Do you tumble/clean rifle brass again after sizing?

[maroonandwhite]

I am trying to wrap my head around the best process for reloading rifle ammo. I know after the initial cleaning I will be lubing and resizing/depriming then trimming. Do you guys tumble again to clean off the lube before loading or just wipe them off with a rag? Or do I even need to worry about that small amount of lube? I will be using the pad type lube method and just rolling the brass on the pad.

 

I have come to realize that I won't be able to take full advantage of the auto index turret press I have with rifle ammo but I have a set of 9mm dies ordered.  :pleased:

[Dolomite_supafly]

I do to remove the lube.

[Patton]

I would only if I was going to be using a liquid cleaner. I often dry tumble, resize, and then shake them up with water and citric acid before rinsing clean.

[Caster]

Absolutely.

[TNMTBik3r]

I tumble all my brass in corncob again after sizing. Removes lube and gives a nice polish.

[mikegideon]

I tumble just long enough to take the lube off

[173rdABN]

Wet tumble for an hour to clean the brass before the sizing. then size once dry. then wet tumble again for 3 hours to take the lube off, clean inside, primer pockets and make the brass look brand new. then trim, anneal, and load :)

[jaysouth]

If you tumble dirty brass, you are exposing yourself to a lot of stuff you really don't want to breathe.  I deprime dirty brass with a universal depriming die then soak in hot water a dash of vinegar and a drop of two of Dawn.  After rinsing for a couple of minutes, I then dry the deprimed brass and tumble it for a couple of hours.  In my lizzard litter (walnut shells) I add a teaspoon of mineral spirits, a teaspoon of dupont chrome polish and a dryer sheet.  After tumbling, I lube and size.  If this in brass fired in the same gun that it is going to be shot in again, I use dillon pump spray lube.  No need to remove this from the brass before charging and seating.  Ditto for Hornady One Shot.  The lube in either is lanolin suspended in alcohol.  when the alcohol dries, it is OK to leave the lanolin on the case when charging and seating.

 

However, it this is new brass to me, I size with Hornady or Imperial sizing wax.  After an application of either, I tumble with more mineral spirits to get the wax off.  Half an hour will do.

[TN Volunteer]

After re-sizing the brass with lube on it,
I load up the powder and projectile.

The completed round gets put in the tumbler in corn cob for around an hour to pull the lube off of the case.

Been doing it for several years and never had a problem.

[frankmako]

i tumble before i size/deprime.  then i tumble again to remove the case lube and to clean the primer pocket some what.  case cleaning is cheap and easy.  the machine does all the work. 

[maroonandwhite]

After re-sizing the brass with lube on it,
I load up the powder and projectile.

The completed round gets put in the tumbler in corn cob for around an hour to pull the lube off of the case.

Been doing it for several years and never had a problem.

This is another interesting method I've seen.  My concerns are unfounded i'm sure but it would make me a little nervous. This would be the most obvious and easy way for me to do it. I wouldn't have to us a hand primer if I did this.

[chances R]

It looks to me you are comparing apples and oranges, meaning necked rifle cases vs. your pending prep for 9mm. I don't do rifle, but there is a lot more prep for rifle than pistol. I never trim my pistol cases. I wet tumble, before deprime. Dry brass, then reload. I don't normally use lube, and if I do it is a slight mist of Hornady One Shot just to ease the force...a little. With the carbide dies lube is not necessary. Nor are there the extra steps with your pistol rounds. I don't worry about cleaning off any of the One Shot either.

[maroonandwhite]

It looks to me you are comparing apples and oranges, meaning necked rifle cases vs. your pending prep for 9mm. I don't do rifle, but there is a lot more prep for rifle than pistol. I never trim my pistol cases. I wet tumble, before deprime. Dry brass, then reload. I don't normally use lube, and if I do it is a slight mist of Hornady One Shot just to ease the force...a little. With the carbide dies lube is not necessary. Nor are there the extra steps with your pistol rounds. I don't worry about cleaning off any of the One Shot either.

Well I'm really speaking on rifle cases. Sorry if I didn't make that clear. Just alluding to the fact that pistol will be alot easier than rifle. I do have carbide dies ordered for 9mm.

[Patton]

I understand that you were specific to rifle cases and the need to retumble, but 9mm is about the easiest case to size because of the slight taper. With a rifle case, a lot may depend on the lube being used. Hornady One Shot will wipe right off the case and may not do an harm if dried on anyway. Some of the older paste types will dull a case if not wiped or washed off after resizing.

[maroonandwhite]

I think I am going to pick up some of the One Shot and just try them both out. I plan to load mainly "fun" ammo for the.223 but will be getting some .243 dies and others to load low volume ammo so I'm sure there will be different techniques for different situations.

[TN Volunteer]

This is another interesting method I've seen. My concerns are unfounded i'm sure but it would make me a little nervous. This would be the most obvious and easy way for me to do it. I wouldn't have to us a hand primer if I did this.

LOL!

I left out one step. Sorry.

