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  #1  
Old 04-16-2009, 09:28 AM
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What is it that you can add to your mix to help clean the brass? My corn cobb needs replaced but no one around me has any, guess I could use rice.
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Old 04-16-2009, 09:28 AM
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What is it that you can add to your mix to help clean the brass? My corn cobb needs replaced but no one around me has any, guess I could use rice.
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Old 04-16-2009, 10:31 AM
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If you can't find any media at a reloading shop, go to a local pet store like Petsmart. They have loads of corncob and walnut media, used from kitty litter to small animal bedding.
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Old 04-16-2009, 10:32 AM
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Dillon (and I'm sure others) makes a polish that will rejuvenate your media a few times.

I've used rice - it's a bit extreme in a rotary tumbler and would eventually probably destroy the brass if left in there long enough. When I tried it in a vibrating tumbler is seemed to not 'cut' as bad and actually 'polished' more.

Oxidized range brass cleaned up like coarse steel wool had been used on it when tumbled in the rotary. Came out burnished down to clean brass, though it was not 'polished'.

Walnut hull always worked good for me.
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Old 04-16-2009, 10:41 AM
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I purchase a 50 lb bag of ground corn cobs from a pet supply store. When it gets slightly grey I reoplace it with new media - it's very inexpensive.
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Originally posted by Bullseye Smith:
What is it that you can add to your mix to help clean the brass? My corn cobb needs replaced but no one around me has any, guess I could use rice.
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Old 04-16-2009, 10:42 AM
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I just ad liquid brasso or what ever liquid brass cleaner. About 2 oz should do!
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Old 04-16-2009, 10:42 AM
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You can add any liquid car polish. I have used Turtle Wax and others recommend Nu-Finish.
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Old 04-16-2009, 10:50 AM
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Stay away from brasso. It is ammonia based which will make the brass brittle. I use the media renew from Lyman.
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Old 04-16-2009, 12:16 PM
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Yeah, I was warned about the Brasso years ago. Ammonia based and not good for firearms brass.
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Old 04-16-2009, 12:47 PM
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The use of brasso has been overstated in my opinion. I clean my brass with IOSSO or KABOOM before I tumble polish it with either brass treated corn cob or crushed walnut. I then size and prep it and then more often than not, I tumble it again for an hour or two with untreated corn cob media or crushed walnut material. I think the brass failure sited by people are failures because of brittleness brought on by work hardening of the brass during the repeated resizing operation. After brass has been sized several times it really needs to be annealed again. My experience anyway. James
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Old 04-16-2009, 01:46 PM
Skip Sackett Skip Sackett is offline
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Bullseye,
Are you a JIW? I am!

At any rate, the Pet Smart crushed walnut is lizard bedding. It is really fine compared to Lyman's. Here is what I have started doing to get more mileage out of my media.

40% Lyman Treated Corn Cob, 40% Lyman Treated Walnut Media and 20% Pets Smart Lizard Bedding. I also started to use the Dillon polish. One caution, if the smaller media gets too wet it will end up stuck inside of cases with small mouths, 223 for example, and wreak havoc on your resizing dies. Don't ask how I know!

Other than that, the stuff from Pets Smart is cheap and seems to work very well.
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Old 04-16-2009, 03:31 PM
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For polishing, I've been very happy with a 50/50 mix of Nu-Finish car polish and mineral spirits. I shoot at least 300-400 rounds per month and still haven't emptied the 16-ounce container of Nu-Finish that I bought over 3 years ago.
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Old 04-17-2009, 08:59 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by smith crazy:
Bullseye,
Are you a JIW? I am! <span class="ev_code_RED">Yes I am, out of 683 Columbus, OH</span>

At any rate, the Pet Smart crushed walnut is lizard bedding. It is really fine compared to Lyman's. Here is what I have started doing to get more mileage out of my media.

40% Lyman Treated Corn Cob, 40% Lyman Treated Walnut Media and 20% Pets Smart Lizard Bedding. I also started to use the Dillon polish. One caution, if the smaller media gets too wet it will end up stuck inside of cases with small mouths, 223 for example, and wreak havoc on your resizing dies. Don't ask how I know!

Other than that, the stuff from Pets Smart is cheap and seems to work very well.
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Old 04-17-2009, 09:29 AM
Skip Sackett Skip Sackett is offline
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Me too, only 153!
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Old 04-17-2009, 08:20 PM
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I'm mixing about 60% lizard litter to 40% Lyman treated corn media. The thing I don't like about he Lyman corn media is the size of the media gets stuck in the flash holes.
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Old 04-18-2009, 03:30 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by Blaidd:
I'm mixing about 60% lizard litter to 40% Lyman treated corn media. The thing I don't like about he Lyman corn media is the size of the media gets stuck in the flash holes.
That's not a problem if you don't resize them before you clean them.
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Old 04-18-2009, 07:59 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by smith crazy:


At any rate, the Pet Smart crushed walnut is lizard bedding.

Other than that, the stuff from Pets Smart is cheap and seems to work very well.
Not only do I use the Pet Smart "Lizard Bedding" mixed 50/50 with Lyman Corn cob, living in Florida I throw in a few Lizards (Anoles) just for fun. Gets them nice and clean and then slip them on the BBQ!
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Old 04-22-2009, 02:43 AM
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I've filled my wife's panty hose with dirty media, tied it off and put it in the washing machine when I knew she wouldn't be home for awhile. Cleaned the media well enough to reuse it a number of times. I stopped doing it because I was scared she would catch me.
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Old 04-22-2009, 06:22 AM
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You can add some used (or new) drier sheets, cut in strips to the media and it will help keep it clean. I have used rice, which did ok, but prefer to use walnut (lizard litter)to clean and corn to polish. I add some Dillon rapid polish to both. I have also used the Lyman green stuff. It seems to work well, also. If you don't have dryer sheets. some strips of paper towel will work better than nothing. The drier sheets work better. Keep changing them out pretty regularily and they will gradually clean up your media.
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Old 04-22-2009, 06:41 AM
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Nice tip on the dryer sheets - I'll have to try that.

Always something new to share and learn on this board, that's why I like the place.
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Old 04-22-2009, 07:37 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by blueswarrior:
I've filled my wife's panty hose with dirty media, tied it off and put it in the washing machine when I knew she wouldn't be home for awhile. Cleaned the media well enough to reuse it a number of times. I stopped doing it because I was scared she would catch me.
Catch you washing them or WEARING them????

Sorry couldn't resist and WELCOME
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Old 04-22-2009, 01:26 PM
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Quote:
Catch you washing them or WEARING them????

Sorry couldn't resist and WELCOME
Didn't take long for THIS thread to head downhill, did it?

Good one, OCD1!
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Old 04-28-2009, 03:32 AM
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I just bought 20 pounds of corn cob from Berrys in a 5 gallon bucket for $40, got tired of buying 2 bags at a time at gun shows and lugging it home so im set for a few years, i hope.
I add a capful of berrys brass bright and a capful of nu-finish and they come out great.
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Old 04-28-2009, 11:52 AM
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I wouldn't use the washing machine. There is some nasty heavy metal stuff that can come off the old primers. The media is cheap, throw it away!
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Old 04-30-2009, 03:42 PM
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I USE NU FINISH IT WORKS GREAT.I CAN CLEAN AT LEAST 5 OR 6 THOUSAND ROUNDS WITHOUT CHANGEING MADIA.
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