epijunkie67
Member
Just like it says. I'm in the process of getting equipment so I can start reloading and wondered if I need a case tumbler or not. I've been kind of shocked at some of the prices and didn't know if I needed one just to get started.
Newbie question. Do I need a case tumbler?
- Thread starter epijunkie67
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Depends, ah you knew that was coming right? Here is my idea. What are you reloading? For pistol cases I would lean towards yes. Reasoning, you want clean cases so as to avoid imbedding debris into the die wall, and this debris will cause subsquent cases to be scratched. Rifle cases are sort of 50/50. If you are loading brass fired from a bolt gun and they do get to debris on them then a wipe down with a cloth impregnated with say some Hoppe's #9 will get it clean. Another option is something called Krazy Kloth. Now, brass fired from an autoloader that spews brass all over the range......... I would really think about cleaning the brass before running them through the FL sizer die. I would then clean them after I was done sizing, trimming, and other case prep.
Midway always seems to have a good package deal every other month. Buy cleaning media at the local pet store or if you are lucky buy some corn cob media in bulk and a use some NuFinish car wax as an additive.
Midway always seems to have a good package deal every other month. Buy cleaning media at the local pet store or if you are lucky buy some corn cob media in bulk and a use some NuFinish car wax as an additive.
armoredman
Member
Get a Franford Arms small tumbler from Midway - great deal, and last a long time, without breaking the bank.
Shootcraps
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I fretted for months trying to jerry-rig something to work like a tumbler so I wouldn't have to spend the money. Finally threw all the crap away and bought one. Best thing I ever did.
Learn from my frustration and go buy it. You'll be glad you did.
Learn from my frustration and go buy it. You'll be glad you did.
If you're on a tight budget tumblers are nice but not a necessity. I got by for years just wiping the cases off with a rough cloth as did others I know. There are also various liquid cleaners and home brewed concoctions that work but more trouble than I personally want to go through. I have two tumblers now but only use them if the cases are really cruddy. Others like really shiny brass but as long as the cases are fairly clean I don't worry too much about them. One word of caution, if you get one be carefull not to breathe the dust when sifting the media.
caz223
Member
I got along without one for the first 5 years or so.
Truth be told, I put it off way too long.
If you're going to load in any kind of volume whatsoever, and you have any money saved up whatsoever, save yourself a lot of frustration, and get a tumbler.
You're saving money by reloading, right?
Re-invest some of your savings.
Truth be told, I put it off way too long.
If you're going to load in any kind of volume whatsoever, and you have any money saved up whatsoever, save yourself a lot of frustration, and get a tumbler.
You're saving money by reloading, right?
Re-invest some of your savings.
Vitamin G
Member
I only load pistol, and i find that when i didn't have one, i needed one
Now that I have one, i don't really need it.
I load about 500 rounds per month. So realistically, i tumbled about 2000 pieces of brass over the course of three days in my basement... I'll be good for about 3-4 months. It looks pretty. Does it feed better/smoother? Couldn't tell you, I wasn't having any problems before.
What DID make a difference, and holy crap what a difference, was a nice layer of one-shot before decapping/belling!
Now that I have one, i don't really need it.
I load about 500 rounds per month. So realistically, i tumbled about 2000 pieces of brass over the course of three days in my basement... I'll be good for about 3-4 months. It looks pretty. Does it feed better/smoother? Couldn't tell you, I wasn't having any problems before.
What DID make a difference, and holy crap what a difference, was a nice layer of one-shot before decapping/belling!
StrikeEagle
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- Joined
- Jul 8, 2004
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- 709
No, you don't really 'need' one. But it makes the brass look shiny and bright. And seems to make the whole reloading process more cheerful... at least to me.
I load about 3,000 rounds a month of mainly pistol ammo, 9mm, .40 and .45. I've got two kids in college, so doing good to shoot, and haven't got around to getting a tumbler, and would need a BIG one and it would run a LOT, so came up with a different method.
