Obvious Advice

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Stats Shooter

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Today I tumbled some 10mm brass with 45-70 government in my wet tumbler. Big mistake and stupid. Fortunately there were only 50 pieces of 45-70 brass and each one had 2 pieces of 10mm brass jammed up in it. Took me an hour with some dental tools and needle nose pliers to get them all out. Especially since some of the pins saw fit to wedge themselves between the side wall of the pistol case and 45-70 cases.

Moral of this story is if you are tumbling different cartridges, make sure one wont snugly fit inside the other.
 
If we could like posts, I would like yours. Why? I understand your plight. I've done similar, and it's a pain!
 
I learned my lesson early on with a dry media vbratory tumbler. .32 stuck in a 9mm that stuck in a .40 that stuck in a .45. Not easy to get apart at all.
 
If we could like posts, I would like yours. Why? I understand your plight. I've done similar, and it's a pain!
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thanks, I felt stupid for not realizing it before I did it. But as i painstakingly separated the brass, I knew it's a mistake I would not soon repeat.
 
When I use my vibratory tumbler, it is either one cartridge or two distinct but similar; so either it is all 38 or 9mm, or a mix of both; or it is only 45 acp, or a mix of 38 and 380

makes afterwards a lot nicer
 
I think a lot more people have dealt with that dilemma than what you would realize. Myself included.
 
For some reason decapping pins don't take kindly to having other random cases wedged inside the case you're knocking the primer out of.:mad: I learned that one the hard way.
 
Yup, you’re the only one thats done that!:D Well, certainly a possibility that you’re the only one to do that with those two calibers!

I hate 40 because its the case that bridges the other cases, namely it like to swallow 9mm cases. Im full up enough now I just toss em in the recycle bucket if they done easily pop apart.

A set of the case separating trys has helped ALOT.
 
thanks, I felt stupid for not realizing it before I did it.
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I will bet that 99% of reloaders to it at least once so no need to feel stupid at all. Now if you find yourself doing it repeatedly ....... Even after knowing better every now and then a nine may slip into a batch of 40's or a .40 into a .45 accidents do happen
 
Welcome to the crowd.

You are (we are) in good company. Been there. Done that. A couple times, actually - sigh.

It's amazing how everything will wedge up into everything else. But that same phenomenon is the reason why ss pin tumbling is so effective.
 
I'll tumble 9mm and 38 Special and 357 Mag together. 10mm & 40S&W can be tumbled together. And of course, so can 44 Mag and Special.

I've thought about 45 ACP and 44 Mag. But never actually did it.

.223 Rem is the only rifle caliber I load. I decided to only tumble them by themselves.
 
this situation is one reason to go ahead and de-prime the shells before tumbling on the off chance you mix in a different one, you can push them apart using a finishing nail as needed without too much grief. I do a lot of 9mm and .40 and every so often a 9'll show up in a .40 case having gotten stuck in the bottom rim of the tumbler canister........
 
Yea I always decap first. But despite that, they wedged pretty tight. If I had not deprimed, I likely would have had far more problems .

Normally I batch process but I had some 45-70 I needed to clean real quick and didn't want to have to do two batches so I just threw them in there ....and paid for it.
 
we used to have a reloading bench at the makerspace I'm a member of and someone decided to go fast and vibrated half a bucket of mixed donated brass and we were picking that stuff apart for quite some time..... there is so much wisdom in sorting your calibers first if for no reason than it being your first inspection of several in a good process......
 
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