Should I buy a ss pin case cleaner or just my sonic?

[ACES&8S]

I don't know anyone who has a stainless pin case cleaner & from what I
first heard about them, they were the rage. Like they could clean cases inside
& out. I don't believe all the hype because I have bought case cleaning future
stuff till I am giving them away, really.
I remember the sonic add showed a cut away case looking brand new inside
& out, it doesn't
Somebody please tell me what they do compared to sonic or tumbler machines!!!
I have every known tumbler media & additive known to man & nothing cleans inside
cases or primer pockets not even the sonic, I always have to air blast the sonic cases
& clean out the media taking up space in cases.
I know most people don't remove the pasted on media or worry with primer pockets
having a black ring but I do.
I might load a bullet that won't get fired for 30 years, I don't want someone digging
me up to fuss at me.

 

[sbwaters]

Happy with a wet tumbler and 5 pounds of pins for my 9mm and 45mm. Put them in deprimed with a dollop of Armor All Wash and wax and a 9mm case of lemishine. Tumble for 1-1/2 to 2 hrs. Dry on a towel overnight. No dust. Clean primer holes. Nice shine. Lubed for reloading.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

Wet tumbling with ss pins works very well.
Add lemishine/citric acid, dish soap, wash and wax or whatever recipe you prefer will make brass look like new.

 

[420]

Want shiny? Tumble. Don't care about shiny and/or in a hurry? Sonic. I have setups for wet and dry tumbling and sonic. My norm is wet tumbling.

 

[Dudedog]

I have every known tumbler media & additive known to man & nothing cleans inside
cases or primer pockets not even the sonic

Wet tumbling with pins will clean the inside of cases and primer pockets, simple it works, cases are clean inside and out.
I don't have any before and after pics but others will agree it simply works.
Brass looks like new, fairly shiny.
Corn cob and Flitz makes a higher shine but the cases are nowhere near as clean.

 

[hdwhit]

ACES&8S asked:
Should I buy a ss pin case cleaner or just my sonic?

How shiny do you want your brass?

THAT is the only determination. Nothing else matters as any form of dry or wet tumbling will get your brass clean enough for physical inspection of the condition of the cases..

It is entirely up to you how much "shininess"

 

[NWPilgrim]

I had a Lyman sonic cleaner and it was fine while it lasted (several months). But it had a timer that only went to 8 minutes. So I had to babysit it and restart it several times to get 30 minutes or more. It died in less than a year. Looking back perhaps the 8 minutes limit was too avoid overheating the motor? And by continuously restarting it I may have worn it out prematurely? At any rate the 8 minute timer was very annoying.

After the sonic died I got a Thumlers Model B with 5 lbs stainless steel pins. Yes it cleans inside cases and primer pockets--very shiny. In fact, the inside cases are so clean you may need to lube rifle case necks more than before due to increased friction of really clean brass inside.

 

[SC_Dave]

I have a Hornady Sonic cleaner and have used it once a week exclusively for 2 years. It cleans the brass decently and shines it to a degree. If you add some Lemi Shine to what ever detergent you use like most here do it helps a good deal. I have used Hornadys case cleaner and I have used Dawn and I can't tell the difference. The sonic cleaner does a better job IMO when you leave the heater off. The sonic action is going to warm the water a little anyway, but turning the heater on seems to dull the brass a little. I turn the heater on when cleaning gun parts, which is an added bonus with the sonic cleaner. The other key with a sonic cleaner is to rinse the brass thoroughly with hot water after cleaning. This make a world of difference. If fast is what you want and semi-shiny is ok with you and clean enough not to cause any issues is ok with you then Sonic is your choice.

If you want absolute clean and shiny with with near the look of new brass then I don't think you can beat wet tumbling with SS media. I was reading/watching some reviews about wet tumbling with SS pins and it seems the pins really like getting stuck in 9mm flash holes. Right or wrong I don't know because I have never used one. But, 9mm is 90% of what I reload so I shied away from hitting the Buy button. If what I learned about the pin/9mm flash hole thing is incorrect someone here will correct me.
David

 

[GBExpat]

I don't know anyone who has a stainless pin case cleaner & from what I
first heard about them, they were the rage. Like they could clean cases inside
& out. I don't believe all the hype ...