I do clean my brass first.

Next,

Lube the brass, insert primer, resize case, load powder, load projectile, crimp projectile.

Dump completed rounds in vibrating cleaner in corn cob media.

Again, been doing it for years and never once, had to dive behind the couch from exploding rounds. YMMV. Edited December 23, 2014 by TN Volunteer

[maroonandwhite]

LOL!

I left out one step. Sorry.

I do clean my brass first.

Next,

Lube the brass, insert primer, resize case, load powder, load projectile, crimp projectile.

Dump completed rounds in vibrating cleaner in corn cob media.

Again, been doing it for years and never once, had to dive behind the couch from exploding rounds. YMMV.

Oh yeah I assumed that haha. 

[Grunt81]

It is completely optional to tumble your brass after resizing and decapping. I use the Redding lube and lube pad. I'll wet tumble afterward if I'm not in a rush. If I want to finish prepping the brass to load right away, I'll just wipe them with a white, cotton T-shirt after resizing.

 

I will mention, it is wise to dry your wet tumbled brass in the oven or food dehydrator. The one time I let it air dry for 24 hours then resized, I realized that there was still water between the primer and primer pocket. When I uniform the primer pockets to clean them, the black carbon would stick to the primer pocket, if it's dried properly, then the primer pockets clean up nicely and leave a black mist on my paper towel, instead of a black booger stuck to the case.

 

Another thing I'd recommend, is to tumble after resizing to get the lube off if you are planning on sorting your cases by weight. 

 

For 9mm, regardless of whether or not it resizes easily, I use a little bit of Hornady Unique on my finger tips. I just put a very slight wipe on each case as I grab it and tap my finger tips into the lube every 10 rounds or so. Not only does it make resizing easier, but it also makes the act of resizing work your brass less, IMO. I use such little lube, I don't even bother trying to wipe it off. A completed round off my turret press goes straight into the ammo box I take to the range.

 

If you wet tumble pistol brass, I'd definitely recommend using a universal decapping die before tumbling. That way, as soon as they are dry they are ready to load.

Edited December 24, 2014 by Grunt81

[rjones33]

I tumble again briefly

[div]

Deprime using universal die
SS wet tumble
Trim, lube, then size
Tumble in lizard litter to remove lube
Load
Shoot
Repeat

Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk

[jeremy67A]

I use Thumblers Tumbler (worth every penny) with a tsp of Lemi-shine, a dash of Brasso and a few drops of dish soap. Toss in some stainless steel pins for medium and the brass come out shiny and new. Then rinse with distilled water.

 

I use Hornady wax when forming the brass case in the sizing die. It gets a little dirty so I just give it a wipe with a paper towel.

[wolverine]

I use Thumblers Tumbler (worth every penny) with a tsp of Lemi-shine, a dash of Brasso and a few drops of dish soap. Toss in some stainless steel pins for medium and the brass come out shiny and new. Then rinse with distilled water.

 

I use Hornady wax when forming the brass case in the sizing die. It gets a little dirty so I just give it a wipe with a paper towel.

^ +1 I have been waiting for mine cheap tumbler to burn up (maybe sabotage it LOL)  so i can replace it with uv 18.

I have seen reviews that  people have these 30 years and are still working 

Expensive tho $180 - $200 but buy once cry once

 

Here is a extensive review uv 18

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB7oY5Jktlc

 

Here is one for uv 10 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGGXz_s4Aww

Edited January 28, 2015 by wolverine

[maroonandwhite]

I have been using the Lee paste that I have but I will probably pick up some imperial once that runs out. I am at a stand still now as the new Hornady chamfer/deburring tool I just bought has broken. PSA is going to send me a new one once I mail them mine back (they emailed a prepaid label) so hopefully that doesn't take long. Luckily I prepped a good bit of brass before it broke so I can run a few batches and find a load I like.

 

I tumbled immediately after sizing on these. I may try just tumbling the completed round on the next batch. I honestly don't know how much blaster rifle ammo I will be loading though. I will keep components around for it but is sure is a pain compared to pistol. 

[stumpy]

After sizing the brass I wipe it down with a t-shirt to remove the bulk of the lube, also for a second opportunity to catch any irregularities with any of the cases.  I would be looking for split necks, irregular folds in the case, dents, or anything else that would convince me to discard the case.  The good cases go into the vibrator for a final polish.  This helps remove any residual lube (should be very little) and to provide a more smooth surface to promote function.  As for the final shine, that is cosmetics only but no complaints here.  I have found the RCBS lube goes on easy (and like Brylcreme, a little dab will do ya) and comes off easy, do recommend it highly since you are using a pad.

 

Stumpy

[Grunt67]

Deprime with universal de-cap die

Tumble with SS Thumlers Tumbler, clean inside & out ( 1/4 tsp Lemishine, 2 tbls Dawn )

Neck size using powdered lube, wipe off with a rag, does no harm to powder or primer

Little muss or fuss, about as easy as it gets.

FL is a different animal, haven't had the need so, don't.