jeepman24211 Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 When cleaning brass, How long does it normaly take? The brass I have is not too dirty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 I'm picky about my brass. It gets two hours in walnut then another two in corn cob for final polishing. I use a cheap timer and set it and forget it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rfwobbly Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 (edited) Mr Jeep - Back in the late Jurassic period when I started reloading, all we did was wipe the loose crud off with a soft cloth. Not much more is required. You might like to do more, but it is not a requirement for reloading. These days I leave cases (primers still in place) in a vibratory tumbler with corn cob and wax for about 1 hour. Edited April 17, 2011 by rfwobbly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 1 1/2 hours in fine walnut and it's clean enough for me.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Ryder Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 1 1/2 hours in fine walnut and it's clean enough for me.... 3 hours in rough walnut is good enough for me. Then I tumble loaded rounds in fine walnut for 30 minutes. Can't tell them apart from brand spanking new rounds! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JakeMartens Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 hour or so in walnut, good to go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Cleaning brass is like a personal preference...It's not really necessary, but it makes it look good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neomet Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Depends. 9 and 40 about an hour or so. SC I leave in for about a week because I want to find every one of those little buggers that hits the ground and while I still mark the headstamps to ID them as mine having them super bright and shiny makes it way easier for me to find after I shoot a stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walsh Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 I'm picky about my brass. It gets two hours in walnut then another two in corn cob for final polishing. I use a cheap timer and set it and forget it. Kevin, I'm considering buying a 2nd tumbler and doing what you do. Plus, if one goes out of service I am not SOL. What timers do you use? I have no idea what a cheap timer is. I have Lowes, Home Depot, and Walmart near me if what you bought is available there. Thanks in advance, Walsh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueridge Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 I use a mix of walnut and corn cob in a vibratory case cleaner and leave it in for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. My reloading dies work smoother with the cleaned brass as opposed to just the cursory "wiped off" brass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob DuBois Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Couple of hours max, usually load the tumbler and go do something else, unload it when I finish. Using corn cob media and brasso. The timer's a good idea I have forgot or fell asleep watching TV and the brass was really clean when I woke up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Depends if i remember to turn my tumbler off before i go to bed. Usually and hour and half or so is suffiecient enough for me. Some of my brass has had well over 12 hours though if i leave my tumbler on overnight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLSlim Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Almost all my shooting is indoors, so the brass is never too bad. Unless I forget, I usually don't tumble more than 30-45 minutes. As rfwobbly reported, back in the day, many of us didn't tumble brass at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knuckles Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 I use a lyman 1200 and it takes about 2-4hrs depending on how clean you want your brass and i use cob media, i would rather do them for 4hrs that way i know they are really clean, i guess its a piece of mind thing for me as the cleaner the brass the less problems you will have when reloading, some may say its over the top but i would rather be safe then sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calishootr Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 2 to 3 hrs in some walnut media i got from the pet store in a 50 lb bag that i usually add some liquid car wax or brasso to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastmtnbiker33w Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 I'm picky about my brass. It gets two hours in walnut then another two in corn cob for final polishing. I use a cheap timer and set it and forget it. Kevin, I'm considering buying a 2nd tumbler and doing what you do. Plus, if one goes out of service I am not SOL. What timers do you use? I have no idea what a cheap timer is. I have Lowes, Home Depot, and Walmart near me if what you bought is available there. Thanks in advance, Walsh Get one of the timers that will shut off your tumbler. They are in the lighting section. You should be able to get an old skool style with the 24 hour dial that you stick little switches in there to turn things on and off. I have one that is at least 25 years old. I'll fill my dillon tumbler with 223 brass, cover it with a mix of walnut and corncob, add some polish, and let it rip for 4 hours. Nice and shiny! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidnal Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 Everyone has a brass cleaning recipe, this is mine: #1 Tumble in Walnut + a little mineral spirits to keep the dust down. 2-3 hours depening on how dirty. This cleans the cases well but they aren't polished. #2 After loading Tumble in coarse Corn media (from Grainger) + a little flitz polish + a little mineral spirits. 30-40 minutes. Removes case lube and polishes. Larger media won't get stuck in HP bullets. Makes the prettiest bullets around. For rifle brass perform #1 then resize/trim, then #2. I have 2-gal buckets, one for corn and the other for walnut. The Woods timer rocks: http://http://www.amazon.com/Woods-59377-Digital-Appliance-Settings/dp/B000IKQRTU On my second once d/t a lightning strike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RussellJohnson Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 (edited) Everybody does have their own reciepe, If is not very dirty, corn cob media is fine, I like a mixture of walnut and corncob with about a 1/2 oz of polishing formula, I prefer Flitz. If its not very dirty 1 1/2 to 2 hours is good, if its dirtier than normal I'll go 3-4 hours. Good luck Edited April 19, 2011 by RussellJohnson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walküre Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 As many have already said, not much is required, but you can go as long as you want. On average, I usually tumble a batch for about 10 hours - I turn it on when I leave for work, then turn it off when I get back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnthonyL Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 When I first started reloading I heard stories about tumbling for 6-12 hours. I quickly found out that is nowhere near necessary unless you just have to have mirror finish brass. Personally there is no guarantee I'm getting back every single piece I fire so I don't stress how shiny it is. I've found any more than 2 hours in corn cob w/ brasso and it's a waste. Brass comes out very clean and shinny. I would say anything between one and two hours is plenty depending on your personal taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 When I first started reloading I heard stories about tumbling for 6-12 hours. I quickly found out that is nowhere near necessary unless you just have to have mirror finish brass. Personally there is no guarantee I'm getting back every single piece I fire so I don't stress how shiny it is. I've found any more than 2 hours in corn cob w/ brasso and it's a waste. Brass comes out very clean and shinny. I would say anything between one and two hours is plenty depending on your personal taste. +1 and....Welcome to the forum! I see that the above was your first post! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmchambers06 Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 A dash of Nufinish and half a drier sheet to keep the dust down! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeepman24211 Posted April 20, 2011 Author Share Posted April 20, 2011 Do the dryer sheets really work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blaster113 Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 gotta try the dryer sheet trick. I tumble brass 1-2 hours in corncob with 2-3 capfuls of Dillon case cleaner. the newer the media is the less I tumble the brass, right before I change the media I have to let her rip for 2 hours minimum. I tried some pet store corn cob media which turned to powder in the tumbler; I guess I gotta try different ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A63111 Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 Don't know if the drier sheet does anything for the shine however it does help keep the dust down and re/absorbs some of the dirt that would otherwise gunk up the bowl and fly into the air. 2 to 4 hours in corncob with Dillon Rapid Polish usually get them really shiny in and old Lyman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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