Brass cleaning

[Broom_jm]

Lyman Turbo 1200 Pro Tumbler with Sifter Lid and Media | Natchez Shooters Supplies
This is what I bought.
Turns out great looking brass. Has a real nice slick feeling to it.

Yes, because what you really want is brass that is "slick", so that cartridges generate a lot more back backthrust when you shoot.

Heck, maybe you should lube them all up before you shoot, so they're REALLY slick? (Note: Purple font indicates sarcasm.)

 

[U.S. Patriot]

Three hours in corn cob, done. You can buy corn cob bedding for cheap at petco.

 

[Ruffnek]

Graf & Sons - FRANKFORD ROTARY TUMBLER 110v w/BRASS DRYLER

You da man!

 

[whiskeytangofoxtrot]

Graf's has good items from time to time. The dryer is just a dehumidifier, but it will process a ton at a time.

 

[Ruffnek]

My next question is about depriming. I'm looking at buying the Lee Classic Turret press, which will allow me to load more rounds in less time, and the first station is deprime/resize. I see a lot of people mention depriming before tumbling to clean the primer pocket, but is it necessary? That would partially defeat the point of getting an indexing turret over a single stage.

Would this be better than buying a separate press?

 

[Broom_jm]

Cleaning primer pockets, particularly for the type of rounds one might reload on a turret or progressive press, is like putting lipstick on a pig.

 

[Ruffnek]

For all intents and purposes, cleaning a primer pocket is like putting lipstick on a pig. Particularly for pistol rounds, where function is what matters, cleaning primer pockets simply isn't necessary.

Cleaning primer pockets, particularly for the type of rounds one might reload on a turret or progressive press, is like putting lipstick on a pig.

I get that. But I'd still like to do it.

 

[17 squirrel]

Since I'm gonna start reloading, I guess I'll need a way to clean the brass. I kinda like the idea of an ultrasonic cleaner because it seems (inexperience talking) to take less time and I can also use it on my small gun parts. Time, space, and budget are all factors. Any advice for a ?

I would suggest that you retype your original post because you are so far away from what you were looking for.
Time,Space and budget.........
You have blown the time issue with wet tumbleing, its two to three times the time to wet tumble than dry tumble. Easily two to three times the time.
And then the budget, now your looking at a 200 dollar tumbler ???
That's not a budget tumbler at all. You easily can get a good tumbler and bokoo media for under half of that.
Myself, I would extend my budget for a much better press, long before I would buy a 200 dollar tumbler.
But that's me.










Some like having a 8,000 dollar 4 Wheeler in the back of a 1,000 dollar truck.

 

[Ruffnek]

I would suggest that you retype your original post because you are so far away from what you were looking for.
Time,Space and budget.........
You have blown the time issue with wet tumbleing, its two to three times the time to wet tumble than dry tumble. Easily two to three times the time.
And then the budget, now your looking at a 200 dollar tumbler ???
That's not a budget tumbler at all. You easily can get a good tumbler and bokoo media for under half of that.
Myself, I would extend my budget for a much better press, long before I would buy a 200 dollar tumbler.
But that's me.










Some like having a 8,000 dollar 4 Wheeler in the back of a 1,000 dollar truck.

DISCLAIMER: I haven't done either myself. I've read manufacturer specs and watched people use either kind of tumbler in video after video on YouTube.

Wet tumbling may not be done as fast as dry tumbling, but look at the capacity difference between the wet and dry tumbler. For the sake of argument, 1000 .223 cases will be our bench-mark. The wet tumbler will do that in one three-hour session with no dust and about ten minutes of work putting them in and taking them out. How many one- or two-hour sessions does that take in a dry tumbler? How much work and dust is involved with each single run of the dry tumbler?

Also, the stainless steel media doesn't wear out, meaning that I won't be buying it over and over. Instead of expensive (relative to the alternative) polishes, I can buy Dawn dish soap and Lemishine in bulk.

Finally, I'll be doing this in an enclosed room and don't want to have to go outside every hour or two to dump cases. Even more so when I normally work in the shop during the wee hours of the morning wearing pajama pants and a wife-beater, which aren't fun to be out in during weather like we're having now.

 

[17 squirrel]

I can easily put a 1000 223 cases in my Dillon Tumbler at one time.
With normal cleaning about a hour to a hour and a half, tops.
I don't get these guys that have a dust problem, I tend to think they are making a mountain out of a molehill because that helps them justify the unnessessery steps they do with wet tumbling. In reality I don't want any water around my Reloading bench.
Your worried about supposed dust but your willing to deal with a wet mess in your reloading room ?
Your conserned about going outside over some dust but where are you going to get and do the water fillup, the rinse water once or twice ?
With say 1000 223 cases how many water trips is that ? 9 to 12 trips ?
I believe you will find it will take much longer that a hour start to finish dry time with wet tumbling a few hundred cases.
Reloading is much like any other sport, Some of the reloading manufacturing companys constantly bring out the supposed latest and greatest and some guys just have to have the latest and greatest.
Most of my Reloading gear is well over twenty years old, including my Dillon Tumbler, do you think that Frankford Tumbler is going to be around that long ?
It's like the guys who shoot 2000 rounds a year and own a Dillon 650 or 1050 and they tell you it's the best press's built. But they have never run a 550 and tell the world to buy the 650 even though the 550 will easily produce all the ammo they need for half the money.

 

[tallend]

Opinions ,my 2 cents ---I have been loading for 50+ years ---started with "Brasso"and elbow grease (even washed shotgun shells in the clothes washing machine)-------------- my first "new one" was a vibratory and crushed walnut hulls----went to soap and water in a rock tumbler------then to the F.A. Rotary Tumbler with steel pins-------I like the FA rotary with pins---a little extra effort,but I think well worth it -----------havent tried a sonic----yet

tallend

 

[17 squirrel]

But that's understandable, your old and have plenty of spare time, and if you take that orange sticker off the end of the tumbler drum, it won't be so mesmerizing when you watch it run.

 

[mac45]

Here's the thing about "dust".
Primer compound contains lead styphnate. So some of that dust is actually lead.

Few years back, the wife started pushing for me to get an annual physical. Figured since they're gonna be taking blood anyway, check for lead.
I was at 16. The "recommended limit" is 9.
Now lead will effect everyone differently. Some folks have problems in the 15-20 range. Some can go up to 50 will no issues at all.
I didn't have any problem, but I figured they being almost twice the limit wasn't a good thing so....I switched to an ultrasonic.
Next year my test was 9. Been dropping slowly the last few years. Think the last one was 7.
Haven't done anything else different. If anything, I've shooting and casting more the last few years.
So....
That "dust" MAY be an issue for some folks.
Like I said....everyone is different. This is just what happened to me when I went to the ultrasonic.

As for the original question.
Dry tumbler is cheapest, and quickest. It's makes nice shiny brass, but also raises dust.
The ultrasonic, is more expensive, and makes really clean brass with no dust....but you have a long dry time, and it's not really shiny, just clean.
SS pins, is also expensive, and (I think), is a bigger pain than the ultrasonic since you need to separate the pins and the brass after each cycle.
The upside is REALLY clean shiny brass.
If I was on a budget, and worried about dust, (and time), I'd dry tumble, and do my separating outside.