SWHlctx Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 A few weeks ago I saw a discussion on a company named "Back to Brass". In one of the posts on the thread someone posted a homemade formula they use and let the brass soak in it overnight which supposedly did a great job of cleaning the brass. I wanted to give it a try, but can't find the thread with the formula. All I can remember is it had Dawn, vinegar and something else. Does anyone remember the thread and/or the formula? Or does anyone have their own formula they could share? The solution was NOT for wet tumbling. The poster said they put the brass in the solution and let them soak overnight. Let it dry and it was good to go. I want to give it a try to see if there is anything to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenr Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 More likely it was water one thing to remember is that white vinegar or any vinegar is Acetic acid! Something also to consider is that vinegar is used to remove galvanized plating off of hardware pior to welding to a void the zinc fumes. So be advised that the vinegar takes zinc from the brass, granted not much but repeated uses do add up. the 3 factors that are used in metal clening and ptina's are time, temp and strength of the patin or cleaner. Full strength 4 hours soak and shake. you can see the flash rusting starting when the items are taken out of the vingar and just dried. If you do use this rinse after removing the brass and dry. Rinsing neutrilizes the action of Acetic acid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve RA Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 I'm not sure that soaking will clean brass anywhere near what SS pin tumbling will do. Try it and then compare to tumbled brass and make your own decision as to which does the best job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave33 Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Try this instead. Get some citric acid from your local Walmart. It's in the canning section and a small bottle will only cost about $3. Heat some water to a boil and add about 2 teaspoons of citric acid per quart of water. Pour this over the brass and you can literally stand there and watch your brass turn shiny again. Stir it up a few times while it soaks. Only takes a few minutes for the citric acid to do its thing. Pour over strainer so you can keep your citric acid bath and reuse, just heat it up again. Don't use metal pots for soaking the brass or stirring it up, that causes another reaction you don't want. Only downside is waiting for the brass to dry. I just leave mine spread out under a ceiling fan over night and they are good to go. Results in clean shiny brass with very little time and effort, I did about 3k pieces a few nights ago in a little over an hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve RA Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Out of curiosity, what does the interior of the brass and primer pockets look like after this ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glynnm45 Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 I'll try this on some tumble cleaned brass that has tarnished while setting around to be loaded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave33 Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Out of curiosity, what does the interior of the brass and primer pockets look like after this ??? I don't deprime so nothing for the primer pockets but the inside of the cases are fairly clean. Clean enough for me anyway. I will try to post some before and after pics tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave33 Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 I'll try this on some tumble cleaned brass that has tarnished while setting around to be loaded. It will work well for that. Plus the citric acid will protect the brass for a pretty long time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beastly Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 I'll try this on some tumble cleaned brass that has tarnished while setting around to be loaded. It will work well for that. Plus the citric acid will protect the brass for a pretty long time. Not so much in my experience, depending on humidity level brass is stored on. A little One Shot works well as an anti-tarnish. Also, isn't Lemishine just a non-food grade citric acid? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave33 Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Yes, lemishine is largely citric acid. My brass is stored in my reloading room, which is a finished room over my garage that is climate controlled. I'm sure that helps with longevity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWHlctx Posted December 3, 2015 Author Share Posted December 3, 2015 I clean my brass with a rotary tumbler/SS pins now and it works great. I'm not really looking for a new cleaning process, but as Steve pointed out above, I just want to do a comparison with the "soaking" method. I think the problem is I have too much time on my hands this week which is not a good thing. I usually end up in some sort of mess. I'm in Houston, so drying in the warm months isn't a problem. I bought a used food dehydrator off eBay for $30 and works great in our cooler weather (like now). I can dry about 1K 9mm in an hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDA Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 (edited) I'll try this on some tumble cleaned brass that has tarnished while setting around to be loaded. It will work well for that. Plus the citric acid will protect the brass for a pretty long time. Citric acid doesn't provide any protection to brass. If left on the brass it can actually do the opposite. It should be rinsed well to fully remove it from the brass or neutralized before drying/storage. Edited December 4, 2015 by RDA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave33 Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Citric acid doesn't provide any protection to brass. If left on the brass it can actually do the opposite. It should be rinsed well to fully remove it from the brass or neutralized before drying/storage. I do rinse my brass after the citric bath. Here is a 37 page thread about citric acid brass cleaning, including some chemistry information somewhere in there about how the citric acid passivates the brass. http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?83572-Citric-acid-brass-cleaner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quaker Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Here's my formula for good for about 400 brass cases. About 10 minute process. 