Wet Tumbling and No Neck Lubing

[mchughcb]

Since I started wet tumbling years ago I haven't bothered with neck lubing. I've tried graphite powder and one shot. All it did was make a mess or start stain the case. When I moved to wet tumbling the necks were so clean inside the mandrel went straight down and up with almost no resistance and definitely not the scratching I used to hear with corn cob media.

I also stopped cleaning primer pockets as the pins just scraped out the soot.

I also stopped wiping the cases after lubing. I just chuck them back in the tumbler run for another hour with some morning fresh and then chuck them in the fan forced oven.

Wet tumbling has been a big time saver as I can do a heap in a batch while I go off and do other jobs.

[gunderson]

depending on what rounds, I havent started wet tumbling but I have used an ultrasonic cleaner before that was great at removing the carbon youre talking about, Ive only ever needed carbon on some calibers with long neck brass. other than that its usually unneeded if the brass is clean

[deye243]

I don't bother tumbling anymore and have not seen any change in accuracy all the way out to 1700+ yards .
No problems with dies and smooth seating.
This is one of my test cases it has been loaded 16 times it has not been in a tumbler .

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and now it needs to have the shoulder pushed back but I don't think I will bother as by the time I load 200 cases this many times the barrel will be long gone .

[mchughcb]

Can't argue with that.

[mchughcb]

I don't bother tumbling anymore and have not seen any change in accuracy all the way out to 1700+ yards .
No problems with dies and smooth seating.
This is one of my test cases it has been loaded 16 times it has not been in a tumbler .

Screenshot_20240307_180519_Gallery_copy_1280x597.jpg

and now it needs to have the shoulder pushed back but I don't think I will bother as by the time I load 200 cases this many times the barrel will be long gone .

Your cases look in exceptional condition. I've been given cases with corrosion, blood, carbon the whole works, and that's after one firing.

Do you clean your primer pockets out?

[Oldbloke]

Dont shoot off a lot. But this is my system when I first obtain cases, range brass or purchased once fired.

Anneal
Deprime
Clean in ultrasonic cleaner
FLS
Trim
Deburr
Load.

Cleaning is certainly optional.

[wanneroo]

I'm a big fan of wet tumbling and one of the big benefits I have found is being easily able to identify potential case failures more readily plus things like neck and case neck splits and other stuff.

[on_one_wheel]

I love wet tumbling, Wanneroo nailed it, any cracks stand out on shiny brass.

I use mild citric acid and dish liquid.

Once tumbled, I rinse.in cheep wash n wax car cleaner then blow my brass from both ends with compressed air to remove 90% of the water and any pins that might have hung up (they always fall out when I rinse anyway)
I let the brass dry overnight.

[SCJ429]

I clean the outside neck of the case with steel wool to get all that accumulated carbon off. I run tight necks and that carbon increases neck size. For the inside of the necks, the carbon is a good lubricant, shiny clean inside necks are very grippy and increases the variability of the release of the bullet.
I clean the carbon out of the primer pocket with a primer pocket tool.

[mchughcb]

I love wet tumbling, Wanneroo nailed it, any cracks stand out on shiny brass.

I use mild citric acid and dish liquid.

Once tumbled, I rinse.in cheep wash n wax car cleaner then blow my brass from both ends with compressed air to remove 90% of the water and any pins that might have hung up (they always fall out when I rinse anyway)
I let the brass dry overnight.

I put mine in the fan forced oven for an hour at 75 degrees. If you go hotter they will go a purple tinge. If you don't deprime first there is water in the base with the primer. If no primer, air circulates and you can be sure case is dry. I roll them in a towel to make sure no surface water stains on drying.

I use glisten which is citric acid based. I've tried white vinegar and that works too. The imperial wax also gets broken up on second tumbling but feels like car wash waxing on the surface.

[mchughcb]

I clean the outside neck of the case with steel wool to get all that accumulated carbon off. I run tight necks and that carbon increases neck size. For the inside of the necks, the carbon is a good lubricant, shiny clean inside necks are very grippy and increases the variability of the release of the bullet.
I clean the carbon out of the primer pocket with a primer pocket tool.

I did all that and it takes time. Tumbler eliminates those steps. I don't have a tool to measure neck tension but I'm not shooting benchrest comp anymore so I'm more focussed on speed and cost for reasonable accuracy.

[SCJ429]

I would think tumbling and then drying and then applying some lube to the inside necks would be more time consuming that a bit of steel wool and a quick wiz of the primer pocket. I suspect you just love bright shiny brass. Nothing wrong with that.

