Tumbling - What Media???

[mrerick]

I also use crushed walnut purchased at PetSmart as reptile cage liner. 20 pounds in a big bag last a long time.

I use a liquid polish in this media as well as a small square of used laundry softener sheet to pick up the dust.

The case in the middle should work fine... Marc

[rhuff]

I might suggest that you hold off using Brasso, and like products that contain ammonia. The ammonia reacts with the brass and allows deterioration/weakening. To use it now and then won't be a big problem.

Using crushed walnut shells will clean the brass, but will not polish it. It will have that matte finish. I used to use my old Thumbler Tumbler that I purchased in 1971. I used the walnut shells with jewelers rouge on it. It worked, but was a mess to deal with. I stayed with that setup for years, but was never overly pleased with it.

A few years ago I tried one of the vibrating units with corncob media which I add 1-2 cap fulls of Dillon Brass Polish. It works soooo much faster, and with better results(to me). Put the polish into the media and run the machine SANS the brass for 15-20 minutes to dispense the polish(trust me on this). Then add your brass and usually 2-4 hours will produce beautiful like new brass. I also take a sheet of Bounty paper towel and tear it into 4-5 strips and throw them in. They help keep the media clean and when they get nasty, replace it.

[sheepherder]

Thank you for your help, gentlemen!

Attached is a pic of my ~20+ year old Midway 'tumbler'. I suppose it's more accurately a vibrator. When I first got it, instructions were minimal. I filled it, dropped my cases in, and turned it on. It sort of vibrated, but even after leaving it run overnight, the cases were still dirty. By accident, I screwed the lid down tight while it was running, and lo & behold, a vortex action began!!! Media from all sides began flowing into the center, and down. I could see my cases bobbing up & down in the flow!!! Fantastic!!!

So it cleans the cases quite well, but doesn't really leave a matte finish. And it doesn't touch tarnish. So I guess the 2nd case in my pic is as good as it'll get.

I might try the crushed corn cob on another batch tonight, just for comparison.

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by noylj

Me, 30 minutes in 20/40 corn is all I need...

James -

What does the '20/40' stand for???

Originally Posted by ithacaartist

Rochester?

David -

I haven't received the flyer in the mail yet, but historically the ESACA has it's first Rochester show in the first weekend in January...They do have one listed in the NYSRPA newsletter on 25 -26 Jan in Albany...

Originally Posted by mrerick

The case in the middle should work fine... Marc

Marc -

All three of these work fine. I'd just like them to look better. Here's a stripper clip full from 20+ years ago I keep for display. I could spin-clean them with Nevr-Dull and then use automotive paste wax to preserve the shine...I'm just looking for a better way to tumble them and get an acceptable 'matte' finish...An LGS some distance away has some that look like I want (done by a local reloader) but he won't tell me how (or who)...

Removing the tarnish is what my goal is. All three medias I have on hand work well to remove dirt/grime/powder residue, I'd just like some glitter...

[rhuff]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

James -

What does the '20/40' stand for??

That stands for the size of the corncob particles. Corncob is used in abrasive blasting of various surfaces, and the size has to match the nozzles/expected results.

In reloading, this size works very well because it does not get stuck in the flash holes(a lot of reloaders remove the spent primers before they clean the cases). If you do not remove the primes first then you can use a smaller size corncob particle as the decapping pin would remove any stuck corncob when it removes the spent primer.

[sheepherder]

I don't know what the corn cob is (been in a bucket for years) but the crushed walnut shells is '24 Grit Fine Soft Abrasive' according to the box...I used it a couple times for blasting, but it wasn't as good as the glass beads [for blasting]...IIRC, the glass beads were expensive...

Edit: I was curious as to whether cutting/resizing/bottlenecking would flake the plating off...It didn't...