1st attempt at wet tumbling

[Nutmeg Ryder, SASS # 74966]

I have just started to wet tumble, the lead level was up to 24.0 

Did one fairly large batch of 45c deprimed, no pins, Dawn and lemishine.  Real clean, dried them in a disposable baking sheet sitting under the wood stove.  

 

did a batch of 45 70 that had been soaked, but not cleaned, deprimed them and used the pins.  Really clean now, but man those pins are evil.  Probably save them for the BP stuff only.  

 

Lead has come down by 3 points, but here in New England we are not shooting much these days.  

[Texas Jack Black]

16 hours ago, Randy Saint Eagle, SASS # 64903 said:

I got out all the water I could then spread them on an old towel on the garage floor with a fan blowing across them for several hours. I loaded 100 rounds today after checking inside each case to verify they were dry.  They loaded easy and seemed like less resistance than loading dry tumbled brass. I think I’m sold on the wet tumbling.

 

Randy

 I tried the garage drying but the  Boss came home and put her car in the garage and flattened the brass but they were dry.

[Griff]

25 minutes ago, Texas Jack Black said:

 I tried the garage drying but the  Boss came home and put her car in the garage and flattened the brass but they were dry.

Kinda rude to laugh at your misfortune... but, I could relate!  My wife's greatest complaint was the lack of a garage, due to my tools and projects!  It'd probably be okay if I could keep it to one project at a time!  She'd have really hated it now... tough to even walk thru!

[largo casey #19191]

Do Not put nickle brass in with it.

 

                                                               Largo

[Sedalia Dave]

53 minutes ago, largo casey #19191 said:

Do Not put nickle brass in with it.

 

                                                               Largo

Yep Nickle brass and LemiShine doesn't work well.

[Randy Saint Eagle, SASS # 64903]

3 hours ago, Texas Jack Black said:

 I tried the garage drying but the  Boss came home and put her car in the garage and flattened the brass but they were dry.

I don’t have to worry about that, it would be hard to get a bicycle in my garage

[Lawdog Dago Dom]

I've been wet tumbling for about 4 years and I love it. It does significantly reduce your exposure to the lead residue from priming compounds. I did use the Brass Juice and it worked great. I just went through it too quick. @Yul Lose turned me on to Strat-O-Sheen, which comes in a five pound box. One tablespoon per gallon of water and the brass comes out beautiful. I'm still on my first box after 3 years, and have a ton left. In addition to that I toss in 1/4 teaspoon of Lemi-Shine and two tablespoons of Turtle Wax Wash n Wax. That thin layer of wax seem to make it easy on the dies when reloading as well. Plus I use hot water when I tumble.

[Dusty Devil Dale]

On 2/9/2024 at 2:32 PM, The Original Lumpy Gritz said:

Rinse twice when the cases come out of the tumble.

Dry in oven, if you can. 

This is good advice.  The smallest bit of soap residue will discolor the brass after it is dried.  Don't ask me why. 

[Dusty Devil Dale]

I use the pins with a few drops of Dawn and a pinch of Lemi-shine or with a squirt of Armoral Wash and Wax. 

Brass always comes clean, but after several cleanings, the pins will put micro-scratches on the brass surface, making them appear paler. 

 

After the tumbling cycle, I dump the contents into a round gold panner's 1/4" classifier sceen that is sized to fit inside the top of a 5 gal plastic bucket.  My bucket has several 1" holes bored in the sides about 8" from the bottom.  I run the hose, with considerable volume, over the brass in the screen-bucket, for several minutes.  That  washes out 90% of the pins and all of the chemicals.  

 

Then the batch goes in the media separator, submerged in a storage tub with a hose overflowing it for a second clean rinse.  From there brass goes to a sun (summer) or oven (winter) drying tray. 

 

The gold classifier screen makes initial rinsing easy and the bucket catches the washed out pins. 

It works for me.  

 

The gold classifier screens are available for about $10-$15 from various vendors online.  

Edited February 12 by Dusty Devil Dale

[Texas Jack Black]

 Is wet tumbling anything like Jell-O wrestling ? I think I could do that even with my bad back.

