The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Guns, Politics, Gunsmithing & Reloading Reloading Which tumbler is the best/worst?Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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one of us |
I'm planning on buying a brass tumbler soon, and I'd like to get some opinions on which brand and model to buy. Mostly I would like to hear which tumbler NOT to buy. If you've had problems with a certain brand, I'd like to know. Nashcat | ||
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| <tula9130> |
MidwayUSA has the M1292 tumbler and it has served me very well. | ||
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| one of us |
I had a Lyman 1200 that lived in the garage for about 20 years before it cashed in. I have the Midway now. Bought it used about a year ago. Runs about six to eight hours each week, sometimes more; so far, so good. Eddie | |||
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| one of us |
I have the big Dillon and its the only way to go if you reload in any quantity. Its nothing to do 300-500 .308 cases at a time! | |||
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| <.> |
If you're serious about accuracy you don't want to be banging up your case necks in a vibrator full of walnut chips. They're fine for pistol ammo and plinking stuff. But tumblers nick and work harden the necks. ------------------ | ||
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| one of us |
I'd go with the Dillon or Vibra-Shine. IMO, they are two of the better tumblers on the market. Midway's no longer have the lifetime warranty and they kinda gave me a hard time getting a return number to return it even though it was recalled for fire hazard. | |||
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I have two Lyman 2200's. They may not be either the best or worst, but they do a good job. ------------------ | |||
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| one of us |
I also like my big Dillon. | |||
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| one of us |
quote: Agreed. Economical and reliable. ~Holmes | |||
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| one of us |
same here I have two and they have given me good service quote: | |||
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| one of us |
I bought a used RCBS several years ago. It broke within a few days of the purchase. I sent it to RCBS and they reconditioned it for free. Since that time it has worked flawlessly. Great product and a great warranty. Regards Rick | |||
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| one of us |
The Big Dillon is a beautiful thing! ------------------ | |||
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| one of us |
Thanks for the help, guys. I think I'll go with the Dillon. My gun dealer has one in stock that I looked at. Seems to be built really heavy, plus it matches my press. If it doesn't work as well as it should, I'll post back with the info. Nashcat | |||
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| one of us |
quote: I was a little worried after reading this because I had put off returning mine, but finally called for an RMA yesterday. The lady asked if I was certain it was affected by the recall and did I want a check for $7.95 to cover my shipping cost or 15 Midway Bucks. I was afraid they wouldn't honor the recall since I bought it used, but she said no problem. She said it would turned around in 24 hours. I've had worse experiences. Eddie | |||
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| one of us |
From a consumer perspective, they are all the same. It boils down to capacity. I use the Dillon cv2000, excellent construction & encased ballbearings. Cleans up nicely with mineral spirits & is good to go. I also use the midway version (much smaller in capacity) - same thing. Ensure that the electric motor driving is an encased bearing assembly. that way you never have to fool with lubrication. ------------------ Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. | |||
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| One of Us |
I like my Vibrashine really well, but I think you'll like that Dillon you're getting. I never did buy one of those squirrel cage media separators. A big spaghetti collander fron the Dollar Store does the job just fine for me. H. C. | |||
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| <Cobalt> |
I had to return my MidWay recently after only 4 months of lite use. Cost $8 to return a $50 machine. Probably best to buy a quality Dillon. Cobalt | ||
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| one of us |
I use an RCBS Sidewinder, however, if I were buying another unit greater capacity would be nice. The big Dillon unit comes to mind. The Sidewinder is nice and I like the timer, noise level, etc. However, the limited capacity can be an issue when you're loading on a progressive press for pistol ammunition. I find I have to run four or five batches of .45 ACP through to get enough to feed my RCBS 2000 for few hours. I DO recommend you get a media seperator. Worth a ton when you're doing volume. Regards, Matt. | |||
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quote: Does anyone have a comment on this? If using a tumbler isn't the way to go for extreme accuracy, what's the best way to clean cases? | |||
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I've had a Midway tumbler for years and have never had a problem with it. | |||
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I have a Lyman 2200 & it works great. ------------------ | |||
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wow. All you guys are working with pretty new stuff. I'm still using my Thumblers Tumbler that I bought in 1972. My guess is that it has run about 100+ hours a year ever since. Only thing I ever have to replace is the drive belt. Capacity is only about 75 or so 30-06's at a clip. but it has served me well. I stopped using dry media for cleaning & polishing. ------------------ | |||
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| one of us |
I never tumble my rifle brass. I give the outside of the neck a quick twist back and forth with a little steel wool (you can buy brass wool from Brownells if you're anal). Then, I have an old varialbe speed/locking drill mounted to a short section of 2x6 with plumbing strap. I chuck an old bore brush with some steel wool wrapped around it. Spin it med/slow and polish/clean the inside of the neck. I usually give the brass a little rap tap tap on a piece of wood to make sure any bits of steel wool are not loose inside the case. Then I give the neck a quick twist in some moly coated shot, and run throught the Redding bushing die with Ti Nitiride bushing. No tumbling, no messy lube. Works for me. I've heard you want clean brass becuase dirty brass is hard on dies--other than that, I want clean necks for even neck tension. I'm no benchrest guru, but this works for me. R | |||
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| one of us |
I bought a rock tumbler (polisher) about 20 years ago. It cleans around a hundred 06 cases at a time, has a belt driven electric motor, a rubber bucket and shines brass very well. Someone mentioned neck hardening with tumblers? What should I look for? I've always been something of a stiff-necked-fool but I wouldn't want my brass getting stiffed too. I also tried a Vibra-tek but what a loud and irratating thing that was. [This message has been edited by Frank Martinez (edited 04-06-2002).] | |||
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one of us |
My Lyman 2200 works just fine. Never heard of the work hardenning issue, I think it would be very hard to prove, unless you run the case cleaner with very little media. If said hardening does take place, it would be infinitesimally small compared to the hardenning caused by firing, and resizing operations. | |||
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I have a big Dillon that I bought from a friend's estate. We reloaded together for years and I know this thing used to run for DAYS at a time. It was old in 1989 and still chugs along. | |||
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quote: Yeah right! Maybe if you shoot benchrest but 1/2moa rifles don't care if you tumble or not! | |||
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quote: Ultrasonic cleaning - by far is the best (leveraging technology). Chemical cleaning is 2nd best. ------------------ Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. | |||
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