Corn or walnut media????

[abunaitoo]

I know this has been posted before, but I has to see for myself.
I have two old Midway vibrators.
Put the same amount of corn in one and walnut in the other.
Two tablespoons of Bon Ami in each.
Put in same amount of same caliber shells in each.
Ran them and checked every 15, 30, 45, hour.... to see which was faster.
After an hour and a half the walnut was clean and shiny, corn was clean but not shiny.
Corn took another 45 to come out as shiny as walnut.
Mixed the shells together and couldn't tell the difference.
I used to clean in walnut, then polish in corn.
I need to buy more media, so I think I'll just go with walnut.

[BCall]

I prefer walnut as I hate it when I get a piece of corn cob stuck in a flash hole. I run them through the tumbler before sizing, and after sizing to remove the lube. With walnut I never have to worry about a flash hole getting plugged. Billy

[mike in co]

I know this has been posted before, but I has to see for myself.
I have two old Midway vibrators.
Put the same amount of corn in one and walnut in the other.
Two tablespoons of Bon Ami in each.
Put in same amount of same caliber shells in each.
Ran them and checked every 15, 30, 45, hour.... to see which was faster.
After an hour and a half the walnut was clean and shiny, corn was clean but not shiny.
Corn took another 45 to come out as shiny as walnut.
Mixed the shells together and couldn't tell the difference.
I used to clean in walnut, then polish in corn.
I need to buy more media, so I think I'll just go with walnut.



invalid test..the bon ami skews the results..........( it is similar to jewlers rouge typically used with walnut, walnut is hard and works well with rouge, corn cob is soft and works better with a wet polish like typicall brass polish or nufinish car polish)

and for the record the hour and a half is 30 min longer than my tumbler takes with plain corn cob....

did you fill the tumbler half full of brass or more ?

but oh well i only sell brass for a living......

mike in co

[abunaitoo]

Bowl was half full of media. 50 7mm mag cases in each.
(Cases for sale in the Swapin and sellin section)
Before I started using Bon Ami it would take almost half a day to get it as clean and shiny as I like it.
Walnut never got shiny.
The Bon Ami helps a bunch.
I've always vibrated dry.
To keep the dust down, I put fresh orange peels while cleaning.
I used to add Midway polish to the corn to shine it up.
I found it would dirty up the corn real fast.
I would add a cap full of solvent to rejuvenate the polish.
Don't have the same problem with Bon Ami.
I've never used a tumbler so I don't know how good they clean.
I was planing to make an adaptor for my cement mixer so I could tumble lots of brass at once.
Haven't gotten around to it yet.

[mike in co]

Bowl was half full of media. 50 7mm mag cases in each.
(Cases for sale in the Swapin and sellin section)
Before I started using Bon Ami it would take almost half a day to get it as clean and shiny as I like it.
Walnut never got shiny.
The Bon Ami helps a bunch.
I've always vibrated dry.
To keep the dust down, I put fresh orange peels while cleaning.
I used to add Midway polish to the corn to shine it up.
I found it would dirty up the corn real fast.
I would add a cap full of solvent to rejuvenate the polish.
Don't have the same problem with Bon Ami.
I've never used a tumbler so I don't know how good they clean.
I was planing to make an adaptor for my cement mixer so I could tumble lots of brass at once.
Haven't gotten around to it yet.

this is one of the reasons why it takes you so long( not enough load in the bowl).
the tumbler(vibrator type) needs to be close to full to work efficiently(half full, half speed).
50 pc of rifle does not generate sufficient movement to work well.
walnut and corncob are significantly different in make up, they benefit from different additives.
you are right about walnut..its design is to clean , not polish.
its good that the corn gets "dirty"...this is my opinion, the dirt is in the bowl. when left dry it becomes a "media" in the bowl and causes a dull finish on clean brass; when the dirt sticks to the corncob, the bolw stays clean, no loose dirt, and the corn will continue to bright polish the brass.

just keep the puka shells and the black sand out of the mix..... and poi does not work as a brass polish....

mike in co
(formerly of pearl city)

[Reverend Recoil]

Treated corn cob media seems to clean faster and brighter than plain crushed walnut shells. I use crushed corn cob for fired 30-30, 30-06, and 45 ACP. After sizing and de-priming I use crushed walnut shells. I use only crushed walnut shells for 222 and 223 Rem. Corn cob media get stuck in 22 cal. case necks. When I throw out the last of the corn cob media I will not buy more and only use walnut media.

