Dry Tumbling - Lead exposure? Wet - Neck peening? Ultrasonic instead?

[richthe1]

Getting into reloading and putting together my list. So far, I’ve learned everything is a rabbit hole - including cleaning brass!

Dry Tumbling - This is the route I was planning on going, but am concerned about the amount of lead exposure. I have a 1yr old son, so I am very cautious of lead exposure while he’s developing. I just don’t know if I’m overreacting here.

Wet Tumbling - seems like the best option, but Area 419 said they have had issues when they left brass to wet tumble to long (okay, that can be avoided) but also just wet tumbling over serveral firings, will roll over/peen the necks of the brass.

Ultrasonic - this seems to avoid both of my concerns above, but doesn’t seem as popular. Is this an acceptable route to go? Also, I’m not sure why the RCBS 2 is $350 and the harbor freight is $80?

Any advice would be appreciated! Also, any tips on ultrasonic cleaning! Currently planning on using the hornady or RCBS case cleaner for ultrasonic cleaning.

I also am hoping to:
1. Ultrasonic clean BEFORE decapping
2. use a case dryer to quickly dry the cases (especially to prevent corrosion from wet spent primers still in the case)
3. then use the SAC (or similar) die to decap, resize, and madrel for neck tension. 4. Then, ultrasonic again to remove the lube that was used to resize.

 

[Cascade Hemi]

Any advice would be appreciated!

Don't over think it. All three methods have pros and cons. There's nothing wrong with dry tumbling, you won't get lead poisoning.

Here's a decent size ultrasonic cleaner:

VEVOR 15L Ultrasonic Cleaner with Digital Timer&Heater Professional Ultrasonic Cleaner 40kHz Advanced Ultrasonic Cleaner 110V for Wrench Screwdriver Repairing Tools Industrial Parts Mental Cleaning https://a.co/d/1mLemBl

 

[John Glidewell]

"just wet tumbling over serveral firings, will roll over/peen the necks of the brass."

Bullshit. Been wet tumbling for years, never have this issue.

 

[Baron23]

Getting into reloading and putting together my list. So far, I’ve learned everything is a rabbit hole - including cleaning brass!

Dry Tumbling - This is the route I was planning on going, but am concerned about the amount of lead exposure. I have a 1yr old son, so I am very cautious of lead exposure while he’s developing. I just don’t know if I’m overreacting here.

Wet Tumbling - seems like the best option, but Area 419 said they have had issues when they left brass to wet tumble to long (okay, that can be avoided) but also just wet tumbling over serveral firings, will roll over/peen the necks of the brass.

Ultrasonic - this seems to avoid both of my concerns above, but doesn’t seem as popular. Is this an acceptable route to go? Also, I’m not sure why the RCBS 2 is $350 and the harbor freight is $80?

Any advice would be appreciated! Also, any tips on ultrasonic cleaning! Currently planning on using the hornady or RCBS case cleaner for ultrasonic cleaning.

I also am hoping to:
1. Ultrasonic clean BEFORE decapping
2. use a case dryer to quickly dry the cases (especially to prevent corrosion from wet spent primers still in the case)
3. then use the SAC (or similar) die to decap, resize, and madrel for neck tension. 4. Then, ultrasonic again to remove the lube that was used to resize.

What lead. You’re tumbling brass. Are you planning to shoot un-jacketed lead bullets out of your rifle? Probably not. And we aren’t talking un-jacketed rimfire cause…you won’t be tumbling them for reloading.

As far as I know, lead is not an issue.

 

[simonp]

What he said ^^^

I wet tumble and have had no issues, now I dont tumble my brass for 3 hours at a time so maybe that is why!

 

[ma smith]

What lead. You’re tumbling brass. Are you planning to shoot un-jacketed lead bullets out of your rifle? Probably not. And we aren’t talking un-jacketed rimfire cause…you won’t be tumbling them for reloading.

As far as I know, lead is not an issue.

IIRC, there used to be trace amounts heavy metals in primer residue, not sure what the lastest science is.

