Wet Tumbling before Decapping

[Herb Stoner]

New to wet tumbling. I have a bunch of brass to prep - some is pretty dirty. I'm considering wet tumbling prior to decapping but am concerned residual moisture trapped in the primer / pocket area would cause issues or expose moisture to my press and cause corrosion, etc.

I'm not worried about clean primer pockets, etc. Just the possibility of moisture damaging equipment.

Thanks in Advance!

 

[2aBaC̶a̶]

Why not just decap?

Theres no problem doing with primers in. I'll do it if the brass is real dirty. Some guys are baking them in the oven at 250 for 30 min. I imagine that would take care of any moisture.

 

[Herb Stoner]

Some of it is really dirty and honestly I'd rather avoid a whole production of tray after tray in the oven. This isn't precision rifle ammo - its mostly 9mm and 223 plinking stuff. I just don't know how much water would be trapped and cause issues - or if my questions even is an issue. I have no problem just running it through a media separator to get the pins and moisture out and leaving it to air dry a few days. I just don't know if its an issue or someone has experience with wet tumbling before decapping.

 

[rustyinbend]

I always decap, and then wet-tumble. Hard to imagine why it would be done the other way around.

 

[25ring]

Decap with a universal decapping die then tumble,it cleans better and dries quicker since air can flow thru the flash hole.

 

[308pirate]

I don't have a decapping die.

So I wet tumble and bake dry before decapping/sizing.

Rinse and drain the cases, then lay them out in an over tray. Stick in any domestic over at 240F for 30 min and there will be zero moisture anywhere.

This obsession with cleaning every little nook and cranny inside the brass is stupid. The only surfaces that need to be clean are the exterior ones so the dies don't get scratched to hell.

I repeat the wet tumble/baking process after sizing to get rid of the lanolin die lubricant.

 

[1500varmint]

I'll admit to wet tumbling before depriming.

I try to make few trips to the press as possible, so I'll typically wet tumble a shitload of brass and let it air dry for a few days before doing any additional prep.

 

[Ledzep]

If the shit is just covered in dirt/mud, I will wet tumble without media first, just soap, to clean them up for the sake of the dies.

No straining or chasing pins/media.

 

[Herb Stoner]

I always decap, and then wet-tumble. Hard to imagine why it would be done the other way around.

That’s what I have been doing but some of the brass is really dirty.

 

[308pirate]

If the shit is just covered in dirt/mud, I will wet tumble without media first, just soap, to clean them up for the sake of the dies.

No straining or chasing pins/media.

I have never, ever used pins or any other media to wet tumble. The brass cleans itself just fine.

 

[respiegel]

+1 for universal decapping die.

If in doubt you can always leave the brass in front of a box fan overnight

 

[Herb Stoner]

I have never, ever used pins or any other media to wet tumble. The brass cleans itself just fine.

I’m going to try some without pins. New to wet tumbling so started with some using standard method with pins to get a feel for the process.

 

[308pirate]

I’m going to try some without pins. New to wet tumbling so started with some using standard method with pins to get a feel for the process.

Don't go in expecting ultra shiny brass inside and out. But they will be clean.

I add dish soap and a little bit of Lemishine. Fill with hottest water that I can get from the tap. Tumble for at least an hour. The longer it goes the cleaner they get. Drain and rinse using the tumbling drum and a flour sifter thing. Then bake for 30 min at 240.

You'll never fuck with pins again

 

[25ring]

I've recently switched over to ultrasonic from ss pins if I want the brass just clean and not super shiny. The upside is no sorting from pins and the brass is done in 10 min. A 15 liter ultrasound unit can do a lot of brass.

 

[Ledzep]

I have never, ever used pins or any other media to wet tumble. The brass cleans itself just fine.

For bolt guns I can handle it, for suppressed AR's I gotta do pins. Can't stand how dark/dirty they still look.

 

[DairyDictator]

I usually just dry tumble, resize and decap, then wet tumble to get the sizing lube off and clean the primer pockets. I hate wet tumbling with primers in because it makes dumping the cases and pins out a pain in the ass since there's not an air hole.

 

[Cardboard Assassin]

Decap with a universal decapping die then tumble,it cleans better and dries quicker since air can flow thru the flash hole.

This ^^^^^ is how I roll too

 

[2aBaC̶a̶]

I dont get the aversion to using pins. Either way dont peope spinnit in the separator tumbler to get the water out? Its like 30 extra seconds dealing with pins to get cases cleaner. And isnt that the point?

Honeslty, my biggest issue with wet tumbling is beating up of the case mouth and peening over. Then having to trim chamfer and debur cases every time. Even 30min in the wet tumbler causes it.

Next time im skipping the cleaning all together.

 

[KnowNothing256]

I dont get the aversion to using pins. Either way dont peope spinnit in the separator tumbler to get the water out? Its like 30 extra seconds dealing with pins to get cases cleaner. And isnt that the point?

Honeslty, my biggest issue with wet tumbling is beating up of the case mouth and peening over. Then having to trim chamfer and debur cases every time. Even 30min in the wet tumbler causes it.

Next time im skipping the cleaning all together.

The aversion is to sending a stainless pin down the barrel. It's a painstaking process to visually check each case for a leftover pin, and people have messed it up (or foolishly skipped it) before.

 

[308pirate]

I dont get the aversion to using pins. Either way dont peope spinnit in the separator tumbler to get the water out? Its like 30 extra seconds dealing with pins to get cases cleaner. And isnt that the point?

Honeslty, my biggest issue with wet tumbling is beating up of the case mouth and peening over. Then having to trim chamfer and debur cases every time. Even 30min in the wet tumbler causes it.

Next time im skipping the cleaning all together.

