Why bother with S/S tumbling?

[Toolbox X]

I wet SS tumble because I like my cases to be crazy clean and shiny. No other reason. Getting cases clean enough to function takes almost no effort at all. Wet tumbling takes tons of effort, but shiny..........OH SO SHINY!!!

['ol shooter]

Having recently gained Old Fart status, I can truthfully say that an old dog can learn new tricks.
I wet tumble because:
There is no alchemy involved, just water, Dawn, and Lemishine.
It cleans quickly.
I like clean primer pockets, along with the rest of the case.
SS tumbling doesn't wear on the brass like dry does.

I still have a dry tumbler, a good one, in case some dirty loaded ammo comes along. 30 minutes in that with media and some dryer sheet, and they are nice and clean.

[stilly]

I don't quite understand the SS tumbling method myself since it seems to add a lot of work just to make the cases look pretty.

Yeah well you are not a diva either, oh wait, is that YOUR jeep in your avatar?

My oh MY it sure looks pretty... Tell us, did you shake corn cob and walnuts over it or use soap and water?


There is no need to answer that, it was really just rhetoric anyways.

[J-cat]

It's not about pretty looking cases. It's about CLEAN cases. Stainless cleaning cleans cases better. It removes crap down to the pores. Soaking cases in a "soup" won't do that as there's nothing to scrub the cases in the soup and no agitation. Do you only soak your clothes? No! You soak and agitate.

Don't judge the results of stainless tumbling by the methogy employed by inept individuals. They are better served playing with a stick in the backyard. If you mix the chemicals in the right proportions brass comes out as clean inside as new. I have some cases that's on their 15th loading I can tell you they're 1x and you would not be able to tell otherwise.

What's the benefit? No chance of scratching your die. Clean primer pockets. Improved flaw disclosure.

[Pauliedad]

What J-cat sed

[JMP]

If you need to talk yourself into it, DON'T.

There's really no advantage except more work. The way I see it is that there are two good reason for such:
1. You tumble inside your dwelling. In that case, it's a good idea to avoid the dust in your house.
2. You are professionally processing brass.

I haven't heard a single bit of evidence that it enhances performance of the ammo. Save your money and time and put it to use on things that matter.

[Jon Road King]

I have been in construction for over 20 years. When I started out there were no pagers, no cell phones, no scanners, the fax machine was a rumor, autocad was a pipe dream, powerpoint was an overhead projector, "primavera scheduling software" was endless rows of post-its tacked on the superintendent's office wall, the office had one computer, "Environmental" meant try not to piss in sight of the secretary, the copy machine was guarded by a secretary you never wanted to mess with (who still had a typewriter and printed in 'triplicate'), and what in the sweet holy f*** is email? We had a radio, with the whole damn company on one channel and old timers still hand-drew plans. But man could we build stuff!

And now my time is wasted in endless meetings with powerpoint presentations detailing how to activate the latest bells & whistles on the newest copy machine so I can kill trees more efficiently while printing 8 copies of the latest revised detail of 'environmental compliant sand bags' (from 3 different autocad designers), so I can distribute the drawing to the 7 other people who will never set foot on the project, let alone build anything. My cell phone rings constantly with "where is that detail?" questions, my email spits out endless "requested updates on that revised detail", and it takes 5 times as long to build anything anymore because of all our 'fantastic technology' and 'regulations'.

Needless to say, I don't SS-wet tumble.

Is this relevant to the thread? Depends on your perspective

[stilly]

^^^^^^^ Aint technology great?

This thread is vastly approaching the big fight of 1941...

[Eljay]

All you really need to do is remove any grit so you don't scratch up your dies. If you use a brass catcher you don't HAVE to tumble at all.