 

[kilizyrag]

I wet tumble pistol brass. Rifle brass gets de-primed, annealed, sized, slosh washed to get lube off and then finally loaded. I don't see the need for super shiny brass.

Slosh wash: 2.5 gal bucket a little soap and hot water. Stir then rinse. It takes all of 5 minutes. If I'm in a hurry I then place the brass in the clothes dryer on the shoe rack. Otherwise on a towel and place on my heated floor overnight.

 

[simonp]

Deprime before tumbling, problems solved

 

[OkieMike]

There is lead residue from the primer compound (lead styphnate) that may find its way into dry tumbling media. It could potentially become airborne and be inhaled.

How much lead? I don't know. Guess that depends on who you ask. I would guess that it's about like the radioactivity in table salt... It's technically radioactive but it's so low as to be negligible.

The OP will have to decide how much is too much for him and his kid(s)...

Tinfoil hat time: Kids like helping Dad. Dad letting Jr. help with brass prep is a surefire entry to getting kids involved in reloading and shooting... Fear mongering about lead exposure might be a useful tool to "break the cycle" of handing this pastime on.

Like everything else in life... Risk vs Reward.

Mike

 

[richthe1]

What lead. You’re tumbling brass. Are you planning to shoot un-jacketed lead bullets out of your rifle? Probably not. And we aren’t talking un-jacketed rimfire cause…you won’t be tumbling them for reloading.

As far as I know, lead is not an issue.

This is what I’d read, but I’m not an expert by any means: https://www.reddit.com/r/reloading/s/RVEK2FETdX

 

[Doom]

First off, commercial reloading primers have lead styphnate as an active ingredient. That lead will be present in the spent primer, case and rifle bore. If cases are dry tumbled lead will be present in the media and dust. It will be present in the cleaning patches. If cases are wet tumbled lead will be present in the water/cleaning solution. Either way you are dealing with a hazardous material.

You will have to determine how you will limit the exposure to your son. Obviously this will include access to the reloading area and materials, and also in how you dispose of those material.

 

[Doom]

Deprime before tumbling, problems solved

Nope.

 

[Glowie]

I dry tumble. I 0lace a 5 gallon bucket on top of tumbler to keep dust down. Turn it of and let it settle. But have you ever gone to the range and inhaled. Ahh the sweet taste of gunpowder in the morning almost as good as coffee extra cream and sugar

 

[Lost_Phil]

Any advice would be appreciated! Also, any tips on ultrasonic cleaning! Currently planning on using the hornady or RCBS case cleaner for ultrasonic cleaning.

I have used both and they work good without using the heater, though they do work better if you do use the heater.

I also am hoping to:
1. Ultrasonic clean BEFORE decapping
2. use a case dryer to quickly dry the cases (especially to prevent corrosion from wet spent primers still in the case)
3. then use the SAC (or similar) die to decap, resize, and madrel for neck tension. 4. Then, ultrasonic again to remove the lube that was used to resize.

You are going to make an extra step for yourself, just use a universal de-caping die and de prime them first to get the primer pocket clean before you resize the cases or you will have to run them twice through the Ultrasonic to get them clean.

My steps are.....
1. De prime cases with universal de-caping die
2. Run them in the Ultrasonic long enough that they are clean.
3. Wash the cases with Denatured Alcohol to remove the cleaning solution from the cases and let them dry.
4. Size cases and rewash in Denatured Alcohol to remove case lube.

This is how I do it and it has yet cause me any issues.

 

[carbonbased]

Don’t let your kid into the reloading area. Everything they touch they attempt to put in their mouth.

Certainly when your kid is young, it would be a good idea to use specific clothes when working on ammo or your gun and to change out of them when you’re finished. Wash them and your range clothes separately.

If you go to the range often, it’d be a real good idea to use separate range boots and kept them in a bin in your truck. The amount of lead on the range floor is probably pretty high, lead is sticky, and you’ll track it into your house. Just like the Water Gremlin lead terminal battery guys did here in the Twin Cities. WG got busted by the MN version of the EPA.

They had to decontaminate a whole bunch of worker’s homes.

Use lead soap to wash your hands, and you have to wash for at a while. I also use Lava soap in addition.

