Tumble rice!

[Pistolero]

Not long ago I needed to replace my tumble media as it was getting old - and taking forever to polish cases.

Went to my local (rip off) gun shop and the guy wanted $40 for a 2 pound bag!!!

I made my excuses and walked out. I guy i know suggested using rice instead - he has had good results with it. So I got a 2kg bag for $3 and gave it a go.

works great!! anyone else tried it???

.38spl brass came out looking like new. Who needs special 'corn cob' media anyway??

i suppose i should acknowledge my Lyman turbo 1200 tumbler as well.....:lovebooli

[Marlin Hunter]

... I guy i know suggested using rice instead - he has had good results with it. So I got a 2kg bag for $3 and gave it a go.

works great!! anyone else tried it???

.38spl brass came out looking like new. Who needs special 'corn cob' media anyway??

i suppose i should acknowledge my Lyman turbo 1200 tumbler as well.....:lovebooli


That's nice to know. Is the rice make more noise than other media?

[wills]

I have not tried it, but have heard walnut shell makes good tumbling media and is not expensive when bought at pet supply stores.
http://www.pet-dog-cat-supply-store.com/shop/index.php?page=shop-flypage-23898

[20nickels]

I have not tried it, but have heard walnut shell makes good tumbling media and is not expensive when bought at pet supply stores.
http://www.pet-dog-cat-supply-store.com/shop/index.php?page=shop-flypage-23898

It works, but is dusty and doesn't leave em shiny.

[geargnasher]

That's good to know, Pistolero. I'll have to try that some day.

Gear

[oksmle]

I've been using rice exclusively for years. I dump about a cup or so into Mrs. oksmle's blender & set it on "Puree" for about 10 seconds. Dump it through a screen to filter out the dust & larger pieces, then repeat the process until I have enough for my Thumblers tumbler. If you don't make the grains smaller they will "log jam" in bottle neck cases. And if they are too small will stick in primer pockets. After a while you get used to just how long to "Puree." Rice will not polish brass to much of a shine, but I'm more interested in clean than shiney. About three times a year I empty the tumbler in the garden & for several days the birds go crazy. BTW, if any of you folks in the OKC area PM me I have a couple bags of walnut hulls & corn cob media you are welcome to at no cost.

[Green Frog]

I've been using rice exclusively for years. I dump about a cup or so into Mrs. oksmle's blender & set it on "Puree" for about 10 seconds. Dump it through a screen to filter out the dust & larger pieces, then repeat the process until I have enough for my Thumblers tumbler. If you don't make the grains smaller they will "log jam" in bottle neck cases. And if they are too small will stick in primer pockets. After a while you get used to just how long to "Puree." Rice will not polish brass to much of a shine, but I'm more interested in clean than shiney. About three times a year I empty the tumbler in the garden & for several days the birds go crazy. BTW, if any of you folks in the OKC area PM me I have a couple bags of walnut hulls & corn cob media you are welcome to at no cost.

Not to be an alarmist "tree hugger" but have you considered the lead contamination you are feeding those birds? I don't want to give the "Greenies" any more ammunition to attack our hobby and the use of lead, and that seems to me a sure way to introduce significant lead into the food chain. :confused:

Froggie

[freedom475]

Not to be an alarmist "tree hugger" but have you considered the lead contamination you are feeding those birds? I don't want to give the "Greenies" any more ammunition to attack our hobby and the use of lead, and that seems to me a sure way to introduce significant lead into the food chain. :confused:

Froggie


It don't matter cause the rice swells up and kills the birds anyway... thats why we can't throw it at wedings anymore.[smilie=1:[smilie=f:

[Mk42gunner]

It don't matter cause the rice swells up and kills the birds anyway... thats why we can't throw it at wedings anymore.[smilie=1:[smilie=f:

So does minute rice work faster, or not????

I have seen a lot of birds in rice fields/ paddys overseas, and don't recall any dead birds laying around.

