Brass too clean?

[krains]

I purchased a tumbler that uses stainless steal pins. I have been tumbling my brass until its "squeaky" clean. It satisfies the OCD part of me, but now bullets are hard to seat and I get quite a variation on my length to ogive. I think this is due to the "squeaky" clean brass and the bullets "Barnes" having a lot of friction because there isn't a small residue of carbon. Its hard enough to seat that I think it might slighty changing the overall length of the brass during sizing. I am chamfering and sizing for .002 of neck tension.

after a few conversations with the folks that made the tumbler I will now only tumble about 40 min, but I have brass (nosler) that is sized and ready to load. I was thinking about dipping the bullet into Imperial dry neck lube to make it seat easier on that ultra clean brass. My only concern is that maybe during recoil the bullets in the magazine might be more apt to move in the case. Shooting a 300 Win Mag (with a brake)

Thoughts?

 

[rcs]

I purchased a tumbler that uses stainless steal pins. I have been tumbling my brass until its "squeaky" clean. It satisfies the OCD part of me, but now bullets are hard to seat and I get quite a variation on my length to ogive. I think this is due to the "squeaky" clean brass and the bullets "Barnes" having a lot of friction because there isn't a small residue of carbon. Its hard enough to seat that I think it might slighty changing the overall length of the brass during sizing. I am chamfering and sizing for .002 of neck tension.

after a few conversations with the folks that made the tumbler I will now only tumble about 40 min, but I have brass (nosler) that is sized and ready to load. I was thinking about dipping the bullet into Imperial dry neck lube to make it seat easier on that ultra clean brass. My only concern is that maybe during recoil the bullets in the magazine might be more apt to move in the case. Shooting a 300 Win Mag (with a brake)

Thoughts?

I find that getting brass super clean also removes any protective coating, allowing the brass to tarnish quicker. I throw some Armorall wash and wax in with my brass. It comes out super clean with just a slight protective film.

80BDC420-1F82-490C-AD61-F7E371C7D0BE.jpeg

• rcs
• Jun 18, 2018

Wax

 

[krains]

I find that getting brass super clean also removes any protective coating, allowing the brass to tarnish quicker. I throw some Armorall wash and wax in with my brass. It comes out super clean with just a slight protective film.

80BDC420-1F82-490C-AD61-F7E371C7D0BE.jpeg

• rcs
• Jun 18, 2018

Wax

that might make the seating easier as well. I will give that a shot.

 

[ordibbstacker]

I find that getting brass super clean also removes any protective coating, allowing the brass to tarnish quicker. I throw some Armorall wash and wax in with my brass. It comes out super clean with just a slight protective film.

80BDC420-1F82-490C-AD61-F7E371C7D0BE.jpeg

• rcs
• Jun 18, 2018

Wax

Do you use that by it self? Right now i use a squirt(very accurate measurement) of Dawn and a bit of Lemi shine.

 

[rcs]

About 1 oz. to 1.5 oz. of the wash and wax and just a little lemishine (depending on how hard your water is).

 

[rcs]

It should smooth out your seating issues without having to use lube.

 

[Fig]

The neck powder will work and give you consistent depths. A pin tumbler does get it too clean. It ends up having an almost tacky surface feel, and this definitely affects seating.

Honestly, I only do 30 min. I'll stop it and if the primer pockets are clean that's all I want. I could care less about it being shiny. I just want uniformity, and less is more with the pin tumbler.

 

[krains]

I used lemi shine and dawn

 

[mdmp5]

My necks are never shiny clean after a tumbling session. I only tumble for max 2 hours now.

 

[trob_205]

Clean brass and shiny brass is two different things. If you want shiny brass stick to media tumbling. Carbon left in neck is a natural lube and in some circumstances can actually lower ES/SD. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of any negative effects of leaving some carbon in your neck.

 

[velvetant]

I use a little carnauba car wash in my ss F.A.R.T. I only tumble about 20 minutes on normal brass, 3 hours on nasty range brass. I use Redding dry neck lube in my long range rifle loads but not my short range stuff.

