How do you clean your brass after tumbling?

[Quinc]

I am using the red walnut media and it is taking way to long to wipe them all down with a rag afterward. I tried letting them soak in soap and water but it didn't help. Is anyone using steel media in a normal vibrating tumbler?

Edit:

Anyone use ceramic tumbling media?


"Precision media is a type of ceramic tumbling media that is used when small and precise size is an issue. The super small sizes available are ideal for intricate finishing jobs, such as jewelry.

K-Polish Bond (Polishing)
This type of ceramic polishing media is made of high alumina and does not contain abrasives. Use with burnishing compounds to burnish metals or with loose abrasives or compounds for deburring. Produces a high luster finish and is suitable for use in all types of finishing equipment.

K-Fast Cut Bond (Fast Cutting)
Ceramic tumbling media for brass and other metals is made for fast cutting and deburring in all types of finishing equipment.

2mm & 3mm K-Polish Spheres and 2mm x 2mm K-Polish Triangles"

[Rock6.3]

Steel media takes a rolling tumbler.

I use the red media in a vibratory tumbler, and the brass comes out shiny.
Lube, full length resize/deprime, then tumble in plain walnut media (no additives). Result is clean shiny brass with no residue.

[joelogic]

Switch to corn.

[rspar]

I just blow them off with a compressor, I also use a little Nu-Shine I think it's called in with the walnut shells.

[lpspinner]

I clean them with a course corn cob (reptile litter) with a little bit of Dillon Rapid Polish, they come out clean, then I do what I need to prep them, then I polish them in fine Dillon corn cob with more Rapid polish, they come out shiny as can be and never do I have to do any wiping. Then it's on to loading.

[gau17]

I use ceramic and it makes the brass come out like jewelry. It wont clean out the primer pockets as well as stainless.

[Bill Steele]

I generally use corn cob.

I have a second tumbler that gets used infrequently these days. It has walnut media and I use it when I have a batch of particularily nasty brass to clean.

I use some Dillon Rapid Polish in each new load of media.

No secondary ops when it comes to tumbling with these two medias.

[rsrocket1]

Get a 50# bag of walnut shells from a feed supply store. $17 for me, but someone else found some for as little as $14.
Put a couple of cut up used dryer sheets in with your cases. The sheets from the first few batches will come out tan colored because of all the dust. Eventually, they will only come out a shade of gray which comes from the soot and primer dust (which will raise your blood level of lead).
If you don't have used dyer sheets, you can use a cut up paper towel, but the open weave of the used dryer sheets tend to pick up the dust the best.

No dust left on the brass afterwards.

[Cowboy T]

Your walnut medium shouldn't have any additives and doesn't need them. I use the lizard litter from Petsmart. Tried a little metal polish in the walnut as an experiment, and no difference.

My regimen now is a few hours in the walnut, followed by a few hours in the corn cob. Makes the brass come out nice 'n' purty.

A buddy has the stainless steel cleaning medium. It's used with the wet cleaning method in a rotary tumbler. Decap your brass, leave 'em in tumbling for a few hours, and even your primer pockets will be spic 'n' span. The brass actually looks like new afterwards, both inside and outside. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it.

[tankerman]

Walnut or corn, little bit of Barry's brass polish.

I don't wipe of cleaned brass, it's already clean.

[wtkaiser]

+1 to Tankerman - don't need to wipe them off. I just use standard Lyman media in Turbo 1200. Of course, then I clean the primer pockets, and get them all covered in fingerprints anyway!

[lpspinner]

As soon as I change media... This is what I'm getting next. Lot's of good reviews on other forums.

Any one wanna split a bag? I know that Grainger has it too, but $2.00 more and it looks like Berkley and San Jose are the only two that have it in stok for pickup.

[Fishslayer]

I am using the red walnut media and it is taking way to long to wipe them all down with a rag afterward.

What is this "red walnut media?" Is it treated with jeweller's rouge?

Should be no need for wiping down. I would be very hesitant... no... I would NOT be blowing on anything to do with brass or media with compressed air. The dust generated is hazmat.

Use plain walnut or cob media with some Nu Finish car polish. Walnut works faster but doesn't have the brilliant shine of cob. There is no residue left on the brass. Use the drier sheet trick and be VERY careful of the dust from cleaning brass. It contains lead and other nasty stuff.

[jimster716]

Steel media takes a rolling tumbler.

I use the red media in a vibratory tumbler, and the brass comes out shiny.
Lube, full length resize/deprime, then tumble in plain walnut media (no additives). Result is clean shiny brass with no residue.

Do you full length resize every time? Doesn't that kill your brass prematurely.

To the OP, I use cornhusk. I just changed to Lyman Green corn husk but it leaves a residue much like the much maligned red stuff and I found the husk material to be larger than the Frankford Arsenal media. This means that most of my brass gets a chunk in the flash hole, time consuming and annoying. I'll be switching back to the Frankford Arsenal once I'm done with this crap.

[Stoopy]

I tumble in a rotary tumbler with stainless media, water, and dawn dish soap. I pull the brass out and let dry for a day or two. For my rifles I full length size but only bump back the shoulder .002 to .004 inches to not overwork the brass. I throw them back into the tumbler to clean the lube off and clean out the primer pockets. I rinse the brass the second time and let it air dry again before I reload it. The brass comes out super clean and shiney after a 2 hours.