Tumblers

[eldon]

I know nothing about tumblers so can somebody give me reccommendations for which one to buy/avoid. Now I am not going to be churning out 1000 cases so something that will handle 200 .308 cases would be an ideal maximum.

Whats the best media to use? I expect there will be different opinions so if you could back up your choice with a reason then that would be helpful.

 

Cheers.

 

p.s. anybody got one they want to move on, pm me.

[TonyH]

I know nothing about tumblers so can somebody give me reccommendations for which one to buy/avoid. Now I am not going to be churning out 1000 cases so something that will handle 200 .308 cases would be an ideal maximum.

Whats the best media to use? I expect there will be different opinions so if you could back up your choice with a reason then that would be helpful.

 

Cheers.

 

p.s. anybody got one they want to move on, pm me.

 

I don't know much about them myself since I've only owned one, that I've had for years and which performs faultlessly - it's Midway branded but since it's blue I think it might be Dillon. I once tried some red-died stuff, whatever it is, vile and nasty, dust gets everywhere, discarded that; I've used as standard plain old corncob media, with a splash of Brillo or Simoniz Chrome Cleaner. Works fine. These days i use the ultrasonic thing for cleaning cases, then bung 'em in the tumbler just to tart them up with a bling factor...

HTH - Tony

[ds1]

two basic sort

 

- vibratory, works well with corn cob type media and gets the cutside of cases clean - clean time overnight.

 

- rotary tumblers, eg rcbs sidewinder, thulmers model B, can be used dry but best wet with steel or ceramic media, cleans inside and outside of case inc primer pocket - clean time 2 to 4 hours with steel media.

 

Do a search on hear John MH has written good stuff on cleaning with steel media and I wrote something about the rcbs sidewinder. Rotary tumblers are the way to go but are more expensive.

 

http://ukvarminting.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=10765

 

David.

[1967spud]

dont bother mate , simply get the stainless media cleaner

 

yes its a bit more exspensive but you will not believe the difference it makes, no need to ultrasonic clean either and also no need to clean primer pockets

 

 

i bought one last week and so far ive cleaned over 1000 cases in that time and they all look like new brass

 

when you see how the brass turns out you will never tumbling the old way ever again plus the regeneration of the brass sets against the initial cost off the machine

[1967spud]

if you want eldon send me some or the lot and ill do them for you if you want so you can see how a good the process is

[Deserttech Europe]

can you post what tumbler you use and how much and where you got it and the media from please.

 

regards

 

DTA Europe

[John MH]

STM

 

Allegedly some chap on the BBS is going to get the UK market sown up in an exclusive "Official" importer deal so you'd only be able to get them from him.

[eldon]

Thanks for the responses.

I tried ultrasonic cleaning with one i needed to buy for work but wasn't over impressed. Cases came out cleaner but it seemed slow and the number of processes didn't seem worth it.

 

Spud can you expand on your tackle and how you are doing the process. It sounds very productive.

[1967spud]

Thanks for the responses.

I tried ultrasonic cleaning with one i needed to buy for work but wasn't over impressed. Cases came out cleaner but it seemed slow and the number of processes didn't seem worth it.

 

Spud can you expand on your tackle and how you are doing the process. It sounds very productive.

 

[LONG RANGE CAPT]

So were can I buy a stainless tumbler with all the bits I need to get it up and running without having to order from the USA ?

 

Kind Regards

 

Rob

[John MH]

So were can I buy a stainless tumbler with all the bits I need to get it up and running without having to order from the USA ?

 

Kind Regards

 

Rob

 

A guy using the forum name "Ackerly" on the BBS is getting the UK Market sown up, try contacting him.

[17 squirrel]

I have used rotary type tumblers for a long time now and they are quite easy to get hold of, just do a search for stone or jewelry polishers. You can get different sizes of tumblers and all sorts of media including stainless. When i got my first one i used stainless ball bearings which you can get at any bearing supplier, i now use one with different shapes in it, i find it quicker than just pins or balls and.You can also get different addatives to give you the shine, the best i have used was called razzel dazzel it made cases so bright they looked like they were chrome plated. I also have a couple of ultra sonics which i use just to clean and not polish, i find them quicker to get the the gunk off of and out of cases about 12 mins in an ultra sonic is about an hour in a tumbler but i find them useless at shining up cases. Mine hold about 50 6-284 cases which is what i load in multipules of.

[forbie]

Ultrasonic with sea green i think it is Great no need to rinse after

[eldon]

Forbie, whats sea green? Who makes it and do you have a link?

