Cleaning brass-tumbler vs ultra sonic
- Thread starter Jamie
- Start date
Register to hide this ad
I have both, and if I where to do it again, I would buy the stainless pins and tumbler.
Most commercial ultrasonic cleaners lack the power to clean heavy soot and primer pockets.
My process is to pop the primers with depriming die, ultrasonic clean the cases, size the & trim cases and then about an hour in a tumbler to remove any lube or brass trimmings.
Don't believe the adds where they have a tarnished case and it comes out factory new. The only way I think you get this is with the stainless pins.
I like my brass shiny so I don't bother posting that I don't need to go through all this effort. My brass, my time so deal with it.
Ultra Sonic
Pros less dust, cleans most of the soot and tarnish
Cons Have to buy the solution, have to dry the cases, cases are clean but not polished.
Tumbler
Pros Cheaper, cases are highly polished when done
Cons Dusty which can be a problem if you have respiratory issues, case lube will cut down on life of media, will not remove tarnish.
Most commercial ultrasonic cleaners lack the power to clean heavy soot and primer pockets.
My process is to pop the primers with depriming die, ultrasonic clean the cases, size the & trim cases and then about an hour in a tumbler to remove any lube or brass trimmings.
Don't believe the adds where they have a tarnished case and it comes out factory new. The only way I think you get this is with the stainless pins.
I like my brass shiny so I don't bother posting that I don't need to go through all this effort. My brass, my time so deal with it.
Ultra Sonic
Pros less dust, cleans most of the soot and tarnish
Cons Have to buy the solution, have to dry the cases, cases are clean but not polished.
Tumbler
Pros Cheaper, cases are highly polished when done
Cons Dusty which can be a problem if you have respiratory issues, case lube will cut down on life of media, will not remove tarnish.
Last edited:
I tumble, have used corn cob in the past, but have settled on pet store ground-walnut cage bedding. It's very fine, doesn't plug primer holes, and if you add a few drops of 'non-ammonia' auto wax the cases will come out slick and shiny, althought that's not my purpose for tumbling.
socal s&w
Member
Tried an US with not too great results, worked so-so. Tried different solutions without much in the way of truly clean brass.
Vibratory works well, especially adding Nu-Finish car wax to the mix, makes them really shiny and also helps in the sizer die. Don't like the dust, and there are those who state that used dryer sheet strips work well to mitigate that. Like the shiny though.
Stainless steel pins however are the best that I have used and have now sold my vibratory and US. The Thumler's Tumbler and the pins works great. Shiny brass without dust and the pins should last many years without replacement. A little planning ahead to allow the brass to dry before loading is the only issue. Even then, you can dry them in an oven fast enough. I simply run mine and allow to dry overnight on a towel in my garage.
There was an excellent write up on the pins a couple of months ago on this Forum. Try a search if you're interested in this method.
Vibratory works well, especially adding Nu-Finish car wax to the mix, makes them really shiny and also helps in the sizer die. Don't like the dust, and there are those who state that used dryer sheet strips work well to mitigate that. Like the shiny though.
Stainless steel pins however are the best that I have used and have now sold my vibratory and US. The Thumler's Tumbler and the pins works great. Shiny brass without dust and the pins should last many years without replacement. A little planning ahead to allow the brass to dry before loading is the only issue. Even then, you can dry them in an oven fast enough. I simply run mine and allow to dry overnight on a towel in my garage.
There was an excellent write up on the pins a couple of months ago on this Forum. Try a search if you're interested in this method.
TAROMAN
US Veteran
Tried an ultrasonic. Soon gave it away to Goodwill.
Next to useles for case cleaning.
What works much better is Bar Keepers Friend in hot water in a gallon bucket. Dump the cases in, swirl well for several minutes, and rinse well.
Next to useles for case cleaning.
What works much better is Bar Keepers Friend in hot water in a gallon bucket. Dump the cases in, swirl well for several minutes, and rinse well.
lhump1961
US Veteran
They look nice & shiny. Does it remove the soot & carbon from inside the case & prime pockets? Does it have anything in it that would ruin the case integrity, like ammonia supposedly does?
Bluedot, I also use SS pin tumbler and it does clean up primer pockets (if you decap prior to tumbling). You don't need any special detergents, just dishwashing detergent + some lime shine, so don't think it would affect metal integrity. Pins do get stuck occasionally in primer pockets mostly for 40 S&W. The only negative I find about this tumbler is a wimpy motor, you can only tumble about 200 cases at once...
I guess I'm out of the loop on tumblers, are they a wet device & you have to dry the cases after? The pins must be small(er) than I initially imaged. Sounds interesting. I've heard concerns about vibrators & their lead dust...don't know if there's a lot to it? Never had a ultrasonic cleaner, but I know the ones we had in the Air Force sure cleaned good.
Yes, those are wet tumblers, nothing special - just tap water (hot is better) + dishwashing detergent + lime shine. Pins are quarter inch long and 0.04" in diameter.
Here's the pin picture in comparison to 357 case:
Here's the pin picture in comparison to 357 case:
Last edited:
longranger
Member
Thumlers Tumbler "B" model and 5lbs. of S.S. media and never look back,worth every penny. 2 tblsp. Dawn dish washing liquid, 1/2 tsp. Lemi Shine $2.00 from Walmart.1 hr.
Mikey217
US Veteran
I got my Thumler's today, after a LONG wait! I just ran a batch of .40 s&w through it. My recipe is very similar to yours, longranger. I used a gallon of hot water, a squirt of Dawn and a tbs of Lemi Shine and ran that for two hours. Man, they came out shiny!
My question is this... after it's done, I rinsed the media off, strained it through a kitchen strainer to get as much water out as I could, and put it back in the tumbler. Should I leave it open so it can dry out, or just seal it up until the next batch? How do you do yours?
Thanks!
Mike
My question is this... after it's done, I rinsed the media off, strained it through a kitchen strainer to get as much water out as I could, and put it back in the tumbler. Should I leave it open so it can dry out, or just seal it up until the next batch? How do you do yours?
Thanks!
Mike
Attachments
Twoboxer
Member
If you are going to use water, go with SS pins as the media and skip ultrasonic.
One of the great advantages to tumbling dry is if you leave it overnight (say on a timer), and don't get to it for a day or two . . . no problem. Don't do that with a water based cleaning solution.
I tumble dry, outside, on a cheap outlet timer. No muss, no fuss, no attention required.
One of the great advantages to tumbling dry is if you leave it overnight (say on a timer), and don't get to it for a day or two . . . no problem. Don't do that with a water based cleaning solution.
I tumble dry, outside, on a cheap outlet timer. No muss, no fuss, no attention required.
How long did it take for you to receive yours? I ordered a kit on the 7th and they said two weeks.
Mikey217
US Veteran
I placed my order on Jan. 28th and got it Feb. 18th, so it took exactly 3 weeks to get mine.
Mikey217
US Veteran
Okay, so I tumbled some rifle brass this morning in the SS media, so now I can show a direct comparison. These photos compare 30-06 cases... one done in the Hornady Lock-n-Load sonic cleaner, the other in the Thumler's Tumbler with SS media, a squirt of Dawn and a dash of Lemi Shine. I also attached a photo of the entire batch I just ran. I did that all at once. It would have probably taken two batches to do that many in the sonic cleaner.
