cleaning your brass

[94zcar]

Hey guys...I just recently started reloading. been thinking about it for the past year, once I bought a cz82 I decided to get everthing I needed and start loading. I can't find 9X18 locally.

I found a nice heavy steel bench on craigs list for $40. It's about 2'X5' and weighs around 250-300 pounds. So far I loaded 25 rounds and shot them today through my EZ9. They shot really good about a 3-4 inch group at 10 yds standing.

Anyway what do you use to clean your brass. I have been just rinsing my brass with water and letting them dry on newspaper. -Rod-

[Bawanna]

A tumbler of some sort is the ticket for cleaning brass. Theres different types of media, walnut shells or compounds made for that purpose, some use other stuff, lots of choices.
You can add a little polish to shine things up.

Never have to get the cases wet or wait to dry, just dump em in and let em roll around awhile.

[jfrey]

I use the tumbler from Midway (not too pricey) and lizzard bedding from Pets-Mart. Throw in a cap full of Nu-finish car wax and a cut up dryer sheet and you are good to go. Run it for two or three hours and brass looks better than new.

I would think that possibly loading a case that wasn't fully dry would result in a squib load or no fire at all. I have heard of folks washing shotgun hulls in the washing machine. Years back I loaded thousands of rounds of shotgun ammo and never found it necesary.

I believe the tumbler is the best option.

[OldLincoln]

That lizard bedding is crushed walnut shells at the consistency of very course ground coffee and it cleans very well with the Nu-Finish. Here is a pic of mine note how cleaned inside the 45 ACP casings.

http://i762.photobucket.com/albums/xx269/OldLincoln/Misc/P1000910.jpg

[Tilos]

If you are going to wet wash anyway, add some liquid laundry detergent, and rag into a plastic container with a lid and shake it around, soak, rinse.
I do this before tumbling to remove the grit/sand.
For me, drying time is not a problem in the high desert.

Tilos

[earle8888]

Old Lincoln--Are you one of those guy's that de-prime before cleaning?

[94zcar]

About how long does the media last? And can you clean and reuse the media?

If I just keep washing my brass with water to save some money would that be a problem wearing out the dies?

That brass looks real good Old Lincoln.

[jfrey]

How long the media will last depends on how much you use it. I've never cleaned any media, just toss it out on the lawn and get some new stuff. The Nu-Finish polish will lube your cases and make loading easier. I don't think washing will wear the cases out any more than tumbling.

[Tilos]

94zcar:
Yes, you can wash walnut shell media, tied in a pillow case, in the washing machine and even dry it that way.
But remember it has lead in it too, not something I want in my washing machine/dryer.
Some people actually clean brass, in a mesh laundry bag, in the washing machine.

Now, if OldLincoln would tell us where he found a 25# bag of walnut media for $11.50, we'd all have enough for a lifetime.

just sayin'
Tilos

[earle8888]

Yep!!!! Give me the address.

[OldLincoln]

Old Lincoln--Are you one of those guy's that de-prime before cleaning?I am so new at this I have done it both ways. But, My mentor tells me that cleaning before de-priming saves wear on the die as grit is gone.

The stuff I bought at our local Whitie's Pet Shop was very reasonable. I double checked the price and it was $11.39 plus tax. You might have better luck with the manufacturer (pic below) but don't drive up the price.

http://i762.photobucket.com/albums/xx269/OldLincoln/Reloading/P1000928.jpg

http://i762.photobucket.com/albums/xx269/OldLincoln/Reloading/P1000925.jpg

http://i762.photobucket.com/albums/xx269/OldLincoln/Reloading/P1000927.jpg

http://i762.photobucket.com/albums/xx269/OldLincoln/Reloading/P1000926.jpg

[Tilos]

OL:
Thanks for the info
What kind of pet do you have to pretend you have to get this stuff?
from the address on the label, it looks like it could be a left coast thing.
I'm on the right coast, for now, but I have a bag of this stuff:

Kaytee Walnut Bird Litter - Litter - Bird - PetSmart (http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753590)

Tilos

[OldLincoln]

Don't know Tilos, but it's a good question. I just saw a small plastic of the stuff that looked like the right thing and a 25lb bag with a similar label. The lady said it was the same and there you have it. I don't know if it's the same stuff others are using or not but it sure works well for me in my Tubby Tumbler.