[canebreaker]

I bought Turbo Tumbler Media, Tufnut the last time. It was on sale, Pecan media.
It leaves the cases with a red dust, do buy it.
It does clean the brass.

[mike in co]

Treated corn cob media seems to clean faster and brighter than plain crushed walnut shells. I use crushed corn cob for fired 30-30, 30-06, and 45 ACP. After sizing and de-priming I use crushed walnut shells. I use only crushed walnut shells for 222 and 223 Rem. Corn cob media get stuck in 22 cal. case necks. When I throw out the last of the corn cob media I will not buy more and only use walnut media.

buy the correct size corn cob media, and you will not have that issue....14/20

mike in co

[missionary5155]

Good morning
This time up my supply of walnut was gone. I resorted to the corn cob "Lizard litter". It was CHEAP ! Well after using it 7 months cleaning all sorts of range pick-ups and my brass... my untreated corn cob worked well. Maybe the shine was not as great ... But I decided to NOT treat it with any polish and see what it could really do the CHEAP way. The only drawback was the occasional kernal stuck in a deprimed black powder case. Amazing how REAL stuck those things can get.

[bdutro]

Anyone try granular activated charcoal? Not bbq charcoal, the hard, stuff used in brita filters.

[JesseCJC]

Treated corn cob media seems to clean faster and brighter than plain crushed walnut shells. I use crushed corn cob for fired 30-30, 30-06, and 45 ACP. After sizing and de-priming I use crushed walnut shells. I use only crushed walnut shells for 222 and 223 Rem. Corn cob media get stuck in 22 cal. case necks. When I throw out the last of the corn cob media I will not buy more and only use walnut media.

Same here. There is no place around me that sells the smaller corncob and I am too lazy to order online... and cheap

[Dakoma]

I also like the walnut media and recently bought 2000 pieces of 38 Spl. they were not that dirty and cam from a range,I threw a bit of Kit Scratch Out auto finish scratch and haze remover in the 7oz. yellow plastic bottle.I got a Lee Loader that I use the deprime base and pin to remove primers with a plastic hammer,while I am at it they get a through inspection,and about halfway through tumbling my media got really dirty so I dumped it all in one of the wife's old stockings and put it in a gallon plastic ice cream pail,a bit of dawn detergent and hot water and worked the stocking around with my hands real good then rinsed it off real good with hot water and spread it out on a old towel over the floor heat vent and kept deprimeing.In no time it was dry and looked like new.Just wanted you all to know it was 3 in the morning and I was not going to look for some clean new stuff and it works and is still working.So in a pinch you can wash walnut shells ,halfway through the drying I gave it a dose of kit scratch out and stirred it up,so it was clean and treated ready to go,the stuff works great.I have never used corncob before but bought a big bag of cob the other day at Wally World in the pet section for standby media,it is fairley corse and may have to use the food processer to grind it smaller,I dont think you can or would want to wash corncob media,hear turtle wax works good also,will have to give it a try.Dakoma:brokenima

[thehouseproduct]

What am I doing wrong if my corn cob media is giving me satin finish brass after several hours of vibrating? I used walnut before and it gave me a mirror finish, the first batch of corn cob looks bead blasted. The bowl wasn't totally full.

[Bello]

i use walnut only and dillon rapid polish thats it 2 hours im solid!

[jcwit]

The bowl wasn't totally full.

Of what? I fill the bowl 2/3 to 3/4 full of media then dump in the brass. Just a few pieces will not give a shiney finish.

[thehouseproduct]

Of what? I fill the bowl 2/3 to 3/4 full of media then dump in the brass. Just a few pieces will not give a shiney finish.
I had perhaps 120 pieces assorted brass and half a bowl of media.

[JesterGrin_1]

Mike I know you like the Nu Finish so I got some for my corn media. How many cap fulls do you add to a vibrator if I may ask?

[DCM]

I know this has been posted before, but I has to see for myself.
I have two old Midway vibrators.
Put the same amount of corn in one and walnut in the other.
Two tablespoons of Bon Ami in each.
Put in same amount of same caliber shells in each.
Ran them and checked every 15, 30, 45, hour.... to see which was faster.
After an hour and a half the walnut was clean and shiny, corn was clean but not shiny.
Corn took another 45 to come out as shiny as walnut.
Mixed the shells together and couldn't tell the difference.
I used to clean in walnut, then polish in corn.
I need to buy more media, so I think I'll just go with walnut.

