Hi:
My old case tumbler has seen better days, so I am considering replacing it.
Suggestions ?

Thanks,
Jimmy

I'd suggest the RCBS vibratory tumbler. It's as good as any on the market but what makes it stand out is the warranty on parts. My RCBS went South after some years of service and RCBS sent me a new motor for free. So I installed the motor and the tumbler is working good as new. When this motor goes South, I will be calling RCBS again.

I've been using the Cabela's vibratory tumbler for about 5 or 6 years now. Works great. I don't know ow many times I've forgotten it was running and left it on for more than 24 hours. Once I left it running for an entire 3 day weekend. Still running strong and does a great job. Adding a little chrome polish and Nu Finish sure made a difference. The cases in the pic below have been fired in excess of a dozen times and they come out looking pretty good.

Attached Images

DSCN2383.jpg (106.4 KB, 72 views)

I use two different tumblers depending on what condition the cases are in. For dry tumbling I use a Lyman Turbo 2200 Case Tumbler with Auto-Flo, for wet a Frankford arsenal rotary tumbler. The Lyman is a pretty large tumbler and I like the auto-flo feature for emptying, no need to try and lift the whole thing to empty it.

I use both a dry media tumbler and wet SS tumbler. They both have a purpose. If I have just a few rifle cases to clean I use the dry media. If I have a large amount of pistol cases I drag out the RCBS rotary wet tumbler.

I drop mine off at the dry cleaners and have the wife pick them up on the way home.

I think the Berry's 400 is the best tumbler for the price available today. It's sold by several different companies in different colors and prices.

Barry's is charging $72.79 (in blue)
Grafs is charging $54.99 (in purple)
Cabelas wants $69.99 but that is a kit. (in green)
Sinclair/Brownells seems to have the best price right now @$51.99. (in red)
BERRYS MANUFACTURING BERRY'S TUMBLER | Sinclair Intl

I bought mine from Cabelas because at the time they had the best price. They are all the same.

__________________
Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

Lyman Turbo tumbler.

I've been using a Midway branded vibratory tumbler for many years without issue. I did add a switch a it didn't come with one but otherwise it's required no attention. However, it's so old I wouldn't count on my experience being indicative of current products. RCBS does, in my experience, stand behind their products well. I don't know about Midway as I've never tested their warranty service.

Sorta an aside; I was wondering how many "tumblers" are manufactured by the same company and just "branded" by a vendor. It would be easy to change the color of the paint and plastic drum/bowl, so how many manufacturers are there, really?

What cases do you plan on cleaning? How many do you want to clean at one time?

Midway replaced a very old dry vibrating type (there was a recall on them ) it still worked like a champ , Midway replaced it with a Frankford Arsenal , which looks very similar to the old. Been using it 4-5 years now and works just fine with Midway's treated walnut shell media.
I have a wet tumbler , Thumbler's Tumbler model B , used it to polish rocks in another hobby , but I find wet tumbling cases messy and then the extra drying step all to be a pain in the derriere .
Gary

I don't know for sure, but I suspect this may be true as all the vibratory brass machines seem to be basically the same. I've used a Dillon FL2000 for at least twenty-five years and it continues to works fine. I used a small Midway machine for about twenty years before it gave out, but it was used frequently, four to five hours at a time.

I don't think you can go wrong with any of them, just get one large enough for your needs.

I have an Ultravibe, runs every week for 2-3 hours for the last 25y, still going strong but I do have another one if it ever dies.

__________________
NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

Ditto the Dillon FL2000. Used Mine for 25at least and still going strong.

I use a dehydrator works like a champ

I happen to have a Dillon FL2000 that I haven't used for a long time but when I did it worked great. Gonna go on ebay soon. Using a Dillon 750 and it is fine. The onlky vibratory tumbler I had that didn't work well was a Frankfort Arsenal. It just didn't clean well at all. May have been me though..overloading it? I also have a Hornady that I use to tumble ammo. 15 mins gets all the lube off. Also use a FA wet cleaner and it does a great job.

Apparently, judging by the number of "how to clean cases and what's best" threads that routinely appear, case cleaning is far more complicated than reloading itself.

Interesting to talk about. To HOT to go shooting. No hunting season open. Good time to talk reloading and equipment.

I have a Thumbler's Tumbler model B wet tumbler and a Lyman Turbo 1200 vibratory tumbler. And like them both "BUT" if you leave your cases in a wet tumbler too long you will peen the case mouths. And with a vibratory dry tumbler you can let the cases tumble all night and not peen the case mouths.

Below on the left a case wet tumbled too long with a peened case mouth. And on the right a brand new case right out of the factory bag. I trim my wet tumbled cases and debur every time they are wet tumbled. The case on the left had been trimmed and deburred and wet tumbled after shooting. So you can see what happens if you forget and let the case tumble too long.



