I went to wet tumbling(and I know)some people don't want to go that route but it gets brass cleaner faster than anything I know. And you don't have to spend a lot of money. Especially if you are cleaning a small amount. I bought a drum style rock tumbler I use for small amounts of brass. Yes you still have to buy the pins. But it will clean you brass better than anything else if done with the proper recipe. I still use the vibratory cleaners once in a while to spruce up already cleaned brass and I have used the ultrasonic onesbefore also but hands down the wet tumbling there is no match. As for case dryers you might want to check your thrift stores or classified adds for used food dehydraters. I picked mine up for $15 at a thrift store locally and it works great. And yes you still have to deal with stuck pins once in a while but a good sifter or media seperator usually remedies this. I have the Franklin arsenal one and it works well.

 

Agree 100% about the wet tumbling. Cases are clean and look as if never fired both inside and out. What's not to like? As for stick pins, I've not had that happen at all but they do come in different sizes. The big magnet with the handle that you can turn it on and off is not a most have but it darned sure makes things easier.

 

I started with a vibratory tumbler and used that for several years before the motor burned up. Wound up going with a rotary tumbler about 15 years ago and am still using the same stainless pins which seem to last forever. I tumble high numbers of brass but have found many other uses for it.

Bought a bunch of SMK 220s that came tarnished

After a little time in the tumbler they look like new

Yep! I wet tumbler bullets also it does great.

 

I started with a vibratory tumbler and used that for several years before the motor burned up. Wound up going with a rotary tumbler about 15 years ago and am still using the same stainless pins which seem to last forever. I tumble high numbers of brass but have found many other uses for it.

Bought a bunch of SMK 220s that came tarnished

After a little time in the tumbler they look like new

 

The pictures above are typical for wet tumbling either bullets or cases.

My limited experience is that using the recommended cleaning mixture--detergent and citric acid--they end up looking new. Just using water and a few drops of Dawn and they end up looking better than I ever got from using dry tumbling.

 

I have used the same ultrasonic cleaner. The ultrasonic cleaner will clean the brass but not shine it, you may also have to clean the primer pockets. I would also go with stainless pins and wet tumbling. The ultrasonic cleaner is great for other things like cleaning bolts without having to disassemble them.

 

You guys are killing me. Was hoping ultrasonic was the way to go. I might just get both. It's not so much money, but limited space in my reloading / gun room. My hesitation of stainless pins is I've read they get stuck in small .22 cal cases. Most of what I shoot is 22 Hornet, 218 Bee, 222 Rem, 223 Rem, 25-20, and 256 Win Mag. Plus, didn't want ti deal with pins all over and then drying them.

Was hoping for a quick thorough wash of Imperial lube after case conversion for 25-20 and 256 Win Mag. These are only 100 round batches.

Guess I will get both and see what happens. Plus, I really wanted an ulltrasonic cleaner to have around.

 

For small batches you may find the ultrasonic method easier. I went with pins but I do larger batches. I was running my 80’s vintage RCBS vibratory tumbler until a few years ago when the motor finally died. It had a good nearly 30 year run in a design that worked with an intentional off balance load that generated the vibration. They use crap chinese electric motors now that do not have anywhere close to the same bearing quality. My rcbs tumbler sits there but it needs a trip to the dumpster.

I use the Thumlers tumbler, a squirt of dawn and a scoop of citric acid powder. The result is almost too clean!

For anyone else out there looking to try pins Harbor freight carries a basic rotary tumbler too.

 

I tried both methods years ago with the ultrasonic 1st and wasn't impressed at all with the results. I then bought a Thumler's and have been satisfied with that. You're correct about the pins jamming in the .223 case flash holes sometimes but it's easy to just punch them through with a punch. I have read, however, that the citric acid in the Lemi Shine keeps eating away the copper or the zinc, don't remember which, in the brass every time you clean them. I've read that that's how they shine up so pretty.

 

I don't think that little amount(maybe 1/8 of a teaspoon)will make a difference in a 1/2 or 1 gallon over water some of the chemicals used in the vibratory and ultrasound cleaners are way more caustic that citric acid like the polishes and cleaners you add to the media or ultrasound. I clean all my dirty brass first with dawn hot water citric acid or lemi shine and no pins that gets the lose dirt, powder residue, then I resize decap and prep then clean again with the same recipe but with pins in.