Edited February 13 by Texas Jack Black

[watab kid]

your results are wonderful , im not adverse to some less shiny or even BP stained cases , but thats me , i like your results and id be happy with that , congrats 

[Randy Saint Eagle, SASS # 64903]

5 hours ago, watab kid said:

your results are wonderful , im not adverse to some less shiny or even BP stained cases , but thats me , i like your results and id be happy with that , congrats 

Thanks, I’m happy enough that I have no intention de-priming and using pins.

 

Randy

[Eyesa Horg]

11 hours ago, Texas Jack Black said:

 Is wet tumbling anything like Jell-O wrestling ? I think I could do that even with my bad back.

It's actually heavier due to the weight of the water which you need to hold up and shake somewhat.

[Texas Jack Black]

1 hour ago, Eyesa Horg said:

It's actually heavier due to the weight of the water which you need to hold up and shake somewhat.

 Maybe we could try this at the TRI-STATE

[Eyesa Horg]

1 hour ago, Texas Jack Black said:

 Maybe we could try this at the TRI-STATE

Are you asking me to bring mine to tri state in Mass?

[Texas Jack Black]

1 hour ago, Eyesa Horg said:

Are you asking me to bring mine to tri state in Mass?

 NO I have plenty of JELL-O

[Griff]

16 hours ago, Texas Jack Black said:

 Is wet tumbling anything like Jell-O wrestling ? I think I could do that even with my bad back.

No... you can do wet tumbling solo!  Definitely less fun than co-ed Jell-O wrestling, 

[watab kid]

6 hours ago, Randy Saint Eagle, SASS # 64903 said:

Thanks, I’m happy enough that I have no intention de-priming and using pins.

 

Randy

it doesnt look like you need to , they look ready to reload to me - almost new , 

[John Kloehr]

13 minutes ago, Griff said:

... Definitely less fun than co-ed Jell-O wrestling, 

And suddenly my life feels incomplete... 

[Ashley D Austin]

On 2/9/2024 at 5:32 PM, The Original Lumpy Gritz said:

Rinse twice when the cases come out of the tumble.

Dry in oven, if you can. 

My toaster has a warm setting which works great for drying shells. 25 minutes and they are dry.

 

[BenW]

I like Southern Shine media instead of pins for tumbling.  They are much smaller and don't clog the flash hole, and are easily removed with a spin in water.  I use the Frankfort Arsenal wet/dry media separator, and rinse a couple of times to remove pins and soap.  Has been working very well for me for several years now and the media seems to be lasting virtually forever as I rarely lose any of the small chips.  YMMV.  Also, I have no financial interest in either Southern Shine or Frankfort Arsenal, I'm just a satisfied customer.

[Texas Maverick]

On 2/11/2024 at 10:38 AM, largo casey #19191 said:

Do Not put nickle brass in with it.

 

                                                               Largo

 

On 2/11/2024 at 11:31 AM, Sedalia Dave said:

Yep Nickle brass and LemiShine doesn't work well.

Interesting, I have done both for a couple of years now using car Wash/Wax liquid and a 45 shell full of Citrix Acid and haven't had any issues. Both come out sparkling. Here is my latest batch from yesterday sitting on my tailgate in the sun drying out.

 

 

You can see both types.

 

So what should I be looking for that you say this is an issue?

 

TM

Edited February 25 by Texas Maverick

[Shooting Bull]

On 2/9/2024 at 6:38 PM, Tennessee williams said:

I don't dry mine in the oven neither. That's where I hide my money. Safest place in the house. Right along with the bottom of the laundry basket. My wife'll never find it in either place.

 

 

What's it worth to you for us NOT to tell her you said that? 

Edited February 22 by Shooting Bull

[Eyesa Horg]

1 hour ago, Texas Maverick said:

 

Interesting, I have done both for a couple of years now using car Wash/Wax liquid and a 45 shell full of Citrus Acid and haven't had any issues. Both come out sparkling. Here is my latest batch from yesterday sitting on my tailgate in the sun drying out.

 

 

You can see both types.

 

So what should I be looking for that you say this is an issue?

 

TM

The very first batch I ran had one nickel in it and the brass came out looking like it had been just lying around for a year! Very yellow and not shiny.

[Sedalia Dave]

3 hours ago, Eyesa Horg said:

The very first batch I ran had one nickel in it and the brass came out looking like it had been just lying around for a year! Very yellow and not shiny.

 

Same for me.

[Buckshot Bear]

I'm still amazed at the colour of the water when I pour it down the sink (which is a bit of worry as this sink just goes out into the garden) of how black the water is.