It is not hyperbole. They can clean/polish cases to look almost new.

I have found that the only thing that they won't remove is the "asphalt" sealer that is sometimes used, especially in some military rounds.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

I was reading/watching some reviews about wet tumbling with SS pins and it seems the pins really like getting stuck in 9mm flash holes.

They might, I've never deprimed 9mm before tumbling so it isn't an issue.
I like wet tumbling because it's fast and works well. It's easier to see the powder when the inside of the case is clean.
The vast majority of the handgun rounds I load are practice ammo, dirty primer pockets don't matter to me.

 

[SC_Dave]

They might, I've never deprimed 9mm before tumbling so it isn't an issue.
I like wet tumbling because it's fast and works well. It's easier to see the powder when the inside of the case is clean.
The vast majority of the handgun rounds I load are practice ammo, dirty primer pockets don't matter to me.

Makes sense. I deprime before cleaning. I think the clean primer pockets prime easier, might just be me. Like you I'm just loading practice/training rounds so probably doesn't make much difference. We all do things a particular way I guess, sometimes for good reason and sometimes we think it's for good reason.

 

[Jack B.]

I just dry tumble cases while I'm cleaning the guns they were fired in. Works good for me. When I'm done cleaning the guns the cases are clean enough for inspecting. I don't need them shinny on the inside, once the powder goes in and the is bullet seated nothing to look at on the inside anyway.

 

[Zaydok Allen]

I just dry tumble cases while I'm cleaning the guns they were fired in. Works good for me. When I'm done cleaning the guns the cases are clean enough for inspecting. I don't need them shinny on the inside, once the powder goes in and the is bullet seated nothing to look at on the inside anyway.

That's more or less how I feel. Though I did buy a Thumler's tumbler with the idea that I can wet tumble with SS pins if I decide to give it a go.

though I just reload practice pistol ammo, not precision rifle ammo. If I take up the later my opinion may change.

 

[frankmako]

You want a total cleaning inside and out go with wet cleaning. The other two not so.

 

[Jack B.]

95% of my reloading is pistol (straight wall cases) and one of my case prep steps is to run a case brush on the inside of every case. Dry tumbling gets the outside clean.

 

[ray15]

I have every known tumbler media & additive known to man & nothing cleans inside
cases or primer pockets not even the sonic, I always have to air blast the sonic cases
& clean out the media taking up space in cases.
I know most people don't remove the pasted on media or worry with primer pockets
having a black ring but I do.

That's pretty conclusive; wet tumbling is for you. It's the thing that cleans inside and gets the primer pockets clean. You'll want a decent tumbler like the Franklin Arsenal unit, which comes with pins, and perhaps a media separator if you don't mind spending another 50 bucks. Other than that 7 bucks on Wash and Wax and citric acid and you're good to go.

Not great pictures, but you get the idea. 90 minutes later the grungiest brass looks like this:

 

[SC_Dave]

That's pretty conclusive; wet tumbling is for you. It's the thing that cleans inside and gets the primer pockets clean. You'll want a decent tumbler like the Franklin Arms unit, which comes with pins, and perhaps a case separator if you don't mind spending another 50 bucks. Other than that 7 bucks on Wash and Wax and citric acid and you're good to go.

Not great pictures, but you get the idea. 90 minutes later the grungiest brass looks like this:

View attachment 786241 View attachment 786243

Ray, do you have an issue with the pins getting stuck in the 9mm flash holes?
David

 

[ray15]

Ray, do you have an issue with the pins getting stuck in the 9mm flash holes?
David

Never. If the pins get stuck in the flash holes the pins are too large. I use 0.047" diameter ones from guntap.com. They have proven to be high quality - I never dry them and they don't rust at all.

 

[lightman]

My expeirence reflects ray15's pictures. On average looking cases, if I deprime the case and tumble for 2 hours the case looks better than new, both inside and outside. All but the worst primer pockets do too. This level of clean is probably due to the citric acid/Lemishine. I don't have problems with the pins sticking in the flash hole but they do occasionally bridge in the case necks on small caliber cases. A quick tap has always been enough to get them out. I have never used a sonic cleaner so I have no way to compare.

