I have tried the steel pins to clean my brass case, and as you can see, it works a treat.

Saeed if your brass is only that dirty next time try it will so pins and just the lemishine and little dish soap. In my experience they come out about the same. I love the results on brass that is filthy but if they are not that bad sure is nice to cut out the case/pin separation.

Saeed where do we sent the brass to get cleaned.
And how long is the turnaround?

On a serious note what type of tumbler did you use?

Once I switched to SS pins I couldn't switch back to dry media. Clean brass is so much more accurate!

A little car wash soap instead of dish soap keeps the brass from tarnishing and it stays bright longer.

Separating the cases from the pins is easy if you have a separator and water isn't a problem. It works just like dry separation.

quote:

Originally posted by plainsman456:
Saeed where do we sent the brass to get cleaned.
And how long is the turnaround?

On a serious note what type of tumbler did you use?

I got the whole;e kit together from the media company, including the tumbler.

I.cleaned some old herters 338 brass from 1960s looks new was black .I just want a bigger tumbler to do more brass at a time .I have been using neighbors harbor freight one with twin tubs .I.Need one to do.ten gallons of brass at a time !

One thing I found with the SS media. While working on my 70 Charger it works great to clean small metal parts. Keep in mind there are more ways to use the media than just your brass.

It's the only method I use now to clean brass. I decap the cases first with a universal decapper so the primer pockets get cleaned up as well.

quote:

Originally posted by dgr416:
I.cleaned some old herters 338 brass from 1960s looks new was black .I just want a bigger tumbler to do more brass at a time .I have been using neighbors harbor freight one with twin tubs .I.Need one to do.ten gallons of brass at a time !

Hi, dgr416. You might try the big tumbler from STM, (Stainless Tumbling Media), in Orem, Utah. I've never had mine completely filled. Photo follows:




Cheers. Chip.

I switched to SS media several years ago and haven't looked back since then.

Has anyone tried the Frankfort Arsenal Tumbler?

I see that none of you has commented on the cracked necks in the first photo

Have you annealed those cases?
Simple and quick enough depending on qty.

Don't quench 'em though, that just rehardens them. Drop in a can or bucket and let air cool.

I hold 'em with bare fingers and use a propane torch. Just enough to start the color changing on the necks. By the time they air cool the heat will have reached the shoulder, or down 1/4".

Then polish 'em.

The prettiest brass I've ever seen came from a guy in Seattle some years ago. He used a cement mixer and ran buckets full wet, not sure the media other than #9 steel shot and dish soap. I've lost track of his contact info. Last year when I wrote to the old address didn't get a reply.

Saeed: how many times have those cases been reloaded?

George

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
I see that none of you has commented on the cracked necks in the first photo

See how wonderful SS media is, no cracks in the second pic. Cleans and repairs. Amazing!

They have not been annealed.

These cases have been fired 12-15 times, and are still going on safari later this year too.

Cracks and all!

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
They have not been annealed.

These cases have been fired 12-15 times, and are still going on safari later this year too.

Cracks and all!

I would assume that you would just throw out the cracked-neck cases.

Trouble often comes from an incremental chain of little irregularities. Cracked necks could lead to inaccuracies on a longish shot or be the beginning of some gas along the bolt raceway.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
They have not been annealed.

These cases have been fired 12-15 times, and are still going on safari later this year too.

Cracks and all!

Walter gets the cracked ones?

So tumbling with steel pins repairs cracked cases?
One split neck and one tiny shoulder crack was what I noted first while trying to tell if the brass in the first picture was clean or dirty.

Saeed makes a good case for the practice of annealing cases after about every third firing.
A little bird told me that even one firing of new brass does considerable hardening of the brass.
Working it through 12-15 re-sizings and firings is bound to make it hard and brittle, prone to cracks, don't you think?


I think it is a good practice to anneal before necking up and after necking down with any previously fired brass used for wildcatting "customization."
Ross Seyfried mnemonic: Anneal before necking up and after necking down.

Even if it is new brass, freshly annealed from the factory,
like Saeed's Norma 404 Jeffery brass that was necked down to .375 long ago,
it ought to be annealed after necking down.
Then fire-form it and shoot it a couple times more, then anneal after that third firing.

