rookie pin tumbler questions

[pistolshooter]

I have recently started wet pin tumbling. Works great so far, but I do have a question. Does anyone run their tumbler on a timer? I dry tumble in the garage at night, using a lamp timer so it runs while I am getting my beauty rest. I would like to do that with the pin tumbler, but it would shut off before I get up and the brass would sit in the tumbler for a few hours. Is it necessary to remove the brass as soon as it is done tumbling or can it sit in the tumbler for awhile? Will sitting in the tumbler cause the brass to tarnish again?
I am using a car wash/wax in place of Dawn, hoping to get a bit of wax on the brass to retard tarnishing. I know some folks are re-tumbling in dry media with car wax added to retard the tarnishing. Is there a better/easier solution?

[Guncrank]

pistolshooter,

I've done as you describe, wet tumbled a batch of brass for a couple hours then allowed it to sit until morning. Nothing detrimental to report. I did however restart the tumbler in the morning and ran it for about 15 minutes before rinsing off the brass in clean water just insure all the grunge was well suspended in the soap and Lemi-Shine solution.

[pistolshooter]

Guncrank, thanks for the info. I'll give it a shot tonight. Are you re-tumbling in dry media/car polish when done with the pin tumbler? I'm trying to avoid that extra step, but I don't want the brass to retarnish.

[Jack Beauregard]

Just out of curiosity, how long do you tumble your brass? I have an AR-1 with pin media and tried it for the first time on Sunday. Ran it for a couple of hours with about eight cases just to see what it will do, but it really didn't seem to do much. Obviously I'm doing something not quite right. But all I noticed after tumbling the cases with about a third hot water and a shot of dish soap (recommended by a friend) and all it seemed to do was polish the tarnish and dirt a bit. What might I do differently?

[zuke]

water, a 40 cal case full of Lemmishine and a good squirt of Dawn.
Been doing it that way for almost 5 year's.
4 hour's with deprimed brass for the first tumble of dirty brass.

[LaPoint]

JB- You need to add a little citric acid to your solution. The citric acid (active ingredient in Lemi-Shine) passivates your brass as well as making it bright & shiny.

[too many things]

also the pins will rust so when not in use dry them on a old towel

[pistolshooter]

I tumble for about 3 hours. 2 pounds of brass, a gallon of water, 45ACP case of lemishine and 3 tablespoons of car washing soap. My brass comes out looking like new. Did you run a the pins a couple of times with soap and lemishine without any brass to remove any oils and crud from them before tumbling with brass?
I don't think the pins will rust since they are stainless steel. I leave mine in the tumbler when done, not making any effort to dry them.

[w5pv]

Thanks for the post,so far my pin tumbling hasn't been what I expected.They get clean but not polished.

[carbine]

The stainless steel pins rust? I keep mine in the Thumblers tumbler with the residual water. No rust 2 years

[Bayou52]

also the pins will rust so when not in use dry them on a old towel

SS pins do not rust even if stored wet.

Otherwise, they would be utterly useless for SS wet tumbling.

All the Best -

Bayou52

[Jack Beauregard]

Thanks for all the great answers! Really helped me get a better idea of what I need to do differently. Now just out of curiosity, which works "better" (understand that this can be quite subjective), the Lemi Shine, or citric acid? I still have some acid around the house, but will gladly try Lemi if it is better, especially since it will be easier to find than bulk citric acid powder ;)

Thanks all!

[Bayou52]

I've never used citric acid, but only Lemi-Shine. It works great and includes citric acid in it. The results era spectacular, as you can see.

Bayou52

[Moonie]

also the pins will rust so when not in use dry them on a old towel

You are using the wrong pins, I've used my pins for several years, never dried them, never had a problem with rusting.

[Jack Beauregard]

I'ge neger used citric acid, but only Lemi-Shine. It works great and includes citric acid in it. The results era spectacular, as you can see.

Bayou52
Wow. That definitely is beautiful. Something to strive for. Thanks for sharing!

[max range]

I use koolade instead of lemmishine. It is mostly citric acid and works great. Goofy Grape seems to work the best. (just kidding). I too, was disappointed with how quickly the clean brass tarnished. So now I polish them in a vibratory tumbler for about 15 min with a dash of NuFinish carwax/polish.
I put the brass into the vibratory tumbler with the corn media while they are still wet. So I actually save a little time. I can prime and load the brass straight out of the vibratory bowl. They are clean, dry and stay bright for a long time.