What are the dangers of accidentally leaving a pin or pins inside of your case? I’m thinking it’ll probably just expel itself out the barrel with not lasting damage on the barrel and minimal effect on trajectory... much like walnut. Just curious on the community’s opinion. What methods do you use to insure it doesn’t t happen? Thanks.
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Stainless steel media
- Thread starter jeffl838
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Cant say that i have first hand experience, but sending a tiny pin down your barrel at a couple thousand fps cant be a good result. Many people are concerned about copper cleaning brushed damaging their rifling.
I would serrated try pulling your bullets if this is more than hypothetical. Why take an unnecessary risk that could damage your rifle.
I dont steal tumble... yet... but i inspect all of my brass throughout the process. More so when im trimming and deburring and cleaning/uniforming my primer pockets.
I would serrated try pulling your bullets if this is more than hypothetical. Why take an unnecessary risk that could damage your rifle.
I dont steal tumble... yet... but i inspect all of my brass throughout the process. More so when im trimming and deburring and cleaning/uniforming my primer pockets.
Don’t know what would happen but I would do everything possible to avoid it. If you don’t feel like inspecting each case, get a big rare earth magnet to locate any SS pins left in the cases.
For example this https://www.amazon.com/Neodymium-Co...+&sr=8-1-spons&ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa&psc=1&th=1
For example this https://www.amazon.com/Neodymium-Co...+&sr=8-1-spons&ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa&psc=1&th=1
When I empty the tumbler I pick up the cases a few at a time and bump them together a few times. The smaller cases like 204 or 223 seem to hold pins worse than bigger cases. My pins are magnetic, I put a magnet across the sink drain to catch any escaping pine.
This.
I use a media separator and have never had a pin stuck in a case, even with 223. The process only takes a couple of minutes.
I rinse all brass with clean water, and as I grab each piece, tap it on the side of the bucket to let the pins fall out. Depending on your neck size, some may get stuck, but can be removed easily. After drying, resizing, and priming, I look down each case when in the loading block to see if I missed any. The last step is my OCD.
Lots of "handling" of the cases after tumbling sizing, trimming, deburring, priming and charging.
Tough for the pin(s) not to fall out of the case. I guess one could be stuck sideways in the case and you may end up converting your 5R barrel to 7R.
Im sure it has been done without the shooter knowing.
I have a large illuminated magnifier that gets used before the cases are charged and after not fool proof though.
Tough for the pin(s) not to fall out of the case. I guess one could be stuck sideways in the case and you may end up converting your 5R barrel to 7R.
Im sure it has been done without the shooter knowing.
I have a large illuminated magnifier that gets used before the cases are charged and after not fool proof though.
Why wouldn't it just stay in the case. It's not sized to your barrel and sitting on top of the charge, I think it would settle in the case to the bottom or side and the pressure would just trap it there. What am I missing here? Why would it shoot down the barrel?
A friend of mine told me he saw "pin strikes" visible with a bore scope in a customer's barrel that was shooting poorly. At first he wasn't sure what they were but, on a hunch, he called the customer and asked if he SS tumbled and the answer was yes. He also told me that this particular customer was very hap hazard with his shooting and reloading having blown up 2 guns and having had an AD a few years back that injured a bystander - luckily only a grazing shot.
Any modicum of care and SS pins will not be a problem. I tap and look inside the case as the final step before it goes in the press. A little OCD is a good thing in this sport.
Any modicum of care and SS pins will not be a problem. I tap and look inside the case as the final step before it goes in the press. A little OCD is a good thing in this sport.
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If you're concerned with pins in your brass, and you rightfully should be, I would recommend using different media. I use Southern Shine media and I've never had a pin stuck in the case, primer pocket, or flash hole. The Southern Shine media are stainless steel chips instead of pins and their shape and size keep them from getting stuck. When I'm rinsing my brass after tumbling, I just turn the brass mouth down while it's underwater and all the chips just pour out. His prices are reasonable I think I paid $25 or $28 for 5 lbs of chips, shipped, which is pretty cheap for peace of mind. He doesn't have a website, so you'll need to look him up on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/southernshinetumblers/
Edit: Just checked and it's $26 for 5 lbs, shipped
Edit: Just checked and it's $26 for 5 lbs, shipped
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I ss tumble my suppressed semi auto brass. The 6.5 variety want to get stuck. I deprime, tumble , then rinse them and look for stuck pins by the handfull. I then dry them with a hair dryer. This process has been really sucessfull for removing all of the pins.
I'll admit I've done it a few times, unintentionally of course. The only way I knew it happened was when the brass ejected and I saw the pin land on the bench. While I don't think it damaged my rifle, I would obviously try to avoid it.
@canezach, thanks for the lead on this media, I ordered some up and ran a few hundred cases through. Previously I was having an annoying amount of stuck pins necessitating manual (annoying) removal. With this southern shine media that task is now a thing of the past. Highly recommend this media, it works awesome plus no more stuck pins!!!
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