Before and after shots of some particularly grungy examples of range pickup brass after about 45 min in a harbor freight wet tumbler, steel pins, dish soap and a pinch of lemishine.
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why I love steel pins
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Before and after shots of some particularly grungy examples of range pickup brass after about 45 min in a harbor freight wet tumbler, steel pins, dish soap and a pinch of lemishine.
nbkky71
Well-Known Member
...and I was going to give some grief about the number of brass pieces between before/after 
Wet tumbling does clean up brass nicely! I'm still in dry tumbling mode right now since I'm dealing with large volumes of brass to clean
Wet tumbling does clean up brass nicely! I'm still in dry tumbling mode right now since I'm dealing with large volumes of brass to clean
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Bring yo sacks on the 19th. 100s of thousands of pieces of brass to pick up.....FREE!!!!!
OP
Next year , sir! I will make it.
I ran a batch of 9mm in my Frankford wet tumbler last week, I counted 1450 pieces that I got in one load. That is a little more than I normally do. If you really want to do large batches, a cement mixer from Harbor Freight for ~$160.
OP
LOL. Some people don't even use pins. Doesn't clean the inside much, though. I suspect about $50 worth of pins would be enough to do a decent job.But it will cost 9000$ to fill it with steel pins!
I've actually switched to not using steel pins. Hear me out though since I've used steel pins for years. Basically without the steel pins the exteriors look identical to a batch with steel pins. The interiors and primer pockets aren't quite as clean, but you also can't see those on a completed cartridge. Personally, I'll deal with the slight dirtiness if it means I save myself 30 mins - 1 hour digging cases out of a sea of steel pins and double checking them to ensure the pins are gone before putting them through the press.
Here's a post tumbling pic without steel pins:
Not trying to take a crap on your thread, but the more options the better.
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Like this?
Hey, not crapping at all!
I've tumbled a few loads without pins myself. For any of my brass that has to be lubed before sizing, I will wet tumble without the pins for about 15-20 minutes (just enough to get the outside clean). After sizing, I then tumble with pins for about an hour. I use my RCBS media separator, with the tub full of water, to separate the pins. It only takes about 5 minutes to separate the pins, but I do occasionally find a pin stuck sideways in a primer pocket. I catch those when I finish processing the brass (trim, chamfer, etc). With the insides clean, it is easier for me to inspect the cases, and to visually verify powder drop during the reloading process. If I was bulk loading large quantities of brass, I would probably be satisfied by tumbling without pins.
I've considered buying some of the stainless chips from Southern Shine. They are supposed to do a better job and are easier to separate.