The Russian Mosin Nagant Forum

Ok... So I'm new to reloading and have started buying stuff, most of my stuff is on it's way. One of the first things that I decided to get after some research was a tumbler with stainless steel pins to clean all the brass I have been collecting. I tried it out for the first time the other night and all I can say is wow! Yes, you deprime before cleaning, the setup is a bit more expensive, the volume of brass you can do is less. However, I ran 220 9mm brass for 2hrs and it came out like new (inside, outside, and primer pocket).

here's some a pic from my phone of the 9mm brass after cleaning.

Nice, I run it through the tumbler only if it's seriously tarnished.

I figure I can bribe my son to do it when the bins start getting full with spent cases... like a rock tumbler with a much better end result than a bunch of rocks!

I have a 1970's vintage rotary tumbler with corncob media, it works but doesn't get used much. I tend to clean my black powder cases by hand and the 45/70's are nickle plated anyway.

It does feel weird dropping the brass in with the SS pins, a gallon of water, 2 TBsp of dish soap, and a touch of lemishine.... Whatever works, and I do like the fact that I don't have to deal with media.

Eye of newt, leg of frog, pinch of bat......yea, it is an odd sounding combination

Never been a big fan of clean brass...mostly cuz the tumblers and media cost so much.... I figured the money could buy powder, primers and bullets. And I really don't where I'd put it. I must admit now...there has been times when looking for an ejected case... a clean one would have been much easier to find that a dull one.

'drif

The only guys I know who clean all their brass are the ones who have commercial reloading operations going. They need the product to look good I guess.

I much rather prefer clean brass. I tumble my brass in a tumbler with walnut shell media. It's not expensive, does not cause me any stress, and the brass sizes better it seems to me. I would like to get one of the Sonic Ultrasonic cleaners soon for cleaning brass and small parts. These are the same cleaners that jewelers use to clean rings, bracelets, etc....

I should have been saving all the walnut shell fragments I have left over after I eat the nut meat, it never occurred to me and I have been tossing them out!

I always clean my brass. I can not run dirty brass through good sizing dies,knowing dirty brass is harmful to the surface finish inside the die and in turn the brass. I prefer to be kind to my dies and brass, They both last much longer when the brass is clean.