 

being too busy with business to take on another "hobby", I was late to the game in starting reloading in January of 2011. It all started on a very small scale and limited investment and I really scratched my head on what I wanted to do for brass cleaning. There wasn't much talk of the ultrasonic cleaners a the time, but there must have been a mention of it somewhere along the line .... I don't think I dreamed it up on my own. I remembered having stuck back in a cabinet a small ultrasonic cleaner that I bought in 1983 for cleaning liquid ink drafting pens and other small items when I was still doing my maps the old fashioned way at the drafting table. I gave it a try with a dab of Lemi-Shine and squirt of Dawn dishwashing liquid and very pleasantly surprised. It doesn't do much brass at a time, but I'm still limping along that 40 year old ultrasonic tool. I deprime first and hit the primer pockets with a primer pocket tool (I like clean primer pockets and clean flash holes) and give them a 20-30 minute buzz. I keep my brass cleaned and prepped for loading shortly after each range trip so small batch cleaning is normally sufficient for me.

So, I suppose I re-purposed something that had a very useful previous life that ended up being a fad today.


jd

 

being too busy with business to take on another "hobby", I was late to the game in starting reloading in January of 2011. It all started on a very small scale and limited investment and I really scratched my head on what I wanted to do for brass cleaning. There wasn't much talk of the ultrasonic cleaners a the time, but there must have been a mention of it somewhere along the line .... I don't think I dreamed it up on my own. I remembered having stuck back in a cabinet a small ultrasonic cleaner that I bought in 1983 for cleaning liquid ink drafting pens and other small items when I was still doing my maps the old fashioned way at the drafting table. I gave it a try with a dab of Lemi-Shine and squirt of Dawn dishwashing liquid and very pleasantly surprised. It doesn't do much brass at a time, but I'm still limping along that 40 year old ultrasonic tool. I deprime first and hit the primer pockets with a primer pocket tool (I like clean primer pockets and clean flash holes) and give them a 20-30 minute buzz. I keep my brass cleaned and prepped for loading shortly after each range trip so small batch cleaning is normally sufficient for me.

So, I suppose I re-purposed something that had a very useful previous life that ended up being a fad today.


jd

 

I still use my old vibratory tumbler. Just dump the brass in, turn it on and let run for a few hours. They come out clean and shiny enough for me. Shot in Bullseye competition for years...all worked fine, accurate and no miss fires. No need to dry or worry about pins. It works why change? How clean is clean?

Padraig

 

Used the corn cob/walnut in a vibrating cleaner for years.
Tried the sonic cleaner on a friend's recommendation - it cleans the brass OK, but doesn't polish it. Not really what I wanted/needed.
Bought the big tumbler, pins, etc. and was amazed at the difference. I deprime my brass before wet tumbling so inside and primer pockets are as clean as brand new. After separating the brass and S/S pins, I shake the brass in an old, over-size towel, then lay in the sun on the patio to dry.
I still use my vibrating cleaner on a day to day basis, but resort to the wet & pins when I want/need the brass to be REALLY clean.

 

I have the hornady unit, doesn't work very well, changed to wet & pins. Sun dry cases.

 

USC's are great for a lot of things. Brass isn't one of them. Don't let that stop you from buying one.

 

Had the Frankford vibratory tumbler and it worked fine for a while but went from a couple hours to most of the day to clean well. Took a dump after a couple years and I purchased the wet/pin tumbler! SHOULD HAVE started there! Works fantastic!

 

I ended up buying the frankford arsenal rotary tumbler back in 2016 because I could not find anyone that had the thumlers tumbler in stock. So it was the cheapest one I could find money wise and I really like it especially if I have a lot of brass to do at once. I am thinking about getting the frankford arsenal lite for the smaller amounts. But so far the little drum rock tumbler works fine. I also started using turtle waxes zip wax car wash n wax instead of dawn on the final clean it slows the tarnishing down considerably if you store the brass. But you can't find it anymore so I have started using mothers wash and wax. It seems to be just as good.

 

Ok, you enablers forced me to buy this today.

 

Ok, you enablers forced me to buy this today.
View attachment 926473

Good decision. This might come in handy it speeds up the process. Especially getting the pins out of the inside of the brass. I used to do it by hand and it takes a long time if you do a few hundred + brass at once.

 

And I say you made a smart decision.

 

I sure hope so.... thanks!

 

An ultrasonic has its uses but you won't regret a wet tumbler. I have had access to large industrial ultrasonic units for the past 30 years and have used them from cleaning gun parts to car parts and everything in between. I have even worn through the stainless tub liner on one unit cleaning motorcycle parts. I have a big ultrasonic in the office that I want to replace with a quieter unit so am planning to take the old one home and put it in the shop. Nothing beats a wet tumbler with stainless media for cleaning brass inside and out though.

