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Wet Tumbling - My Personal Experience with it


Midas

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Hello Everyone,

I just got done doing a informal Non-Scientific experiment to see what would get me the best results using the Stainless Steel Pin Method of cleaning Brass and Walnut/Corncob.

I used Range brass , mostly 9mm fir my test. And I did not

I first started with Corn Cob and Walnut combinations using Nufinish and all the other similar products out there.

I was able to get to a 80 Percent of a new finish using 50/50 split of Walnut and Corncob Nu-Finish car wax for 2 Hours. The insides where not real Clean. But that does not mater to me very much.

Next I tried my new Frankford Arsenal wet Tumbler with10lbs of Pins and 8 Lbs of brass. Using Dawn and Lemonshine and let it go for 1.5 hours.

That came out at about 90 percent clean.

Then for my last comparison I used the Cleaning solution that came with the Tumbler for 1.5 hours.. WOW>>>>>

That came out like new at 100 percent.

So I tried it again using that solution on some really bad brass that was 45cal. Again I compared it to some brand new Starline Brass. This is what I'm going with.

So I know that other people will other results and this is not the "do all" for everyone but it works well for me.

If you want super Clean/Shiny Brass the Wet/Stainless Steel Pin method is most probably your best bet. But just my opinion of course.

Jan

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How do y'all dry the brass indoors in a winter climate? Especially the primer pockets. I tried the oven and it discolored my shiny brass. Besides I do way too much brass to mess with the oven. Summer, no problem, lay out in the sun. Winter looks to be a problem.

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After you separate the brass and pins, just tumble in corn/walnut or whatever you like for an hour or so. Dries the brass and puts the finishing touch on it. If you run it in one of these it gets most of the water off the brass.

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I just converted to the wet side. I bought the Frankfort 7L setup on Amazon for $160. So far I have only run two batches of .40 brass (approximately 2k combined). I used 5lbs of pins and two tablespoons of Meguir's car soap and a 1/2 teaspoon of Lemishine. Ran for two hours and they came out great. The second batch I cut the soap to 1 tablespoon and the Lemi to a 1/4 tsp and ran for 45 mins. Parts came out looking just as good as the first batch. Next run I plan to cut the run time to 30 mins and see how they look. I am also not depriming. My load volume is way too high to run a separate deprime prior to cleaning.

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I went to Good Will and got a food dehydrator for 10bucks and I can dry 5lbs of brass in about 20minutes with it. In the summer I set outside for about 1hr and it's to hot to touch LOL.

I use 5lbs of Brass to 7lbs of Pins

2x 40 Casings of Lemishine

2x Drops Brasso

Run for about 1hr 20minutes and bam nice and shiny and clean.

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On pistol brass since I don't knock the primers out before I wet tumble them I use zero pins. I run a 20" long 6" pvc drum and I fill it 3/4 full of brass add cold water to a level above the brass then add armor all wash and wax and a teaspoon of lemi-shine powder. I run my batches for 1 hour spin off the pins in a Dillon separator while rinsing with cold water. To dry them I lay them out on a towel over night in a conditioned air room. They are dry and ready to load in about 12 hrs. I also have a 40" drum for larger batches but it get pretty heavy when full of brass and water. The only time I use SS pins is tumbling with primers out and I don't use more than 5 lbs regardless of which drum I tumble in and have great results. Spinning off the pins is the biggest PITA of the entire process IMO.

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On pistol brass since I don't knock the primers out before I wet tumble them I use zero pins. I run a 20" long 6" pvc drum and I fill it 3/4 full of brass add cold water to a level above the brass then add armor all wash and wax and a teaspoon of lemi-shine powder. I run my batches for 1 hour spin off the pins in a Dillon separator while rinsing with cold water.

You use zero pins but you the spin off the pins with a separator?

Curious how much wash and wax you use and do you feel it works better than Dawn (or other alternatives)?

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I stated I use them on brass I decap first (rifle brass). The process for pistol brass is identical except the SS pins are not added. I use 2 oz of wash and wax in the 20" drum and 4 oz in the 40" drum. The biggest difference I see using it is pistol brass doesn't stick to the expander like it does with dawn detergent. Also the brass seems to tarnish slower.

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I stated I use them on brass I decap first (rifle brass). The process for pistol brass is identical except the SS pins are not added. I use 2 oz of wash and wax in the 20" drum and 4 oz in the 40" drum. The biggest difference I see using it is pistol brass doesn't stick to the expander like it does with dawn detergent. Also the brass seems to tarnish slower.

Thanks, I may have to try it, I have been using Dawn which cleans well enough, but it seems people are getting even better results with wash and wax products (just as clean with less tarnish and more lubricity).

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I put a squirt of zip wash and wax, and a sprinkle of Lemi Shine. 1 hour tumbling, separate pins from brass, rinse thoroughly, put the brass in towels, fold up edges, roll back and forth a few times, dump onto new towel, repeat 4 times, then let them air dry for a day. I don't deprime, in my mind that would be excessive brass handling. ;)

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Stupid question. Are you guys using just any water? Ive read that you need to use the Distilled water to prevent water marks. Here in AZ the tap water is very calcium rich and I've heard people complain about watermarks which has kept me away from making the switch.

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Stupid question. Are you guys using just any water? Ive read that you need to use the Distilled water to prevent water marks. Here in AZ the tap water is very calcium rich and I've heard people complain about watermarks which has kept me away from making the switch.

The Lemi Shine acts as a water conditioner.

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Stupid question. Are you guys using just any water? Ive read that you need to use the Distilled water to prevent water marks. Here in AZ the tap water is very calcium rich and I've heard people complain about watermarks which has kept me away from making the switch.

The Lemi Shine acts as a water conditioner.

Most Def heading to the store to get some lemi shine then. I love how shiny it looks.

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