CLEANING BRASS CAN BE HAZARDESS TO YOUR HEALTH

I am convinced that variations in my grip has greater influence :eek: on my 1911 group sizes than dirty brass, primer pocket residue, case length variation, or case headstamp. :confused: My reloads are made with AA #2 powder and home cast lead bullets made from range scrap mined from the dirt berm. :rolleyes:

The usual casting and reloading practices will now resume followed by washing my hands. :)
 
I have had the same experience as MichiganScott up above. I used a tumbler for years and had my blood tested several times. I am artificially low in lead according to my doc. Considering I shoot between 10 and 20 thousand rounds a year this is odd.

I attribute it to good hygiene and a bit of care in dealing with the dust and contamination.
 
I dig my cases out of my (small) tumbler with a spoon and/or fingers and common sense says not to lick dusty brown fingers. I avoid indoor ranges around here as none seem to have proper "downrange" ventilation.
 
marathonrunner said:
Guys, the one thing I have read, they say reloaders who use tumblers are very prone to high levels of lead. That said, I bought an ultrasonic machine that uses wet media to clean them. But the brass does not come out shiny, they are clean but not shiny. I am wondering, if I were to clean them using the ultrasonic machine first, then I deprime them, then I run them through the tumbler, would that pretty much eliminate any risk of lead dust being kicked up in the air? What I am trying to do is eliminate any possibility of lead exposure.
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I think your concern is well founded. I was also concerned, so I switched to Thumlers Tumbler with SS pins. It was a good move. There is no more dust at all, the brass is done quicker, the brass gets 100% cleaned inside and out, and the consumables now are dish soap and Lemi shine.

I would hate to go back to dusty tumbling.
 
As always, yes & no. If you tumble inside with the lid off, empty with the wind blowing in your face, yes you will be exposing yourself to lead particles. Keep the lid on, empty outside upwind, wash your hands, not much of an issue. Washing the media when it gets really dirty helps, or just toss it, it's cheap enough to throw out 2-3x a year.
 
HOPSTER said:
Read Patrick Sweeney's books. He's a chemist but also a certified gunsmith and pistol competitor. The lead scare is blown out of proportion. Don't put it in your Wheaties, and wash your hands after handling it or at least before sucking your thumb.:D

The main problem with lead exposure from cleaning brass is the lead stypnate in the leftover primer residue.
+1 on the SS media wet cleaning method. I do it because it just works better, not because of any lead hazard.

On the other hand, the inability to spell the word "hazardous" is considered an early warning sign of lead poisoning in some medical circles.
Click to expand...
This post said it first but I was going to jump in and say that it's not spelled hazardess, it's hazardous. Next, I use a Berry's vibratory cleaner with a solid cover. It runs while sitting on my reloading bench while I'm doing something else nearby. I get zero dust. Berry's separator (rotary) is also fully enclosed so nothing comes out when you spin it to remove the media. Leave it closed for a while before opening and any dust will settle out. You could empty the container outside to avoid stirring up any dust. I wear gloves while reloading to avoid any lead contact and still wash my hands afterward. One real danger, and I don't do it, is casting bullets. Melting the lead puts vapor in the air and, without adequate ventilation, it can be deadly. I personally knew someone who did a lot of bullet casting and suffered lead poisoning to the point where he almost died. Be careful with all reloading activities and you'll be OK.
 
Most of your lead exposure come from primers.

Using a tumbler, Put the SOLID lid cover on it.

When done, use a brass/media separator of some sort OUTSIDE.

Your exposure to dust or lead is now less than the air you breath in a smog filled city.

If you shoot indoors then that us were you will have the most exposure.

There is a gazillion threads on this. Look up at the top under notable threads.

http://smith-wessonforum.com/reloading/232095-blood-lead-levels.html
 
brass

Rule3 said:
Most of your lead exposure come from primers.

Using a tumbler, Put the SOLID lid cover on it.

When done, use a brass/media separator of some sort OUTSIDE.

Your exposure to dust or lead is now less than the air you breath in a smog filled city.

If you shoot indoors then that us were you will have the most exposure.

There is a gazillion threads on this. Look up at the top under notable threads.

http://smith-wessonforum.com/reloading/232095-blood-lead-levels.html
Click to expand...

