What case cleaner and what to put into it

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  • Last Post 07 January 2022
John Alexander posted this 17 August 2021

I admire my friends' like new shiny reloads but have never thought cleaning cases was necessary. I wipe the soot of the necks with steelwork and call it good.  I am thinking about mending my ways -- at least some of them.

I don't process bucket fulls of cases. I like to keep track of how many times a case has been loaded, so 100 is about the maximum and more likely 50. So I don't need the 300 horsepower modal.

Should I buy a tumbler of one that buzzes?  Which ones don't break early?

What should I buy for medium?

I will appreciate any advice.

John

 

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GP Idaho posted this 07 January 2022

I'm going to agree with those recommending the rotary SS pin wet tumblers. Best by far. If you're going to do small batches as you mentioned, you won't need one of the larger models. I think RCBS and Frankfort Arsenal offer small units. I have the RCBS media tumbler that I use mostly for removing case lube on the brass and a sonic cleaner I use for steel parts (AR bolt carriers, revolver cylinders and small parts) but my Lyman small sonic cleaner doesn't do as well at cleaning brass. For my brass cleaning I use the Lyman Cyclone wet tumbler and it does a great job using dawn dish soap (small amount) and 1/4 tspn of citric acid. Gp

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OU812 posted this 31 December 2021

RCBS, Frankford Arsenal etc are more expensive acid cleaners. Vinegar actually turns color of brass more than liquid toilet bowl cleaner.

Lysol Liquid Toilet Bowl Cleaner.

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Eutectic posted this 31 December 2021

Be very careful about acid cleaners. Brass is a alloy of copper and zinc. The zinc is attacked by acid much faster than the copper. The loss of zinc can leave the brass looking normal but weakened. Dezincification by acid is a well known industrial problem,

If you use acid cleaners, keep the exposure time as short as possible.

Steve

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OU812 posted this 30 December 2021

For really nasty carbon foul cases, Lysol toilet bowl cleaner works better than anything else I have tried. I mixed 1/4 cup to 2 cups of water. The hydrochloric acid cleans inside cases much faster than the vinegar.

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RicinYakima posted this 24 December 2021

"I have been thinking about buying a cheap Amazon Sonic cleaner and clean after every shoot. These are much easier to use  and cost under $100.00."

Yes, the ultrasonic liquid cleaners. I don't think you can set up a wet pin tumbler at that price?

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OU812 posted this 24 December 2021

Ric, are you referring to the ultrasonic cleaner? I think David is talking about his pin tumbler.

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RicinYakima posted this 24 December 2021

In mine I have done 750 .38 specials and it took about 3.5 hours for them to come out looking like new.

Mine has a maximum run time of 480 seconds before the motor burns out.

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David Reiss posted this 24 December 2021

In mine I have done 750 .38 specials and it took about 3.5 hours for them to come out looking like new.

David Reiss - NRA Life Member & PSC Range Member Retired Police Firearms Instructor/Armorer
-Services: Wars Fought, Uprisings Quelled, Bars Emptied, Revolutions Started, Tigers Tamed, Assassinations Plotted, Women Seduced, Governments Run, Gun Appraisals, Lost Treasure Found.
- Also deal in: Land, Banjos, Nails, Firearms, Manure, Fly Swatters, Used Cars, Whisky, Racing Forms, Rare Antiquities, Lead, Used Keyboard Keys, Good Dogs, Pith Helmets & Zulu Headdresses. .

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RicinYakima posted this 24 December 2021

ou812, The question is how many cases can you clean at a time. The more mass the slower the cleaning. I bought one for cleaning 50/70 black powder cases, but can only do 7 at a time with a maximum clean cycle. Need to ask others about this also. Ric

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OU812 posted this 24 December 2021

Just tumbled some 223 brass using a 50/50 mix of vinegar, water and stainless pins. The cases (50 count) had thick carbon build up from multiple firings. Cases did clean up well inside after 4 hours of tumbling. Tumbling longer is the trick. 

I have been thinking about buying a cheap Amazon Sonic cleaner and clean after every shoot. These are much easier to use  and cost under $100.00.

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Paul Pollard posted this 23 December 2021

I have some Hornady ultrasonic case cleaning solution. I will try that next. I might have to “dirty” some cases first.

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OU812 posted this 23 December 2021

Old NRA  brass cleaning solution.

Recipe: 

1qt. water

1 cup white distilled vinegar

1 Tbsp salt

1 tea spoon dish Soap

Here is a verygood article from 6mmbr.com

https://www.6mmbr.com/ultrasonic.html

 

 

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OU812 posted this 22 December 2021

Paul, Maybe we should try the Frankford Arsenal cleaning solution.

Frankford Arsenal Brass Cleaning Solution 32oz Liquid (midwayusa.com)

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Paul Pollard posted this 22 December 2021

Split Cases

 

These .222 Rem cases were cleaned with SS pins, citric acid and Dawn soap. The split case on the right has a 1/4 inch hole drilled through the primer pocket and it cleaned better inside. The split case on the left still has some crud at the base of the case. I tried to scrape it with a metal scribe, but it is pretty hard.

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Paul Pollard posted this 19 December 2021

cases and swabs

The straight cases get cleaner inside. The nickel case is cleaner. The bottleneck cases are fairly dirty. These were swabbed when damp. I could see inside the straight case and it was cleaner, but not shiny, like the outside. The case cleaning in the tumbler with Dawn, SS pins, citric acid and hot water works well. It saves wear and tear on thumbs and fingers when cleaning by hand.

I poke out primers without sizing, tumble, dry, size, then reprime. It has to be easier on the sizing dies when clean first.

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OU812 posted this 17 December 2021

The FA cleaner sounds like good stuff. I wonder if it is the same stuff RCBS sells or once did.