 

[lash]

Clean brass and shiny brass is two different things. If you want shiny brass stick to media tumbling. Carbon left in neck is a natural lube and in some circumstances can actually lower ES/SD. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of any negative effects of leaving some carbon in your neck.

I considered the whole stainless tumbling media thing and even bought some pins (unopened in the bag still). However, my results with just crushed walnut media have been great for years now, and I decided that I didn't need super clean and shiny brass to get good results. I admit that it does leave me with hand cleaning primer pockets and also leaves discoloration on the necks, but the downrange results and ES/SD speak for themselves, so I live with it.

Of course, I only vibratory tumble for about 30-60 minutes, so there's that.

I realize that my response is a bit off track from the question asked by the OP, but he has his answer already and this does have a bearing on the premise of his question. I have no issue seating consistently within 0.002" and as I already mentioned, the results speak for themselves.

 

[MagnumManiac]

I had similar trouble after sonic cleaning....no longer do it.
Even now, I run powdered (fine) graphite on a nylon neck brush in all of my necks.
I run the brush into a bottle of graphite, tap off all excess and run into the neck a couple of passes then size the case. Because I use expanders, the graphite lubes the expander and leaves a barrier/lube for bullet seating. I found my seating force to be very consistent after doing this and my ES/SD numbers shrank too.

This has really worked well for me.

Cheers.

 

[918v]

If you use the wrong combination of chemicals to clean, you will etch the brass and make bullets harder to seat. I tried the wax method but a far better deal is Imperial dry neck lube. It puts the carbon back in the neck and makes bullet seating feel just right, even after annealing.

 

[padom]

I only SS tumble very dirty 1x LC or pistol brass I acquire the first time or my rifle brass every 3-5 firings before annealing. Otherwise I use corn cob. Much more consistent seating pressure resulting in lower SD and best accuracy.

I use Imperial Dry neck lub after SS rifle brass.

 

[krains]

I tried the armorAll. Worked great. Seating much easier and length to ogive is much more consistent.

Shot a group this morning that was .332 at 100 yds. Used a lab radar to Chrono but forgot to hit button on 1 shot but the other 2 we're 2920 on the dot. Small sample but sd of 0.

Thanks for the help

 

[rcs]

I tried the armorAll. Worked great. Seating much easier and length to ogive is much more consistent.

Shot a group this morning that was .332 at 100 yds. Used a lab radar to Chrono but forgot to hit button on 1 shot but the other 2 we're 2920 on the dot. Small sample but sd of 0.

Thanks for the help

I wouldn’t steer you wrong.

 

[STI_1911_Guy]

Brass too clean? No, I assure you your brass is not cleaner than when it was new and you didnt have any seating issues then did you? I stainless tumble but its the first step, then onto one shot lube and sized. Trimmed/debur etc...... if necessary, and I have found this to be very consistent for me. If you are noticing difference in seating pressure its not from the brass cleanliness but it is possible you may feel a difference from something else. I have used ultrasonic cleaners in the past and I will stay away from those but vibratory cleaners work well for me also. When I used to leave carbon in the neck it did act as a natural lubricant but the amount left behind wasnt easily kept consistent so thats when I switched to SS and just get them all "clean" to start. Annealing has also helped keep my seating a consistent "feel" over time. There are many ways that work and reasoning to go along with them, if armor all works for you then run with it.

 

[Kenneth]

damn I learned I tumble way too long. I tumble 3 hours everytime I fire them. lol

I also use Imperial neck dry lube. I dip the bullets in and then seat them. Goes nice and smooth for me.

 

[Yerman]

Here is my process. I know it’s a little overboard but it works for me. Never had seating issues because the treated media lubes the necks.

1. Dry tumble in treated cobb
2. Imperial sizing wax
3. Size cases
4. Wet tumble
5. Dry tumble again - this removes access water and puts a protective film from the treatment in my dry media
6. Anneal
7. Trim using WFT
8. Chamfer and debur
9. Prime
10. Powder
11. Seat bullet (treated media ads some lubrication the neck.)

 

[squib]

My process is similar

1. Tumble in walnut
2. Anneal if needed
3. Deprime
4. FL size cases
5. Tumble in corn cobb
6. Uniform primer pockets
7. Trim Chamfer and debur if needed
8. Prime
9. Powder
10. Seat bullet

If you use imperial dry neck lube and not polish you will be good to go.