So why wet tumble?
1. No lead-filled dust. I tumble outside but I still prefer to not have the brass end up covered with the stuff, which I'll then be handling as I reload.
2. Clean inside = easier to visually check for powder drop problems, especially if you use a tall case like 38 Special.
3. Clean outside = easier to spot cracks and similar.
4. Clean primer pocket saves a step if you're anal enough to do that (usually precision rifle folks).
5. You can clean other random pieces of metal around the house. I've done this a couple of times.
6. Works GREAT on black powder cartridges. Getting every bit of sulphur off right away helps the brass life out.

Why not wet tumble?
1. Larger up front cost.
2. You need to make sure the brass is absolutely dry before you use it. If you're in a big rush to tumble and use brass immediately you'll need to figure out a process that will work with that. It's not a big deal, just something to be aware of.

re: the amount of work, I don't see it as any worse than the vibratory tumbler. The only thing different is that you have to rinse the brass which isn't exactly difficult and then get it dry which can consist of dumping it on a towel in the sun. I use the exact same separator to get the media out either way...

[8mmFMJ]

Jonand stilly

[Jimi Jah]

10 minutes in the ultrasonic cleaner works for me here. Clean is more important than shine. 30 minutes drying in the sun and they are ready to load.

[opos]

Some do and some don't..Interesting replies...thanks

['ol shooter]

I started out with the Harbor Freight tumbler and the small pins, just to see if I liked it. I liked it, and moved up to the Thumler and Stilly's pins. I don't see the extra work angle, since I don't have to spend time picking media out of primer pockets anymore, and I have the rinse and pin separation cycles down to a minimum of time. The HF is definitely the lowball way to find out if it's for you.

[LynnJr]

OP
I load for some of the most accurate rifles on this planet.
I have used soup I have rotary tumblers and vibratory tumblers. I have wet tumblers and used ultrasonic.
I never had any problems with my brass from using any chemical cleaners on it including Brasso.
I never have any dust using walnut because I put the lid on and change the walnut.
The stainless pins and soup method works extremely well if your time isn't worth a dime and you like cleaning up messes.
If some soap or a piece of walnut going down your barrel upsets you you probably will toss your cookies when you see a stainless steel pin sitting sideways in a case mouth.
My brass looks as good as any I see on the range and most competitors don't let you look inside there brass or primer pockets were I shoot.
I will put my reloads up against anyone's reloads and so for shiny brass has never been the determining factor in any match I have attended.

[opos]

OP
I load for some of the most accurate rifles on this planet.
I have used soup I have rotary tumblers and vibratory tumblers. I have wet tumblers and used ultrasonic.
I never had any problems with my brass from using any chemical cleaners on it including Brasso.
I never have any dust using walnut because I put the lid on and change the walnut.
The stainless pins and soup method works extremely well if your time isn't worth a dime and you like cleaning up messes.
If some soap or a piece of walnut going down your barrel upsets you you probably will toss your cookies when you see a stainless steel pin sitting sideways in a case mouth.
My brass looks as good as any I see on the range and most competitors don't let you look inside there brass or primer pockets were I shoot.
I will put my reloads up against anyone's reloads and so for shiny brass has never been the determining factor in any match I have attended.

My whole point was to comment on "alternatives" that have worked for a long time as compared to some of the high tech and high dollar methods used and promoted these days...My brass probably does not look as good as much of the brass but it might just shoot well enough to not be criticized...It's like some of the high end, high production and high cost loading equipment that the "home reloaders" use for high production rates..no issues with any of that but for a guy just starting or a small quantity reloader by today's standards...a big Dillon or Hornady might not be the best value...

I don't criticize anyone for any method to do anything short of drinking and doing drugs while loading..not my intention...just offering alternatives...

I can get my brass plenty clean with a plastic Folgers coffee can, $2 worth of "chemistry" and an hour of soup time and a day of drying time...clean the pockets with a manual uniformer, and move ahead with a dreadful and slow single stage press, funny little Lee length guides and trimmers, etc....might not appeal to many folks but might be just the ticket for the low and slow folks.