Hello all! I have been using a vibratory tumbler with dry media for over 40 years. I have an opportunity to purchase a sonic cleaner. What is the advantage of using a sonic cleaner over a sonic cleaner?

Thanks for your advice!

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Judge control not gun control!

sonic does a good job cleaning inside & primer pockets if you deprime but doesn't polish the brass and you have to wait for the brass to dry - i currently use a ultrasonic & then a trip through the vibratory to polish them but that really isn't needed.

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Steve

I’ve been thinking of picking one up too. I like the idea of being able to clean gun parts and assemblies with it too.

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USS Brewton FF1086
SWCA#3597

They are great tools for cleaning brass and many other uses. But, I have a friend that placed a early Colt LW Commander, 38 Super in his. He now has a "two-tone" Colt. I felt so bad for him that I called Colt's right away and, unfortunately, they no longer refinish there own guns. The gentleman I spoke with at Colt's was very helpful. He spent a bit time helping me with locating other vendors that he could recommend for the job. So...be careful and be sure to read the instructions for use. Hope this helps. Thanks! Mick

I started with a sonic cleaner I bought for other purposes. Cleaning brass with it was time consuming and the result was not all that great. I later got a vibratory cleaner, and using it with Lyman media is as easy as it gets and gets the brass as clean as I need it.

Not a single shell has gone in to the ultrasonic since I got the vibratory cleaner.

In fact, I have bought used brass from folks who used a sonic cleaner on it, and I ended up running it thru my vibratory cleaner to clean it a bit more and "lube" the cases a tiny bit so they were easier to run thru my dies. The sonic cleaner can degrease the shells so thoroughly that they almost get sticky.

I am staying with a vibrating tumbler. Along with that I use Lee Pocket Cleaner to clean out any boxer holes with media left in them.

Along that same train of thought, I will remove all media & brass from the vibrator, pouring it all into a dedicated large salad bowl. Then use a spaghetti strainer to remove the brass from the media and return the BRASS to the vibrator alone. I find running the empty vibrator with only the brass, for 20-30sec, is more than enough to knock out any remaining media.

An added benefit to the above technique is that by carefully returning the media back to the vibrator, you can stop just before you start pouring the very fine spent powder dust at the bottom of the bowl,back in. You can never stop all of it, but you can eliminate a good amount, thus extending your media's lifespan.

I clean my brass using stainless steel media and it is great. Brass comes out looking factory new and the media never wears out. You also don't get all the dust like dry media. I used dry media for years and years and would never contemplate going back.


Stainless Steel Reloading Supplies | Tumblers, Separators, Media, Brass & More!

I'm with SRG,I use a thumlers tumbler with s.s. media and you get it factory cleaned and polished inside & out,3 tablespoons of dawn added to the water (approx. 3500 ml) and a thimble full of lemi-shine for about 4hrs.for really tough to clean brass use 3 ounces of rcbs song cleaner solution instead-done!

Can you use the SS media with a conventional tumbler, or do you need to buy/use one of those expensive rotary tumblers...? Thx

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NRA Life Member

you tumble stainless steel with water so yes I guess you have to use a rotary tumbler

I've been a tumble cleaner user for many years and had good success. I do have fairly powerful ultrasonic cleaners which I use for other things and I have tried cases in it and never been pleased with the results. I haven't found the mixture that delivers the results some other folks speak of. Also there are may different power levels of ultrasonic cleaners and a $59.95 unit doesn't do what a $250 unit does. I'm not happy about how my $250 unit cleans.

Gothcha, didn’t know that; thanks...

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NRA Life Member

Sonic clean will never clean as well as tumbling. I de-prime, then tumble, then sonic clean. Tumbling doesn’t get the insides clean like sonic cleaning does.

I have the Hornady Wet tumbler, the Hornady vibrating media tumbler, and the Hornady 2.3 gal sonic cleaner. I prefer the wet tumbler but you want to know the advantage of the media tumbler and the sonic cleaner.

The media tumbler will "shine" the brass corn cob is better than walnut. But the sonic cleaner will "clean " the brass inside and out but will not leave a high shine.

The media tumbler takes 3 to 4 hours where the sonic cleaner that I have will be done in about 1/2 hour. Now the 2.3 gal. Hornady has 4 transducers so that helps.

Cleaning the outside of a cartridge case will remove dirt, dust, or other debris or coatings that could scratch a size die or chamber. The cleaning process is not essential for spotting problems like incipient head separation, split necks, and brass that is generally worn out, but it's a little easier to notice such things if the brass is externally clean. Nothing new here; we're all aware.

However, I'm curious to know the real or perceived advantage, if any, of cleaning (to bare metal, I presume) the inside of a cartridge case. Perhaps I've overlooked something.

