely the result of cases having been originally crimped onto cannelured bullets, especially military rifle brass. This saw-toothed edge usually goes away with the first trimming.

[257]

I have a Frankfort tumbler it was a little pricey but it has a 3 hour timer built in holds about a 1 1/2 gal water it came with 5 lbs of pins it does a great job inside/ outside and the primer pockets are spotless in about 2 hours I'm in the process of building a bigger one a buddy got me a pcs of 12 inch pvc to make the drum out of I found a source for pin's quite reasonable ,but I had to buy 50 lbs at a time

[MOA]

I have a Frankfort tumbler it was a little pricey but it has a 3 hour timer built in holds about a 1 1/2 gal water it came with 5 lbs of pins it does a great job inside/ outside and the primer pockets are spotless in about 2 hours I'm in the process of building a bigger one a buddy got me a pcs of 12 inch pvc to make the drum out of I found a source for pin's quite reasonable ,but I had to buy 50 lbs at a time

257,
Midway sells the pins in 5lb.

[AZ Pete]

Bullseye Reloading in Cottonwood, AZ has pins at a competitive price...Google them.

[cephas53]

One accessory I'm glad I have on hand is a decent size magnet. If you ever spill some pins you'll know why.

[zuke]

This look's like an interesting thread

[kencha]

Just wanted to confirm that the media separator filled with water does a great job. I used to separate by hand as I thought there was no way the media separators would actually work with the SS pins. I was sure 1/2 the pins would end up staying in the cases.

Midsouth has their branded "rotary sifter" for less than $20 so I gave it a shot. Filled with water, it separates perfectly and rinses, to boot. I have yet to find a pin remaining in a case except when I mix the wrong calibers and end up with some trapped inside stuck cases.

I love the wet tumbling with SS pins and will continue using it for all of my reloading, but I am not convinced it is 100% innocuous. I had a 458Socom AR that tended to nick the shoulders. Wet tumbling seemed to turn those nicks into full-blown cracks much quicker than vibratory/walnut tumbling.

[MOA]

Easiest way I have found to separate them is with a big bowl and a pasta drainer, flush with cold water and use your hand to agitate the brass and all the pins fall through to the bottom of the bowl, cheap too, and stores in a small area. Nice to wash the pins so the chemicals do not stay on them either, I like to dry the pins in the oven before I put them away till I need them again and I want them clean each time I start this process.

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab136/nitroexpress450400/Mobile%20Uploads/20150219_145422_zpsjr7flctu.jpg (http://s857.photobucket.com/user/nitroexpress450400/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20150219_145422_zpsjr7flctu.jpg.html)

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab136/nitroexpress450400/Mobile%20Uploads/20150219_145436_zpsum0deruq.jpg (http://s857.photobucket.com/user/nitroexpress450400/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20150219_145436_zpsum0deruq.jpg.html)

[blikseme300]

I have and use 2 Thumlers model B's, the high speed and the regular, that are each used with 5lbs of SS media. Pistol brass is cleaned in the high speed model and rifle in the standard model. The reason I use the standard model for rifle is that the weight of the cases seem to cause peening of the case mouths.

What I have found as well is that the brass becomes too "dry" when cleaned totally compared to vibratory cleaning and this causes more force needed to size and load. (I deprime before cleaning using a Lee universal deprimer.) What I do is this: once the brass has been cleaned for 2 hours using Dawn and Lemishine I dump the water and refill with water & add about 2oz of ArmorAll Ultra Shine Wash & Wax. 2 more hours of tumbling and brass separated in water using a media separator and drying is done in a dehydrator. The brass resists tarnishing and has a very thin lubricating coating that eases the effort needed to size and reload. I like clean brass and am OCD about most things I do.

My 2c worth.

[MOA]

I like to have my brass clean on the outside so when fired it grips the chamber wall better therefore reducing the pressure on the bolt face.

[lightman]

I've used both methods, both wet/stainless and dry corn cobb/walnut. The stainless method has enough extra steps over the dry method that I only use it for really dirty cases. The stainless stuff is scary, in that you can get new looking brass from stuff that should be scrapped. The stainless process works faster than the dry process, but separating the pins and drying the cases takes time.

I use about the same process that the others are using. A squirt of Dawn, a 9mm case of Lemishine, enough water to cover the cases and a couple of hours in the tumbler.

The old Snipershide Forum had a long ongoing thread about stainless tumbling that had lots of info and ideas. You can find it with Google. Its worth the read.

[Guncrank]

Based on my experience of + 100,000 cases cleaned with SS pins in a high speed Thumbler Tumbler I have seen no evidence of scuffing or small nicks... Nothing that has caused any case to split.. SS pins are just too light to cause any damage...


Beesdad,

I agree, damage after many thousands of cases washed is non-existent. However, I have seen rifle cases in the 308 and 30-06 size come out of my home-brew tumbler with the edges of the mouth heavily peened from running in the tumbler too long! The larger,heavier cases do have enough mass to cause this trouble by striking against the pins and each other. But, for rifle cases this can be easily removed after sizing with the usual trimming, chamfering & deburring.

So, a word to the wise would be to monitor your cases progress and tumble no longer than is necessary to achieve cleanliness results you desire.

[zuke]

I've used both methods, both wet/stainless and dry corn cobb/walnut. The stainless method has enough extra steps over the dry method that I only use it for really dirty cases. The stainless stuff is scary, in that you can get new looking brass from stuff that should be scrapped. The stainless process works faster than the dry process, but separating the pins and drying the cases takes time.

I use about the same process that the others are using. A squirt of Dawn, a 9mm case of Lemishine, enough water to cover the cases and a couple of hours in the tumbler.

The old Snipershide Forum had a long ongoing thread about stainless tumbling that had lots of info and ideas. You can find it with Google. Its worth the read.

I posted a lot on that thread.

[r1kk1]

I use Lemishine and Car wash/wax. My tumbler has adjustable speed and I set it at 35rpm as well as forward and reverse rotation every five minutes.

take care

r1kk1