Tumbling media for the El-Cheapo in me

While it's a bit inconvenient, the cheapest media is made by filling one of the car tires with sawdust and cases. At the end of the week, there will be a very fine brass, rubber and wood powder to use in an off the shelf vibratory tumbler and it'll only cost one new tire to make about fifteen pounds... the steel belts will be showing on the inside if the process was successful. Further savings can be realized if you fill the tire on your neighbour's car.
 
Building a wet tumbler is not that difficult. Just a bit time consuming. You can purchase all the parts from princess auto. Get a used motor. For the barrel just use pvc end cuts u can get for free. I have 80$ invested in my setup. Wet tumbling is the way to go. U got my stainless from eBay fairly cheep. I have tried the walnut from princess auto it worked fine just can't get rid of that dust.
 
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yodave said:
why buy stainless pins? just use your old primers instead, you'll have a lifetime supply from your own press
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What are you doing to remove the contaminants from the primers. Seems like an awful lot of extra work and will they clean the inside of the cases ? Have you even tried them ?
 
yodave said:
why buy stainless pins? just use your old primers instead, you'll have a lifetime supply from your own press
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Because used primers don't fit in primer pockets?

Got Juice? said:
I wet tumble in my cement mixer. Tumble and dry all my brass once. Shoot all year long, then tumble everything again in summer.
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That's the way we do it, your money for nothing and your chicks for free!!
 
my wet tumbler is made from an old bbq rotesserie, a small bucket, and cut up stub ends of stainless tig welding filler rod for the media. It was all free to me. hope that gives you some ideas...
 
MustangFrank said:
What are you doing to remove the contaminants from the primers. Seems like an awful lot of extra work and will they clean the inside of the cases ? Have you even tried them ?
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I was planning to try using spent primers but broke down and bought the stainless pins because the cleaning solution I have reacted with the plating.
They will certainly clean inside the cases well and when the anvils separate from the cups they might even get most of the primer pockets.

The contamination will go exactly the same place as the contamination from the shell cases. Down the drain.
 
One thing to think of - if you're cleaning .223, don't use corncob; it'll get crammed down the necks of the cases, and good luck getting it out.
 
When wet tumbling, I can only process 20-30,000 cases of .40 because of the weight of the water. Motor is 3/4 hp, but with a poly hopper, you have to be weight conscious.

Yes, I could have stayed with dry media, but as you can see, the dust is enormous.
 
I have a Thumler’s Tumblers Model “B” 15 lb. high speed tumbler for wet tumbling, but my vibratory tumbler died and I just got a Lyman Turbo 1200 PRO to replace it. And this Lyman tumbler works better than any tumbler I have used in the past.

I found this YouTube video last night where different types of media are tested in the same Lyman tumbler.
The #1 winner was reptile bedding walnut media and Nu-Finish car polish. (the cheap bastards win) ;)

Watch the video below it is very good.

What Tumbling Media is the Best?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hvp0sZgOS4
 
I picked up a kitchen brand ultrasonic cleaner on the EE, works amazing, didn't want media because of dust and was told SS pins harden cases and you get less reloads out of them. Some hot water with a shot of Hornady cleaning solution and a drop of dish soap and even the dirtiest brass has a shine like new.
 
6MT said:
Really? You should spend less time listening to what someone tells you. And learn what really happens when you use SS pins to wet tumble cases.....they clean the cases. Hardening...?

If I just came across as being rude, it was not my intention.
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I was told they work harden the brass as they tumble. I have been wrong before, just some info I was given as I'm relatively new to reloading but I think I have it 80% down. I still like my ultrasonic cleaner.
 
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