I use the D-Lead hand wipes after shooting so I’m not smearing lead on my steering wheel or getting it on my sandwiches.

If the kid starts loading rimfire ammo into mags, teach them to use lead wipes or to at least not eat or lick his fingers until his hands are washed.

Realize it’s unavoidable to expect to have 0% lead exposure if you’re around firearms. The smart thing to do is to limit exposure as the effect is cumulative. I’m not a nervous handwasher; I make fun of those guys plus I’m a dirty slob. But I am careful with chemicals and lead exposure.

Do not use anything you cook with for firearm purposes unless you’ll never prepare food with it again. Don’t do firearm stuff on the kitchen table.

There’s always a guy saying that he grew up eating bullets and he’s fine.

The thing with chemical/heavy metal exposure is you’re fine. Until suddenly, you’re not.

Just be smart about it.

 

[supercorndogs]

The thing with lead exposure is the lead has to be in a form the body can absorb. Swallowing a bullet, it would just pass through and you would poop it out. You aren't getting it from touching bullets, loading 22 mags, or walking around the gun range.

 

[Mike Casselton]

Don’t let your kid into the reloading area. Everything they touch they attempt to put in their mouth.

Certainly when your kid is young, it would be a good idea to use specific clothes when working on ammo or your gun and to change out of them when you’re finished. Wash them and your range clothes separately.

If you go to the range often, it’d be a real good idea to use separate range boots and kept them in a bin in your truck. The amount of lead on the range floor is probably pretty high, lead is sticky, and you’ll track it into your house. Just like the Water Gremlin lead terminal battery guys did here in the Twin Cities. WG got busted by the MN version of the EPA.

They had to decontaminate a whole bunch of worker’s homes.

Use lead soap to wash your hands, and you have to wash for at a while. I also use Lava soap in addition.

I use the D-Lead hand wipes after shooting so I’m not smearing lead on my steering wheel or getting it on my sandwiches.

If the kid starts loading rimfire ammo into mags, teach them to use lead wipes or to at least not eat or lick his fingers until his hands are washed.

Realize it’s unavoidable to expect to have 0% lead exposure if you’re around firearms. The smart thing to do is to limit exposure as the effect is cumulative. I’m not a nervous handwasher; I make fun of those guys plus I’m a dirty slob. But I am careful with chemicals and lead exposure.

Do not use anything you cook with for firearm purposes unless you’ll never prepare food with it again. Don’t do firearm stuff on the kitchen table.

There’s always a guy saying that he grew up eating bullets and he’s fine.

The thing with chemical/heavy metal exposure is you’re fine. Until suddenly, you’re not.

Just be smart about it.

You might want to consider a set of these for yourself and your family.

 

[carbonbased]

You might want to consider a set of these for yourself and your family.

View attachment 8432454

Hey man, I get it. In writing, it looks weird. In practice I’m not anal about it, and not yelling when I or others don’t clean up. Not the end of the world.

But it just boils down to separating your gun stuff from your (and others) mouth(s). Edit: and lung(s).

There’s no safe level of lead in your body, man. None.

Lead poisoning: Spot symptoms and limit exposure-Lead poisoning - Diagnosis & treatment - Mayo Clinic

Learn about lead poisoning symptoms and treatment of lead exposure in children and adults. Explore ways to keep your kids safe from lead exposure.

www.mayoclinic.org

 

[Schütze]

Hey man, I get it. In writing, it looks weird. In practice I’m not anal about it, and not yelling when I or others don’t clean up. Not the end of the world.

But it just boils down to separating your gun stuff from your (and others) mouth(s).

There’s no safe level of lead in your body, man. None.

Lead poisoning: Spot symptoms and limit exposure-Lead poisoning - Diagnosis & treatment - Mayo Clinic

Learn about lead poisoning symptoms and treatment of lead exposure in children and adults. Explore ways to keep your kids safe from lead exposure.

www.mayoclinic.org

Still trust Mayo Clinic?