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David Reiss posted this 17 December 2021

Some of the recent posts I've read question the ability of pins to clean inside the case & primer pockets, pins getting stuck inside and difficult to get out, and last what liquid to use. 

So I want to answers some of these questions.

I use the pins and a cap full of the Franklin Armory liquid cleaner. The brass comes out looking like new, inside and out, regardless of the caliber, small rifle cases are no problem. The FA cleaner is vastly superior to Simple Green, I have tried them both. I use the FA rotary separator to separate the pins from the brass and it works wonderfully. Afterwards I pour them out on a towel and use a magnet to pick up the few fins left. Last they go in the food dehydrator type brass dryer and they are done. I have done in the tens of thousands pieces of brass with no pins left. 

It works great and better than anything else I have tried in 40+ years.  

David Reiss - NRA Life Member & PSC Range Member Retired Police Firearms Instructor/Armorer
-Services: Wars Fought, Uprisings Quelled, Bars Emptied, Revolutions Started, Tigers Tamed, Assassinations Plotted, Women Seduced, Governments Run, Gun Appraisals, Lost Treasure Found.
- Also deal in: Land, Banjos, Nails, Firearms, Manure, Fly Swatters, Used Cars, Whisky, Racing Forms, Rare Antiquities, Lead, Used Keyboard Keys, Good Dogs, Pith Helmets & Zulu Headdresses. .

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OU812 posted this 17 December 2021

Cleaning inside bottle neck 223 cases is most difficult. I wonder if I boiled cases in water using a little Purple Power degreaser would help clean before tumbling in pins.

Does carbon buildup inside case cause higher pressure?

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Millelacs posted this 17 December 2021

I use a Midway 1292 vibrating tumbler (one of the smaller ones), I bought used in 2004 or 2005.  It didn't get much use until 2013 after I retired.  I'm not sure the capacity.


I take my match brass (and other brass I've shot) and prep it, which includes trimming, chamfering the necks, brushing the inside of the case mouth and cleaning the primer pockets (no point in inducing dirty primer residue into my polishing media), before polishing.

I use crushed walnut from the local pet store.  A seven pound bag has lasted years.

I treat my media per the following procedure:

•  My Lyman vibratory cleaner will already have crushed walnut shell media in it. I will put about a cap full or two of Nu-Finish and then about 2 to 3 tablespoons of mineral spirits into the tub of media. I will then run the vibratory cleaner *without* any brass for about 15 minutes. This will basically ‘treat’ the crushed walnut shell media with the Nu-Finish and mineral spirits. I like to use mineral spirits more to thin out the Nu-Finish, rather than for any sort of cleaning properties.
•  After the media has mixed with the Nu-Finish and mineral spirits, I will then add the deprimed brass along with a Bounce dryer sheet. Since the vibratory cleaner tub is plastic, it generates static. The dryer sheet helps to mitigate this. The dryer sheet will also help to collect dust particles. I will run the vibratory cleaner for about 2-3 hours. This is the *first* pass of the brass through a vibratory cleaner.

https://www.ocabj.net/cleaning-brass-cartridge-casings/

I "freshen" the media occasionally with Nu-Finish and mineral spirits.

If I don't have any dryer sheets, I throw in three or four small pieces of whatever cloth is laying around, to keep the dust down when I open the lid.

I set it up, and run it "for a while".  If they look done when I check on them, I run them through my media separator.  Otherwise I run it some more.

I use an old fan guard, I had laying around, as a media separator which happens to fit an old Christmas wreath container, and shake it as if I was panning for gold.

The last step is to look through the flash hole, against a piece of white paper, to insure there is no media blocking the hole.  If necessary I use an old teletype probe to poke out any media stuck in the flash hole.  A paper clip works also.

Depending on what and how much I shot the previous year, I may need to run several batches of brass.

I doubt my reloads shoot any better, but they do look better.

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Eutectic posted this 16 December 2021

There are more good methods than Carter had Liver Pills (remember those). At the peak of my match shooting I was loading ~5000 rounds a year. That was a lot of cases.

I have had 3 case cleaners, a big homemade tumbler, a commercial high-powered rock polisher, which was great for liquid media, and a RCBS vibrator. I have tried a half dozen compounds. 

The wet method with steel pins is the thing for cases which out-shine your wife's jewelry. Primer pockets are pristine. You have to put up with separating, washing and drying but they look nice! wink Accuracy is not improved. frown 

I bought a RCBS vibrator 20 years ago. After ten years the motor failed. I called RCBS they said "We have a better motor now, heavy duty bearings". Next week it was in my mailbox - no charge. It is still going strong. applause The RCBS gets used the most.

I buy ground walnut blasting media at Harbor Freight when it goes on sale. A squirt of Midway polishing compound in the tub and a charge will do 5 loads of filthy range brass or 10 loads of clean revolver cases which never touch the ground. A load is two quarts of cases. 

If you insist on cleaner (but not perfect) primer pockets you can add steel pins. They fall through in the case separator and you only need a magnet when changing media. They do not work as well in dry media, mostly I do not use them.

About one in 20 cases will have media in the flash hole. A LEE de-prime rod is set up vertically to deal with these. I inspect every case so this is no problem. 

Comments about the slower speed of cleaning in dry media are true - but who cares? I have a light timer on the RCBS and set it to turn off in 2 or 3 hours depending on the cases. Then I go do something useful. 

I guess if you sit there and watch the cases clean through a clear cover or peak in every 5 minutes, time is important.  smile

I have not solved the case separator problem. Two rotating basket models were nice, but each lasted less than a year. They were expensive plastic junk. My current homemade rig has lasted over 5 years and cost less than 10$. However it is slower to load and use.  

Steve

 

 

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