- Location
- Calgary, AB
Has anyone used one of these to clean reloading dies? Any opinions?
Ultrasonic cleaner
- Thread starter 444shooter
- Start date
Haven't used one to clean dies.but a friend has one and cleans his brass in it.in 30 minutes brass comes out like it were new. primer pockets are clean and all carbon is gone from the in side of the cases.when my tumbler is dead I will be haveing me a ultra sonic cleaner.I can't see why you wouldn't be able to clean dies in it the cleaning solution is only vinegar and water .so when your done just make sure to dry the dies and may spray with wd 40.
I use an ultrasonic cleaner as I live in an Apt and the noise from a tumbler really isn't in the books.
I do still use both but use a family member's tumbler.
The tumbler is good for cleaning the outside of the brass where the media has the most movement for abrasion, but doesn't clean the inside as much as well as the primer hole. You also won't get tumbler media residue inside your casings either.
But the benefits are that you can really polish up the brass.
The ultrasonic cleaner does a better job than the tumbler much faster as well, especially inside the brass and in the primer pocket, but won't give you a super polished look.
Cleaners are awesome but will remove coatings so be careful with items that are cheaply plated or painted.
brass is brass though and should be fine.
As far as dies go I'll be putting mine in before I use them to clean out the storage gunk and see how they do.
the best thing about these cleaners is that they require no chemicals to do the job, just warm water and if you want either a bit of dish soap or vinegar.
I've tried both and they are good.
I do still use both but use a family member's tumbler.
The tumbler is good for cleaning the outside of the brass where the media has the most movement for abrasion, but doesn't clean the inside as much as well as the primer hole. You also won't get tumbler media residue inside your casings either.
But the benefits are that you can really polish up the brass.
The ultrasonic cleaner does a better job than the tumbler much faster as well, especially inside the brass and in the primer pocket, but won't give you a super polished look.
Cleaners are awesome but will remove coatings so be careful with items that are cheaply plated or painted.
brass is brass though and should be fine.
As far as dies go I'll be putting mine in before I use them to clean out the storage gunk and see how they do.
the best thing about these cleaners is that they require no chemicals to do the job, just warm water and if you want either a bit of dish soap or vinegar.
I've tried both and they are good.
- Location
- Calgary, AB
Please let me know how it goes with the dies. I bought my ultrasonic off ebay and have not used it yet. I have been using my Frankfort Arsenal tumbler for brass, but thought I would try the ultrasonic to get the gunk of my dies.
I have read that some people use 50/50 of water and vinegar. Do you think warm water and dish washing detergent is as good?
This is the one I have :
Please let me know how it goes with the dies. I bought my ultrasonic off ebay and have not used it yet. I have been using my Frankfort Arsenal tumbler for brass, but thought I would try the ultrasonic to get the gunk of my dies.
I have read that some people use 50/50 of water and vinegar. Do you think warm water and dish washing detergent is as good?
This is the one I have :
I haven't been using as much of a ration of water to vinegar, I just spash it in until I can smell it in the water. probably closer to 20-30% vinegar.
I have good results with both but I think that maybe the vinegar has better polishing properties similar to how it is used to clean windows, etc.
Also some recommend following up the vinegar with a water/baking soda mix to take some of the acidity out before leaving it to dry.
Researching the steps in Brass Preparation can drive a person bonkers. When I first started reloading, I had a small Ultrasonic cleaner (from Ebay). I would use a Lee hand press to de-prime the case, then ultrasonically clean the brass (one three minute pass, followed by a scrape of the primer pocket with a dental pick, and a quick brush out with a Dremel and wire brush, then another three minutes, final inspection, then set out to dry. It took forever, but the primer pockets and insides were sparkling. The outsides looked tired.
I talked to others who had been doing this longer, and they say the residue in the primer pocket and inside are not going to have an effect on the volume of space available for powder and air. They suggest tumbling to focus on the outside cleaning, because that's what could scratch dies, cause less than smooth chamber feeding, and looks questionable.
