How do you clean your brass?

[Quicksilver]

I was using a harbor freight vibrating tumbler w/ walnut, nu car and some used dryer sheets but recently...

I bought a hexagon tumbler (waterproof) and some stainless steel media. I pour in the media, dump 150-200 casings of 308 and fill 7/8 of the way with almost boiling hot water and a bottlecap full of dawn, screw the lid down, check for leaks and let er' tumble.

Usually takes about 2 hours to get super clean brass, but you gotta wear gloves (lead gets washed out of the casings along with other chemicals im sure aren't good for you) to drain it, pick out the brass and then dry the brass.
I recently started de-priming (not sizing) then tumbling, then sizing, priming, charging & loading rather than tumbling/depriming/sizing/ect ect. I like the way it cleans up the primer pocket and flash hole. Not bad.
Anyone found anything better than the stainless media? I really was thinking about a ultrasonic cleaner but I hear they don't clean well?...

Whats everyone else doing to get that brass clean?

 

[SOTA]

I use a walnut/corncob mix with nu car for .223 and pistol calibers then deprime. For high power I deprime then I use thumblers tumbler with stainless steel and lemebrite then i run it through fine corncob to get a high polish it's great for getting into primer pockets but the wet stainless is a pain in the ass and is messy as hell. I think a ultra sonic cleaner might be a better option.

 

[10generation]

I'm looking at going stainless. How do you get the lube off the cases after sizing? I know some guys put their cases back in the tumbler?

 

[ChrisGarrett]

18 year old Dillon CV-500 with mostly walnut these days and a couple of capfulls of Dillon polish, waiting 5 minutes before adding brass.

Walnut cuts a little better for dirtier brass and corn maybe does a better polishing job, but with polish added, it's probably a wash.

90 minutes and I'm done. I don't need to load up brand new looking brass.

Chris

 

[Paulyr450]

One of my friends bought a hornady sonic cleaner and just hates it. He went back to the stainless tumbler.

 

[Rob01]

Corn cob and polish in a large tumbler. I am not super anal and need bright shiny inside and out brass and I don't like overly complicated processes.

 

[Jedi]

Corn cob and polish in a large tumbler. I am not super anal and need bright shiny inside and out brass and I don't like overly complicated processes.

+1

WTF message has to be 10 charcters long

 

[B3dlam]

I use an ultra-sonic mainly because its less noisey then my vibratory tumbler. That being said I will be upgrading to a stainless media rotary tumbler when I can find them in stock and have the money. I will still keep the ultra-sonic though as I like it when I need to clean the bolt from my AR or pistol parts.

 

[The Lawn Ranger]

Rifle:
1. De-prime
2. 2 hrs. in stainless media (Thumblers Tumbler)
3. dry thoroughly
4. trim to length if necessary
5. chamfer inside/outside of necks
6. FL size (neck bushing)
7. wipe off Imperial wax w/ dry cloth
8. prime
9. powder
10. add projos
11. shoot
12. repeat until brass is shot out

 

[MJY65]

I'm looking at going stainless. How do you get the lube off the cases after sizing? I know some guys put their cases back in the tumbler?

I do a second trip through the SS. It doesn't take long. Maybe a 1 hour cycle to get the lube off.

 

[Manitou]

I use a Dillon Tumbler with a mixture of walnut and corncob media and a capful of their polish, but recently I've been seriously considering getting a Thumbler's Tumbler and going the stainless route.

Any of you guys who made the switch have any regrets?

 

[Quicksilver]

Thats what I have- the thumler's tumbler. I do exactly what M14er does-
1. De-prime
2. 2 hrs. in stainless media (Thumblers Tumbler)
3. dry thoroughly
4. trim to length if necessary
5. chamfer inside/outside of necks
6. FL size (neck bushing)
7. wipe off Imperial wax w/ dry cloth
8. prime
9. powder
10. add projos
11. shoot
12. repeat until brass is shot out

The only thing I do differently, is I take all the brass and put them on a pronged rack (kinda like a dishwasher rack) and toss em in the oven at 200 degrees for 30 minutes (to dry really- not trying to anneal or anything) then I let cool, deburr flash holes, clean primer pocket, prime, ect ect.

I did find out VERY quickly that you MUST wear gloves when pulling the brass out of the tumbler- since theres water and lead, it will stain your hands if you don't wear gloves... and its not good for you anyway.

 

[workinman]

This is my current setup that works for me
1.deprime
2. 2-3 hours tumbled in stainless media.
3. dry on an old towel with a fan for couple of hours with a timer
4. size, trim, brass prep, etc
5. Since i still have my vibratory tumbler, i use corn cob to clean lube off the cases.
6. complete loading.
As far as pulling the cases out of the wet tumbler, I drain as much water out of the drum as i can and rinse the brass and media in the tumbler together once. After second drain, have a small media separator with water in it to separate cases and media and do a final rinse of the cases. I would recommend only using cold water as hot water tends to discolor the brass when done. YMMV

 

[BIPMaster]

Corn cob and polish in a large tumbler. I am not super anal and need bright shiny inside and out brass and I don't like overly complicated processes.

I do the same.

 

[fw707]

Stainless with soap and Lemi-shine after de-priming.
After sizing I give it an hour or so in corn cob grit and denatured alcohol to cut the Imperial wax, and then I run it through a Giraud trimmer.

 

[High Binder]

I use Stainless to clean and then after sizing I dump them into an ultrasonic followed by alcohol to dry.

 

[Ballistic308]

I find just tumbling the brass in corn cob or walnut shell and then reloading totally sufficient to maintain 1/2 MOA. If you think a dirty primer pocket is going to affect accuracy run a test with some rounds without cleaning the primer pocket; I think you'll find the time saved better spent with the woman.

I feel most shooters clean the primer pockets only to get them clean as I've found it hasn't ever mattered. Also, I prefer a not so lusterous shine on my brass as I find them difficult to grip when loading magazines in the dry desert; they become to slippery. YMMV

 

[Tesla]

I use an ultrasonic. I used to use Stainless but I start noticing that after using the Stainless the necks of the cases were not sharp like before so I stopped.

 

[Infinity]

Thumler Model B High Speed from Cabela's and 5 lbs of SS media. I deprime then tumble for 2-3 hours with 1 gallon of cold water, 2 tablespoons of dawn and 1/4 teaspoon of lemishine. I also tumble once post-FL sizing. Make sure you save chamferring/deburring for after the second tumble to avoid roughed up case mouths.

 

[zuke]

I throw my sized brass back into the SS tumble for about 20 min to clean off the lube. Then into an old deepfryer mesh basket then sit them on the wood pellet stove till their dry

 

[mark5pt56]

You can also add Nufinish car wax(orange bottle) at Walmart, help with shine if wanting that.