COVID-19 vaccines for kids: What you need to know

Learn about the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines for kids, the possible side effects, and the benefits of vaccination.

www.mayoclinic.org

 

[Camelfilter]

Still trust Mayo Clinic?

COVID-19 vaccines for kids: What you need to know

Learn about the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines for kids, the possible side effects, and the benefits of vaccination.

www.mayoclinic.org

Don't single source anything.

On lead they're not wrong.

Virology group is different.

 

[carbonbased]

The thing with lead exposure is the lead has to be in a form the body can absorb. Swallowing a bullet, it would just pass through and you would poop it out. You aren't getting it from touching bullets, loading 22 mags, or walking around the gun range.

I agree. The bullet thing is about mainly about handling 22LR. Lead is not going through your skin (unless you clean suppressors with “the dip” and bare skin touches the byproduct, lead acetate).

If you wear nitrile gloves when cleaning guns you’ll have less hand washing to do.

But CF bullets are not made in a clean room. There’s lots of lead in that facility; washing one’s hands is an easy precaution. And AFAIK, regular soap takes a fair bit longer to disengage sticky lead on your hands. So I use the special soap.

But lead on the bottom of your boots will get on your floors (truck, house). Little kids and animals lick all sorts of crap on the floor. People eat stuff they drop on the floor. Lead cannot be cleaned off easily.

So I take a few simple precautions and don’t sweat it if I or others mess up.

 

[carbonbased]

Here is a shooter’s story, not a just a reloading story. But you’ll get the drift. He mentions stuff I didn’t, like the hazards of sweeping up brass at the range, because, well, look at the (expected) reaction I got.

https://blog.capitalcartridge.com/2017/03/14/how-to-avoid-lead-poisoningcapital-cartridge/

 

[supercorndogs]

No, it's not just weird in writing. It's wierd in real life pretending lead is a real boogie man. It's your weiner so you can wash it however you want.

 

[CK1.0]

Wet tumbling is for blaster ammo. Dry tumble the stuff you plan to use for hitting shit that’s far away.

Keep your kid and cases separate until he’s old enough to safely handle them on his own.

 

[Vivacious Stallion]

When I wrote an exposure assessment on firearms based lead exposure a few years ago, the consensus was that the majority of lead exposure in shooting is linked to the primer as it will release lead compounds during its ignition. (Non lead based primers tend to face reliability issues over prolonged storage and thus arent widely adopted). Based on this, I would presume that the primer pocket is relatively contaminated and would release that lead residue into the dry tumbling media and the resulting dust.

Children put all sorts of things in their mouths when adults arent looking and are the most susceptible to lead based health issues. Keep kids from handling ammunition and reloading stuff unless necessary, wash your hands (teach your kids to wash their hands), wearing gloves while reloading and wiping down work surfaces with D-lead wipes are also good ideas.

Most recreational shooters have a very low perception of risk for lead based exposure hazards, outside of being hit by an actual bullet. But like hearing damage it is a slow, insidious thing that builds over time until it finally becomes a problem.

I use ultrasonic cleaning for my cases and have been happy with the results and the quality of my reloads.

My current process is:
Decap, ultrasonic, lube, size, etc.
If you ultrasonic before decapping lots of moisture gets held inside the primer/pocket and resists evaporation from my experience.

 

[Dead Eye Dick]

Find a dry tumbler that has a full cover over it. When opening and separating the media from the brass, again get a unit that has a full cover, do it outside in a breeze or have a fan flowing over it. Obviously stay upwind. Yes it gets dusty but with the fan blowing, any dust is blown away AND use reasonably fresh tumbling media.

 

[45-90]

Earth is a toxic environment full of viruses, and natural poisons that will harm or kill you.
I have never been to concerned with the small stuff,... more concerned about rattlesnakes, then the 1-1-1 triclorethelene, which was use by the 55 gallon drum in machining materials for your nuclear weapons, and refueling nuclear reactors.
I always get the brake cleaner that says "Causes cancer in California", on the label, cause it works better.

 

[ECK]

I dry tumble, been doing it for decades. I run my tumbler outside, use the case separator outside, and wash my hands after doing anything related to reloading. I also change the media when it gets dirty.