The determining factor was the length of time it took with the ultrasonic. Or, dump them into the tumbler for 3-4 hours on your way out to work (I found a great programmable light timer at Rona, made by Woods, that has a count-down function - I use it to charge all my battery devices that shouldn't be left charging for more than xx hours).
Another problem I had with ultrasonic was conflicting opinions on what to use in the water - vinegar, dishsoap, simple green, etc, etc. And definitely ensure they're bone dry before adding powder...
If this didn't help you, now you know what I felt like, reading many forums for brass prep advice!
(For the OP, I'd imagine the dies might be fine, if left to dry properly, but I'd be worried about rust or dislodging a piece of dirt into a worse area. I haven't had a die problem yet, but if I do, I'll likely try to disassemble it the hard way.
I talked to others who had been doing this longer, and they say the residue in the primer pocket and inside are not going to have an effect on the volume of space available for powder and air. They suggest tumbling to focus on the outside cleaning, because that's what could scratch dies, cause less than smooth chamber feeding, and looks questionable.
The determining factor was the length of time it took with the ultrasonic. Or, dump them into the tumbler for 3-4 hours on your way out to work (I found a great programmable light timer at Rona, made by Woods, that has a count-down function - I use it to charge all my battery devices that shouldn't be left charging for more than xx hours).
Another problem I had with ultrasonic was conflicting opinions on what to use in the water - vinegar, dishsoap, simple green, etc, etc. And definitely ensure they're bone dry before adding powder...
If this didn't help you, now you know what I felt like, reading many forums for brass prep advice!
(For the OP, I'd imagine the dies might be fine, if left to dry properly, but I'd be worried about rust or dislodging a piece of dirt into a worse area. I haven't had a die problem yet, but if I do, I'll likely try to disassemble it the hard way.
Ok gotta bring this one back up.
I tried to clean some dies today.
Lesson learned.
IF you are going to use an ultrasonic cleaner to do dies, don't put them in for more than 5 or so minutes.
I put two sets in and they cleaned up well after the first run through with hot water and a dish detergent.
Then I put them in for longer with some vinegar and thats were things started to go less well. It started to pull off the coating and the dies came out dull looking.
They were dried off and I ran some rounds through them and they don't feel any different and work fine, but they look lets say... older.
So to finally answer the OPs question. Yes, but be careful.
I tried to clean some dies today.
Lesson learned.
IF you are going to use an ultrasonic cleaner to do dies, don't put them in for more than 5 or so minutes.
I put two sets in and they cleaned up well after the first run through with hot water and a dish detergent.
Then I put them in for longer with some vinegar and thats were things started to go less well. It started to pull off the coating and the dies came out dull looking.
They were dried off and I ran some rounds through them and they don't feel any different and work fine, but they look lets say... older.
So to finally answer the OPs question. Yes, but be careful.
Just a quick note: Don't put anythying in an ultrasonic cleaner that is made of aluminum. I do not know why it happens, but ultrasonic cleaners are VERY harsh on aluminum. I have a couple of sets of dies where the lock rings are aluminum. I imagine that after two or three times through the cleaner there might be problems with the lock nut.
Just so you can prove it to yourselves, put a piece of aluminum foil into your ultrasonic cleaner and let it go for about 5 minutes. Fish out the aluminum and hold it up to the light. It will be full of holes if your cleaner is working right.
One more thing: ultrasonic cleaners work best if the item you are cleaning is not resting on the bottom of the tank. Use a wire/screen basket of some kind held above the bottom of the tank.
Just so you can prove it to yourselves, put a piece of aluminum foil into your ultrasonic cleaner and let it go for about 5 minutes. Fish out the aluminum and hold it up to the light. It will be full of holes if your cleaner is working right.
One more thing: ultrasonic cleaners work best if the item you are cleaning is not resting on the bottom of the tank. Use a wire/screen basket of some kind held above the bottom of the tank.
Hmmm... Okay, I hadn't thought of that. I am a watchmaker and have used ultrasonics for years and have seen how they affect aluminum. I suppose that the aluminum used in ARs is likely a tougher alloy than your kitchen grade aluminum foil. Good point, thanks for pointing that out
