Dry Tumbling Update

[Sheriff Dill]

49 minutes ago, Dacotua said:

 

How was the dust? Do you think its worth it? 

 

Like I said a buddy of mine swears by rice, but I still use walnut.

 

No dust at all. First batch static electricity was a small issue. Second batch I put a couple small pieces of dryer sheet in it. No more static. 
 

im going to get some more walnut and see which comes out better for our liking. 

[Randy Saint Eagle, SASS # 64903]

10 hours ago, Sheriff Dill said:

Just chatted with my son @Giraffe Pepper who likes his brass a certain way lol. And what we have tumbled meet his standards 👍. 

When I was dry tumbling I saved used dryer sheets. I would put 4 or 5 in with the brass, it kept the dust down and seemed to help the shine also.

 

Randy

[watab kid]

22 hours ago, Sheriff Dill said:

The .45 was already in tumbler and media when I got it. The .38 was after a few hours. 
 

Is this what they should look like or go longer ? I know most of it’s a personal preference 

 

media is fine sand like walnut husks. Like Cholla said very dusty. 
 

 

 

i often find 38s lodged inside my 45colt , those that pick brass dont always look and i seldom take time at the unloading table to look and sort , they do stick tight sometimes , 

as far as appearance goes , thats about how mine look when they come out , unless i get someone elses BP brass , those never get all that clean but they load and shoot fine , ive never kept records of how much of my own vs how much of others brass i get back but my average loss is about 10% , i loose another 1% to case splits and such wear/fatigue , but every year i get that much once fired from the range i work at so im not complaining 

 

i use / save dryer sheets to add , usually put 2-3 in they work great to collect the dust [throw them out after each tumble ] and they do add a little shine i think , i do nothing else for shine with mine 

Edited January 3 by watab kid

[Colorado Coffinmaker]

 

I forgot to include in my earlier response, I also use a small amount of Dillon Case Polish and a Dryer sheet cut into thirds.  Takes care of the dust and no static cling.

[Cypress Sun]

If you use Minute Rice, does it cut the tumble time by much?

[Sheriff Dill]

50 minutes ago, Cypress Sun said:

If you use Minute Rice, does it cut the tumble time by much?

Maybe the instant rice would 😁

[Gateway Kid SASS# 70038 Life]

I dry tumble between 500 and 700 38 special and 500 to 600 45ACP every month with Frankford Arsenal walnut media. I add about 1/4 cup of red rouge to the full tumbler (brass and media). I toss in a used dryer sheet and tumble for two hours. Nice and shiny! Note that I separate brass from media outdoors even though the dryer sheets keep the dust pretty much nonexistent. If I don’t like how clean things look I will exchange a cup or two of old media for fresh. About every fifteen months or so, I toss all the old media and start over. Rouge was a 10 pound bag purchased off Amazon in 2019. Still at least 1/2 left. Walnut media is a five gallon bucket that I bought two of from cabelas with gift cards and “member Monday” discount about the same time. One still unopened, other about one more full change left. 
Not rocket science, just get things clean enough to not mess up your dies. 
Regards

    

Gateway Kid

[Nutmeg Ryder, SASS # 74966]

When I dry tumbled I used corncob media, add any one of the earlier mentioned wax, brass polish, and about 3-4 hours for 45 colt.  

I have switched to wet tumbling to cut down on lead dust exposure while sifting and handling the brass after dry tumbling.  I'll find out in a couple of weeks if the lead levels have come down. 

(Wet tumbling was only one measure taken, nitrile gloves while loading and Quality control checks, and carry lead wipes in every vehicle and cart now)