I have my doc check my lead level each year when I do my annual exam. For as long as I can rember its been in the low single digits.

 

[carbonbased]

No, it's not just weird in writing. It's wierd in real life pretending lead is a real boogie man. It's your weiner so you can wash it however you want.

It’s not that weird if you think about it.

I treat it pretty much like I treat like motor oil or gasoline. If I walk in gas/oil with shoes a lot, I’m not bringing those shoes into my house. If I soak my shirt in gas/oil, I’m not washing it with my other good clothes. My kids, when they were young, weren’t allowed to play with oil or gas.

I wear gloves when dealing with motor oil because it’s easier to not to have to scrub my hands forever to remove the oil. And if the oil isn’t on my hands, it won’t transfer as easier to my food, my mouth, etc.

And I try to limit my exposure to breathing gas/oil fumes.

Why? Because these things, gas/oil/lead, have been proven to be toxic. But since these things are either necessary or used in the course of something enjoyable, I don’t sweat it too much and go about my day.

I just take some minimal precautions.

I mean, do you remember when leaded gasoline was banned? There was a very good reason for that.

 

[supercorndogs]

Oh ya cause it stunted half a generations IQ. I wonder why the current crop shows average IQs dropping below that of the generation with learning disabilities from leaded gas and lead paint.

 

[Camelfilter]

Here is a shooter’s story, not a just a reloading story. But you’ll get the drift. He mentions stuff I didn’t, like the hazards of sweeping up brass at the range, because, well, look at the (expected) reaction I got.

https://blog.capitalcartridge.com/2017/03/14/how-to-avoid-lead-poisoningcapital-cartridge/

Nice write up & common sense. Least ways what should be common sense.

There are other reasons to wear nitrile gloves reloading too...

A weird thing about lead toxicity, is that such is not the same for everyone. Some may not be affected at a high level, while some can be affected severely at a low level. By simply taking some common sense steps, folks can reduce risks. If folks don't wish to, then don't.

 

[cas6969]

I started reloading at about age 4 or 5, "helping" dad. I was probably 30 when I (we) got a tumbler. I still rarely do it, despite have three vibratory tumblers, a wet rotary one and an ultra sonic clear. My point being, it's probably the least important thing you need to worry about if you're buying reloading equipment.

 

[cas6969]

Oh ya cause it stunted half a generations IQ. I wonder why the current crop shows average IQs dropping below that of the generation with learning disabilities from leaded gas and lead paint.

There's a bunch of research, when they overlay the graphs of lead in the air/atmosphere and violent crime rates, they sort of match up perfectly.

Well since we've drifted farther from reloading.... this is far more enjoyable than reading boring research papers.

 

[carbonbased]

There's a bunch of research, when they overlay the graphs of lead in the air/atmosphere and violent crime rates, they sort of match up perfectly.

Well since we've drifted farther from reloading.... this is far more enjoyable than reading boring research papers.

This is a fascinating video. Thanks for posting!

 

[748rpilot]

I mean, do you remember when leaded gasoline was banned? There was a very good reason for that.

I was just reading about this, and interestingly, leaded gasoline was still sold in Algeria until 2021.

The inventor, Thomas Midgley Jr, gave a public speech about lead additive in gasoline and for demonstration, poured a lead additive over hands and inhaled the fumes for about a minute. He then remarked to the crowd that "I could do this every day without getting any health problems whatsoever". He needed medical attention shortly later.

Midgley Jr. also pioneered the use of CFCs in refrigerant.

 

[supercorndogs]

The world is full of bullshit pseudo science claiming anything they are paid to claim and finding some corrilation to support their supposition.

While we are on the subject they discovered r12 was bad just when dupont's patent was about to run out. Since the ban of CFCs we still have holes in the ozone at the poles. And the machenism that causes these holes is natural and was known before they blamed the holes on CFCs. High altitude clouds that only form in the article during very cold temperatures are the cause.

Volcanos release CFCs also. So likley their are many other natural processes that release them also. Kind of like CO2 climate scientists claim the ones from volcanos have little to no effect.