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Wet tumbling solution


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I have a Frankfort Arsenal large wet tumbler, it holds about 6qrts. 

 

I use hot water

1Tbs Dawn

1 45acp case full of Lemmie Shine

 

Tumble for about 90min

 

Works fantastic. However, I had to make some other changes as well.

1. I now decap before I wet tumble. (I had a bad experience at a Bullseye match with wet primer pockets.) I have a Lee Loadmast with a tool head with only a universal decanting dedicated to decapping after a match.

2. Dry in a brass drier for at least an hour, 2 is better.

3. Lube. Wet tumbling gets brass WAY more clean than dry. Even 45acp and 9mm cases need some kind of lube. I was doing the Hornady One-Shot in a zip-loc bag trick until I found that as ammo ages (1yr for me) it gets gummy and had feeding /mag issues. So, now after it's dry, I dry tumbler with corn cob and 2Tbs of mineral spirits for only 15min. (It's an extra step I didn't want to do, but its been a good move).

 

Edited by Hammbone
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I use a Lyman Cyclone.....1200 x  9mm cases, 2 capfull of ArmorAll Wash and Wax, 1/2  X 9mm case of Lemishine and fill with water until the brass is just covered. No pins. Tumble for 1.5 to 2 hours depending on the state of the brass before you started. Rinse and repeat until you have cleaned all your dirty brass.

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12 minutes ago, Service Desk said:

...2 capfull of ArmorAll Wash and Wax...

Interesting. 

I have found I have to lube brass since I started wet tumbling (Dawn and Lemmie Shine, lube is a work on process). Does the ArmorAll Wash and WAX eliminate the need for lube?

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4 hours ago, Hammbone said:

Interesting. 

I have found I have to lube brass since I started wet tumbling (Dawn and Lemmie Shine, lube is a work on process). Does the ArmorAll Wash and WAX eliminate the need for lube?

I use the wash and was and it's definitely better than dish soap but I still hit it with oneshot. Toss in an old box, spray, shake around, and then let evaporate and it's a big difference.

 

My process is tumble for 90 minutes or so, spin try in an old media separator, dump is a towel and roll it dry by grabbing each end of the towel and then into the dehydrator. I usually have one batch in the tumbler and one in the dryer and just rotate all day. I clean brass like twice a year once I have a few 5 gal buckets filled.

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12 hours ago, Hammbone said:

Interesting. 

I have found I have to lube brass since I started wet tumbling (Dawn and Lemmie Shine, lube is a work on process). Does the ArmorAll Wash and WAX eliminate the need for lube?

The wax probably does reduce the sizing effort a bit, but nowhere near the reduction provided by Dillon Case Lube or Oneshot. I only lube when using a U die...or Hornady TiN sizer. The brass stays bright for much longer with ArmorAll Wash and Wax, so I guess that may be the wax. Give it a go and see if you like it.

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13 hours ago, Service Desk said:

I use a Lyman Cyclone.....1200 x  9mm cases, 2 capfull of ArmorAll Wash and Wax, 1/2  X 9mm case of Lemishine and fill with water until the brass is just covered. No pins. Tumble for 1.5 to 2 hours depending on the state of the brass before you started. Rinse and repeat until you have cleaned all your dirty brass.

I have a homemade wet tumbler that uses a piece of 6" PVC waste pipe with an end cap on one end and a clean out on the other. Problem is its hard to pick up when full as it tall and skinny. I really like the look of the Cyclone drum as it has built in grooves that you can use to grip it. Do you mind giving me the following dimensions so I can verify that the Cyclone drum will work on my DIY base?

 

1. What's the centerline to centerline on the base drive rods?

2. What's the overall width of the drum (widest dia. outside to outside)?

3. What the overall length of the drum (end to end including cap)?

 

Thanks in advance.

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58 minutes ago, Service Desk said:

The wax probably does reduce the sizing effort a bit, but nowhere near the reduction provided by Dillon Case Lube or Oneshot. I only lube when using a U die...or Hornady TiN sizer. The brass stays bright for much longer with ArmorAll Wash and Wax, so I guess that may be the wax. Give it a go and see if you like it.

I've used One-Shot. In fact, it was my exclusive go-to way to lube. I would put a couple squirts into a 1gal zip lock bag, put in the brass, the shake and tumble for a couple minutes. The problem I had is that after about 6mo, some loaded ammo got sticky and I had some FTF issues with my 1911 45acp. After some investigation I noticed the insides of the mags were very gummy. For now, I assume the one-shot caused this? Can't prove it.

Right now what I'm doing is, and it's a huge PIA, is after done in my brass drier, I put the brass in a dry media tumbler with clean corn cob and mineral spirits.

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41 minutes ago, Hammbone said:

I've used One-Shot. In fact, it was my exclusive go-to way to lube. I would put a couple squirts into a 1gal zip lock bag, put in the brass, the shake and tumble for a couple minutes. The problem I had is that after about 6mo, some loaded ammo got sticky and I had some FTF issues with my 1911 45acp. After some investigation I noticed the insides of the mags were very gummy. For now, I assume the one-shot caused this? Can't prove it.

Right now what I'm doing is, and it's a huge PIA, is after done in my brass drier, I put the brass in a dry media tumbler with clean corn cob and mineral spirits.

clays powder?

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53 minutes ago, AHI said:

clays powder?

No. Vihtavuori N310.  It's my go-to bullseye load for 45acp. (I mostly shoot bullseye now (matches, not Alliant's powder), but hang out here from time to time because I still learn stuff).

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just asking because clays is the only powder . That I know of that reacts with Hornady one shot. Had the same issues. Plus a lot of failures of the powder to fully burn. never had the gummy residue. My procedure at that time was to load as much ammo as I could in the cold months.

Went back to Bullseye powder and some N310. All the issues went away. This was when I only shot Bullseye competition and skeet.

Edited by AHI
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20 hours ago, Hammbone said:

Interesting. 

I have found I have to lube brass since I started wet tumbling (Dawn and Lemmie Shine, lube is a work on process). Does the ArmorAll Wash and WAX eliminate the need for lube?

Doesn’t totally eliminate the need but I think you can use less. It really helps with sheeting off the water and cases seem to dry faster and stay clean longer, don’t oxidize as fast. 

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