Robert

[imashooter2]

Zilla reptile bedding, 50 pounds for about $35 delivered:

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/prod/235216/product.web

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/images/Categoryimages/normal/p-11539-39973-reptile.jpg

I've been using 12/20 blast media that I bought from a local welding supply many years ago. Blast media is very low dust and pretty darn cheap...

http://www.ecoshell.com/Images/Mediumblk.jpg

[mdi]

Just go to your pet store and look for different kinds of bedding. Ground corn cob (hamster bedding) and walnut (lizzard litter) are cheaper than anywhere I've seen.

[weasel 21]

I tried using rice but it seemed to leave a film on the brass. I got both corn cob and walnut from a wholesale janitorial supply shop and the price was very reasonable-$25 for 50lbs bag.

[Shooter6br]

also rice (uncooked LOL) can be used for filling cloth rest bags. I cut off a leg of old jeans sew the the ends leaving an un sewed spot and fill with rice No sand dust

[Russel Nash]

It is my speculation that all crushed walnut shells originate from here:

http://www.hammonsproducts.com/page.asp?p_key=7589856B10D34AFFA79B3424F16B67E0&ie_key=0C9E72C21971407F80A9DD493C6B004F

Yeah, that's right... Hammon's Walnuts in Stockton, MO. Kinda way down the Ozarks of Missouri... well, maybe not the Ozarks, but close to Springfield, MO...the world headquarters of Bass Pro.

Supposedly, Stockton has a "Walnut Days" festival every year... I guess in the fall.

[Russel Nash]

My buddy used to use rice, but he ran tests with walnut, corncob and rice and came to the conclusion that rice left a starchey, dusty white residue on the brass cases.

He switched over to walnut exclusivley now.

I have to wonder if rice would get all clogged up inside bottlenecked rifle cases like .223 . :confused::confused:

[Patrick L]

I got walnut at the pet center. It is dusty, and I wasn't overly impressed. I added some Nu Finish and it was OK, and also tried Dillon Case polish, and that was OK.

OK but not spectacular. I still prefer corn cob.

[stephen perry]

I use a Midway Vibrator Tumbler for brass cleaning. With it I use crushed walnut shell nothing else. I just put 50 Federal .222 Nickel neck turned cases in. Fifteen minutes is all it takes. Nothing complicated needed to clean cases.

Stephen Perry
Angeles BR :brokenima

[dolang1]

Last year, at Petsmart, I purchased a bag of lizard litter. The checkout guy, who had tattoos, facial jewelry, and multi-colored hair, ask me what kind of reptile I had. I said, "I'm tumbling brass with it." He looked at me like I had two heads, so I repeated myself. Finally after three explanations. I said, "iguana." He said, "Aren't they cool?"

I clean with walnut media and polish with corn cob. Later Don

[rondog]

I also clean with walnut and polish with corncob. Excellent results! I use Kaytee brand Walnut Bird Litter from PetSmart, and 20/40 size corncob from Graingers industrial supply. A 40# bag of 20/40 is about $26 if you pick it up in person. The 20/40 is very small, won't cause clogs, and won't stick in primer holes. The smaller the media is, there's more surface area in contact with the brass.

NuFinish Car Polish is wonderful too. Drizzle in about a capful into a tumbler full of c/cob while it's running, and let in mix in for 15 minutes or so until all "liquid" traces are gone and the cob is well-coated. Mix it up first with no brass in there, or you'll get clumps in the cases.

I just did these cases like this, and I did all these in one batch (per caliber) in my Lyman Turbo Pro 1200. It's not a very big machine, but it'll hold 3 quarts of media and all the brass I can stuff in it, and just tumbles all that like mad. This is what Graingers 20/40 corncob with Nufinish car polish does.

A bunch of 9mm.....

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b150/rinselman/guns/DSCN2581.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b150/rinselman/guns/DSCN2582.jpg

A bunch of .45acp.....

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b150/rinselman/guns/DSCN2583.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b150/rinselman/guns/DSCN2584.jpg

[Char-Gar]

I have been using crushed walnut shell from the pet store for some years. I add about a table spoon of Mother's Mag Polish from the auto store. Works for me.

A couple of days ago, I found a new box of Lyman Tuff-Nut tumbling media on one of the shelves in my shop long forgotton. I pitched it in the tumbler and now I remember why I quite using it ten years ago. That red dust from the polish get's everywhere.