If you use tumbler outside, depending on the wind it could be blowing right back into your garage, near the door of house, etc... The closed lid seems fine until you dump the media out. In the garage with open windows, well ok stuff gets on floor and now you track it in when you walk inside. I don't think dry media is safe period. I bought the ultrasonic but now thinking I should have bought the SS with pins
 
I tumble my brass outside and place a few dryer sheets in with the brass. It keeps the dust and any lead down. Wearing gloves when handling uncleaned brass is helpful.
 
marathonrunner said:
If you use tumbler outside, depending on the wind it could be blowing right back into your garage, near the door of house, etc... The closed lid seems fine until you dump the media out. In the garage with open windows, well ok stuff gets on floor and now you track it in when you walk inside. I don't think dry media is safe period. I bought the ultrasonic but now thinking I should have bought the SS with pins
Click to expand...

Well you don't piss into the wind do you? ;)

You pour the media out with your back to the wind if that is an issue not dump it .

Probably 100 to 1 tumblers sold to other wet methods but that's what there are choices in the world. They both work.

You can just wash it in a bucket with 2 cups of vinegar, 2 tbls salt, a drop of dish soap and 1 gal of water. Not buy anything.

What do you do with all your contaminated water? Pour it in the kitchen sink? How about the yard and then it leaches into the ground water.
 
Lead, from shooting is only absorbed into the body by inhalation or ingestion, You can get some through the eyes.

Handling lead as in bullets or brass does not let lead into your body. If you wash your hands and arms then you are fine.

If you eat, smoke or put your fingers in your nose then you will absorb some lead.

What will you do about depriming the old primers? Those contain lead and punching them out will "dust" primer lead.

Do you shoot indoors at a range that allows lead primers and bullets. If so then you are doomed.

If you shoot outside how to you pick up your brass? If you sweep the concrete that will kick up more dust than a years worth of tumbler media.

What you clean off brass is not lead it is carbon with some lead in it.

You do not have to clean brass, dirty brass will work just fine as long as it's not sand or dirt in there.

Wash your hand arms and face after shooting and all will be well.


NRA-RSO
 
Believing everything you read on an Internet Forum can be hazardous to you mental health because somethings just ain't no problem. I'm going to die of something, and at my age probably sooner than later.

Lead contamination or bodily intake is a non-issue with just a little common sense (which isn't to common in this thread) and the simple act of washing your hands after reloading or casting activities.

My normal hobby activities will now resume.
 
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Moonman said:
I use WET TUMBLING with Stainless Steel Pins, and wear Nytrile Gloves.

For those using VIBRATOR TUMBLERS, change your media more frequently,

place a few 1" squares of a dryer sheet in with it.

When you change or dump the media, do it outside and wear a dust mask

(Dust is LEAD STYPHANITE CONTAMINATED) from the primer dust.
Click to expand...


Your primer dust brought to mind secondary detonation. The tubes can collect the primer dust so when one gets dropped, it can detonate causing the actual primers to detonate. Federal primers are higher octane so to speak and more likely than others to react.
 
snowman.45 said:
Where do you find the SS pins some mentioned? I'd like to try them in my vibrating tumbler.
Click to expand...

They don't seem to work well in a vibrator. The pins drop to the bottom, and the cases want to ride on top.

Any of the major online gun stores sell them. I picked up a small package from amazon, and have been very happy. It does require extra steps, but the end product is worth it.

For small batches, harbor freight sells a tumbler for about $50 that has worked pretty well for me. A larger tumbler may work faster, but I start it and let it run for a couple of hours at a time. I will probably build a large scale unit at some point.
 
snowman.45 said:
Where do you find the SS pins some mentioned? I'd like to try them in my vibrating tumbler.
Click to expand...
Pins (and tumblers) are available here Stainless Tumbling Media | Stainless Steel Media 5lbs.

As has been said, the pins won't work in a vibratory tumbler (because it doesn't "tumble") you need something that rotates (like a rock tumbler). I do quite a few pieces of brass per week so I use a small cement mixer (1.25 cu ft from Harbor Freight) with Lemishine and Car wash soap. Tumble about an hour, use a media separator (I use the kind that is used with walnut shell media) and rinse multiple times, then I lay them on a towel for a few days to dry but an oven can be used. (or the sun, but I don't see that a lot in Seattle ;))
 

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Engineer1911 said:
Believing everything you read on an Internet Forum can be hazardous to you mental health because somethings just ain't no problem. I'm going to die of something, and at my age probably sooner than later.

Lead contamination or bodily intake is a non-issue with just a little common sense (which isn't to common in this thread) and the simple act of washing your hands after reloading or casting activities.

My normal hobby activities will now resume.
Click to expand...

 
Yes. There is lead in the residue in brass. It's from the primers. That is why "NT" ammo has lead free primers and encapsulated bullets.

I give my brass a soak in Lemi Shine for about an hour. My media stays pretty clean.

And if yer gonna pick yer nose after a range session don't...ummm... well... never mind... ;)
 
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