O.K. no matter what you use a little tumbling residue will be left in the case.Now think about this, you fire a shot and some Bon Ami is left in the bore. then you keep repeating this process. Correct me if I'm wrong but Bon Ami is an abrasive cleaner now think about that! If you don't believe me find out who Boots Obermeyer is and then call him! You are greatly shortening your barrel life!!

[jcwit]

With all these reloaders tumbling their brass using everything from Bon Ami " I do question using Bon Ami" to jewlers rouge, its a total wonder the barrel makers can even begin to keep up.

Mayhaps there is a market for chinese target barrels prethreaded and maybe expertly pre chambered for headspace. Just screw that baby on.

I read part of the artical about polishing residue wearing the barrel, and stating how a target barrel was worn out at around 3000 rounds, well no kiding.

[Crash_Corrigan]

I have tried both corn cob and walnut to clean my brass in my pair of vibrating tumblers. Neither gave me the results I wanted.

Nothing would clean up the deprimed brass primer pockets well. Maybe I am anal but I think a clean primer pocket is easier to prime and will produce better accuracy.

My shooting buddy has a Thumlers Tumbler which he used on some of my badly corroded blackpowder brass that I was going to toss.

He uses 5 lbs of the stainless steel media which resembles 3/8" x 1/32 " rods along with a gallon of warm water, about a tablespoon of dawn and 1/4 tsp of LemiShine. Not only did the brass clean up and polish well but the primer pockets were also very clean and shiney. The brass was clean on the inside as well as the outside.

I was now a believer. I sprang for the tumbler and 5 lbs of media. All together my wallet was lighter by about $225 but I am very pleased with the results.

It is a lot quieter to run than the other tumblers. I have no dust flying around to inhale or cover my horizontal surfaces. The media never needs replacement. It is not only better than the dry vibratory tumblers and more quiet but does a wonderful job of cleaning brass to looking as good as new just from the factory.

I have mine on a pad of toweling and cardboard and is mounted on my bathroom shelf. It is easy to load and clean and all the dirt goes down the drain and not into a landfill. It is cheap to run and easy to use.

It has been running non stop for a week for two hour stints and seeing as I load for 22 different firearms (all use cast boolits) in many different sizes of brass I have quite a collection of brass that was nasty and needed cleaning; it has been getting a real workout.

You can actually apply oil to the shaft bearings on the motor as well as the shafts that support the drum. The only real part that will require replacement every two years or so will be the plastic belt that transfers power from the motor pulley to the drum pulley.

The results are amazing. It is like comparing a Yugo to a BMW. I expect to toss the vibratory cleaners onto the website for disposal as I will no longer put up with that noise and dust and lousy results.

[piece]

Usually I use 50/50 of lymans valnut and corn media.
Great result with the best of booth.

[warf73]

Crash Corrigan were did you purchase that package deal? Best I can come up with is just over $250.00.

[mike in co]

go do a search on ss media..its on one of the forums for contact info

[warf73]

go do a search on ss media..its on one of the forums for contact info

Thats were I got the price I posted, didnt know if there was another place or if that was it.

[davydtune]

Free me, walnut does a better job.

[mike in co]

Free me, walnut does a better job.

been there done that...and it aint so......

how many time have i posted that NO ONE IN THE BRASS BUSINESS USES WALNUT FOR POLISHING?( it is occassionally used to clean real dirty brass)


we all use corn cob.......( less the few that do wet wash)......

if something was better or quicker we would do it........in our business its about time and money...time is money.........

the ss mini rods sound ideal for black powder users.....but not for high volume brass resellers.


mike in co

[JesterGrin_1]

Mike I used some of that Nu-Finish stuff and used 3 cap fulls in my vibrator cleaner. And the Corn I got from Granger. And I have to say they look beautiful. Also I might be wrong but will not he Wax keep them from tarnishing as fast?

[thehouseproduct]

been there done that...and it aint so......

how many time have i posted that NO ONE IN THE BRASS BUSINESS USES WALNUT FOR POLISHING?( it is occassionally used to clean real dirty brass)


we all use corn cob.......( less the few that do wet wash)......

if something was better or quicker we would do it........in our business its about time and money...time is money.........

the ss mini rods sound ideal for black powder users.....but not for high volume brass resellers.


mike in co
Just because of the drying time?