[HeavyMetal]

I have used Rice in my Dillon and it works well, with some proviso's.

It will log jam in case's smaller that 30 cal. So if you want to use it for 223 case's you'll have to grind it up. Tou much hassle for me.

In my case I was cleaning a lot of range pick up that was fairly nasty. seperate pistol caliber into big and small caliber then put them in the rice with a cup of Comet.

This will get them darn clean but does leave them dusty, Use an anti static dryer sheet and that dust will go away or run them through some walnut shell with rubbing compound in it.

Combined with the dryer sheet this last treatment leave them shiney, dust free and clean!

Rice is a good cleaner but has limits. I use it for the real nasty stuff I buy or trade for.

[3006guns]

I just purchased a bag of 12/20 from a media supply outfit here in the central valley area of California.......ten bucks for fifty pounds. Aughta last me quite a while. I actually thought of using a small cement mixer for a minute!

The car polish trick is what I was looking for though. There are "special" polishes for cartridge cases, but they all seem to be expensive.....because they're "special" I guess. I'll give that a try!

[Russel Nash]

^^^ Yeah, I use Nu-Finish 2000 car polish. It comes in the orange plastic squeeze bottle with the white plastic cap. I will fill up the cap with the polish and then dump it into the tumbler with the walnut media, while the tumbler is running. No brass, just yet. Then I will come back in 5 minutes and use a stick to stir it all up to break up the clumps.

Too much polish will get clumps to actually settle into and dry inside a few of the brass cases. It ends up being about as hard as a rock and will surprise ya when you go to resize/deprime the brass, especially on a progressive reloading press.

[frankmako]

i use walnut (lizzard litter) from my local petmarts. cheap and easy. hard to beat. used walnut for 35 plus years. tried the corn cob once, but did not like it. i don't put anything in it to help, just walnut. works for me.

[c3d4b2]

I was at the farm store the other day and walked past the bird feed bin. I noticed the Nyjer seed and wondered if it would work for case cleaning.

[jcwit]

We spend hundreds even thousands of dollars on a single firearm, then spend hundreds more on reloading and casting equipment. Then we turn around and try to save pennies on tumbling, knowing full well that the good stuff only costs nickles and dimes.

This is like buying a Rolls Royce then worring about what windshield washer fluid to use.

If going out and splurging 20 bucks on a 40-50 lb. bag of ground corn cob is going to break your bank, you all need to find another hobby, or a better paying job.

JMHO

[hcpookie]

I was going to be clever and recycle all the corn cobs from our squirrel feeder and destroyed a blender in the process :D

I use rice as has my dad for years and if it ever gets too dusty I rinse things off with a dip in alcohol. Just pour it over the brass in a bucket, then pour back into the contianer with a coffee filter and funnel so you can reuse. So far - never had issues with dust. Never thought about grinding the rice to reduce those log jams - good idea!

As far as going "too cheap", I think it is worth it to find inexpensive alternatives to over-priced name brands because, as has already been pointed out, companies do tend to price gouge on certain things. If we can find the *same exact thing* repackaged elsewhere then it is worth shopping around. In today's economy I think being frugal is practically a requirement. And in my book being frugal does not necessarily mean being "cheap".

[Storydude]

We spend hundreds even thousands of dollars on a single firearm, then spend hundreds more on reloading and casting equipment. Then we turn around and try to save pennies on tumbling, knowing full well that the good stuff only costs nickles and dimes.

This is like buying a Rolls Royce then worring about what windshield washer fluid to use.

If going out and splurging 20 bucks on a 40-50 lb. bag of ground corn cob is going to break your bank, you all need to find another hobby, or a better paying job.

JMHO

Rolls, BMW, Rover, rangerover and Ferrari all have special washer fluid, that is recommended to use.
the phrase poundwise and penny foolish comes to mind.

Assume I use 50 Lbs of walnut media a year.
If I buy that media from petsmart/blasting shop, I spend 20-30 bucks.
I buy it from Midway in a RCBS box, I spend 150.
That's 120-130 bucks a year....Or a Keg of unique. ;)

[jcwit]

And in my book being frugal does not necessarily mean being "cheap".