They get clean enough without pins. Fucking brass doesn't need every last speck of carbon scrubbed out.

Never had dinged case mouths either. It probably has to do with how full of brass the drum is.

 

[acudaowner]

what your not polishing your brass with brasso for the ultimate in shiny brass ? Don't you want the prettiest brass at the range , clean brass is happy brass lol . Would you wash your car with out doing the tires and rims ?

 

[alamo5000]

If your brass is really dirty and you don't want to mess up any of your dies then wet tumble for a bit. The cases don't have to be spotless. Once you separate them from the media put your brass on a beach towel or a large bath towel and cinch it up like a hobo's bag and rattle it around, bounce it, etc. This will knock of all the excess moisture.

For my regular tumble routine this is exactly how I dry my brass. After I do that I put it on my back porch to finish air drying. Just unfold the towel and shuffle the brass around and let it sit for 30 minutes to an hour depending on how warm it is outside.

 

[2aBaC̶a̶]

The aversion is to sending a stainless pin down the barrel. It's a painstaking process to visually check each case for a leftover pin, and people have messed it up (or foolishly skipped it) before.

Ive never even heard of anyone doing that and not sure how you would even know. I don't visually check each case and never had a problem. Once in a blue moon a bunch will get wedged in a case mouth but thats easily detected.

 

[2aBaC̶a̶]

what your not polishing your brass with brasso for the ultimate in shiny brass ? Don't you want the prettiest brass at the range , clean brass is happy brass lol . Would you wash your car with out doing the tires and rims ?

Polishing brass increases your FPS and lowers your ES and SD. Its a trade secret, shhh dont tell anyone.

 

[spife7980]

Ive never even heard of anyone doing that and not sure how you would even know. I don't visually check each case and never had a problem. Once in a blue moon a bunch will get wedged in a case mouth but thats easily detected.

Magnets are one way people try to find them without checking each case. Depends on the type of stainless used though.
But people have found gouges in their barrel from sending pins out with a bullet.

 

[MediumSpeed]

I wet tumble (without pins) all my dirty range pickup mixtures (.223/9mm/45 and more) before sorting for reloading, then I do the decap/swage/trim/etc. During the summer a couple hours in the sun dries things. In the winter I put then in on a wire sieve over a floor heating vent.

 

[lightman]

When I have brass thats too muddy/dirty to run through my press I put it in a wide mouth plastic jar with a squirt of Dawn and some water and let it soak. Everytime I walk by I'll give it a good shake. I guess it would be easier and faster to just put it in the tumbler? Maybe without pins for a half hour?

 

[DamagedGuds]

I wet tumble, dry, full-length size, then wet tumble, and dry again. Works for me.

 

[FuhQ]

Get yourself a universal decapping die like the Mighty Armory Magnum. Then you don't have to worry about getting your sizing dies all nasty from resizing dirty brass.

I recommend decapping before cleaning. It will help eliminate an extra step, which is cleaning the primer pockets after you've already cleaned the rest of the case. Might as well do it all at once.

 

[ReaperDriver]

New to wet tumbling. I have a bunch of brass to prep - some is pretty dirty. I'm considering wet tumbling prior to decapping but am concerned residual moisture trapped in the primer / pocket area would cause issues or expose moisture to my press and cause corrosion, etc.

I'm not worried about clean primer pockets, etc. Just the possibility of moisture damaging equipment.

Thanks in Advance!

So...... I do it both ways depending on the application. For my precision rifle brass - I always decap first and then tumble so it not only cleans the primer pockets and saves me that step later, but it also allows the water to drain better and dry faster. I don't bake them, I just leave them on a towel to dry for a day or two and they're ready to go.

However, for my high volume brass like 9mm that I load through a Dillon - I just throw the cases in the wet tumbler with the old primer left in and don't worry about it. The Dillon will decap and I don't care about perfectly clean pockets for this - so I don't bother decapping first. Again, I just let them dry on a towel for a couple of days and they are plenty dry to load up. Of course I live in a very dry climate - so YMMV on drying methods.

I use a cheap LEE universal decapping die and I can use it for any caliber. I often decap .308, 300BO, 6.5 and .223 all in one session. Works like a champ.

 

[CK1.0]

So...... I do it both ways depending on the application. For my precision rifle brass - I always decap first and then tumble so it not only cleans the primer pockets and saves me that step later, but it also allows the water to drain better and dry faster. I don't bake them, I just leave them on a towel to dry for a day or two and they're ready to go.

However, for my high volume brass like 9mm that I load through a Dillon - I just throw the cases in the wet tumbler with the old primer left in and don't worry about it. The Dillon will decap and I don't care about perfectly clean pockets for this - so I don't bother decapping first. Again, I just let them dry on a towel for a couple of days and they are plenty dry to load up. Of course I live in a very dry climate - so YMMV on drying methods.

I use a cheap LEE universal decapping die and I can use it for any caliber. I often decap .308, 300BO, 6.5 and .223 all in one session. Works like a champ.

This is pretty much exactly what I do too... only thing I do different is I use a brass dryer (food dehydrator thing).

9mm cases with old primers dry fast, 6mm creed... not so much, so they get decapped first. $10 Lee Universal Decap die - it's $10, it's awesome.

 

[Rocketmandb]

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[WilburW]

For my range pickup 9mm brass, I will give a brief soak in soapy water to remove the dirt/sand then air dry. Decap by hand with Harvey. Don’t want all that primer residue all over my press.
Then wet tumble. No pins. Just some Dawn/Lemishine, or more recently with Brass Juice. Air dry in the sun or a warm oven.
Minimal effort for the extra steps keeps my press clean and brass with beautifully clean primer pockets.

 

[Snuby642]

Universal decap then dry tumble.
Done.