cleaning cases

[badgerjfr]

I finally have gotten most of my reloading stuff, (ordered it in Feb.) and while im waiting to find small and large pistol primers, i decided to prep all the cases.

my question is what order do you clean the cases?

I first removed all the primers, then do i tumble them to clean them, or should i clean the primer pockets before tumbling. what seems to work better? and for cutting casings to length and chamforing, when should that be done in the prosses?

I guess i assumed you would tumble last, however, last night i was cleaning some primer pockets and it seemed to be a little hard to get them clean.

since im new to the whole reloading thing i have done some research but cant seem to find the case prep order anywhere, and figured it would be easy enough to ask all you "salty" dogs, and see if you had any trick for me. any input would be helpful, and thanks again for the help.

p.s. my wolff gun springs are finally on there way too. its been a good week so far.

[normsutton]

badgerjfr
it all up to you when to clean them , what works for you maybe different to some one else, I do mine after they trimmed,and chamfered, if they are ones that I already have reloaded once , right after I return form the range , and sometimes after I have size them , reloaded for about 35 years and just used the washing machine , I have only had a tumbler for about 5 years now, sometimes still use the washing machine it depends on how much brass I have to do and where it came from

NORM

[badgerjfr]

thanks Norm, I'll just have to mess around to see what works best, i did discover the primer pockets seem easier to clean after tumbling for a while. Im sure if i used thw washing machine, my wife would cut my balls off . if i figure something that works super slick I'll let you know. Thanks Again.

[juniustaylor]

You could always be like these guys on this Facebook group that I am on. You use this Lemishine / Dawn Dishsoap concoction. You wet tumble them in it, then size them, then tumble them again, then trim them, then tumble them, then prime them, then load them, then tumble them again (in dry media). In the end, you wasted hours upon hours for the sake of having the shiniest brass at the shooting range and no one else cares. I may have exaggerated that some but there are people that go through great lengths for something so trivial.

Sometimes I tumble them before sizing and sometimes I wait until after sizing. It just depends on how dirty the brass is. Some folks recommend tumbling before sizing to ensure that grit is removed from the brass before it is run through the die and put microscopic scratches in it.

I've been using plain white rice from Wal-Mart. Add a capful or two of either Graf's case polish or NuFinish car polish. Tumble them and remove them. Don't allow brass to sit in the media or it will stain the cases and media will stick to the cases. I use a $1 mop bucket and $1 mesh waste basket from Dollar Tree to sift out the media. Insert the waste basket into the mop bucket. Then dump the tumbler-full of brass into it. Grab the mesh waste basket and shake the heck out of it. The mesh gaps are large and let the media sift out easily. Works for .380 and larger. Smaller calibers than that would probably slip through the mesh.

[juniustaylor]

Also, I don't bother cleaning the primer pockets unless they are somehow super filthy. A standard small pistol primer has around 5,000 PSI (or so I've read) and will blow out most any obstruction much less some carbon from a previous firing.

Case trimming should be done after sizing. Otherwise if you trim then size, your dimension can be off. It's all personal preference if you want to tumble first, then size the brass. Or if you want to size, trim, then tumble. In the end, there isn't really any right or wrong way.

[badgerjfr]

just a quick note before i head to bed. i just read a snippet from the "modern reloading, second edition" (by richard lee) that if you size clean brass, the brass will "build up" inside the die over time. it's recomendend to size all the brass when it's "dirty" becuase the soot and dirt acts as a barrier, or lube, with the carbide dies.

im sure its not a huge deal, but its the first time i've heard of sizing dirty rounds. expecialy when it's coming from a LEE.

junius, yes, i have read a lot of crazy stuff about getting brass clean. my opinion is, these guys have too much time on there hands, and not enough time at the range.

thanks again for the info.

p.s. i love this webite.