Yup, and ever hear of the guy ripping out a pair of $50 pants to pick up a nickle. Actually, I doubt anyone could much more frugal than I and my wife are. Sixty cents a lb. for ground corn cob media with no shipping I would not call an over-priced name brand.

[jcwit]

Rolls, BMW, Rover, rangerover and Ferrari all have special washer fluid, that is recommended to use.
the phrase poundwise and penny foolish comes to mind.


I'll keep this in mind when purchasing my next R/R.



Assume I use 50 Lbs of walnut media a year.
If I buy that media from petsmart/blasting shop, I spend 20-30 bucks.
I buy it from Midway in a RCBS box, I spend 150.
That's 120-130 bucks a year....Or a Keg of unique.

Absolutly right.

[Baron von Trollwhack]

I gave rice a good try long ago. The more you use it the "weaker it gets", leaves a micro rice flour film, and requires more polishing agent. It soaks up humidity in "sandbag" applications, so that your Caldwell bench stuff packed with rice swells like a sausage. No more for me. I only recommend rice for gumbo or chilli now.

Buy cheap media, find a polishing agent you like. Don,t put water in your car window washing system. It allows FUNGUS/whatever to grow and clog the jets.

BvT.

[Recluse]

We spend hundreds even thousands of dollars on a single firearm, then spend hundreds more on reloading and casting equipment. Then we turn around and try to save pennies on tumbling, knowing full well that the good stuff only costs nickles and dimes.

This is like buying a Rolls Royce then worring about what windshield washer fluid to use.

Then by that logic, perhaps we shouldn't be worrying about casting our own boolits or reloading or scrounging brass at the range or making up our own solvents (like Ed's Red), etc etc.

Just go out and splurge on the nice shiny new factory ammo or jacketed bullets or commercially cast.

Part of it is a game--can I get the same, or BETTER results and for less outlay of cash?

Another part of it is that I prefer to put my money into the gun, which I'll keep all of my life as opposed to the walnut or corncob shells which will get thrown out ever dozen or so uses.

And finally this:




If going out and splurging 20 bucks on a 40-50 lb. bag of ground corn cob is going to break your bank, you all need to find another hobby, or a better paying job.

JMHO

Sorry, pal, but that is pretty damned condescending.

:coffee:

[jcwit]

Don,t put water in your car window washing system. It allows FUNGUS/whatever to grow and clog the jets.


THATS WHAT THAT GREEN STUFF IS, hey ok thanks. hehehehehehe

[jcwit]

Sorry, pal, but that is pretty damned condescending

Take it however you wish.


Then by that logic, perhaps we shouldn't be worrying about casting our own boolits or reloading or scrounging brass at the range or making up our own solvents (like Ed's Red), etc etc.


So you don't think its possible to carry things to far either, right? But then use whatever logic you wish.

[Recluse]

Take it however you wish.

Damned right I will.

We have members here who've been laid off or disabled--including disabled veterans--and who have to seriously watch their pennies.

"Finding a better paying job" isn't an option for them.

Likewise we have folks who've retired and living on a set income. "Finding a better paying job" isn't an option for them.

Maybe those folks should just give up shooting if/since they can't live up to your economic standards?


So you don't think its possible to carry things to far either, right? But then use whatever logic you wish.

No, I say how people choose to spend their money is none of your business.

:coffee:

[376Steyr]

I bought a few bags of gound corn cob at the local pet store. Stacked them up in their original thin plastic bags on the floor of the casting shed and forgot about them for a week. Came back and found mice had gnawed the bags open and made a heck of a mess. Now I store my tumbling media in closed 5 gallon buckets.

[jcwit]

including disabled veterans

Now then with you knowing nothing nothing about me, you have listed just what catagory I fit in. 100 % disabled BTW. And do I watch my pennies? You bet your bibbey. Sixty six years old living on a fixed income, yup thats me alright. Better paying job not an option either. But I also know when to draw then line.


Maybe those folks should just give up shooting if/since they can't live up to your economic standards?


Read the above again then elaborate on my livings standards which you obviously know absolutely nothing about.

Don't talk to me about being a Disabled American Veteran.

