Addressing dust from cleaning cases with dry media.

[dverna]

I have tried dryer sheets, but they are not that great and leave tufts to pick out. I use commercial cleaning compound, but it still does not work that great for dust suppression. Mineral spirits work a bit better, but the "boss" does not like the smell. I do my cleaning in the basement loading area and would like to keep it that way.

Wet tumbling has its own set of negatives...need water, a place to dump it and then cases need to driying. Not interested in wet tumbling so please refrain from suggesting that.

I currently use corn cob media (IIRC 20-40) and I used ground walnut shells many years ago. Don't know if my memory is kaput but it seemed walnut shells generated less dust but maybe I was less aware of it when I was young and dumb.

I do not need cases to look like new. Just something to take the dirt and soot off them. Been thinking of trying rice after finding this:
https://www.capitalcartridge.com/How...rass-s/291.htm

Has anyone used rice? If so, is the cheap stuff at Sam's Club in the big bags?

Any other media that may be a candidate?

Thanks,

[Froogal]

I use the walnut shells. Pretty much dust free for awhile but as it wears down there will be dust. A generous amount of auto wax will take care of the dust. Just squirt some in and let the tumbler run for about one hour without any brass.

[Ed_Shot]

I use Zillo walnut shell Lizard Litter and a cap full of Nu Finish every now and again. I do use a cut up dryer sheet. Really haven't had a dust issue.

[Dusty Bannister]

It is usually a good idea if using cob media to take it outside and pour from bucket to bucket with a nice breeze to let some of the dust escape before use. Same thing with walnut media. When using the case cleaner toss in some cloth squares about 4" in size as you run the cases. It will attract the dust, dirt and metal shavings in the fabric. It would not hurt to slightly dampen them first. If used drier sheets are coming apart, replace them more often during the run cycle. Heck, I even use paper towel squares and after three hours they are still in one piece.

[Winger Ed.]

It is usually a good idea if using cob media to take it outside and pour from bucket to bucket with a nice breeze to let some of the dust escape before use.

^^^ I also do this.

It also gets kind of oily.
Every once in awhile, I'll also wash it with soap & water, rinse a couple times, and lay it out in the sun to dry.
After a couple thousand cases, I'll run the tumbler with gently used and dry paper towels.
It takes changing out several of them, and a few hours before they stay, or come out more or less clean.

[Jbiker]

What I've done for the last couple of decades is to take and cut up my worn out/ holed, discolored tee shirts that my wife tells me are done. 4 x4 ,or what ever size you get , add the pieces , usually 1 , add the medium and dillon polish , and put the lid on and let it run . the rag catches the dust and actually helps clean the media by removing the fine dirt that always seems to be part of the shells.

[The Dar]

I run my tumblers with walnut media outdoors with the lids off. The slightest breeze carries the dust off.

[cwtebay]

Run it on the apron of your garage! That's what I do to keep the peace.
I wholeheartedly agree with pouring it between containers in a stiff breeze also.

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[kungfustyle]

I've turned my vibratory tumbler into a powder coating machine and gone to wet tumbling. I've tried the suggested and always have gotten dust on the brass etc. I've always used walnut media and with in a few sessions dust everywhere. I didn't want to breath it, so the wet. I use a $40 food dehydrator to get the water off and can use the brass in about an hour. I read how you didn't want to go with wet, but for me that was the best way to clean, really clean the brass. A bit of dish detergent and a tsp of citric acid produces some beautiful brass.

[ryanmattes]

I use dryer sheets (we never run out), and 1"x1" squares of paper shop towel in walnut media. After a while it starts to get dusty, but it's manageable. The walnut shells smooth out after a while are are less effective anyway, so I just replace it every couple thousand cases.

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[dverna]

Thanks for the replies gentlemen.

First I will try adding in some cloth with a bit of odorless mineral spirits and car wax with corncob media. I have 25 lbs of the stuff so makes sense to try to use it.

I will pick up some ground walnut media and do the same.

I will try rice too.

I prefer keeping the cleaning process in the reloading area. But moving brass cleaning to the garage is doable.

[jmorris]

I add a cap full of Dillon polish per load to clean them, using their big tumbler and post load rounds for 10min to knock their case lube off them.

No dust.

[BNE]

I use ODERLESS mineral spirits. My wife is super sensitive to smells of any kind. She has yet to notice when I add it to the tumbler. Just a couple of squirts is enough.

[GregLaROCHE]

Odorless mineral spirits is all I buy these days for use in my closed shop. It’s great. Otherwise, if you are going to try rice, I would go with the Uncle Bens type converted, because regular rice has a lot of starch dust in it to begin with.

[kevin c]

Rice as brass cleaning dry media came up over at the Brian Enos forums. The couple folks who tried it said it didn’t clean very well. They used hulled white rice, not brown.

Used dryer cloths helped some with walnut, less with corn cob. I eventually gave up on dry tumbling so reduce lead exposure.

[Lloyd Smale]

I use Zillo walnut shell Lizard Litter and a cap full of Nu Finish every now and again. I do use a cut up dryer sheet. Really haven't had a dust issue.

yup me too. A bit of new finish and no dust.

[winelover]

Dust isn't that big of a problem with the Lizard Litter. I add Iosso case polish when it need rejuvenating The noise is, in my case. I usually disappear from the shop after I plug in the Turbo Tumbler. I use a full dryer sheet and take a paper plate, with a hole punched in the center, and place it over the slotted lid. Vibrator tend to walk on the concrete floor of my shop, so I place a rubber doormat underneath it.

Winelover

[jmorris]

I went round and round trying different dry media. Including rice, lizard litter, blasting media (not sand or baking powder but crushed and sized shells, kitty litter (total disaster) and probably other stuff I can’t remember.

After finding nothing that beat the results I was already getting, I went back to the $11 bag of corncob that would clean ~ 80,000 cases before I need to change it.

[fivegunner]

I get my corn cob 50# bag 22.00 $ from a sand blasting company just south of Grand Rapids Mi. off 131. they have different size grit if you want bigger or smaller , Also do your brass cleaning outside I read a report that the dust from
the brass cleaning contains Lead and it puts it in the air. Who knows why take a chance.

[dverna]

I am not sure if it matters and should have mentioned it at first...DUHHHH.

I have two Dillon vibratory machines and a Lorton tumbler. I prefer using the Lortone in the basement as it is quieter. This fall I cleaned about 4000 .308 and 5.56 cases. Many were gnarly range pickup either given to me or purchased cheaply years ago. Cases were so bad they were tumbled for two-three days in the Lortone.

Processing those crappy miliary cases, and tumbling for days in the Lortone are the things that changed from my "normal" way of doing things. This should have jumped out at me earlier as I do not recall having as much dust until this fall.

I never moved the vibratory machines when I relocated metallic reloading from the outbuilding to the basement last year. My shooting has gone way down. Downsizing made sense, and I was going to sell the Dillon vibratory cleaners. They were too loud to run in the house. The Lortone seemed it would be sufficient. But I had not used it in decades. When I was shooting a lot, I used the large Dillon vibratory.

I am going to process a load of crappy cases in the large Dillon and see how bad the dust is. And also process a load of "normal" cases in the Lortone.

When guys like Morris and Smale (and me too back in the day) who reload a lot are not having dust problems something is wrong. I feel like a dufus for not figuring this out.

It is 5 below this morning so testing can wait. Will update as I learn more.