Tumbling
 

Been reloading for a little over a year now, still learning things.
I just got a tumbler, whats your procedures for cleaning and tumbling and what media.
I tumbled some overnight in corn cob with some case polish put in the media, came out real nice except for the necks, the powder burn around the necks didnt come off.
I was polishing by hand in the past but thats a PITA, and fingers end up hurting.

Tumbler, or vibratory?


I own both, for a vibrating I have a big blue Dillon CV2001 and I use lizard bedding which is pretty inexpensive and dust free.

For my tumbler I have a Thumlers tumbler (Rock Polisher)use ceramic media and a cleaning solution. I only use the ceramic media for my BPCRs (.40-70, 45-90, and .45-100) because the media I have will bridge in a small caliber case neck. This stuff is very aggressive and will clean case necks and primer pockets like new. You can get smaller sized media, but I’ve found the vibrating cleaner works fine for smokeless.


I use a standard household "timer" the kind you get for lights etc and usually run the vibratory cleaner for about 2 hrs and the tumbler for 30 minutes.

Chuck

Overnight, should have got everything off. I like walnut better than corncob media. Overnight might burn up your tumbler eventually.

If I tumble for 3 hours everything comes off. Your media will wear out. You just got find the media that works for you. Make sure its on a solid surface like the concrete floor. makes a world of difference.

sorry, yes its a vibratory, a frankford

BigCountry how often do you change the media? Nothing irks me more than spending all afternoon cleaning off the dust of the walnut shells. Has anyone tried that new chemical dip cleaning solution they have out their now.

I've went to cleaning with braso beings I'm wiping off walnut shell junk anyways and to me it's just as fast as handling it twice. Maybe i'm doing something to the case I shouldn't be but so far so good. And I get cases that look brand new everytime.

Corncob "media" from the pet store. I use it until it looks nasty, it will slowly take longer to clean over time. At least a dozen full tumbles before it needs replacing. I use a small amount of polish from Cabela's, nothing special, and they are clean in 2-3 hours. I forgot them for 24 hours once and they were blindingly bright!

If overnight is not getting them clean, try a different corn cob media, different polish or more of it.

To get the "dust" out of your media, run a used drier sheet in the media for a while, it'll capture and hold the dust. Do this every now and then.
I've tumbled one heck of a bunch of brass in my media, can't remember if it's corn or walnut, but I haven't changed the media once yet. Just this summer alone, I've shot around 1500 rds., about the same last summer, and tumbled every last one of the brass before reloading.
I also add a splash of Flitz to my media every few batches also. Seems to speed up the process.

Try to keep it simlpe. I use walnut shells also. I just deprime(not size) my brass and throw it in the vibrator. I let it run til the next day then I take it out and size the brass. After I size it I throw it back in the vibrator and let it run til the next day. Then I throw it in a bucket I bought from Midway that filters out the media, you can shake the top part of the bucket, and most media will come out. Then I have a dry clean rag to pick the cases out of the bucket and take a toothpick and push out the media that is stuck in the flash hole of the brass. Then you have perfectly clean brass. Pretty simple. I also use the dryer sheets, and dust is kept to a minimum.

IMO you can not run the vibrator too long. Once I forgot it was on and it ran for three days. No big deal, just super clean brass. If your brass is stil dirty then change your media, get more course media, and let it run. I put 4 nails in my reloading bench(around the vibrator) to keep the cleaner from vibrating off the table. They will dance around on the table top if you do not do something to keep them in one place.

I have heard the new Hornady sonic cleaner is the "berries". I have been thinking about getting one and trying it. The problem is I am not in a hurry, and the one I have works perfectly. Tom.

The only problem I had was around the necks, the powder burn thats there.
I bought the frankford arsenol vibratoy cleaner, on my bench it doesnt bounce around at all, just sits there, real quiet too and you an see the media and shells rolling over and slightly spinning.

I have the FrankFord one also. And you are right it does not dance around so much. But my second one is a Lyman, and it dances all over the table. Tom.

..............Personally, I think tumbling brass is highly overrated.

Maybe so for rifle brass, but semi auto pistol brass runs nicer once polished.

Typically I vibrate every other reloading for rifle brass, and handgun brass every reload. First thing I tumble 30 min 1 hour in Walnut media. then deprime resize and tumble again in corn cob media with a little brass polish for 1-2 hours this gets everything nice and clean including primer pockets.

Birchwood Casey Brass Cleaner does a great job prior to tumbling.

I don't tumble more than a hour.



bb

Me too....I have a Thumlers Tumbler which about top of the line when it comes to vibratory case cleaning. Its quiet and doubtful I will ever burn up a motor in it.

Just some of the problems I have with cleaning in walnut/corn media.

Getting the stuff out of sharp shouldered or small necked cases.

Media breaks down real fast and only works well a few times.

Does nothing for accuracy that just a simple wipe down won't get you. The mess involved with getting said brass out of media and keeping media from scattered all over.


Case tumbling over rated...me thinks so.

I dunno if it is over rated, they sho look pretty, and they run through the dies easier, didnt even lube my hornet cases and they slid through

I've the Frankfort also. My 1st run on new lyman green corncob is about 20 minutes I don't think I've ever run a batch over 3 hours on porpose. Mine runs on the concrete floor and cleans faster when its fuller. Ie 300 pistol cases, 400 auto cases, or 100-150 06'or 308.

Now I've had single pieces over the last 3 years maybe 50 or so rifle cases that have been run thru several cycles ,like the 10 pieces of DWM 4? 8mm I picked up out in the middle of nowhere.

I think the walnut media is a bit more aggressive but doesn't produce a nice shine like corncob media. I'm betting it will do a more complete job overnight.

I tumble overnight and have been doing so for twenty years with the same vibrobowl.....it's still running great. I agree....do it on a concrete floor!

I like clean more than shine.....so I use walnut!.....and yes....you can get very clean with corncob too!....just sometimes takes longer.

If you have trouble with dust on the finished casings, use a table spoon of jewelers rouge with the media. Dust problem solved and they shine like new.

My corncob media went bad and I wanted to clean cases before I could get someplace to get new media. Found a big bag of uncooked white rice in the kitchen, dumped it in the vibrator and have been using it ever since. No dust, and the rice in the case vibrated out when I touch the cases to the center post on the working vibrator.