Discolored brass

[vidette]

Wet tumbling 90min with a cascade complete dishwasher tab on some once fired new brass and getting these smears on the brass. Any ideas?

[Nickel City Dude]

These cases are obviously defective and will cause your bullets to miss there intended target.  You should send them to me for proper disposal LOL

or you could try a different cleaning solution, I use Brass Juice but most use Dawn.

[TN Mongo, SASS #61450]

I've been wet tumbling for years. I always use a little Strat-O-Sheen powder (see the link below) in my washing solution, and for the last few years, no SS pins.  My detergent is a little bit of Dawn and I do add a little bit of Lemme Shine.  I tumble for at least 2 hours.

 

Strat-O-Sheen Powder Burnishing Compound - RioGrande

 

[Sam Sackett]

Maybe the dishwasher tab had some strong chemicals in it that reacted with the brass. I don’t know of anyone that has used them, so don’t know if that could be it or not. Might be a reason that no one else uses them?

 

Sam Sackett 

[Barry Sloe]

Make sure that you rinse the cases with clean water.  Once they have been thoroughly rinsed, lay them out to air dry. I lay mine on a raised wire mesh that is covered with a towel. Final step - with the brass laid out on the towel, roll them back and forth. This gets the water droplets off the cases.

That's how I do it. Usually come out pretty good. 

 

BS

[Imis Twohofon,SASS # 46646]

The discoloration looks too regular and on one side to be random. What were they laying on?

 

Imis

[Lead Monger]

I use a little Cascade powder and haven’t had any weird staining like that. I also use the pins and if the brass is tarnished a squirt all lime away gets added.

[Dacotua]

I use dawn dish soap and lemishine. I don't use the stainless pins anymore in tumbling, I just let it go for 2-3 hours and they are generally clean enough.

 

After I have my brass clean, if I want them bright and shiny, I throw them in a walnut vibrating tumbler with Metal Polish, I generally allow them to polish for at least 8 hours (I throw them in before I go to work, when I get home they are like new).

 

It really doesn't matter how they look on the outside, so long as they are clean.

[Griff]

30 minutes ago, Imis Twohofon,SASS # 46646 said:

The discoloration looks too regular and on one side to be random. What were they laying on?

 

Imis

Yep, I agree with this.  Whatever they were set on to dry reacted with the cleaner you used and didn't get rinsed well enough.

[vidette]

Forgot to mention these were heat dried using a Frankford Arsenal dryer. Perhaps there was cleaning chemical left over on the surface when drying and caused discoloration (I do thoroughly rinse the brass after tumbling). As far as the stain pattern being repeated, it might be that these three pieces were laying on their side the same way when drying. All pieces are discolorized to some degree , in different shapes and patterns. 

[vidette]

I just finished a batch with only dawn soap. No stains. I’ll see how they look after drying. 

[I. M. Crossdraw, SASS# 8321]

10 minutes ago, Griff said:

Yep, I agree with this.  Whatever they were set on to dry reacted with the cleaner you used and didn't get rinsed well enough.

 

This.

[Bailey Creek,5759]

I use a 1x6 with 3-inch finishing nails.

I nailed them 5 in a row for 100. 

While brass is wet put them on nails.

Set out in sun.

[Lead Monger]

When a batch of brass has finished tumbling I use the Lyman hand cracked squirrel cage to separate the brass from pins and rinse with clean water. Then dump them out on a couple layers of paper towels covering small table. They are dry the next morning.  

[Captain Bill Burt]

That type of Cascade has a transitional metal catalyst as an ingredient. That may have reacted with the brass.

 

Armor All Wash and Wax cleans well and the wax seems to add a little lube to the cases. Works for me (without pins).

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

5 hours ago, vidette said:

Forgot to mention these were heat dried using a Frankford Arsenal dryer. Perhaps there was cleaning chemical left over on the surface when drying and caused discoloration (I do thoroughly rinse the brass after tumbling). As far as the stain pattern being repeated, it might be that these three pieces were laying on their side the same way when drying. All pieces are discolorized to some degree , in different shapes and patterns. 

Rinse the cases twice, coming out of the tumbler. 

[Imis Twohofon,SASS # 46646]

Vidette, the TN State match is two weeks, you coming?

 

Imis

[vidette]

18 hours ago, Imis Twohofon,SASS # 46646 said:

Vidette, the TN State match is two weeks, you coming?

 

Imis

 

Wouldn't miss it

 

[Double Barrel, SASS 34765]

Looks like you’re trying to get Purly’s special marks off again. You might as well just give them back to him. 

[watab kid]

ive never found the stains a problem - i get a lot of brass back thats not mine at shoots ...BP guys brass , they stain , i clean and reload then shoot again , i dont need my rounds to be all shiny and bright , i get a bit of blowby with my smokeless so i get a bit of that too ,