All that muck used to just stay in my dry tumbler, load after load after load and I was one to r-e-a-l-l-y stretch out for years changing my dry media.

 

@Texas Maverick That's great that you've done nickel and brass together with great results, congrats mate! Like @Eyesa Horg I've had just one nickel case amongst hundreds of brass and the whole lot went black and gunky.

[Texas Maverick]

1 hour ago, Buckshot Bear said:

I'm still amazed at the colour of the water when I pour it down the sink (which is a bit of worry as this sink just goes out into the garden) of how black the water is.

All that muck used to just stay in my dry tumbler, load after load after load and I was one to r-e-a-l-l-y stretch out for years changing my dry media.

 

@Texas Maverick That's great that you've done nickel and brass together with great results, congrats mate! Like @Eyesa Horg I've had just one nickel case amongst hundreds of brass and the whole lot went black and gunky.

 

2 hours ago, Sedalia Dave said:

 

Same for me.

 

6 hours ago, Eyesa Horg said:

The very first batch I ran had one nickel in it and the brass came out looking like it had been just lying around for a year! Very yellow and not shiny.

This is interesting. Not sure why I am not having any issues doing them together. Mine have always come out looking like new. 

 

Thanks

 

TM

[Yul Lose]

12 minutes ago, Texas Maverick said:

 

 

This is interesting. Not sure why I am not having any issues doing them together. Mine have always come out looking like new. 

 

Thanks

 

TM

Same here, I wash nickel and regular brass together all of the time and it all comes out shiny.

[Buckshot Bear]

1 hour ago, Texas Maverick said:

 

 

This is interesting. Not sure why I am not having any issues doing them together. Mine have always come out looking like new. 

 

Thanks

 

TM

 

Whatever you're doin' don't change a thing!!!!

[Texas Maverick]

14 hours ago, Buckshot Bear said:

 

Whatever you're doin' don't change a thing!!!!

Just filling up the FART about half way with brass, add hot water to cover the brass, add 1/4 cup of Wash/Wax liquid, 45LC case of citrus acid and tumble for 3 hours. Then pour into a bucket and rinse until water shows clear and no suds. Then pour into my separator and hand crank it for 5 or 6 turns then pour onto a towel that sits out in the sun for about 4 hours. I used to use the little silver slivers and got the same results but I think the insides probably came out cleaner with the slivers but I took them out of the equation to make it simpler to rinse and dry.

 

TM

Edited February 23 by Texas Maverick

[Blind Squirrel]

@Texas Maverick Where are you getting your citric acid from?

 

[Texas Maverick]

1 hour ago, Blind Squirrel said:

@Texas Maverick Where are you getting your citric acid from?

 

I got mine from Amazon and they have a number of choices to choose from. This is the one I bought and I got it in 2020 and still have plenty left since I only use a 45lc shell full for each batch.

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ICE9F3Y/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

TM

[Matthew Duncan]

On 2/23/2024 at 4:45 PM, Blind Squirrel said:

@Texas Maverick Where are you getting your citric acid from?

 

Walmart is another source.

[Texas Maverick]

On 2/23/2024 at 3:45 PM, Blind Squirrel said:

@Texas Maverick Where are you getting your citric acid from?

 

This is what I use in my FART.

 

 

TM

[Griff]

On 2/22/2024 at 9:00 PM, Texas Maverick said:

This is interesting. Not sure why I am not having any issues doing them together. Mine have always come out looking like new. 

 

Thanks

 

TM

I get the same results... I don't use citric acid and am just using a ¼ oz of Hornady's "Case Cleaner" and the pins that came with the FART.  I think the difference in results might be the water.  After tumbling for 2-3 hours, I pour the whole lot in a bucket and run cold water from the garden hose in until the suds are gone, pour the balance off on the lawn, add fresh water until it's clear and then run the pins & cases thru my media separator, put the cases on a towel covered cookie sheet and pop them in the oven at 170º for a ½ hour, let them cool and then into my storage containers (either plastic coffee cans or ice cream buckets), for future loading.  I do decap as a first step.  For 2 reasons, 1st:   the primer pockets are devoid of any carbon buildup;  2nd:  the primer pockets are devoid of any carbon buildup.  (Not so important for pistol brass, but for my long range rifle brass, I'm a little pickier).  

 

Edited February 25 by Griff