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Home made brass polish?


bossharley

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Nu finish and odorless mineral spirits like the above said. No need to try to come with anything totally homemade.

It will separate when it sits for long so shake it up before adding just a tiny bit to the media of choice.

I put mine in an old small Dawn bottle. I refill it about every two years.

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Nu finish and odorless mineral spirits like the above said. No need to try to come with anything totally homemade.

It will separate when it sits for long so shake it up before adding just a tiny bit to the media of choice.

I put mine in an old small Dawn bottle. I refill it about every two years.

In what ratio do you mix mineral spirits with Nu Finish?

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About a 50/50 mix I would guess.

I want it thinned so it will blend with the corn a little faster.

A few notes:

Put it in the media of choice and let the tumbler run awhile so globs of polish and media don't clog up any cases. I run my fingers through it while running to blend it quicker.

I generally run a small line of the mix around the bowl instead of just shooting it in one place. Again this helps with blending.

THEN add brass.

Don't put too much polish mix in as it really doesn't help and it seems to kill my media faster. It turns green and quits working much sooner if I overdose.

I only add polish about every third batch. Like I said it doesn't take much.

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About a 50/50 mix I would guess.

I want it thinned so it will blend with the corn a little faster.

A few notes:

Put it in the media of choice and let the tumbler run awhile so globs of polish and media don't clog up any cases. I run my fingers through it while running to blend it quicker.

I generally run a small line of the mix around the bowl instead of just shooting it in one place. Again this helps with blending.

THEN add brass.

Don't put too much polish mix in as it really doesn't help and it seems to kill my media faster. It turns green and quits working much sooner if I overdose.

I only add polish about every third batch. Like I said it doesn't take much.

Pay attention to what Sarge say's. If you don't let the tumbler run for at least 15 minutes BEFORE adding the brass (this when first mixing in a new batch of NuFinish) you might just end up with a wad of polish and media inside of one of your cases. IF you don't notice the wad and you load that piece of brass, when you shoot it you will have a CATASTROPHIC spike in chamber pressure and may end up wearing little pieces of your gun!

Pat

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Hello: I don't use the Mineral Spirits with the Nu Finish car wax. I found that the mineral spirits makes the powder smoke more. I also add the car wax after 3 or 4 batches of brass and let it mix in before adding the brass. I use corn cob for the final polishing. Thanks, Eric

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  • 2 weeks later...

Anything that will work in a wet tumbler? The Vinegar/salt/flower mix might work. I've been using lemishine and it works well, just wondering if there is something cheaper that I've already got laying around the house that I can use.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I use car polish in my tumbler but haven't added any mineral spirits to the media. Would adding mineral spirits to the media already having car polish in it do any good? Would it hold down the dust problems any?

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I tried mineral spirits in my Walnut shells to help with dust but it caused a thick walnut paste on the inside of the tumbler. I'll just stick to bounce dryer sheets to keep the dust down.

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  • 3 years later...

I have been using Nu Finish and oderless mineral spirits for years. One nice plus to using this is that it leaves a thin coat of the wax on the cases and eases reloading. Gotta love that.

Joe W.

I'm reviving a zombie thread. Woooooo..... scary.........

I'm curious if the folks who use mineral spirits do so in plastic vibratory machines (such as a Frankford Arsenal vibrator) and, if so, if the mineral spirits degenerate the plastic bowl at all?

Thanks,

J

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I use Nu-Finish straight but evidently use way more than most people. When I go to a new batch of Fine Grade walnut hull I put a 1/2" wide strip of Nu-Finish all the way around the tumbler in the center of the walnut hull and let it run, without brass, for an hour or so. This lasts for the life of that batch of walnut hull. I've never had it turn green or any other color doing it this way and the brass really comes out looking very well.

After I stainless pin I separate the pins from the brass in an enclosed separator and then dump the brass in the vibrator with the walnut hull. This dries the brass, although there really isn't much water on it as most comes off in the separator.

If you don't have one you really should get an enclosed separator as you don't have to worry about losing pins or having to pick them up with a magnet, also you can just pour them back in the tumbler after the separation.

s7_214213_999_01_zps5f2e3784.jpg

They come in a variety of colors so pick it up at the least expensive location. They are all made by Berrys.

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Just to follow up, I tried the vinegar, salt, and flour mixture... and hated it. All it did was clump my media into little walnut shell cookies, no matter the stirring I did before dumping the brass in. I then tried a mixture that omitted the flour, and I ended up with green tinged brass. Thankfully it was only a small test batch. I'm pretty sure the only polishing that occurred was from the walnut media itself, and I would have been better off just vibrating the brass in plain media.

On the other hand, the Nu Finish and odorless mineral spirits is a great combo. It does give the brass a slight chemical smell, but it's not so bad as to be a deal breaker. It was even able to get rid of most of the green on my brass from the above failed experiment. I found my new polish!

EDIT NOTE TO STEVERA: Once this batch of shells is sufficiently dirt to toss, I'll try a batch with just plain Nu Finish and no mineral spirits-- if it cleans just as well, then I'll go that route to eliminate the chemical smell.

Edited by jkrispies
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  • 2 weeks later...

Here's my combo:

45% mineral spirits

45% Nu Finish

10% Turtle Wax chrome polish

Mix it in any old spray bottle. Shake it well before adding 5 or 6 sprays to the tumbling media. This will prevent it from clumping. Cleans/shines nicely and lasts a lot longer then just NF and MS.

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