HELP! FA Rotary Tumbler problem

[tx_glock]

Hi everyone. I'm a newbie here, but I'm looking for help.

Just bought a brand new Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler. I loaded it with 5 pounds of stainless steel pins (the ones included in the package), 230 cases of decapped 223 brass, water, and a pinch of soap/lemishine. I set it to run for an hour, and it started like a charm.

I was working on other stuff in the shop. After about 10 minutes, the gears started slowing down, then stopped. Puzzled, I redistributed the weight in the tumbler. Put it back on the wheels, and it ran for another 10 minutes. Then stopped again.

I figured maybe I'd overloaded it (though 230 rounds seemed pretty modest). So I took out roughly half of the brass. Restarted the tumbler. It ran for 10 minutes, then -- you guessed it -- grinded to a halt.

Any tips or insights? Did I just get a bum unit?

Thank you so much in advance for any help!

 

[alb]

Guessing it's a bum unit. I typically load the 5 lb. of pins and 350 .308, which is pretty close to full, then water to fill. Runs for 1.5 hours like that. Given the run time you're seeing, I'd wonder if there's a thermal cutout that's tripping.

 

[Nick_C_S]

Bum unit.

I've worked mine far harder than that.

 

[tx_glock]

Thanks very much, guys. I called FA, and they shipped out a replacement unit right away. Appreciate your guidance!

Also, I am amazed at their great customer service. The rep asked a couple of questions, and the new unit was in the mail 5 minutes later. Very impressive!