[mike in co]

Mike I used some of that Nu-Finish stuff and used 3 cap fulls in my vibrator cleaner. And the Corn I got from Granger. And I have to say they look beautiful. Also I might be wrong but will not he Wax keep them from tarnishing as fast?

its a synthetic polish...not a wax as we know it...never had brass long enough to see it tarnish....lol

[mike in co]

Just because of the drying time?

if you are talking aboiut the ss rods...no the lot size and the machine size and the rinse/drying time....unless you were servicing the bp shooters....then maybe....

i did mention i may try it on my 300 win mag br brass...maybe.....100 pcs at a time

mike in co

[thehouseproduct]

if you are talking aboiut the ss rods...no the lot size and the machine size and the rinse/drying time....unless you were servicing the bp shooters....then maybe....

i did mention i may try it on my 300 win mag br brass...maybe.....100 pcs at a time

mike in co

I think I'll try it too. It's pretty enticing seeing how crazy clean it gets.

[Beekeeper]

almost everything in the world is some kind of abrasive.
Try putting bon ami on a piece of glass and rubbing it and see if it scratches it.
Then think about how much harder a barrel is compared to glass.
Boots Obermeyer gets 3000 rounds out of his BR target barrel.
So do all of the other BR shooters and most use some kind of polish on their brass.
If the BR shooters didn't try to put max power behind every bullet they shoot their barrels would last a lot longer.
How many here have a rifle they have put 3000 rounds through and it is worn out.

My $.02
and your milage may vary.

Jim

[mike in co]

almost everything in the world is some kind of abrasive.
Try putting bon ami on a piece of glass and rubbing it and see if it scratches it.
Then think about how much harder a barrel is compared to glass.
Boots Obermeyer gets 3000 rounds out of his BR target barrel.
So do all of the other BR shooters and most use some kind of polish on their brass.
If the BR shooters didn't try to put max power behind every bullet they shoot their barrels would last a lot longer.
How many here have a rifle they have put 3000 rounds through and it is worn out.

My $.02
and your milage may vary.

Jim

ya got a few things not quite in context..
br shooters...shoot 100/200/300(called short range) 600/1000 called long range, and that is just centerfire rifle. there is 50bmg, 22rf and pistol too.

so....
a long range gun in 300 win mag may get 1000 rds, a big 338 less and a 6.5 more.
a short range 6ppc from 1500 to 2500 is normal...a lot to do with the bbl and the load.
short range 30br....guess what..they don't wear out, a competive bbl may go 10,000 rd...
there is an original 30br that still competes at more than 8000 rds.

would i put bon ami in my media...no
would i put jewlers rouge in my media ..no
do i put new finish car polish in my media yes.....does it appear to leave traces..no
some of my match brass gets washed ocassionally in wet dish soap...and rinsed till clear. then dried.....


mike in co

[JesterGrin_1]

I would like to add to this. I used Nu-Finish for the first time with my corn media and it left no traces except for shiny brass. I was astounded at how the brass came out.

[Mike Kerr]

Corn Media seems to work just fine for me. If I wan't them extra clean I just increase the cycle time. Almost any liquid Car Polish of a similar consistency to Midway or Dillon's polish seems to work fine. Thank goodness this thread has not descended into the purported perils of amonnia in Brasso.

Regards,
:):):)

[Armorer]

I use pretty much nothing except corncob media, and it seems to work pretty well. The green dust that it leaves behind on my brass is irritating so I just rinse in hot tap water and spread them out on a towel to dry. That seems to take care of it, and my brass is shiny and bright.

[mike in co]

I use pretty much nothing except corncob media, and it seems to work pretty well. The green dust that it leaves behind on my brass is irritating so I just rinse in hot tap water and spread them out on a towel to dry. That seems to take care of it, and my brass is shiny and bright.

where are you getting green dust ????

i have been using this stuff for years...no green dust......

the carbon you are cleraning off will float around in the media and cause a burnished finish.

add the nufinish car polish the brass comes out clean and dust free.......


and if its old and dirty ...replace it !!!!

[nes4ever69]

I use pretty much nothing except corncob media, and it seems to work pretty well. The green dust that it leaves behind on my brass is irritating so I just rinse in hot tap water and spread them out on a towel to dry. That seems to take care of it, and my brass is shiny and bright.

are you using the lyman corn cob media? i was getting a film on my brass and tumbler.