Cheers.

[The_Dogge]

"Sea Clean" is a JML product for use in ultrasonic cleaners, I disagree that there is no need to rinse it off, I still get tarnished patches if i dont rinse, but it is easier to rinse off than other stuff I've used.

 

I don't find ultrasnic cleaning is really giving me the results I'd like, and the small machine I have is a pain, I was looking at the 5lb barreling machine and stainless media here http://www.ukge.co.uk/UK/barrelling.asp looks lots cheaper than a sidewinder + pins from the USA, any ideas whether it would work and be the right size for about 100 308 size cases?

[eldon]

Cheers the dogge I will have a look at that.

Like you so far i have not been impressed with ultrasonics and tried all sorts of recipes off the net including vinegar and branded liquids. Ok but seemed a lot of work for a small result.

 

maybe i'm doing something wrong?

[Mike357]

"Sea Clean" is a JML product for use in ultrasonic cleaners, I disagree that there is no need to rinse it off, I still get tarnished patches if i dont rinse, but it is easier to rinse off than other stuff I've used.

 

I don't find ultrasnic cleaning is really giving me the results I'd like, and the small machine I have is a pain, I was looking at the 5lb barreling machine and stainless media here http://www.ukge.co.uk/UK/barrelling.asp looks lots cheaper than a sidewinder + pins from the USA, any ideas whether it would work and be the right size for about 100 308 size cases?

 

Good find Dogge, I will watch how this thread develops as I was just about to buy an ultrasonic cleaner!

[ds1]

The Dogge, I think that machine is too small - 3lb drum, think you would only get a few cases in.

 

David

[TonyH]

Cheers the dogge I will have a look at that.

Like you so far i have not been impressed with ultrasonics and tried all sorts of recipes off the net including vinegar and branded liquids. Ok but seemed a lot of work for a small result.

 

maybe i'm doing something wrong?

 

I'm among those who are impressed with ultrasonics: I've just been using mine to clean a couple of airbrushes, ideal, and the other day I did my wife's jewellery! As for cartridge cases, my machine holds 20-30 20Tac cases which is all I require of it, and a 50/50 mix of water plus distilled clear vinegar gets cases very clean inside & out, rinse 'em afterwards, dry, then tumble - almost like new. If I was hunting prairie dogs and had hundreds of cases to process I might find it tedious, but for my typical UK varmint hunting needs the small u/sonic cleaner from Maplin is great.

Tony

[The_Dogge]

The Dogge, I think that machine is too small - 3lb drum, think you would only get a few cases in.

 

David

I did say I was looking at the 5lb machine http://www.ukge.co.uk/UK/product.asp?numRecordPosition=2&P_ID=2346&strPageHistory=&strKeywords=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=417 do you think that would do? I think that barrel is about 6" across.

 

Tony, the ultrasonic does work, but it doesn't leave them shiny, is that why you tumble the cases afterwards?

[ds1]

guess it depends on how many cases you wish to do at a time. I know the 15 lb units work with about 100 cases.

[TonyH]

I did say I was looking at the 5lb machine http://www.ukge.co.u...hFor=&PT_ID=417 do you think that would do? I think that barrel is about 6" across.

 

Tony, the ultrasonic does work, but it doesn't leave them shiny, is that why you tumble the cases afterwards?

 

Yes indeed, Dogge - I only tumble the cases afterwards for a bit of bling, pure vanity, shiny cases aren't necessary and might even reflect light in the field catching the quarry's attention... But the ultrasonic cleaner gets my cases more clean than anything else I've tried in nearly 25 years of handloading, inside and out, which is what I want.

Regards, Tony

[1967spud]

[eldon]

Tony I think me and the dogge have similar findings/thoughts.

I was trying to decide between buying a tumbler or an ultrasonic cleaner. Obviously you do both which seems like a lot of work to me. Having used the ultrasonic cleaner I was expecting them to come out shiny but not achieved it yet.

 

So if you was to buy one or the other which one would you pick?

[1967spud]

Tony I think me and the dogge have similar findings/thoughts.

I was trying to decide between buying a tumbler or an ultrasonic cleaner. Obviously you do both which seems like a lot of work to me. Having used the ultrasonic cleaner I was expecting them to come out shiny but not achieved it yet.

 

So if you was to buy one or the other which one would you pick?

 

stainless tumbler ronin it does it all in one process and what ive seen it does it better than any other process as well to boot

 

 

its a win win situation