[Oldbloke]

I would think tumbling and then drying and then applying some lube to the inside necks would be more time consuming than a bit of steel wool and a quick wiz of the primer pocket. I suspect you just love bright shiny brass. Nothing wrong with that.

I did it that way for years. Horses for courses.

[mchughcb]

I would think tumbling and then drying and then applying some lube to the inside necks would be more time consuming that a bit of steel wool and a quick wiz of the primer pocket. I suspect you just love bright shiny brass. Nothing wrong with that.

That's the title, no neck lube. As tumbler works on a timer set and forget and other jobs.

I just tumbled 1100 brass. Every step I can eliminate and use the tumbler saves my time and hands.

[mchughcb]

Here is the first 250 of 1100. The large pockets get cleaned out well. The smaller ones not so well but not too bad.

[wanneroo]

That's what we want to see, nice clean shiny brass.

Back in my early days on Youtube, I did two videos on how I wet tumble and I got some people on YT riled up about it. It seems there is a cohort of dry tumblers out there totally opposed to wet tumbling. I should do another video on wet tumbling with a controversial title or something.

[Larry]

Wet tumbling certainly is the way to go I have tried all the other ways of cleaning brass and wet tumbling has produced the best reults without question really just no comparison esp if you put other factors like time and cost into the equation. However I still give the cases a spray with one shot before FLS other dies I will take a chance on but I have been caught out before with the FLS die and the time and effort not to mention the risk of breaking something is just not worth missing a very simple step.

[mchughcb]

If people saw the black crud that came out of the 223 batch first tumble they would be surprised. Now you can eat off them.

[deye243]

I don't bother tumbling anymore and have not seen any change in accuracy all the way out to 1700+ yards .
No problems with dies and smooth seating.
This is one of my test cases it has been loaded 16 times it has not been in a tumbler .

Screenshot_20240307_180519_Gallery_copy_1280x597.jpg

and now it needs to have the shoulder pushed back but I don't think I will bother as by the time I load 200 cases this many times the barrel will be long gone .

Your cases look in exceptional condition. I've been given cases with corrosion, blood, carbon the whole works, and that's after one firing.

Do you clean your primer pockets out?

Nope just neck size and shoot that case was always the 1st shot every session hence the black texta in the extraction groove.
I have since done the same to another case it went 1 less firing at 15 and needed the shoulder pushed back in the body die .

[deye243]

I used to wet tumble I even built one to do a decent amount.

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But now I figure it APITA to do and I have not found ant change in accuracy so I don't bother.

[mchughcb]

That's an industrial size.

[Jorlcrin]

I used to wet tumble I even built one to do a decent amount.

But now I figure it APITA to do and I have not found ant change in accuracy so I don't bother.

Where did you get the big-arsed O-Rings??

I reckon I've got all the other gear, but I'd only ever thought to put rubber on the shafts themselves.

Hmmm.... Food for thought!

[mchughcb]

Another 1500 rounds cases cleaned. Frankford tumbler is not bad for batches of a few hundred at a time.

[Larry]

Yeah my little ebay job is good for 50 308 cases at max. However that is just the ticket for me so all good and at the price a very good buy even though I am on my second machine after burning one out or at least wearing it out.

[mchughcb]

What model was it Larry?

[Larry]

Not sure it ever had any model number to it. The first one was a smaller one I found a larger model of the same type for the second one. Parts other than size were identical. Chinese model but works a treat and no complaints of poor quality.

[mchughcb]

There's some cheapy rock tumblers on ebay that I think would be the ticket for 50 shells.

[Jackaroo]

If people saw the black crud that came out of the 223 batch first tumble they would be surprised. Now you can eat off them.

^^This, if anyone is worried about your lead levels piss off your dry tumbler. You won't believe what goes down the drain from a wet tumbler, all that in a dry tumbler just stays in there and accumulates and accumulates and most people tend to go years without ever changing their dry media.

[mchughcb]

One thing that has annoyed me for years with the frankford tumbler is its ability to intermittently leak. However I found this on youtube that the ends are square and I've just spent an hour with wet and dry, starting at 240 and working my way up to 600 grit and now it looks square. Hopefully that will stop the leaks.

https://youtu.be/sbmlXCPhYRM

[wanneroo]

Rarely do I have an issue with it leaking. Typically if it does leak I stop and tighten it down good again.

Also I find wipe the seals down every time you use it and keep them clean. Also don't add too much water or brass. I find 2/3 to 3/4 the way full is enough.