Looking for Lemishine?????

Citric acid and Lemi shine are the same thing. You were told that.
They are used in conjunction with dish soap in a wet tumbler with SS pins
 
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Citric acid and Lemi shine are the same thing. You were told that.
They are used in conjunction with dish soap in a wet tumbler with SS pins
Wired Leader:
Thank you for the great photo.
I now understand that Lemishine and citric acid are the same. I also understand about the dish soap, SS pins in a wet tumbler.
I was curious weather anyone had used the same process with a vibratory type of machine as I don't have a tumbler......yet!....or pins.
Thanks again for the education,

Mike

PS: I read about using both on CastBoolits. They were using very small quantities though.
M
 
A vibratory cleaner will work fine...has for many years and people continue to use them.
I myself had one, but switched to the SS pin for a few reasons. First and foremost was the noise. Then there was the dust....not that there are clouds of dust spewing from the unit, but there is a fine dust that comes off it. This dust of course contains among other things, the residues from the powder and primers. As well, I hated picking the cob pellets out of the flash holes. SS pins do get stuck in the flash holes as well, but not to the extent of the cob pellets.
You do have to buy the pins, which run about 50-55 dollars for 5 pounds(shipping included). They can be had from "Rooky" here on this site.
As for the tumbler...if you are handy, you can build your own. you will find lots of examples of home made ones on various websites(this one included) which do the job just fine. I myself built one from a treadmill. I just gutted it and shortened it...didn't take too much work. You will also find some videos of homemade ones on Utube.
The wet tumbling methods is by far the best in my opinion. Most people that have tried it will never go back.

So let's see some pics of those bullets.....
 
Wired Leader:
Thank you for the great photo.
I now understand that Lemishine and citric acid are the same. I also understand about the dish soap, SS pins in a wet tumbler.
I was curious weather anyone had used the same process with a vibratory type of machine as I don't have a tumbler......yet!....or pins.
Thanks again for the education,

Mike

PS: I read about using both on CastBoolits. They were using very small quantities though.
M

Yes some have vibratory cleaner with ss pin's, water,dish soap and citric acid. It does work but not all that well. It will void the warranty on a dillon, as stated on the unit. I personally have not done this. But if you go to cast bullets.s forum, BT Sniper has.

I do NOT recommend this method.
If you have a treadmill just put a bottle on it, with some thing behind the bottle so it does not fall off. I did it this way when I fire started.
 
Yes some have vibratory cleaner with ss pin's, water,dish soap and citric acid. It does work but not all that well. It will void the warranty on a dillon, as stated on the unit. I personally have not done this. But if you go to cast bullets.s forum, BT Sniper has.

I do NOT recommend this method.
If you have a treadmill just put a bottle on it, with some thing behind the bottle so it does not fall off. I did it this way when I fire started.

I don't see a vibratory working well at all with pins, but to each their own I guess.
I've seen videos as well of people who use the treadmill the way you describe.

Here is a pic of the one I made. It works fine, but it big. The price was right though. The cost of gas to go pick it up, and a couple of welding rods. I have been thinking of building a new smaller one, just because of the size and it's soooooo heavy. Time to take a trip to Princess Auto maybe
DSCN1073.JPG
 
I don't see a vibratory working well at all with pins, but to each their own I guess.
I've seen videos as well of people who use the treadmill the way you describe.

Here is a pic of the one I made. It works fine, but it big. The price was right though. The cost of gas to go pick it up, and a couple of welding rods. I have been thinking of building a new smaller one, just because of the size and it's soooooo heavy. Time to take a trip to Princess Auto maybe
DSCN1073.JPG

That is a nice little tumbler. I made one almost just like it. I still use it for small runs ones in a wile. I like to do large batches so I mainly use a cement mixer.
 
Okay, so now I have citric acid, bought at the local drug store, LemiShine, bought at CTC and Dawn dish soap, bought at WalMart.
Can I use a vibrator instead of a tumbler? I have a large Dillon vibrator. I want to clean the oxides left behind from annealing .22 LR brass.
I have some bullets already made and some jackets with the cores seated.
Thanks again,
Mike

If you send them up to me I'll tumble them for you.
There's a guy named Murry that suppose to be coming thru very soon on his way home.
 
Zuke,
Thanks so much for the offer. All this is a learning exercise for me. Last night I tried citric acid and dish soap in a pot of water, on the stove. I let it come to a boil while stirring the bullets and they
came out much cleaner than they went in. I'm going to try the Dillon today and see what that does.
Again, huge thank you!!
Mike
 
I thought I would experiment a little waiting for my tumbling stuff to arrive. I cleaned out my Dillon 1200put a pile of real dirty swaged bullets in it along with about 1 liter of hot water, a squirt of dish soap and 1/2 tablespoon of citric acid. Then I turned it on and let it run for 30 minutes and here is the result. I should mention that I rinsed everything really well and dried in the oven @ very low heat.


If they came this clean without media, I will need sunglasses when I use SS pins or ceramic!!
Mike
 
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That is way too much citric acid for the amount of water you used.
I recommend how much you should use in an earlier post...but hey, it's your brass.
 
Anyone see a difference in a tumbler with warm / hot over cold water? And my Hot water is softened (Salt) does that cause any problems?

I don't think the salt is a good idea. It may turn your brass a bit copperish color. I know If I want my brass jackets to look like copper jackets, I pickle them in a vinegar and salt solution.
 
I don't think the salt is a good idea. It may turn your brass a bit copperish color. I know If I want my brass jackets to look like copper jackets, I pickle them in a vinegar and salt solution.

It's the acidity...Look at the top pic in post 16. Not sure about the salt though. Never heard of anyone who does that.
 
That is way too much citric acid for the amount of water you used.
I recommend how much you should use in an earlier post...but hey, it's your brass.

None of the bullets turned pink but I will reduce the amount of citric acid for the next batch. I think I exaggerated the amount in my previous post, probably by X2
but it was more than you suggested. I might wait till my gear comes in, and follow your advice to a "T"
Thanks again,
M
 
It's the acidity...Look at the top pic in post 16. Not sure about the salt though. Never heard of anyone who does that.

Lot pickle there brass jackets to look copper ones. I have tried it a few times, works good. But it is one more step. In my opinion its not worth the time.
 
rodder: It's hard to tell due to the size of the pic and the lighting. However looking at the color of the brass compared to the color of the brass in the bottom pic in post 16, it does look off color to me.
I will say though that many don't even notice the color difference until they compare it directly side by side with brass that was done with the proper amount of citric acid.

I only offer advice to save you some time & grief down the road. Whether or not you follow that advice is entirely up to you.

Lot pickle there brass jackets to look copper ones. I have tried it a few times, works good. But it is one more step. In my opinion its not worth the time.

Since You're never going to reload those jackets, I suppose it doesn't really matter.

Of course this applies to oldrodder's jackets as well. I just want him to be aware for when he is actually cleaning brass cases.
 
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