[recoilguy]

Its for Lizard bedding or bird liter at the pet store I get off too, Works great!!!! Reusing it to save money at the price you get it for at the pet store is almost not worth the time it takes to repackage and store and reuse. IMHO
RCG

[94zcar]

Thanks for the replies guys, I decided to not be such a cheap bastard, so I just ordered a Lyman 1200 Auto flo. I like that it has a drain plug. Optics planet had a pretty good price.

I'll see if I can find some of that walnut shell at the local pet shop and that some of that new finish car polish. That looks like it works real good.

Old Lncoln.
Hmmm...that is interesting that they labeled it for animal feed, that would pretty hard to digest I would think.

[OldLincoln]

I don't know what would eat this as feed, but I know some species of birds use gravel in their craw to grind up food. If I think of it I might call them next week and ask. Others say it's used as in the floor of bird cages and bedding for reptiles to slither around in. Me, I just use it for cleaning brass.

PS: Just occurred to me to remind you to get a timer that will shut off your tumbler after a selected amount of time. I'm always asfraid of forgetting and coming out a couple days later to find walnut mixed with brass shavings.

[Bawanna]

I don't think you'll ever find shavings. I've left mine to run for days and it was just pretty as can be. Wasteful in the extreme but real pretty.
I'm gonna replace mine with that stuff and the nu finish too.

[94zcar]

great idea using a timer.

[WGSNewnan]

anybody who sales media blasting equipment will have walnut shells. i typically buy 50# bags of walnut and corn cob all the time. i pay about 30 bucks for 50 lbs.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#walnut-shell-blasting-media/=a892pt

[WGSNewnan]

i deprime first - use walnut for cleaning - and corn cob with a little lemon juice to polish. typically it will clean everything completely including the primer pocket.

[recoilguy]

Lemon juice.....never thought of it, but it makes sense

RCG

[OldLincoln]

Thanks for the link WGSNewman (WGSN?). I have glass beads about the same granularity as sand in my pool filter. I've been wondering about that for media and it would sure be easy to clean. If I were a big time user I'd give it a try, but using less than a quart of media in my Tubby means my 25lbs will last, and last, and last.

[Tilos]

While we are wondering about different media, rice is a good alternate tumbling media.
Uncooked of course, and the brown rice is healthier for your brass:rolleyes:

And another link to walnut, ships free:

http://www.drillspot.com/products/521055/econoline_526040g-40_40_lbs_blast_media

just sayin'
Tilos

[WGSNewnan]

just FYI - 50# will last for years! im still using a bag of walnut i bought 5 years ago. most of the time i bag it up and split with friends.
also - a little liquid brass polish in the corn cob polishes up to a beautiful finish also.

[OldLincoln]

just FYI - 50# will last for years! im still using a bag of walnut i bought 5 years ago.Does it pick up the humidity in the garage? Do you seal your bag?

[WGSNewnan]

Does it pick up the humidity in the garage? Do you seal your bag?no problems with the walnut.:) the corn cob will if left open. i typically buy gallon zip lock bags and store it in them. that way when when my broke a** friends come over to borrow some all i have to do is grab one.

[OldLincoln]

Zip locks sound like a good idea. This way I can box them and set it on a shelf. I don't want a 25lb bag sitting on my garage floor for 5 years.

[getsome]

OldLincoln you got a great deal on your Lyman case cleaner...I would like to add a plug here for Lyman...I have a Lyman 1200 vibrating cleaner and it had about 20 hours use on it and the last time I tried to use it I noticed the media wasn't moving at all even though the motor and vibrating mechanism seemed to be working...After thinking about it I remembered running it on an old bath mat to keep the noise down and it probably caused the motor to overheat due to the fan being blocked and the motor was then to weak to power up the shaker bowl with a load of media...Well I called Lyman and they said to ship it to them and they would try and repair it...About 10 days later I got a box from them with a brand new machine in it, all at no cost to me...They even picked up the shipping....OldLincoln if you need any parts for your machine just call Lyman and they will take care of it....I have noticed that the reloading companies have great customer service...I have a Redding single stage press and I broke the primer bar arm trying to tighten it and they sent me the parts I needed at no charge....I also have a RCBS green plastic bullet puller hammer and I wasn't paying attention and hit it on the wrong side and broke the plastic cap that holds the shell holder and bullet in place, again after a call to RCBS asking if I could buy just the cap they said, no problem and in a few days I had a brand new complete puller tool...No charge...It's nice to know that some companies value your business and stand behind their products even when the problem was in no way the fault of the product...

[OldLincoln]

Thanks for your post. I'll keep that in mind should my 'lil tubby quit on me. Also about the other things being handled in a refreshing manner.