I'm OCD so mine goes through two stages. Fired cases first get tumbled in Lyman green corn cob for an hour or two to remove any staining, powder residue, etc. Then I use fine corn corn with a dash of jeweller's rouge and a teaspoon of paint thinner to keep down the dust. Takes a while but if you want blazing bright brass this process will do it. I once left a mix of 38 Special brass and nickel cases in the tumbler overnight. The cases were so shiny it was hard to tell the brass from the nickel. I might not be the best shot on the range but I have the prettiest looking reloads.
Tumbling media
- Thread starter Butcherbill
- Start date
Do you ever wash your vehicle? Or your face?
I didn't say don't clean the brass.
But why does it need to look brand new? What do you gain with the extra effort and steps?
Fisherguy55
Regular
- Location
- SW Ontario
Pride in workmanship I presume
Fisherguy55
Regular
- Location
- SW Ontario
Ive spent the last decade working industrial automation in food & bev industry so taking extra time and using more expensive materials for a better finished product is kind of a habit. But I also just like shiny brass
I've read on a couple of forums about people using toasted buckwheat for a tumbling media (must be toasted) - apparently it's very hard, not dusty, and not too expensive. I personally haven't got around to trying this yet, but it's next on my list when I need new tumbling media.
Would you purchase tarnished and dull looking factory ammunition? I always proceed with the extra effort in everything, reloading, taking great care of my firearms, pick-up truck, property............and that's the way it should be!
I’m also in the camp of clean but not shiny.
Mirror finish does not equal performance in my experience.
1-2 hours in a dry tumbler with corncob and polish media is perfect.
I tried SS wet tumbling once.
Sold the whole kit a month later, too clean.
A bit of carbon inside the neck is not a bad thing!
Mirror finish does not equal performance in my experience.
1-2 hours in a dry tumbler with corncob and polish media is perfect.
I tried SS wet tumbling once.
Sold the whole kit a month later, too clean.
A bit of carbon inside the neck is not a bad thing!
I get the 50 pound sack of crushed walnut from Princess Auto but smaller quantitates of "reptile bedding" walnut can be bought at pet stores
A squirt of car polish is nice.
When I clean dirty range brass it goes into the cement mixer with some dish soap and citric acid. Then drained and dried. But I do that for brass by the bucketful. Small amounts like 100-200 cases go into the walnut tumbler.
I will also use a walnut tumbler with some mineral spirits to remove lube from brass after sizing.
I don't bother with stainless pins, they just add extra hassle for minimum benefit.
A squirt of car polish is nice.
When I clean dirty range brass it goes into the cement mixer with some dish soap and citric acid. Then drained and dried. But I do that for brass by the bucketful. Small amounts like 100-200 cases go into the walnut tumbler.
I will also use a walnut tumbler with some mineral spirits to remove lube from brass after sizing.
I don't bother with stainless pins, they just add extra hassle for minimum benefit.
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My rifles are tools.
I spend time in the reloading room where it matters - the proof is in the bullets down range, they don't lie. I don't worry too much about the vanity side of it.
If people want to spend the time and money and deal with the mess of having super shiny brass, then have at it. But I bet those shiny brass reloads don't shoot any better then my non-shiny ones.
After reading the article, the media will get expensive because it's done after 1000 pieces of brass.