ME TOO!

FWIW, I clean my exterior, but I'll be dang'd if I'll do an enema after every use! And mine still operates as it should, all these years later...

Here's what I do: Put fired, still primed cases, into a large bowl filled with hot water to which is added a teaspoon of dish washing soap and a sqosh of Lemi-shine(citric acid). (A sqosh is an estimated amount that usually is around a tablespoon or a little more). Let the cases sit for about 1/2 hour and they come out shiny clean. I then place them upside down, in the usually discarded plastic cartridge trays that came out of factory ammo boxes, to air dry. If the shine is not what I like, I'll place them in a vibratory tumbler with fairly fine corn cob media for about 2 hours. Now the brass is both shiny and clean and I've saved a lot of dirt and powder residue from contaminating my tumbling media.

I started out using a vibratory media cleaner, was not happy with primer pocket cleaning so that required that I clean each pocket by hand. Switched over to an ultrasonic cleaner, that was much better, don't have to independently clean primer pockets anymore However..............my friend has the stainless media tumbler............wow! The brass looks new when it comes out of that contraption and he can load it up with a whole lot of brass!
Karl

I've never seen any evidence in any form, that cleaning any primer pocket makes any difference whatsoever. I have however experienced annoying issues related to depriming cases BEFORE cleaning them. Not telling anyone what they should do (honestly, I am not even suggesting it, because one's process/methods are very personal and I respect that) but I say this for anyone who might be on the fence.

If you are asking yourself "do I truly need to keep cleaning these primer pockets?" then my experience is an emphatic "hell no!"

I am a big fan of "try it yourself and see for yourself", make two sets of loads in any platform you have the time, energy or curiosity to do, and pit your clean primer pockets against your untouched primer pockets while keeping every other detail exactly the same and see if you can notice even the slightest difference.

I will add just one more thing: PRIDE in your process and your ammo is a very tangible advantage, and I know that it exists. If you enjoy cleaning primer pockets and it gives you pride in your ammo, I am just as certain that yes, you truly should do it. Somewhat similarly, I always use the same headstamps in any box of ammo, even the most simple 9mm fodder for dumping steel plates at 15 yards. Many find it wholly unnecessary, but it has genuine value to me, so three decades in, I continue to do it.

The last time I cleaned primer pockets was a day when I was really bored and just needed something to do. But I've never cleaned primer pocket because I "needed" to.

If hospital-sterile, Navy-brass bright is what you want, then go for it. But it's not a reloading requirement.

In more than fifty years of handloading about that many different cartridges, I've seen very little need for primer pocket cleaning. It's best described as busy work.

I reload on a Hornady Ammo-plant. Let me repeat this "I reload on a Hornady Ammo-plant" I also clean my brass including the pockets. Now I reload on a Hornady Ammo-plant. Hornady has a reputation of the "primer dimple" I have over 90,000 threw one Ammo-plant and as far as a dimple...none. It may not help with accuracy shooting but it sure helps on wear and tear on your press.

I have also helped other fix and time their Hornady presses and normally those that clean their pockets I could see they had nice benches. Those that didn't clean their pockets I would have liked to have seen their benches. I know it is down there somewhere. But to each there own.

I have been using first a sonic cleaner and then tumbling for years now, not necessary at all, but I like the way my cases look.
For a cleaning solution, I buy citric acid, use it and dawn detergent, works very very well, for me.
I bought five pounds of citric acid, food grade, on Amazon for $19.99 years ago, after using small bottles I bought that were meant for Home Canning, which worked well, just more expensive that way.
Anyway, I don't think there is a right or wrong way, just whatever works for you.
I remember my father, who I originally started reloading with, over 50 years ago commenting "why the heck do you bother cleaning your brass "?
He has passed on now, but to him, reloading was mostly about shooting more for less money, not having shiny clean cases !!

By "boxer " holes, do you mean primer pockets?
Never heard them called that before.
Yes, I do know about boxer primers.

Hope you guys don’t laugh so hard you swallow your chew. I’ve been reloading 357 mag and occasionally 300 Blackout for about 3 years. I size and deprime my 357 brass then put them in plastic gallon jugs with hot water, Dawn soap, and Limey Shine. I then zip tie 2 jugs in my electric clothes dryer for two 80 minute cycles. They get perfectly clean including primer pockets. I do not polish my brass. Clean is good enough for me. Rarely do I reload more than 200 rounds a day.

Ps - I’m an old fart and live alone. I pour and powder coat all my 357 bullets. My cost varies from 6¢ to 9¢ per round depending on powder load and bullet weight. I pay 50¢ per pound for wheel weight lead. I’m looking for a 180grain mold at .358 if anyone wants to sell one (RNFP).