[STAR4ever]

Hi Guys:
For my brass I use the RCBS Sidewinder which is their top of the line tumbler.
I put about 200 pistol shells in and cover those with walnut media.
I drop in a cap full of Dillon polish every other load.
Run it for 3 hours.
Everything comes out super clean and with great shine.
Been doing it this way for many years.
Throw the old walnut out when it is quite dark and dirty.

No rinsing, no dust...
Separate the brass with a cage separator which I got from Midway a long time ago.
It sits in a hopper which fits above a 5 gallon plastic pail.
Good system all around.

I have used Iosso polish, and Cabella's brand polish and NuFinish as well as the current Dillon polish.
They all work pretty well and in a similar fashion.
I may be wrong but when I was using Iosso, I felt the brass went thru my reloader rather well without any lubrication.


That system works for me.

[TXTad]

...
I read part of the artical about polishing residue wearing the barrel, and stating how a target barrel was worn out at around 3000 rounds, well no kiding.

I've always rinsed my cases off after I clean them because I was suspicious that the polish could have that effect. I just drop them in a bucket of water, agitate, repeat a couple of times with clean water, then spread them on a towel to dry. I'll give rifle cases a shake to get the water out of them, but I don't bother with that with pistol cases. I just shake them all together in a large colander.

[mike in co]

i have a sidwinder also..but do not use it to clean and polish brass as it is way tooooo slowwwww......and tooooo smalllllllllll
1 hour is my standard for normal brass, 2 hrs for out door 223 brass..........again time is money...you cannot replace time.....

( i use my sidwinder for coating bullets moly and hbn)

mike in co

Hi Guys:
For my brass I use the RCBS Sidewinder which is their top of the line tumbler.
I put about 200 pistol shells in and cover those with walnut media.
I drop in a cap full of Dillon polish every other load.
Run it for 3 hours.
Everything comes out super clean and with great shine.
Been doing it this way for many years.
Throw the old walnut out when it is quite dark and dirty.

No rinsing, no dust...
Separate the brass with a cage separator which I got from Midway a long time ago.
It sits in a hopper which fits above a 5 gallon plastic pail.
Good system all around.

I have used Iosso polish, and Cabella's brand polish and NuFinish as well as the current Dillon polish.
They all work pretty well and in a similar fashion.
I may be wrong but when I was using Iosso, I felt the brass went thru my reloader rather well without any lubrication.


That system works for me.

[DCM]

[QUOTE=Beekeeper;1137368]almost everything in the world is some kind of abrasive.
Try putting bon ami on a piece of glass and rubbing it and see if it scratches it.
Then think about how much harder a barrel is compared to glass.
Boots Obermeyer gets 3000 rounds out of his BR target barrel.
So do all of the other BR shooters and most use some kind of polish on their brass.
If the BR shooters didn't try to put max power behind every bullet they shoot their barrels would last a lot longer.
How many here have a rifle they have put 3000 rounds through and it is worn out.

1 Boots Obermeyer is primarily a highpower shooter not a BR shooter.

2 He is one of the top barrel makers in the world. He sells alot of stuff to the AMU, Marines and MANY H.P. shooters. He is a distinguished rifleman and high master too.

3 It was not his rifle that had the short barrel life, it was a fellow H.P. shooter.

4 Marks barrel lasted WAY LESS than 3000 rounds.

5 Expected "accurate barrel life" is a matter of personal opinion. Much shorter for bench rest shooters than H.P., shorter for H.P. than the average hunter etc.

6 Most B.R. and H.P. shooters do not put max charges behind their bullets as this usually does not produce the best accuracy, they both try to use a full case, but not a max load. A full case tends to provide the best accuracy regardless of rifle position etc.

7 IME corn cob leaves less residue in the case than walnut shell. H.P. regional matches are 88 rounds. Most of us H.P. shooters do not clean during a match thus less mess in the bore the better.

8 Most H.P. shooters just clean their brass not polish it. Some do polish it but for most of us it is only a matter of getting it clean so it doesn't scratch our dies.

9 Barrels harder than glass?? Wow! New exploding barrel for each round. Try putting a piece of glass on a Rockwell hardness tester and watch it shatter. Grab a lead hardness tester and check barrel steel versus glass if you don't believe me.

