Cleaning brass

[Pheroze]

Unnecessary but sooooo pretty!

 

[Rob404]

I agree, I like shiney brass

 

[BRICKBURN]

It does just make you fell better doesn't it.

I think it does cut down on the possibility of being sticky in the firearm too. On the practical side.

 

[Grumulkin]

I think it does cut down on the possibility of being sticky in the firearm too.

No it doesn't but thinking that helps you justify the time you spend cleaning it. But I'm with you brother; I use stainless steel pins which gets everything real shiny inside and out.

 

[lcq]

I take whatever the tumbler spits out and am happy with it as long as it shoots

 

[BRICKBURN]

No it doesn't but thinking that helps you justify the time you spend cleaning it. But I'm with you brother; I use stainless steel pins which gets everything real shiny inside and out.

It's my voodoo.

 

[Pheroze]

I take whatever the tumbler spits out and am happy with it as long as it shoots

But the 375 brass is like the most beautiful piece of Edwardian art that I have. It behoves me to treat it well.

 

[Pheroze]

No it doesn't but thinking that helps you justify the time you spend cleaning it. But I'm with you brother; I use stainless steel pins which gets everything real shiny inside and out.

Au contraire! Clean brass not only allows for better extraction, but I shoot straighter, reload faster and I am more appealing to members of the opposite sex!

I use the little steel pins too! Love em'

 

[CAustin]

Keep shining them all Pheroze.....I'm with you they look great!

 

[sestoppelman]

OK, now whats all this talk about little steel pins? Still using corn cob media and frankly its outdated, slow and a PITA. Lets hear it.

 

[lcq]

OK, now whats all this talk about little steel pins? Still using corn cob media and frankly its outdated, slow and a PITA. Lets hear it.

I'm old fashioned and use corn, walnut for the real dirty range brass. Stainless steel media requires a rotary tumbler and liquid. To me drying the brass would be more of a pain in the ass unless you live in Phoenix

 

[DM Shooting]

Don't need shiny just clean 10mins in the ultra sonic cleaner then stand on the drying rack overnight.

 

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

I agree, I like shiney brass

+1 Rob

 

[Pheroze]

OK, now whats all this talk about little steel pins? Still using corn cob media and frankly its outdated, slow and a PITA. Lets hear it.

I looked at corn but the mess and the idea of fishing out stuck bits of corn put me off. The stainless steel pins last forever. I use an old rock tumbler my son had when he was little, throw in pins and a drop of dish detergent. A few hours later I have clean brass. I need to upgrade my tumbler because I can only clean about 20 at a time in a kid's rock tumbler .

I clean after the brass is prepped. I don't mind waiting for them to dry because the case prep process etc. tends to take up the time I have. The next day I have beautiful, clean and dry brass.

 

[Rob404]

I use crushed walnuts and they do a nice job along with a tablespoon of Brasso,,they come out looking like New Money

 

[Brent in Az]

Nothing beats an hour in the tumbler for making pretty.

 

[sestoppelman]

I use crushed walnuts and they do a nice job along with a tablespoon of Brasso,,they come out looking like New Money

Go easy on the Brasso. Its great stuff but has ammonia in it which is a brass killer. I like it too but I don't use it around ammo or brass.

 

[lcq]

Go easy on the Brasso. Its great stuff but has ammonia in it which is a brass killer. I like it too but I don't use it around ammo or brass.

exactly

 

[sandman0921]

Don't need shiny just clean 10mins in the ultra sonic cleaner then stand on the drying rack overnight.

Ditto. I use an ultrasonic cleaner I purchased off eBay and a cleaning detergent called Citranox that is safe for reloading brass. The brass comes out clean and shiny. Even the primer pockets are very clean. Another solution that a friend of mine told me about for drying the brass after it comes out of the ultrasonic cleaner is a food dehydrator. You can get them off Amazon or eBay for a very low price ($40-$60), and the low temperature air that circulates through the trays is perfect for drying brass relatively quickly. I have heard of people using counter-top/toaster style ovens to dry the brass, but I worried even at the lowest temperature setting, it might be too hot and result in annealing the whole piece of brass, and thus the case head. Probably not true, but enough that I decided a food dehydrator was a better option.

I used to air dry my brass on a rack, but on a couple of occasions, I found that despite me shaking the brass vigorously after rinsing before I put them on a rack, I had some water droplets inside the case which wet my powder, and probably primer. I probably wasn't letting them dry long enough, but I would have thought 12-24 hours was enough. Anyway, the food dehydrator may be a solution in need of a problem, but it's cheap, and gives me peace of mind.

 

[PLM]

After removing from the Thumbler's Tumbler, I rinse and then lay my brass on a bath towel. Gather one end in each hand and with the brass laying in the formed pouch, Alternately raise and lower each hand rolling the brass back and forth in the towel. Then I take the brass and spread on a cookie sheet covered with foil, put it in the oven set on the lowest setting with the oven door cracked open for about 30 minutes. Clean and dry inside and out and doesn't get hot enough to hurt the brass. It takes a little longer, but if you deprime the brass first, the primer pockets will also be spotless.