zanemoseley
New member
Ok I've noticed sometimes I get batches of brass that come out of the SS tumbler very dark colored yet still very clean. Is this from too much Lemi Shine? I also put in Dawn soap in addition to the Lemi Shine.
Darkened brass after SS Tumbling.. To Much Lemi Shine?
- Thread starter zanemoseley
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brasscollector
New member
How big of a tumbler and much lemi-shine (citric acid) are you putting into it?
I am using a thumblers mod-B which is a 15lb tumbler. Each 2lb load of brass gets mixed with 1-gal of water (~8lbs) and 5lbs of SS pins. I use 10-11 drops/drips of dawn soap and a tiny little "dash" of powdered citric acid that might add up to a pencil eraser or less. Brass comes out like you see in the pics for the most part.
I did have a load of 45C cases which were Winchester CA loads (lead bullets and dirty powder, factory box stuff). Those came out as you described. I cleaned the pins by running them alone with dish soap. Since then I do this every 10-15 loads or so and have not had any more issues.
Those cases are still discolored btw
I am using a thumblers mod-B which is a 15lb tumbler. Each 2lb load of brass gets mixed with 1-gal of water (~8lbs) and 5lbs of SS pins. I use 10-11 drops/drips of dawn soap and a tiny little "dash" of powdered citric acid that might add up to a pencil eraser or less. Brass comes out like you see in the pics for the most part.
I did have a load of 45C cases which were Winchester CA loads (lead bullets and dirty powder, factory box stuff). Those came out as you described. I cleaned the pins by running them alone with dish soap. Since then I do this every 10-15 loads or so and have not had any more issues.
Those cases are still discolored btw
kilimanjaro
New member
Change out the water and tumble it again. Don't overdo it with the Lemishine.
Ain't no citric acid in dish soap.
http://www.chemistry-blog.com/2012/05/18/whats-in-lemi-shine/
I'd take a WHAG(isn't possible to be wilder or hairier either) and say it's the SS rubbing onto the brass. There's no need for dish soap or any other kind of polish.
http://www.chemistry-blog.com/2012/05/18/whats-in-lemi-shine/
I'd take a WHAG(isn't possible to be wilder or hairier either) and say it's the SS rubbing onto the brass. There's no need for dish soap or any other kind of polish.
zanemoseley
New member
I use the Frankford arsenal tumbler. I usually run the brass for 15 minutes then change water. I don't really measure the lemi shine I just sprinkle it in, perhaps I got a little sprinkle happy. I guess it could also be the water chemistry here.
I have a Frankford Arsenal tumbler. I use to use Dawn n Lemi-Shine but got tired of the inconsistent results. I'm a pretty conscientious guy and I thought I was pretty consistent with the ratios - but still, sometimes the brass would come out nice n bright-shiny; and other times, dull and tawny colored. Go figure.
So I got some RCBS ultrasonic cleaner and never looked back. I think I'm on my fourth bottle now. I use 70 graMs per full tumbler. The brass comes out bright white-ish shiny every single time. It's more costly than Dawn/Lemi-Shine; and worth every penny.
Nickel plated brass is another story. The ultrasonic cleaning solution dulls them. After a ton of trial n error; I have finally found the trick to fairly consistent results: Use just a four drops of Dawn, no Lemi-shine, cold water (I use hot water for brass brass); and only tumble for about an hour. When I do all those things together, nickel plated brass comes out shiny.
So I got some RCBS ultrasonic cleaner and never looked back. I think I'm on my fourth bottle now. I use 70 graMs per full tumbler. The brass comes out bright white-ish shiny every single time. It's more costly than Dawn/Lemi-Shine; and worth every penny.
Nickel plated brass is another story. The ultrasonic cleaning solution dulls them. After a ton of trial n error; I have finally found the trick to fairly consistent results: Use just a four drops of Dawn, no Lemi-shine, cold water (I use hot water for brass brass); and only tumble for about an hour. When I do all those things together, nickel plated brass comes out shiny.
zanemoseley
New member
Well maybe I'll pick up some of the rcbs cleaner on my next midway order. I'm looking for good results from the ss tumbling not a headache. I can always move the dawn and lemi shine back to the kitchen where they're designed to work lol.
Darkened brass after SS Tumbling.. To Much Lemi Shine?
I will make a wild guess, long before the Internet reloaders were cleaning cases. Back then there were limits placed on time. My opinion the chemical was some risky stuff. When cleaning the time factor was 2 ½ minutes. After cleaning it was necessary to clean the cases in boiling water twice.
Darkened? The cases turned black, the process was called pickling. The instructions suggested canning the cases if they cases were to be in long time storage.
It was after that I started using vinegar, no salt, no citric acid, just straight 5% white vinegar. I set the time factor to 15 minutes maximum for the life to the case. Some reloading books included the formula.
F. Guffey
I will make a wild guess, long before the Internet reloaders were cleaning cases. Back then there were limits placed on time. My opinion the chemical was some risky stuff. When cleaning the time factor was 2 ½ minutes. After cleaning it was necessary to clean the cases in boiling water twice.
Darkened? The cases turned black, the process was called pickling. The instructions suggested canning the cases if they cases were to be in long time storage.
It was after that I started using vinegar, no salt, no citric acid, just straight 5% white vinegar. I set the time factor to 15 minutes maximum for the life to the case. Some reloading books included the formula.
F. Guffey
Dawn has up to 5% Ethanol. [URL=http://s338.photobucket.com/user/joe1944usa/media/FirearmsReloading102/ethanolampcartridgebrass.jpg.html]
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