 

First, wash the case lube off your sized cases with some Dawn in a bucket of warm water, rinse. I use a few different tumblers but for smaller loads I use the Lyman wet tumbler. Capful of Hornady Sonic clean and cool water. Pins stay clean and cases come looking better than new. Use .047 pins, they don't stack in the flash hole. I just ait dry with a fan on a towel. I have an ultrasonic cleaner too but the cases are too clean. The brass sucks the oil from your fingers. Most important is to wash the lube off before tumbling. Otherwise the lube coats your pins and your cases won't be as clean. The pins don't wear out, they just get dirty. If they look grey and not bright shiny silver they are dirty. Clean with a degreaser. I use the purple stuff. If your hand gets dirty running through the wet pins then your pins need washing. wash the lube off and they never get dirty.

 

First, wash the case lube off your sized cases with some Dawn in a bucket of warm water, rinse. I use a few different tumblers but for smaller loads I use the Lyman wet tumbler. Capful of Hornady Sonic clean and cool water. Pins stay clean and cases come looking better than new. Use .047 pins, they don't stack in the flash hole. I just ait dry with a fan on a towel. I have an ultrasonic cleaner too but the cases are too clean. The brass sucks the oil from your fingers. Most important is to wash the lube off before tumbling. Otherwise the lube coats your pins and your cases won't be as clean. The pins don't wear out, they just get dirty. If they look grey and not bright shiny silver they are dirty. Clean with a degreaser. I use the purple stuff. If your hand gets dirty running through the wet pins then your pins need washing. wash the lube off and they never get dirty.

Exactly how I dry out my wet tumbled cases too. After thoroughly rinsing the cases and separating them from most of the pins, I will place them on an old bath towel on the floor directly underneath a ceiling fan & let her rip. They'll come out all dry after a few hours. Ceiling fan doesn't have to be on high or medium either unless you prefer that.

 

I started out with Hornady's first sonic cleaner still have and use it. But I always ended up having to clean the primer pockets. I then bought the Hornady vibratory cleaner using corn cob and walnut media, didn't like the fact that on my smaller brass that i would find media stuck in the primer pockets. I recently got my hands on the large Frankford arsenal rotary using stainless steel rods with Hornady One Shot case cleaner that I use in the sonic cleaner and am way happier. It cleans all my brass down to the smallest caliber that I shot which is .204. I still use my sonic cleaner after sizing and trimming my brass before I load it. For drying was sitting here one night letting my brass dry on a towel when I realized that I have an air fryer with a rotisserie basket. I loaded up the basket put it in the fryer set it to 150 degrees witch is the lowest temp set for 10 minutes and let it rip. 10 mins later I had warm wet brass. set for another 10 minutes and I ended up with warm dry brass.

 

I burned up a vibratory tumbler, setting it on a carpet back around 1998. Picked up another and kept it off the carpet. It is still going strong. Funny story. Dad started handloading in 1957. Cleaned brass with a blitz cloth, if at all. So, for 40 years or so dirty brass worked just fine. In the last 25 years, I've noticed my hands stay cleaner handling the tumble cleaned brass. I let him have the tumbler for a few years. At first he thought it was completely unnecessary, but before long he had adopted the wet method with acid washing. Old Dogs-new tricks. I, too, had an ultrasonic drafting pen cleaner at the office. Ran a bunch of brass through it when no one was around. It worked..

 

Thanks again guys for your input. Chuckt56 suggested the separator., which I need. Don't need the hand crank model, just something to catch the pins. Haven't decided what to get yet. What strainer is out there that catches these little pins?

Anyway, excited about trying it this weekend.

 

I went to Walmart bought the cheapest strainer and bowl combo. Pour the brass and pins out into the strainer sitting in the bowl use a filter on tap and rinse with water separate the stainless pins then pour back into my Frankford tumbler with the screens. Thats one of the screens that fits my tumbler. I have an air fryer that has a rotisserie basket load up the basket set it at 150 degrees for 20 minutes. Best use I have gotten with a purchase I hardly ever used.

 

Thanks for your advice. I have all the stuff now, but brass cleaning got put on hold due to reloading shot shells. I think I gravitated to them because of no cleaning LOL. Anyway, I like taking at least eight different rifles to Kentucky for my annual deer hunting week and I need to start loading for them. Hope to fire up the wet tumbler next week.

 

I switched to large ultrasonic cleaners a while back and won’t go back to tumblers. They get the brass cleaner inside and out, including primer pockets, with no pins to mess with. I use hot water and a mix of Lemi Shine and dish soap, and it works great. Just make sure to dry the cases well after or you’ll get water spots.

 

I run mine with just hot water and a squirt of dish soap, and it gets the primer pockets cleaner than I ever could by hand. Doesn't replace tumbling for shine though.

Try adding a 1/4 teaspoon of citric acid from canning supply area in your local Walmart, it is the same thing as lemishine but cheaper it will shine up the brass. A little goes a long way and too much will have the opposite affect.