[mike in co]

now i could be wrong, but i took it as a comment on using rice over corncob/walnut.
it was not about buying your corncob or walnut from midway..........

but just me

as i have posted many times....corn cob....from a supply store...grainger for me.....25 bucks/40/50 lbs.

mike in co

[Recluse]

Sixty six years old living on a fixed income, yup thats me alright. Better paying job not an option either. But I also know when to draw then line.

Then perhaps you should think twice about offering advice that you either cannot or will not take yourself.

:coffee:

[mike in co]

Then perhaps you should think twice about offering advice that you either cannot or will not take yourself.

:coffee:
atleast your name identifier(ill tempered texan) is true....

ouch

[jcwit]

I came back and was reading recluse's post and you took the words right out of my mouth!!

The key words are, knowing when to draw the line. In the end I suppose it really makes no differenence just what one uses to clean/polish their brass, use pea gravel really for all I care, but I am glad to know about the differences in windshield washer fluids.

[geargnasher]

Anyone ever try tumbling with blasting sand?

Gear

[Tom W.]

No, but I tried some ground corncob from WalMart, and it was wayyy too large to be effective. So I got a big bag of rice and tried that. I just dumped it in whole, I didn't grind it up, and with some good polish it did a fair job. The rice broke up on it's own, and soon started to lodge in my bottleneck cases and clog flash holes terribly. I had to tap each case to make sure all of the grains came out, and occasionally I missed one. It ended up out in the yard when my youngest son came over and took pity on me, and asked why I would do such a thing, as Midway and others sold the proper stuff so cheap. And true enough, while it was a noble experiment, the corncob media that is designed for the job works the best....at least for me.

[mike in co]

Anyone ever try tumbling with blasting sand?

Gear

it will most likely be too heavy of a load on a consumer tumbler and provide a finish that would not be an asset in extraction....

mike in co

[Lloyd Smale]

thats a real good price. For that its not worth fireing up the truck and running to get it!
Zilla reptile bedding, 50 pounds for about $35 delivered:

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/prod/235216/product.web

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/images/Categoryimages/normal/p-11539-39973-reptile.jpg

I've been using 12/20 blast media that I bought from a local welding supply many years ago. Blast media is very low dust and pretty darn cheap...

http://www.ecoshell.com/Images/Mediumblk.jpg

[Baron von Trollwhack]

After my media is about shot, I put in a heaping teaspoon of BonAmi polishing cleanser.....no additives in it, then after 2 more tubs of brass, toss the works and start again. I just don't use that pricey, specialty liquid. Still testing the BA cleanser and as I have been putting the brass into an old towel to get the dust off when it is done, and like the rice, I don't want to bother. BvT

[HORNET]

Gear, I haven't tried blasting sand but I did try some fine sand from the dunes. Didn't leave a very good finish, but it sure cut through the crud.

[Russel Nash]

My buddy tried sand, and he didn't have very good results either.

He and I thought we were going to get rich by getting corn cobs for free and grinding them up and selling them to our fellow shooters at all the pistol matches we go to.

I started my own thread about it here:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=54456&highlight=corn

I think it takes some heavy duty equipment to get corn cobs chopped down to the correct size.

Oh...well...

[Big Dave]

I hve been using corn cob meal for years. 50# bag at the local feed mill is about 15 bucks. Only problem is a lot of size variation in the granulation. Screen it and grind the coarse stuff in the wifes blender or kitchen meat grinder. Got to be fairly fine or it will lodge in primer pockets and small cal. case necks.

[Russel Nash]

Oh, yeah ^^^ I have bought the super ultra cheap corn cob animal bedding.

I then put it into a meat grinder.

Well, I broke the first meat grinder because I thought I could chuck a drill onto it.

The second grinder was...well... beefier (no pun intended) and I stuck to just cranking that one by hand.

Man! Oh! Man! Was that tough going! :shock:

I would make so many cranks in one direction with the handle and then stop and reverse the cranking in the other direction... the little corn cob bits would get stuck in the "screen" so reversing it would take some pressure off the blade having to try to chop through all that.

[Crash_Corrigan]

I have been using the walnut shell media for years with Nu Finish car wax added to it from time to time. The price is reasonable and the results are excellent.

