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Thread: Citric acid brass cleaner

  1. #901
    Boolit Mold Unclenick's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Claudius View Post
    I'm shooting 45-70 black powder cartridges, I like this citric acid method to clean my brass cases, but I have some problems, the result are not uniform. After the shooting session I put the cases into a bottle with water and dishwashing liquid. At home I rinse the cases, then a hot solution with a 10% of citric acid and water. Why my cases are not shining like yours?
    The old Frankford Arsenal case cleaning solution recommendation was 5% citric acid. The discoloration you are seeing is oxidation by the air. Being warm greatly accelerates that oxidation. If you want to use heat, I would recommend flushing the acid solution out with cold water followed by a little distilled water to eliminate watermarks left during drying.

    Citric acid micro-etches the brass surface. This means it can oxidize easily. If it happens slowly, that's not an issue as the oxide layers actually offer the brass some protection. But that doesn't help the color and the Hornady ultra-sonic cleaning formula uses a little bit of diethanolamine, an anti-oxidant, to help cut that down. The fellows mixing a one-step car wash and wax also get surface protection from oxidation via the wax coating. However, tumbling with stainless pins, I prefer to use the citric acid solution alone and stop halfway through the cleaning and exchange the acid solution for the washing and waxing solution. This is to keep the two products from mixing or messing with the pH of the acid solution.

  2. #902
    Boolit Man Claudius's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Unclenick View Post
    The old Frankford Arsenal case cleaning solution recommendation was 5% citric acid. The discoloration you are seeing is oxidation by the air. Being warm greatly accelerates that oxidation. If you want to use heat, I would recommend flushing the acid solution out with cold water followed by a little distilled water to eliminate watermarks left during drying.

    Citric acid micro-etches the brass surface. This means it can oxidize easily. If it happens slowly, that's not an issue as the oxide layers actually offer the brass some protection. But that doesn't help the color and the Hornady ultra-sonic cleaning formula uses a little bit of diethanolamine, an anti-oxidant, to help cut that down. The fellows mixing a one-step car wash and wax also get surface protection from oxidation via the wax coating. However, tumbling with stainless pins, I prefer to use the citric acid solution alone and stop halfway through the cleaning and exchange the acid solution for the washing and waxing solution. This is to keep the two products from mixing or messing with the pH of the acid solution.
    Thank you for your reply, I stopped to use the citric acid because I didn't see any difference in the cases before and after the treatment with hot water and 10/15% of citric acid. So I decided to use a hot vinegar 6% solution, and this is giving me better results. The vinegar will destroy my cases?

  3. #903
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by rondog View Post
    I've heard of this magic before, but I've never been able to find any citric acid. More details please.
    I found it at a beer and wine making store close by where I live for way way (way and way again) cheaper than most places I’ve seen it for sale elsewhere. Pays to shop around.

  4. #904
    Boolit Master
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    You can get it at a drug store (expensive) or just go to the canning section at the local food market and look for a product called "Fruit Fresh" (cheap).
    R.D.M.

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  6. #906
    Boolit Master


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    Quote Originally Posted by RugerFanOH View Post
    In my opinion Limishine does not work as well as straight citric acid.
    Lead bullets Matter

    There are three kinds of men: The ones that learn by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for themselves. - Will Rodgers

  7. #907
    Boolit Man
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    FYI Amazon Prime, $22.99 for 5#s delivered.

  8. #908
    Boolit Master
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    I just tried a 1/4 table spoon of oxalic acid in a quart of warm water along with a drop of dish washing soap on some 30-06 berdan brass I picked up at the range and it works great. I use oxalic acid for a mite treatment in my bee hives so I had it on hand and a 1/4 spoon full was well worth it for a test. It's a organic acid that is stronger than citric acid and is sold as wood bleach at Wal-Mart and the big box hardware stores. I think I paid about $10.00 for a 16 oz bottle of it. It's an alternative if it's hard to find citric acid and worked fine on a batch of 30-06 range pickups. I usually don't wash my brass but if it's this easy it looks like I'm going to start.

  9. #909
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    Thanks for posting this.

  10. #910
    Boolit Bub
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    Today I had a thought... what is in Lemi Shine. A little quick research and citric acid is the only ingredient.

  11. #911
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chaparral66 View Post
    Today I had a thought... what is in Lemi Shine. A little quick research and citric acid is the only ingredient.
    the only ingredient ???

    https://lemishine.com/pages/ingredients
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    “If someone has a gun and is trying to kill you, it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun.”
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  12. #912
    Boolit Bub
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    I was referring to the basic Lemi Shine Booster plus maybe a stinky smell. Yes, all the other products have lots of unpronounceable ingredients.

  13. #913
    Boolit Master


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    Best to stay away from Lemishine besides citric acid does a much better job.
    Lead bullets Matter

    There are three kinds of men: The ones that learn by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for themselves. - Will Rodgers

  14. #914
    Boolit Mold
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    Canning section.
    Quote Originally Posted by rondog View Post
    I've heard of this magic before, but I've never been able to find any citric acid. More details please.

  15. #915
    Boolit Bub

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    Search for "Milliard Citric Acid 10 Pound - 100% Pure" on Amazon. Enough for a lifetime.

  16. #916
    Boolit Master
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    Soaking brass in 1 part lemon juice to 2 parts water increases neck tension due to the increased coefficient of friction, especially on new Starline brass.

  17. #917
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    Just used citric acid in my ultrasonic cleaner. I’m not sure the ultrasonic part made much difference but it has a 1.6 gallon capacity and a pretty good heater. It’s the only way I have to easily heat the solution out in the shop. Much more convenient than taking everything into the house and using the stove. I measured 1.5 tablespoons of citric acid into the water, heat to 140-160 degrees F and it works very fast. There was quite a bit of black residue that came out of the cartridges but it didn’t seem to make a significant difference in the primer pockets. It does soften the deposits in the primer pockets so if you like to clean them, a primer pocket brush works very well after the citric acid treatment. The outside of the brass was equally bright with or without the ultrasonic part turned on.

    Not trying to contradict anything written previously; just telling what I did.
    Sometimes life taps you on the shoulder and reminds you it's a one way street. Jim Morris

  18. #918
    Boolit Master

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    An old crock pot works great for heating citric acid solution.
    God Bless, Whisler

  19. #919
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    I buy my citric acid acid at Walmart; its the Ball brand. As someone else mentioned, you'll find it in the area for canning supplies.

    I picked up an ultra sonic cleaner at Harbor Freight (since buying it I don't use the tumbler anymore). I'll add about a tablespoon of the citric acid to the tank of water then put in the brass, making sure the water is above the brass. The cleaner has a heat function (and it'll shut itself down if it gets to hot) but I discovered I don't need it. The ultra sonic action warms the solution up on its own. Its maximum cycle time is 8 minutes. I'll run the brass through 2 or 3 cycles, until it comes out clean. The cases are clean on the inside, outside, and the primer pockets. They are not shiny like they've been polished but I don't care about that.

    I read somewhere else that this acid passivates the brass. I'm not a chemists so I can't personally verify that.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passivation_(chemistry)

  20. #920
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    Citric acid definitely needs to be rinsed off. I rinse my brass off with dish soap added to water and then again with fresh water. It’s best to stand then up to dry or better yet, blow them down with compressed air, if you have it available. They will never be as shiny as tumbled brass, but the surface is altered chemically and is not supposed to oxidize as fast as plain clean brass.

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