[DCM]

[QUOTE=jcwit;1129400]
Mayhaps there is a market for chinese target barrels prethreaded and maybe expertly pre chambered for headspace. Just screw that baby on.

That's a really scary thought!

[jcwit]

Ya, I thought so too when I dreamed that up!

[DCM]

Oh you rike ! You rike! No problem! It just like making drywall.

[Markbo]

I personally believe - and this is just opinion - that not a single one of my firearms gives a rat's patootie if the brass is shiney or not. I do however wash all my brass off in water then sun dry to remove all residue.

On a lark I tried a suggestion - a large bag of reptile bedding for a fraction of the cost of anything 'firearm' related. What do you know... it's made of crushed walnut. Works great!

[GH1]

I use the reptile bedding as well after hearing about it on another website. I tried using rice and while it got the brass fairly clean it dodn't give it the shine that walnut does. I don't usa a vibratory tumbler I use a rotary designed for rock polishing.
GH1

[Shiloh]

I prefer the corncob. 14/20 grit does not get stuck in flash holes or primer pockets.
It is rare to have a flash hole plugged in either larger or small flash holes.

Shiloh

[DCM]

I prefer the corncob. 14/20 grit does not get stuck in flash holes or primer pockets.
It is rare to have a flash hole plugged in either larger or small flash holes.

Shiloh

Who do you buy your media from?

[1hole]

Case glitter is trivial, I couldn't care less about shine. Clean brass without clogged flash holes is all I want and 14/20 grit does that quite well. The bits are about the size of coarse table salt.

I got a 50# bag of fine cob blasting media from a log home mantenance supply outlet (Perma-Chink) years ago but Granger's sells the same stuff, drop shipped to you for not much total cost. I don't see enough difference between cob and nut to make any difference, I just got cob because that's what the store had for cheap.

[jcwit]

http://www.drillspot.com/products/499763/econoline_526020g-40_40_lbs_blast_media

Not sure where Shiloh gets his but the above link is a good price and shipping is encluded.

[DCM]

Not sure where Shiloh gets his but the above link is a good price and shipping is encluded.

Thank You!

[capreppy]

I purchased from drillspot and the package arrived earlier this week. Cheap, VERY fast delivery and the media is perfect 14/20 grit. I have two Cabela's tumblers. I do 2 hours on Zilla Lizard Liter & then 1 hour on corn cob w/Flitz. This works well for me and keeps up with the brass that I use.

[mroliver77]

I use the reptile bedding also. It works fast and cleans the primer pockets fairly well. I have the parts to make a tumbler out of a 5 galon bucket but have the lazies lately. I use coarse corn cob to clean lube from loaded rounds. SOME SPIRITS AND A TOUCH OD jpw LEAVES CASES SPARKLY AND PROTECTED A BIT. Dang caps lock. I have been putting dryer sheets(even used ones) in my vibrating cleaner and they capture a lot of the dust.
jAY

[Markbo]

.... I have been putting dryer sheets(even used ones) in my vibrating cleaner and they capture a lot of the dust....jAY

I learned that trick a few years ago and it works great! Just save the used ones out of the dryer unless you just NEED your brass to smell April Fresh. ;-)

[DCM]

Yes the softener sheets definitely reduce the dust, they also reduce the static in the tumbler bowl and media separator.

[maxidiesel]

I found a website that sells 50lb bags of Zilla walnut bedding for $27.34 + $10.95 shipping.

http://www.epetproducts.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=43_301&products_id=6903

[capreppy]

I found a website that sells 50lb bags of Zilla walnut bedding for $27.34 + $10.95 shipping.

http://www.epetproducts.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=43_301&products_id=6903

Thanks. Bookmarked. I've only recently started reloading and used Zilla from the getgo. Awesome stuff!!

[Casting Timmy]

50lbs of reptile bedding, how big of a lizard is that? At least we can get cheap tumbling media, but it makes you wonder about the person buying it for their reptiles.

[bumpo628]

I just tried the petco zilla walnut bedding stuff for the first time this weekend. I threw in a bunch of shells that I had previously cleaned with Wal-Mart corn cob bedding material. I didn't think it would make much of a difference, but I was impressed. It really shined em up. I still haven't tried putting nu-finish in there. Maybe one of these days.