1. I put my brass in a transparent bluish plastic bottle container (got from walmart $4 meant for drinking water) 2. Put my brass in and pour in boiling until brass is 1 inch under 3. Let it sit for 5 minutes for water to work on the crud. I don't put lemi -shine at this point at it may turn my brass pink due to brass zinc leak 4. Then shake the container just to keep the brass moving back and fourth 5. Then put 1 tablespoon of Lemi-shine and 2 squirts of dish detergent (tried wash and wax just to see if I could get away not putting using lube but no luck) 6. Shake the container to slightly agitate the brass for about 5 minutes 7. Then rinse until the water becomes clear and not soapy My brass is semi-shiny but not shiny new, but its clean even on the inside including the primer pocket (if I deprime before I do my cleaning process) I used to use stainless pin in my old rotary and run for a long time, I thought its the pin the cleans the primer pocket, base from my process, its the soaking in hot water and lemi shine that does the job. I also use an old towel to remove excess water then on to a dehydrator to dry the case further. Hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDA Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Citric acid doesn't provide any protection to brass. If left on the brass it can actually do the opposite. It should be rinsed well to fully remove it from the brass or neutralized before drying/storage. I do rinse my brass after the citric bath. Here is a 37 page thread about citric acid brass cleaning, including some chemistry information somewhere in there about how the citric acid passivates the brass. http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?83572-Citric-acid-brass-cleaner I am not convinced that the citric acid passivation of stainless steel correlates to the cleaning of brass (and the potential protection it may lend). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BitchinCamaro Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 (edited) Is it just me, or has the advent of the cheap SS tumbler started a pissing contest over who can get the shiniest brass? There is an old timer in town who ditched his 5 or 6 vibratory tumbler/media bookshelf for a SS tumbler after I showed him how fast I ran eleventy billion pieces of 9mm in tap water and lemishine in a Frankford Arsenal drum. Now he's like a deranged alchemist trying to find the perfect combination of chemicals for SS cleaning. Of course, he tells me about his findings every chance he gets. He inhaled too much tumbling dust over the years I think. Edited December 7, 2015 by BitchinCamaro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDA Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 Is it just me, or has the advent of the cheap SS tumbler started a pissing contest over who can get the shiniest brass? There is an old timer in town who ditched his 5 or 6 vibratory tumbler/media bookshelf for a SS tumbler after I showed him how fast I ran eleventy billion pieces of 9mm in tap water and lemishine in a Frankford Arsenal drum. Now he's like a deranged alchemist trying to find the perfect combination of chemicals for SS cleaning. Of course, he tells me about his findings every chance he gets. He inhaled too much tumbling dust over the years I think. There may be something to that but honestly, you can only get it so clean and so shiny. I have take incredibly nasty range brass and after 1 1/2 hours in the FA tumbler with Dawn and Lemishine, it is as clean and shiny as brand new Starline brass. That works for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Ryder Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 2 cap fulls of NU finish car polish with 2 cap fulls of Mineral spirits. Stir it around in walnut media before adding brass. Almost as good as steel pins! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfalcon00 Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 Is it just me, or has the advent of the cheap SS tumbler started a pissing contest over who can get the shiniest brass? There is an old timer in town who ditched his 5 or 6 vibratory tumbler/media bookshelf for a SS tumbler after I showed him how fast I ran eleventy billion pieces of 9mm in tap water and lemishine in a Frankford Arsenal drum. Now he's like a deranged alchemist trying to find the perfect combination of chemicals for SS cleaning. Of course, he tells me about his findings every chance he gets. He inhaled too much tumbling dust over the years I think. Haha, yeah I have wondered the same thing myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Miles Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 I showed him how fast I ran eleventy billion pieces of 9mm in tap water and lemishine ELEVENTY BILLION!! I've told you a million times not to exaggerate!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outerlimits Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 2 cap fulls of NU finish car polish with 2 cap fulls of Mineral spirits. Stir it around in walnut media before adding brass. Almost as good as steel pins! BTDT, Not even close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Ryder Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 2 cap fulls of NU finish car polish with 2 cap fulls of Mineral spirits. Stir it around in walnut media before adding brass. Almost as good as steel pins!BTDT, Not even close.Leaves a protected shine. Steel pins do not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDA Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 2 cap fulls of NU finish car polish with 2 cap fulls of Mineral spirits. Stir it around in walnut media before adding brass. Almost as good as steel pins!BTDT, Not even close.Leaves a protected shine. Steel pins do not. Steel pins don't, nor does walnut media. But what you add to the water can (just like what you add to the walnut media). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Ryder Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 How do you dry the brass? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDA Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 How do you dry the brass? I spin it in a media separator and lay it out on a towel to dry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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