If you have a semi-auto and your cases end up in the dirt you can scratch your dies and brass. And wet tumbling will scrub these cases free of any dirt and grit. And on the flip side cases fired in a bolt action or revolver that do not touch the ground can be dry tumbled. And I find that I'm using the Lyman Turbo dry tumbler with walnut lizard litter more than my wet tumbler.

Its not complicated as long as you remember less is more when wet tumbling. And read the instruction and put a timer on the tumbler.



Aim High Air Force
MAC 69-73

I'm unfamiliar with the wet tumbling process. Is there any advantage to wet tumbling vs. using a vibratory tumbler? I've used either a real tumbler or vibratory tumbler for several decades and the process seems to work simply and work well.

Any time you have firearms that throw perfectly good brass away and makes you go look for it the cases can scratch your dies and brass.

I started wet tumbling after I started loading for three AR15 rifles and got tired of scratched brass. Meaning having dirt and grit embedded in the die. And wet tumbling will scrub any dirt and grit off these cases.

If you do not have the above problem and having to polish the inside of your dies a vibratory tumbler will work fine. But it may not add the "bling" that wet tumbling adds to the cases.

Case cleaning/tumbling is probably the most talked bout, but least important part of reloading!

Followed by "What's the best (anything)?"

I seriously doubt case cleaning is the highlight of anyone's reloading process. It comes down to a matter of what is the least inconvenient/messy/annoying for each of us.

Some like wet, some like dry, some like ultrasonic, some like vibrators, some like tumblers. They all work.

I still use a Thumblers Tumbler I bought for my son many years ago. It's small, slow, and will hold only a limited number of cases. Fill it, plug it in, and forget about it for a while. (Sometimes for a day or two!) Cases come out anywhere from clean to gleaming, depending on how long I let it run--or forget about it as the case may be. But case cleaning isn't something I put much thought into. It's not that important.

I don't know if it's the most talked about aspect of handloading, but it would have to be close. Least important? That's probably right.

I got my first tumbler ( an industrial rotary model) in the early '80s as part of a handloading equipment buyout from a commercial reloader. I would never have bought one outright as they appeared to be nothing more than a gadget. I knew no handloaders that used such devices. Tumbling made brass look better which really isn't worth much, but it removed case lubricant residue left from the resizing process. I wouldn't be without a tumbler today, but the process is far from necessary even for making the best ammunition.

Dillon

Good luck

Jerry

I purchased a Frankford Quick and EZ Vibrating tumbler. It Polish the brass in less than an hour. So far I am pleased.

I picked up a small tumbler from Harbor Freight. They promote it as a rock or jewelry cleaner. It holds 100 .45 or .357 rounds with the S.S. media. I fill it with water, add a pinch of Lemi-shine and a couple drops of Dawn dish soap and let it tumble for 4 hours. Cases come out shining clean.

I started with that too great little tumbler.

The first reloaders I met were shooting brown ammo. I met them at a range in '69 and they were shooting a lot (1911s) and getting their ammo out of ammo cans (loose). Their targets came back with one hole about 2" in diameter (50' range) for a few magazines full.

Frankford arsenal works just fine long as you don't over tighten the top. I had the main bolt in center come out along with all the plastic it was attached to ma king jus a lare hOle in center of bowl. They key to making it work perfectly is putting a plastic funnel upside down over the center bolt and cut the funnel end as to fit perfectly once top is tightened down. The funnel creates a turbo action on the media and it then turns over media and cases twice as fast. They do not sell just the bowl as a replacement so I had to buy another whole machine but I am all set now having a complete set of backup parts. Good luck

I've got a Thumbler's Tumbler Model B that has literally dry tumbled multiple tens of thousands of cases since 1977. I figure my son-in-law will get it some day.

It may not work as fast as a vibratory type tumbler, but I can't complain about it's longevity.

Are you going to dry tumble or wet tumble?

If you are going to stick with dry tumbling, my suggestion is the Frankford Arsenal tumber. Does everything the brand name tumblers do for a fraction of the price. Search Amazon and eBay for best prices.

If you are going to go to wet tumbling, then how many cases are you going to tumble? If it is only a hundred or so, now and then, I would suggest the Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler (FART). But, if you are going to do large numbers, get a Harbor Freight cement mixer, assemble it using cork gaskets and gasket sealant at each of the seams and it will allow you to tumble a thousand or more cases at a time.

I was following these posts closely and I chose my tumbler on your opinions.
Looks like somebody is looking out for me.


Papa

Attached Images

ImageUploadedByTapatalkHD1536499722.967633.jpg (47.1 KB, 20 views)