how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

[john_1182]

i thought i would just share a little trick i played with tonight tumbling 50 lapua 308 brass.

i decided to add some shitty round .177 copper plated air rifle pellets with the usual walnut media and it did the trick, 3 hrs with this mix was about equal to about 8 hours of the brass just on its own.

 

[ED_RN]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

How about 2hrs with clean corn cob and Iosso or Flitz, if the brass is not Mr T Bling Bling Bright...the brass has to be bad to start!

 

[MALLARD]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

nice , i dont have enough pellets lying around to give it a shot though

 

[Jerkface11]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

You can use mineral oil instead of iosso or flitz.

 

[huntersedge89]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Jerkface11</div><div class="ubbcode-body">You can use mineral oil instead of iosso or flitz. </div></div>

The mineral oil doesn't contaminate the powder?

 

[CMH]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: huntersedge89</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Jerkface11</div><div class="ubbcode-body">You can use mineral oil instead of iosso or flitz. </div></div>

The mineral oil doesn't contaminate the powder? </div></div>

Not if you tumble in small strips of ShamWow!

 

[9H_Cracka]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Man you are doing something way wrong if you tumble for 8 hours and are happy about 3, particularly if you are talking about only 50 308 cases.

Midway cheap tumbler, small size
Crushed Walnut hull bird litter
Any liquid car wax of your choice

I can run just enough media to fill the tumber 3/4 full with a load of 300 223 cases in there for like 12,000 rounds before changing out the media.

Tumbling times:

- 30 minutes for lube removal and decent shine
- 1 hour 15 minutes for a higher lustre finish

The last thing I would do is introduce something that sheds crap like lead does into the mix. It will speed the depletion of the cleaning ability of the media by introducing its own contaminates.

 

[762nato]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Mineral spirits and car wax in corn cob. Finest screening Grit O Cobs from company called "The Andersons". Buy it here at an abrasives supplier.
3/4 cup Mineral spirits
1/8 cup Turtle wax
Large Dillon Tumbler

 

[Jerkface11]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Whoops did i say mineral oil? I meant spirits.

 

[Casey Simpson]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Well, I like BB's too. They rattle around in the cases and knock loose the carbon and I do the car wax and Flitz tricks as well.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: john_1182</div><div class="ubbcode-body">i thought i would just share a little trick i played with tonight tumbling 50 lapua 308 brass.

i decided to add some shitty round .177 copper plated air rifle pellets with the usual walnut media and it did the trick, 3 hrs with this mix was about equal to about 8 hours of the brass just on its own. </div></div>

Dude, you're tumbling with walnut and it's taking you three hours to get 50 pieces of Lapua brass, fired from a bolt gun, clean?

Buddy, add some polish, say an ounce to your media and get it done in an hour.

Wow, 8 hours to clean without BBs?

Are you putting this brass in a coffee can and tying it to your bumper on the way to work?

If I go 90 minutes I've generally gone 30 minutes too long.

Chris

 

[tullius]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

You're tumbling waaaay too long, switch to corncob media, add a polish, AND LOAD THAT TUMBLER FULL! Tumblers work much better full. By full, I mean more brass.

 

[GSPKurt]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Yes, I also use mineral spirits and Nu-Finish liquid polish from Wally World...

 

[Leaddog]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Stainless steel media is the only way to go. Forget the rest. You'll never look back.

 

[LoneWolfUSMC]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Right now I use walnut and Dillon (because I can't find Flitz locally anymore).

100 .308 cases take about 30 minutes. I could care less about how shiny the brass is. I just need the necks clean enough. I clean the primer pockets with my Trim Mate after resizing.

I am contemplating switching to SS media, but it will require a new tumbler.

 

[Fuzzball]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

"Any liquid car wax of your choice"

Car "wax" of any choice is a poor choice. Use auto polish instead.

I add an ounce or less of diatomaceous earth (the stuff that makes toothpaste white and does the cleaning) to my cob media; it cleans beautifully without shining. My cases actually look factory new, not like glittering shiney plastic.

 

[ClayDirt]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

How about 2hrs with clean corn cob and Iosso or Flitz, if the brass is not Mr T Bling Bling Bright...the brass has to be bad to start!



+1 What it was made for and it is bascially dirt cheap.

 

[9H_Cracka]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Re-reading the OP I see what in aussie they refer to BBs as pellets. GOT IT.

Yep, those make a lot of sense IMO; work great for moly plating too. I hesitate to use them with cases as I don't want any left behind in 223 cases possibly, plus at this point I don't feel I need anything better than what I have.

Still, the times listed are way outside of range for my experiences.

 

[bubbapug1]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

I bought some rcbs polishing powder from midway, it cut my times in half. I wonder what it is????

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

I dampen my media with diluted vinegar or CLR prior to introducing the brass. Spray the media with the solution in an old Windex, etc., bottle and run the tumbler for about five minutes before introducing the brass. The 5 minutes gives the solution time to incorporate evenly, and the media to finish swelling. If the media is still swelling when the brass goes in, it can become impacted inside the cases.

Greg

 

[heydavemd]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

Another vote for stainless steel. I've switched and not looked back.

 

[RoosterShooter]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

I don't use Nu-Finish anymore. I pulled 200 rds. that I loaded this time last year, and they all had orange spots all over the brass. It was due to the Nu-Finish wax that I used in the media at the time. It has some sort of petroleum distillate in it that doesn't like LC brass for some reason.

I talked to a biochemist that I know, and he said that it probably attacked the tin in the brass.

I'll never use it again!

 

[KE5MUJ]

Re: how to speed up vibrational tumbler times!

with RCBS corn cob media, it came with a small packet of some sort of abrasive powder additive. Worked much better than corn cob alone.