 

[SC_Dave]

Never. If the pins get stuck in the flash holes the pins are too large. I use 0.047" diameter ones from guntap.com. They have proven to be high quality - I never dry them and they don't rust at all.

Great Information!

 

[Varminterror]

I own all 3, and I use ultrasonic most often.

I use my own twist on the “clean and shiny” recipe found at 6mmbr.com. Polishing tumblers are great for making brass shiny, which Americans are programmed to perceive as “clean.” Ultrasonic cleaners are the only method which gets so clean it can be “too clean.” Pins are great and easy, and some guys do appreciate the ability to just set it and forget it, rather than changing solution a few times in the ultrasonics. I prefer changing solution over dumping pins out of every single case.

Vibratory tumbling is cheap and it produces incredibly shiny brass, but that’s all it has going for it. It doesn’t clean as well as pins, which don’t clean as well as ultrasonic.

Nothing seems to be perfectly reliable for cleaning primer pockets. I run a motorized case prep center and give it a couple seconds on the brush during my trim process.

 

[Kaldor]

I wet tumble for a couple reasons.

First, range brass is funky, and 90% of the 30k pieces of brass I own have been picked up off the ground. No other method can get the brass as clean as SSTL.
Second, I dont want to deal with the dust.
Third, ultrasonic might get the cases clean, but it doesnt do 1000 pieces at a time like my tumbler can.
Forth, my press thanks me for using clean, dust free brass in it. I have no issues with my LnL failing due to the press being dirty.
Fifth, its a pride thing. I put alot of work into my reloads.

 

[ACES&8S]

How shiny do you want your brass?

THAT is the only determination. Nothing else matters as any form of dry or wet tumbling will get your brass clean enough for physical inspection of the condition of the cases..

It is entirely up to you how much "shininess"

Shiny on the outside is EASY, I want the cases to at least get some of the junk out of the inside.
Tumbling not only doesn't remove it, tumbling with media adds more junk inside the case.
Sonic starts getting it out then if I use my air compressor on them before they get dry, they
get the junk blasted out.

 

[ACES&8S]

I had a Lyman sonic cleaner and it was fine while it lasted (several months). But it had a timer that only went to 8 minutes. So I had to babysit it and restart it several times to get 30 minutes or more. It died in less than a year. Looking back perhaps the 8 minutes limit was too avoid overheating the motor? And by continuously restarting it I may have worn it out prematurely? At any rate the 8 minute timer was very annoying.

After the sonic died I got a Thumlers Model B with 5 lbs stainless steel pins. Yes it cleans inside cases and primer pockets--very shiny. In fact, the inside cases are so clean you may need to lube rifle case necks more than before due to increased friction of really clean brass inside.

Thanks, that is good information.

 

[ACES&8S]

I have a Hornady Sonic cleaner and have used it once a week exclusively for 2 years. It cleans the brass decently and shines it to a degree. If you add some Lemi Shine to what ever detergent you use like most here do it helps a good deal. I have used Hornadys case cleaner and I have used Dawn and I can't tell the difference. The sonic cleaner does a better job IMO when you leave the heater off. The sonic action is going to warm the water a little anyway, but turning the heater on seems to dull the brass a little. I turn the heater on when cleaning gun parts, which is an added bonus with the sonic cleaner. The other key with a sonic cleaner is to rinse the brass thoroughly with hot water after cleaning. This make a world of difference. If fast is what you want and semi-shiny is ok with you and clean enough not to cause any issues is ok with you then Sonic is your choice.

If you want absolute clean and shiny with with near the look of new brass then I don't think you can beat wet tumbling with SS media. I was reading/watching some reviews about wet tumbling with SS pins and it seems the pins really like getting stuck in 9mm flash holes. Right or wrong I don't know because I have never used one. But, 9mm is 90% of what I reload so I shied away from hitting the Buy button. If what I learned about the pin/9mm flash hole thing is incorrect someone here will correct me.
David

I have the same Sonic Cleaner, & use the same recipe you do as well as the hot water rinse.
Only difference is like I said above here, I use an air compressor to blast the residue out
while they are wet, about 90% of the junk is gone then. I know it is almost perfect but it seems
to me that with present tech we should have 100% easily without step after step after step.