Wet tumbling what a difference WOW

[2aBaC̶a̶]

They should all feel the same. If not I’d say you’ve got brass that’s too hard or mixed brass that’s not consistent. Ive never tried it but wouldn’t think you should be able to insert it by hand either way.

I agree. I just got some new TiN mandrels and started dicking around with some already sized cases sitting in front of me using the mandrel sort of like pin guages when I noticed it. Ended up going through them all and separating. I re-annealed the 10 or so hard to fit ones and resized the 3 loose ones. That brought them to more of an average "tight fit" feel. This is with the -.001 mandrel. The -.002 mandrel sits in the case on cushion of air and slowly sinks down. It will actually bounce if you tap it. I know everyone's level of case hardness and spring back is different so I was wondering where they end up after a mandrel.

 

[Snuby642]

Are you applying the graphite using ceramic media?

I use Redding ceramic media and there is no mess and it’s fast and easy.

Yes ceramic media and I still find a way to get it on my clothes, no biggie and fingers I worry about touching an eye or grandchildren touching it.

I used it to coat bullet bearing surfaces, neck working functions ect. It was difficult to put on a 55g 223 so I stopped and that was also when I went to the extra mandrell step.

Working the necks to 0.004 then 0.002 since they are "strait" the next pass is smooth and low force.

I really only mentioned the lubes for the wet tumble guys since I think I'm no longer going to bother at all.

I need a new chrono so I can get numbers for comparison but the groups are doing better.

I thought molly bullets went out of favor?

 

[John Glidewell]

Lots of good info in here so I will not rehash it. I have gone back and forth. Just recently went back to wet with steel media for 30-45 min. Any more than that is just not necessary and that is when the necks/case mouths start to get dinged up. Once brass is dry I put 50 in the block and do a light passing spray of Hornady one shot case lube over necks/case mouth. I turn block and do all 4 sides to get even distribution. Mandrel neck then 3 way trim on 21st century. Prime and load.

The only other thing I do when I rinse the brass is I use a little Mcguiar's ultimate wash and wax in warm water. This provides a little lubrication, seals brass and aides in steel releasing/separating. Then a final rinse in cold water. The extra time is minimal. I have not seen any difference in numbers or in overall performance.

I think both processes work well. I have had good success with both. Just my opinion, but I think the wet process is more consistent overall but I do not have any actual data to back that up. After I do this for a bit I will know. I keep notes on it all just so I can see if there is a difference in numbers over the life of a barrel. this is new barrel so it will be a while.

 

[Snuby642]

Looks like a good solution (lol) to me.

 

[solocam]

You might have missed the solve; using neck bushings with custom expander mandrels, does the same as a separate mandrel. BTW if you set it up correctly, you'll end up getting many more reloads this way before having to anneal vs FL non-bushing that tends to oversize the neck then really pull the expander ball through, then running an expander mandrel again. BTW most guys I know using a 2nd step mandrel are using either a custom or bushing die without expander, then using the mandrel to keep from overworking stuff.

I have been using Forester FL dies without an expander, with custom honed necks, so I’m not overworking my brass. Afterwards I use a Sinclair expander mandrel. Before seating the bullet I use a little Imperial graphite lube. I think I need to invest in an annealer and keep my brass separated by the number of firings. I’ve just started experimenting with just reloading fired cases, and not cleaning brass at all, just running a primer pocket uniformer to clean out primer pockets. This way I keep my brass separated by number of firings, instead of just throwing mixed pieces in my tumbler. If I seat bullets on fired brass I can feel a more consistent seating pressure than I can with my wet tumbled brass. Wet tumbled brass bullet seating seems inconsistent. Thank you all for sharing your experience’s, as I have learned quite a bit. I can take things you all have learned the hard way and apply it to my practices. Yeah I’m one of those annal guys that probably use a chronograph waaay to much during load development. I just think it’s beneficial to see what’s going on.

 

[Dolomite_Supafly]

If you have a tightish chamber wet tumbling with pins can cause problems. The case mouths will grow from being mushroomed. I have measured it at ~.010 difference between pin tumbled and vibratory tumbling. If you trim you could probably minimize it but I trim my cases so they never need trimmed before they are tossed.