By the way, I noticed that the cases feel slippery after the walnut tumbling. Maybe that will help with sizing.
I guess I'll find out next weekend.

[1hole]

"Mixed the shells together and couldn't tell the difference...I need to buy more media, so I think I'll just go with walnut."

Well, you sure proved it's not rocket surgery and that there isn't enough differece to make a difference between cob and nut.

Getting kernels stuck in a flash hole isn't due to cob or nut, it's due to the grit size. I use cob in a fine grit that's about like coarse table salt, it works good and never clogs.

I prefer a soft matt finish on cases that looks like factory new, not like shiney plastic. I add an occasional spoonfull of diatomaceous earth (it's the polishing stuff in JB Bore Paste and I THINK it's what's in Bon Ami) and the surface finish is perfect.

[DCM]

Well you can teach an old dog new tricks! I got some of the 14/20 corn cob and it works great! No more plugged flash holes! [smilie=w::bigsmyl2:
Thanks guys!!!

[Muskrat Mike]

Where do you get 14/20?? Everything I see is 16/20. And is 16/20 bigger or smaller then 14/20??? :oops:
Thanks!

[DCM]

Where do you get 14/20?? Everything I see is 16/20. And is 16/20 bigger or smaller then 14/20??? :oops:
Thanks!

Sorry, I just checked, it is 16/20.:oops:

[oneokie]

The bigger the number, the smaller the particle size.

[Frank]

Has anyone tried the larger sized walnut media from Harbor Freight? I tested it on cases that had stuck on lube that wouldn't go away after hours of the fine walnut and it worked it off in a few hours. Less dust too when handling. Maybe it's the ticket, but the jury is still out.

[DCM]

Back when I used thick heavy case lubes I would remove the lube in a solvent tank. It was the best and fastest way I found.
I have since changed to the thinner spray lubes and haven't looked back.

No matter what lube you use make sure to use enough of it. Stuck cases **** real bad.

[1hole]

Off topic but it appears the original media question has been exhausted.

Diatomaceous earth is too fine and soft to be harmful to a bore; I THINK it's the paste used in some bore cleaner/polishes such as JB BorePaste and Remington's bore cleaner stuff too. I use DE rather than polish in my tumbler, much prefer the soft, clean matt finish more than a glittery, artificial shine.

I THINK Bon Ami is diatomaceous earth; even as a 'scouring' cleaner it won't scratch glass or metal, etc. Anyone here able to confirm or deny that?

[1hole]

"... walnut media from Harbor Freight? I tested it on cases that had stuck on lube that wouldn't go away after hours of the fine walnut and it worked it off in a few hours."

Got ya an easier fix; just add a couple ounces of mineral spirits/oderless paint thinner to your media before tumbling. It will rejuvanate any polish and, more to the point, will let the media remove the residual oily lube MUCH faster.

Or, maybe better yet, use finger applied Imperial or Unique case lube and don't worry about removing it.

[blasternank]

I use corn. Never had a problem.

[barrybrice]

My Thumler Tumbler and stainless steel media arrived two days ago. Love it!

[Markbo]

Back when I used thick heavy case lubes I would remove the lube in a solvent tank. It was the best and fastest way I found.
I have since changed to the thinner spray lubes and haven't looked back.

No matter what lube you use make sure to use enough of it. Stuck cases **** real bad.

What kind of solvent?

[jcwit]

Don't know what DCM used but I've always used gas, ya I know it an explosive, but I've always managed to fill my lawnmower without blowing myself up. Plus it evaporates fast.

[DCM]

Markbo I used to use a nonflammable brake and electric motor cleaner. I used to be able to get it by the gallon, but I only see it in 12oz spray cans now. It is not a "green" product and I think they are trying to forcefully phase it out.

Weather you use electric motor cleaner or gas I would definitely use them outdoors.
The motor cleaner is not something you want to breath a bunch of and gas is a great solvent BUT :!: be careful with either one.
Eye and skin protection highly recommended with both. Good fire ext. with the gas.

I have heard of people using mineral spirits,it is not as flammable/inflammable as gas or as nasty as electric motor cleaner, but it doesn't evaporate as well as either one and can contaminate your powder and or primer.

[38fan]

I just mix what I have. I'll take a cup of the old media and add it to my smelting as flux. Then add something else. I add a couple spent dryer sheet to the media, they come out black. Brass looks clean and shiney, never over an hour.