Exactly.
I fully agree that the stainless pin media is able to do a SLIGHTLY better job. But it takes longer in the tumbler cycle and as seen in Hotwheel's picture the far simpler and faster US cleaning is almost or in some cases just as good. And it avoids the need for washing the pin media and the inevitable slow loss of pins as they stick in casings or unavoidably get scattered around over time and where they end up when they stick in the flash holes or roll away to wherever.
Rocklobster, you asked about suggestions for a model. The one I'm using is an Asian import from 6 or 7 years ago. So needless to say that model is long out of production. And truth be told I'd want a larger pot this time around anyway. Mine only holds about a half liter of solution at a time so my batches of brass being cleaned are a little small. These days I'd opt for a 1.5 to 2 liter tank.
More importantly though is to get a cleaner with a basket which has a fine enough weave to it that casing necks can't stick out through the openings. The one that came with mine was too coarse a "weave". To get around this I actually took some light gauge SS safety wire from my lockwire work on my old racing motorcycle and wove in extra diagonal runs to close up the openings. It was a royal PITA to do. So I can't stress enough that the basket itself is a primary selling point on which model to choose. Also get one with a heater so you can maintain the solution at around 40°C. Warm solution cleans a lot better and will give you the results seen in Hotwheel's pictures.
Where the US cleaner does fall down a little is when I'm doing .38Spl and .357Mag brass with the old primers left in. Even then while the results are not shiny clean they are brassy looking with a light "smoke" look. And for my needs on that brass it's easily good enough. On the wide and short .45ACP, .44Mag and on de-capped rifle brass it all comes out looking like it just came new out of the bag or box.
To be fair where the stainless pin media really shines is on older brass like Zuke shows in his post. The US does well but it won't remove truly horrendous oxidation that looks brown like he showed. For that we need the mechanical cleaning properties of something like the SS pins in the tumbler. When I've cleaned range pickup cases which are that brown they do lighten up a little. And certainly they are usable. But they aren't ever going to become nice and shiny looking with a US cleaning. But for all the other jobs that are less filthy the US cleaner simply rocks for the ease of use and ease of prep and cleanup.
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