 

[IronBar]

I purchased a tumbler that uses stainless steal pins. I have been tumbling my brass until its "squeaky" clean. It satisfies the OCD part of me, but now bullets are hard to seat and I get quite a variation on my length to ogive. I think this is due to the "squeaky" clean brass and the bullets "Barnes" having a lot of friction because there isn't a small residue of carbon. Its hard enough to seat that I think it might slighty changing the overall length of the brass during sizing. I am chamfering and sizing for .002 of neck tension.

after a few conversations with the folks that made the tumbler I will now only tumble about 40 min, but I have brass (nosler) that is sized and ready to load. I was thinking about dipping the bullet into Imperial dry neck lube to make it seat easier on that ultra clean brass. My only concern is that maybe during recoil the bullets in the magazine might be more apt to move in the case. Shooting a 300 Win Mag (with a brake)

Thoughts?

I know I'm late in the conversation. I just started the whole wet tumbling thing and the brass is soooo clean I could not roll it around on a sinclair concentricity gage. I'm going to try to fix the issue by dry tumbling with clean corncob and some polish. - On the inside of the neck, I always use the graphite wet lube. NeoLube I learned about it on You Tube (winning in the wind)

 

[K1L0]

I know I'm late in the conversation. I just started the whole wet tumbling thing and the brass is soooo clean I could not roll it around on a sinclair concentricity gage. I'm going to try to fix the issue by dry tumbling with clean corncob and some polish. - On the inside of the neck, I always use the graphite wet lube. NeoLube I learned about it on You Tube (winning in the wind)

The NeoLube looks interesting and not too expensive. I've been using Imperial dry neck lube and found the application to be hit or miss. I have an AMP press, I'm curious what the differences will be. How long does the 2.2oz bottle on Amazon usually last you?

For brass cleaning I stopped wet tumbling precision rifle brass since I've heard it slightly damages the case neck edge and as you've experienced cleans the brass too well. Instead I dry tumble in rice since it's not as dusty as corn cobb and doesn't usually get stuck in cases.

 

[IronBar]

The NeoLube looks interesting and not too expensive. I've been using Imperial dry neck lube and found the application to be hit or miss. I have an AMP press, I'm curious what the differences will be. How long does the 2.2oz bottle on Amazon usually last you?

For brass cleaning I stopped wet tumbling precision rifle brass since I've heard it slightly damages the case neck edge and as you've experienced cleans the brass too well. Instead I dry tumble in rice since it's not as dusty as corn cobb and doesn't usually get stuck in cases.

I never actually counted. But a good guess would be in the 1000s. One tip: Tape the little bottle onto something square and flat. It is very easy to tip the bottle over without this support - it makes a BIG mess.

 

[XLR308]

I have been loading rifle ammo for 30 years using crushed walnut or treated corn cobb media and have never had any of the problems listed in this thread and no other steps are neccesary after cleaning.
The brass also comes out far more bright and shiny than new or factory loaded brass.
What am i doing wrong ?

 

[lash]

I have been loading rifle ammo for 30 years using crushed walnut or treated corn cobb media and have never had any of the problems listed in this thread and no other steps are neccesary after cleaning.
The brass also comes out far more bright and shiny than new or factory loaded brass.
What am i doing wrong ?

We are obviously doing it wrong, man. Can’t you read?

 

[XLR308]

We are obviously doing it wrong, man. Can’t you read?

Solutions in search of a problem, might need to find myself a government job.

 

[IronBar]

I have been loading rifle ammo for 30 years using crushed walnut or treated corn cobb media and have never had any of the problems listed in this thread and no other steps are neccesary after cleaning.
The brass also comes out far more bright and shiny than new or factory loaded brass.
What am i doing wrong ?

I have a special talent. Find another step during getting the brass just exactly right.

 

[XLR308]

I have a special talent. Find another step during getting the brass just exactly right.

Fair enough, i like to neck turn some of my brass that i use bushing dies to resize and dont have a tight neck chamber.
Many think thats completly unnecessary so tomato, tamato.