What are some of the liquids that you guys add to your tumblers to make brass really shiny? Joe
- Thread starter Joe Perlo
- Start date
Dawn + pinch of Lemi-shine
If your talking about dry media then some flitz (about 1/2") and a couple old dryer sheets with a knot tied in the middle will give you golden nuggets.
Nu-Finish with a tablespoon of mineral spirits in a dixie cup and pour into walnut media a half hour before brass. Comes out very shiny. You can go about 3-4 sessions and recharge your walnut. The mineral spirits prevent the wax from clumping.
I never tumble my cases-being shiney aint gonna make it shoot any better..
Cornhusker, you are correct sir. But I'm really bored and feel like trying something new. Thank you to all that have given me different ideas. Joe
On a related note, how clean does brass have to be to avoid damaging the inside of your dies? Could I just rinse them in soapy water before resizing?
One plus to tumbling the brass in one way or another---wet or dry---is to get them shiny so you can have a better feel when annealing them. If you anneal, then you want them shiny before you start. If you heat enough to remove the shine, then you went too far with the heat.
Just a thought....
Just a thought....
Sentry1, your brass should be clean on the outside so as to not scratch your dies or dent your brass. I was looking to make mine pretty after they go through the dies. Joe
Make a mental note not to buy used dies from me.
I generally do NOT clean brass prior to resizing, unless it's obvious dirty and grungy. I toss spent brass in a well-seasoned USPS medium flatrate box, squeeze out ~1-2 tablespoons of Dawn or Ivory liquid dish detergent, shake up, let sit for 10-15 minutes, and then dump the brass into the casefeeder for sizing.
So far, my dies haven't quit working perfectly.
I generally do NOT clean brass prior to resizing, unless it's obvious dirty and grungy. I toss spent brass in a well-seasoned USPS medium flatrate box, squeeze out ~1-2 tablespoons of Dawn or Ivory liquid dish detergent, shake up, let sit for 10-15 minutes, and then dump the brass into the casefeeder for sizing.
So far, my dies haven't quit working perfectly.
I'm a big fan of Flitz in corncob media. The longer you let your brass tumble, the more shine they will have.
I personally don't tumble for shine, I do it to clean the brass up prior to sizing. But, to each his own...
I personally don't tumble for shine, I do it to clean the brass up prior to sizing. But, to each his own...
I use walnut with a little bit of Dillon's or Flitz metal polish added every few cycles. I don't need to shoot brass that is brand spankin' new looking, so I'm not getting involved with wet tumbling. Many like NuFinish, but that's a car polish and some feel that it loads down the media more quickly, with a waxy coating.
Chris
Chris
I'll tell you guys I been vibrating brass and tumbling in bulk for years, any polishing compound like brasso, flitz, car polish, even sand blast sand etc when added every half dozen uses will work fine. But if you want perfect, absolutely clean, inside and out, the only way to go is the water method and pins. It is unreal how clean they are. But I agree, they don't shoot any different but some guys are sticklers about what they look like and I'll admit I've gone to matches with rounds loaded that morning and never polished that look like hell and still shoot. It's a personal thing I guess. But you want bright and shiny! Water tumbler!
2Shots I've never heard of the water and pins method. Can you please explain it to me. Joe
Use a rotary style tumbler, stainless steel media, water, dish soap and lemishine. It's the only way to go.
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I was wondering why the NuFinish clumps up...use mineral spirits. Thanks.
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