When I get a couple thousand of a caliber I dump them in a small bucket, add quite a bit of Simple Green and hot water and let it sit a couple of hours. Dump that water, add clean water, and add a few squirts of Lime-Away. Let that sit for about 10 minutes, drain a couple of times, and the cases come out clean and shiny, looking like new, inside and out. I dump them on cookie sheets and pop them in the oven at 150 degrees for an hour or so.
A tumbler might get them slightly shinier, but these work great for me, and allows me to process fairly large quantities with little work.
When I get a couple thousand of a caliber I dump them in a small bucket, add quite a bit of Simple Green and hot water and let it sit a couple of hours. Dump that water, add clean water, and add a few squirts of Lime-Away. Let that sit for about 10 minutes, drain a couple of times, and the cases come out clean and shiny, looking like new, inside and out. I dump them on cookie sheets and pop them in the oven at 150 degrees for an hour or so.
A tumbler might get them slightly shinier, but these work great for me, and allows me to process fairly large quantities with little work.
fulloflead
Member
I used the kitchen-sink method for a while:
When I started reloading I started REALLY cheap. I bought a rubbermaid tub for a few bucks at target. I'd put it in the kitchen sink, dump a few hundred cases in it, squirt a dab on dish detergent and then run some warm water until it was about half-full of water and really sudzey.
I'd stick my hand in there and swish them all around for a while then start pulling them out one at a time and using a little bottle brush on each one for about half a second and tossing them in a strainer. Rinsed in fresh water, shake and then dump on a cookie sheet to dry in the oven at 200 degrees for about 45 minutes.
They came out great.
I did that I think twice before I spend $60 on a tumbler and $3 on some corn-cob media at a gun show.
.
When I started reloading I started REALLY cheap. I bought a rubbermaid tub for a few bucks at target. I'd put it in the kitchen sink, dump a few hundred cases in it, squirt a dab on dish detergent and then run some warm water until it was about half-full of water and really sudzey.
I'd stick my hand in there and swish them all around for a while then start pulling them out one at a time and using a little bottle brush on each one for about half a second and tossing them in a strainer. Rinsed in fresh water, shake and then dump on a cookie sheet to dry in the oven at 200 degrees for about 45 minutes.
They came out great.
I did that I think twice before I spend $60 on a tumbler and $3 on some corn-cob media at a gun show.
.
DaveInFloweryBranchGA
Member
epijunkie,
Where are you pricing things at? Tell us what you're looking at and perhaps we can help you find everything you're looking for at significantly reduced prices, including a tumbler. Such as a Frankford Arsenal Tumbler at bosesguns.com
Regards,
Dave
Where are you pricing things at? Tell us what you're looking at and perhaps we can help you find everything you're looking for at significantly reduced prices, including a tumbler. Such as a Frankford Arsenal Tumbler at bosesguns.com
Regards,
Dave
If you shoot an auto, it'll make life much simpler. Brass that's been on the ground should be cleaned before reloading. Getting it shiny is not the main thing, keeping grit and dirt out of your dies and press is. If you shoot a revolver with clean chambers and don't dump the brass on the ground then a tumbler would be optional for awhile IMO.
Wet chemical cleaning is much faster and easier than mechanical dry media.
I cleaned 1000 dirty .30-06 cases in less than an hour with household cleaner and let them dry.
A low/midrange tumbler would take at least 2-4hours per 50-75 cases.
I still do a lot with the tumbler... its 'set it and forget it'... so I can get other things done.
I cleaned 1000 dirty .30-06 cases in less than an hour with household cleaner and let them dry.
A low/midrange tumbler would take at least 2-4hours per 50-75 cases.
I still do a lot with the tumbler... its 'set it and forget it'... so I can get other things done.
epijunkie67
Member
Mostly Midway, but some on ebay and a few other places online. I've pretty much decided to go with the lee kit that comes with a single stage press and everything else you need to get started. That and a couple of sets of dies. But the tumbler was the one thing that kind of fit into the "other" catagory and I wasn't sure if I needed to get one or not.
The Bushmaster
Member
epijunkie67,
Have you gotten a case tumbler yet? You can find them at any price fron under $50 and up...
Have you gotten a case tumbler yet? You can find them at any price fron under $50 and up...
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