reliably identifying range pickup brass

Uncle Duke · Oct 1, 2014

Pinecone said:
9mm/.380 versus .40 is EASY.

The 9mm/.380 are the ones stuck inside the .40 brass.

And .40 brass gets stuck in .45ACP brass.As you handle then, you will see that the .380 versus 9mm becomes easy.

BTW, Dillon sells a set of brass sorter trays. They have holes so one traps the larger brass, next mid sized, and the last the smaller. The smallest fall throuh.

http://www.dillonprecision.com/content/p/9/pid/25434/catid/8/Shell_Sorter

Yep! The real fun comes when you tumble .380acp and 9mm and 40SW and 45acp together in corn cob media. Oh, and it helps to forget about it, and leave it tumbling overnight! :innocent0

Here's betting that if you happen to make this mistake once, you won't make it a second time!

Traveler · Oct 1, 2014

Uncle Duke said:
Here's betting that if you happen to make this mistake once, you won't make it a second time!

Preach it brother. I had my son and his friend help me sort one time. They .... missed a few.

ras_oscar · Oct 1, 2014

I have seen some posts on other threads that suggest lemmi shine as an additive for cleaning brass. I've also seen some threads that do a wet tumbling process. I have a dry tumbler that uses crushed walnut shell (reptile bedding) as a media. Is there an advantage/recommendation to use lemmi shine in dry tumbling or only wet?

Traveler · Oct 1, 2014

lemishine is what I use for wet tumbling. Flitz is for crushed walnut / dry. You can also find cat litter that is walnut based.
I like the wet tumbling because the media does not wear out, there is no dust, and all the crud is washed down the drain.

Pinecone · Oct 1, 2014

I use dry tumbling with corn cob and Dillon Polish.

Very little dust. No drying time. No need to deal with the multitude of tiny SS pins, and I can tumble the loaded rounds after loading to get off any finger prints for long term storage.

trickg · Oct 2, 2014

Pinecone said:
I use dry tumbling with corn cob and Dillon Polish.

Very little dust. No drying time. No need to deal with the multitude of tiny SS pins, and I can tumble the loaded rounds after loading to get off any finger prints for long term storage.

Oh heavens no! Tumbling loaded rounds is *gasp* DANGEROUS!!!!!! :cool:

Traveler · Oct 2, 2014

trickg said:
Oh heavens no! Tumbling loaded rounds is *gasp* DANGEROUS!!!!!!

Have a good laugh if you will. The manufacturers of tumblers tell you not to do it in their manuals. Do it at your own risk.

trickg · Oct 2, 2014

Traveler said:
Have a good laugh if you will. The manufacturers of tumblers tell you not to do it in their manuals. Do it at your own risk.

And the manufacturers of ammo actually do it before they box it up and send it to you.

Don't know if you've ever seen this, but it's some compelling reading and it pretty much debunks the myth that powder breaks down and breaks apart during tumbling. This was HOURS of tumbling - 205 hours to be exact, and not the 15 minutes or so people tumble to remove fingerprints.

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/98...torture_test__UPDATE__fired_rounds_in_OP.html

Pinecone · Oct 2, 2014

Yeap, commonly done by the manufacturers.

Realize the advice against tumbling loaded rounds comes from before vibratory tumblers came on the market. I would NOT tumble loaded rounds, with pointed bullets, in a ROTARY tumbler.

Traveler · Oct 2, 2014

My RCBS vibratory tumbler bought eight months ago says not to tumble loaded ammo. Do what you will with the information. We have many internet experts here. Bonjour.

trickg · Oct 2, 2014

Traveler said:
My RCBS vibratory tumbler bought eight months ago says not to tumble loaded ammo. Do what you will with the information. We have many internet experts here. Bonjour.

That's little more than a legal disclaimer. The proof was in the tumbling torture test, that included firing of ammo that had been tumbled for the aforementioned 205 hours.

I received this from an ammo manufacturer when I sent an email asking the question. Given that this was a rep of an ammo maker, it trumps the opinion of the "experts" here.

There's a bit to answering a question like this, as the response has become something of an industry standard. That standard, is to discourage the practice. Yes, loaded ammo can be tumbled, and it rarely causes any problems. Most factory loaded ammo is tumbled prior to packaging, including the military ammo produced by Lake City, among others. This normally entails only a very short time frame, probably no more than ten to fifteen minutes at the outside.

Pinecone · Oct 3, 2014

I tumble loaded rounds for 15 - 20 minutes, again, just to remove any finger prints that would the starting point for corrosion.

I have tumbled many thousands of rounds, without any issues. If you watch the action in a vibratory tumbler, it is very slow and gentle.

rico903 · Oct 4, 2014

I've been to peoples's shops that reload to sell at shows and they have both been tumbling loaded pistol rounds when I was there, as the final polish. The vibratory tumblers sure don't look like they would cause a problem. As mentioned, very gentle tumbling.

reliably identifying range pickup brass

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