300Whspr
Member
Hate to jump into the middle of an argument here, but just wondering if anyone has tried adding Borax or Washing Soda (sodium carbonate) to the mix, and if so, were there any benefits observed?
Hate to jump into the middle of an argument here, but just wondering if anyone has tried adding Borax or Washing Soda (sodium carbonate) to the mix, and if so, were there any benefits observed?
Why. What would it do?. All it does is change the alkalinity (pH)of the water which depends on you original water source.
Washing soda is made from baking soda buy heating it in a oven to Co2
Add some citric acid, makes a big difference.but it's just in Dawn right now.
All Dawn, or other detergent, does is allow loose dirt to slip off and remain suspended in liquid. Some dirt might get scraped off when rubbing against other cases, but anything scorched on will pretty much stay in place.it's just in Dawn right now... no pins (don't have any yet). Just to get a baseline.
Well, that sucks.
Any pin that is fourty seven hundredths would do.
Provided, of course, if that was the size of the flash hole one was trying to prevent pin wedging from occuring in.
I'll look for another site to link to, but I am sorry to see them go.
Run out of inexpensive drop supply I imagine...
Scrap makes much better product than raw material. No waste.
Oh, well.
Any report of case mouth peening without steel pins? I feel I've over done my tumbler. Perhaps they should just roll along the bottom of the cylinder, rather than being elevated and dashed upon the lower cases? More of a scrub than an impact cleansing?
FWIW:For the guys using the AAW&W, how much do you add? I made a 1 gallon and a 2 gallon drum for my tumbler.
drums I've seen run at a 45 degree angle without a cover, kind of like a cement mixer.
Yeah...I've screwed around with this and that magic potion, lotion and motion but found that nothing beats pins, a little Dawn and Lemishine. I use a fine mesh collander to rinse and drain the brass in super hot water and also rinse the pins while I'm at it. It MAY add a few minutes overall however I do this because I enjoy it so what's the hurry?Tried not using pins and for me not worth it. The few minutes to put in RCBS rotary separator filled with water the cleaner brass is worth it.
That pic you posted of your tumbler is impressive, a well thought out design.A good point.
Perhaps this makes it easier to regulate the water level as well.
Hmm.
Back to the drawing board for me.
How to use my existing containers and variable speed pulley set...
Not all of my containers have the stainless angle baffles. Those may be more gentle.
I originally installed them to stop the rolling along the bottom. I disliked the three or four cases that had set just right to get the roll rings on them.
The trouble is, my machine works great in thirty minutes, as is. Minus the slight peening.
Ya know what is said about fixing unbroken things...
Here's a pic of my tumbler that I built...
OK, I've been looking the past few days for the AAW&W, but no joy anywhere. So, I picked up a bottle of Blue Coral Wash&Wax with Carnuba wax. I'm thinking it ought to be about the same thing.
My pins arrive sometime this week, so I'll have the full setup finally.
Here's a pic of my tumbler that I built....View attachment 821173
Very nice! Much easier to stow than mine.
Since much of the conversation regarding tumbling without pins revolves around the cleanliness of primer pockets, I wonder of there is a certain brand of primer that is most clean. When I switched to CCI Magnum primers from Winchester Large Pistol primers I noticed that the pockets were cleaner in the Fifty A.E. cases. I attributed that to the cleaner burn. But perhaps it was because of the differing primer compounds. I haven't use any in any other cartridges, yet. Obviously I need to try it now...
All I use for rifle cases are CCI so I am not sure if there is a difference or if I am inferring one.
I don't want to drift away too far, but if the pockets were already cleaner, pins wouldn't be as necessary and tumbling without them would be expedient.
I like Limei-Shine. I hear it passivates the brass surface from future tarnish. I like vinegar chips, but the vinegar wash didn't work as well for me and the cases dulled quickly. That could have been on me.
I will always wet tumble, pins or no, because I prefer the cleanliness compared to dry cleaned cases. (At least all the ones I've seen...)
Nice build, thanks for posting
Something I do different than most is not use the car wash/wax in the initial "no pins" tumbling just Dawn/Lemishine/(secret sauce).
After the final rinse I mix some car wash/wax stuff and water in a container, put the brass in, stir the brass and let it set for a few minutes, then drain out the water.
I let the brass dry at this point, without rinsing, all to leave the max amount of wax behind as a lube for easier re-sizing.
Oops forgot to mention, I de-prime before tumbling but don't re-size, makes more sense now
I use what ever wash and wax the car is currently getting.
Car gets what's on sale.
Armour All, Blue Coral, Turtle, all about the same on brass (and the car for that matter)
A dollop of wash and wax, I never measure, 1oz, 2oz, 3oz - not critical.
The right amount of citric makes a big difference. (and the citric acid makes a big difference, canning section at the supermarket, Lemishine=citric acid)
For your size tumbler maybe 1 or 2 .45 cases full.