I only clean my pistol cases. When I get a really nasty bunch I get out the corn cob and use that first to get off the really bad stuff. Then I save the media for next time and out comes the Walnut and Nu Finish car wax.

I might look into a drum roller dealie as my buddy has one and uses a ceramic media with water and dish deteregent.

His cases look better than new from the factory and the thing runs a mite quieter than my Lyman 1200.

As for rifle cases mine do not get that dirty and a quick rub prior to resizing has been enuf for me. I just want to protect my die interiors and chambers I am not running for the nicest looking rounds. I am concerned about messing up the case mouths in a tumbler and do not tumble rifle rounds.

[softpoint]

Ever notice that all media you buy has been sized so it is a press fit in flash holes?:bigsmyl2:

[jcwit]

Ever notice that all media you buy has been sized so it is a press fit in flash holes?


Not true. Go to the local Graingers Industrial Supply in town, "you have one, its sorta on the so.west side" and ask for their corn cob blasting media and have them get the 20/40 grit. Polishes brass as good if not better than the coarser grits, add a teaspoon or two of Nu-Finish or any auto cleaner wax to it in your tumbler. This is fine and will not get clogged in the primer pockets or in the flash holes. Its cheap to, 40 lb. bag is right around $25.00 and no shipping if you pick it up at the store.

Note call ahead, they might have to order it in, look it up on their web site under blasting compounds.

[softpoint]

Not true. Go to the local Graingers Industrial Supply in town, "you have one, its sorta on the so.west side" and ask for their corn cob blasting media and have them get the 20/40 grit. Polishes brass as good if not better than the coarser grits, add a teaspoon or two of Nu-Finish or any auto cleaner wax to it in your tumbler. This is fine and will not get clogged in the primer pockets or in the flash holes. Its cheap to, 40 lb. bag is right around $25.00 and no shipping if you pick it up at the store.

Note call ahead, they might have to order it in, look it up on their web site under blasting compounds.

I am going to try that, I'm going to call them today, since I'm in need of replacing my media.

[jcwit]

I discovered it by accident. I ordered the wrong grit, wasn't their fault, they got in what I ordered. They offered to reorder with no extra expense but I decided to try it anyway. Sure glad I did, it works great and clogs nothing, flows about like sand.

[PatMarlin]

If you were to try rice, try Japanese rice. It's short and fat, not long and skinny like long grain rice. It's sushi rice. May work better.

[Big Country]

After reading the post from rondog I called Graingers and ordered a 40 pound bag of 20/40 corn cob. It came in the other day and I have been using it along with the Nu Finish and have had great results. Thanks for all of the great ideas.

[stephen perry]

Calm down gentlemen. Rice thrown at 90 mph can really hurt especially if it is not cooked.

Stephen Perry
Angeles BR [smilie=6:

[Baron von Trollwhack]

The only thing left to do now is to set up a "corn cob grit buddy" system here wherein, for example, I could order one of those ultra cheap economy, giant size bags of lizard grit, package up two ten pound portions in a green bag, meet the henchmen involved at the next gunshow in Raleigh, make the sale, and they get me a big greasy gunshow grilled hot dog & a coke for being the bag man. BvT

[LeadThrower]

I bought a few bags of gound corn cob at the local pet store. Stacked them up in their original thin plastic bags on the floor of the casting shed and forgot about them for a week. Came back and found mice had gnawed the bags open and made a heck of a mess. Now I store my tumbling media in closed 5 gallon buckets.

I was going to say the same thing! That 40lb bag of corn cob from PetSmart made a rather large mess once the mice got into it. Corn cob gets my brass clean without additives. I learned to toss in a used dryer sheet from the posters here. As for additives, I have no need for a shine. That is, I've never seen any conclusive evidence that the lead leaving the barrel behaves differently depending on the reflectivity of the brass from whence it was launched [smilie=1:

I'll change my methods when the data supports it 8-)

[Super38]

I had the same problem, mice getting in the cob. Now it's all in coffee cans with an alarm system. (aka mouse trap.)

No matter what brass I tried to clean with rice, it always broke off in the flash holes, regardless if the spent primer was there or not.

Super38