John Barsnes learned the easy way to anneal and brags about the simplicity.
A candle flame and your brass held and spun by your bare fingers.
You will not let it get too hot if you have normal sensation in your fingers.
There are faster methods too.


There is more than one way to skin a wildcat.
Riflecrank Incurable Permanente

I have ordered an automatic annealing machine.

Will let you know how it goes when I use it.

quote:

Originally posted by ledvm:
Has anyone tried the Frankfort Arsenal Tumbler?

Yes I have three of them. They so far are my favorite.

I have a thumblers and also the Monster one that CHIPB posted. The big one is a nice piece however it is heavier than hell when loaded. They should have put two handles close together in stead of the one. I pretty much now only use it when doing 50 cal brass. To be honest I think a small cement mixer would be handier to use than it and a lot cheaper.

quote:

Originally posted by McKay:

quote:

Originally posted by ledvm:
Has anyone tried the Frankfort Arsenal Tumbler?

Yes I have three of them. They so far are my favorite.

I have a thumblers and also the Monster one that CHIPB posted. The big one is a nice piece however it is heavier than hell when loaded. They should have put two handles close together in stead of the one. I pretty much now only use it when doing 50 cal brass. To be honest I think a small cement mixer would be handier to use than it and a lot cheaper.

Since the Frankford tumbler seems to be so Popular, I thought I'd pass this on. Quite the savings at Cabelas: http://www.cabelas.com/product...MgodUVIFoQ&gclsrc=ds

quote:

Originally posted by z1r:

quote:

Originally posted by McKay:

quote:

Originally posted by ledvm:
Has anyone tried the Frankfort Arsenal Tumbler?

Yes I have three of them. They so far are my favorite.

I have a thumblers and also the Monster one that CHIPB posted. The big one is a nice piece however it is heavier than hell when loaded. They should have put two handles close together in stead of the one. I pretty much now only use it when doing 50 cal brass. To be honest I think a small cement mixer would be handier to use than it and a lot cheaper.

Since the Frankford tumbler seems to be so Popular, I thought I'd pass this on. Quite the savings at Cabelas: http://www.cabelas.com/product...MgodUVIFoQ&gclsrc=ds

Also watch Amazon. I got mine for $147. Just looked at a price tracker and it shows they have gotten as low as $121.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
I have ordered an automatic annealing machine.

Will let you know how it goes when I use it.

Which one did you get? We were talking about it some here:

http://forums.accuratereloadin...2511043/m/5931089822

Besides the DIY stuff, the 'Annie' seems to be the most affordable version that I've seen:

http://www.fluxeon.com/Annie.html

I think it is made by ampannealing.

I have not gotten it yet.

quote:

Originally posted by ted thorn:
This one will do higher volumes

That thing costs less than my Thumler's Tumbler, which can only do one hundred .308 cases at a time.

$150

Happy with my SS pins and Thumler's. Gave away the old dry media vibratory stuff.

This is the coolest I have seen so far

https://youtu.be/9bXLq_9CW4c

This one was done by a Kiwi about 20 years ago & there was a write up in our local hunting magazine -

http://img.photobucket.com/alb...20stuff/IMG_0004.jpg

http://castboolits.gunloads.co...08-Homemade-Tumblers

quote:

Originally posted by georgeld:
Have you annealed those cases?
Simple and quick enough depending on qty.

Don't quench 'em though, that just rehardens them. Drop in a can or bucket and let air cool.

I hold 'em with bare fingers and use a propane torch. Just enough to start the color changing on the necks. By the time they air cool the heat will have reached the shoulder, or down 1/4".

Then polish 'em.

The prettiest brass I've ever seen came from a guy in Seattle some years ago. He used a cement mixer and ran buckets full wet, not sure the media other than #9 steel shot and dish soap. I've lost track of his contact info. Last year when I wrote to the old address didn't get a reply.

Saeed: how many times have those cases been reloaded?

George

Quenching brass does nothing to them. Brass doesn't harden like steel or harden. But, with you thought. You don't need to quench them.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
I think it is made by ampannealing.

I have not gotten it yet.

Saeed:

I am sure you saw the note from AMP to make sure you get all the stainless steel pins out of the case before you anneal, right?