I"ve always tumbled my brass but I've been reading that using phosphoric acid to do a better job. Has anyone tried it????

I've tried the laundry soap and hot water and it didn't clean all that well. Still had to tumble.
Tried Isso and it worked good but cost to much.
Tried viniger and water but didn't like the smell it left.
Any other suggestions????

Depends on how clean you want your brass to look. No reasonable amount of tumbling will thoroughly clean out the interior of the cases or the primer pockets. Case interiors will blacken and stay that way. Primer pockets will retain some primer residue unless manually removed with a tool. That leaves the exterior of the case. I have used both Flitz, Midway's and Dillon's media additive with excellent results. For a factory-like polish, use corncob media. I have also used both Lyman's and RCBS' treated cleaning media which works equally well. The liquid polishing additives have the added advantage of rejuevenating your media when the polishing action diminishes. I haven't found a homemade cleaner yet that will equal the commercial products. Does a factory-like polished case shoot any better than a clean one? NO. People who polish cases just tend to be fussy about details so they take the extra step. :p

I tumble my brass after depriming. Use a Midway tumbler, Midway polish, corn cob.
I was just wondering if a liquid cleaner would be better for cleaning the inside of the case. I don't know if it would even make any difference if the inside is clean or not.
When I used the Isso liquid it kind of got the inside clean. Didn't notice any difference.
Reason for asking is I'm going to try loading Pyrodex in a 45-70. I plan to put the cases in water soap right after firing. Thought maybe I could skip the tumble since I'm cleaning in liquid at the range.
Any black powder cartridge shooters out there???

Both Isso and Lyman market liquid concentrates that mix with water for immersion type cleaning of brass.

Tried the Lyman product years ago. Unless you completely dry the brass by hand and then place on a tray in the oven, there will be water marks on the brass after oven drying. Seemed to do a fair job on removing the carbon from the inside of the case and the primer pockets. Still left a bit of residue, though.

I'm not a black powder shooter but I understand ammonia-free Windex cut with water is popular with black powder shooters. They dump their cases into this immediately after firing.

Perhaps 12 or 15 years ago, I gave up tumbling. Clean counts, polished is just for looks...and I don't mind the "desert tan" of clean used brass.

The old NRA formula of white vinegar, a table spoon of salt per 1/2 gallon, and a dash of soap does the trick...come out looking like military brass. Usually cut the vinegar with water 50:50

Two 1 gallon plastic conatianers, an old coffee pot, and a spaggatti strainer. Put cases in the container...heat the vinegar solution in teh old coffee pot to just short of a boil...pour solution into coantianer full of cases...let sit for 15-30 min. (longer for filthy cases).

Pour the solution into the other container for re-use. Rince the case with HOT water (hot makes them dry faster)...set cases in sun to dry (or next to the heater on cold, dark, winter days).

Some other post made me go to the shed and check on teh stored MidWay case cleaner....sometime in the last 10 years or so it died a rusty death and I pitched it in the trash.

That's it. Cases come out clean and bright, but not polished gold...less wear on the sizing dies with clean cases, cases seem to last for ever, solution is dirt cheap and last through many cycles...enviromentally friendly for the tree huggers.

I have used mild solutions of Birchwood-Casey phosphoric acid with success for many years, but mainly use this technique for tarnished cases or those with lots of carbon on the mouths of the case. By mild, I mean my solution is a little stronger than the manufacturer suggests.

Small quantities of fairly clean cases, not badly "smoked," I will tumble in whatever media I have.

I never go for the "sparkling nail new" look; I am only concerned with functionality.

For large batches of dirty cases, I separate by caliber and put in cloth bags, tied shut. Cloth coin bags from the bank I prefer. Then I put them in the Maytag and give them a wash. The hot water, soap suds and lots of friction gets them quite clean. When done, I take them out and dry in one of my spare rooms on the floor on a towel. I the summer, I let them dry outdoors.

I rarely hurry the drying process. Hurrying in handloading detracts from quality. On occasion in the winter time, I will oven dry at lowest setting with the door propped open for about 10 to 15 min. With really small batches, like 20, just use a heat gun or hair dryer. It's really fast and doesn't use much electricity.

Perhaps 12 or 15 years ago, I gave up tumbling. Clean counts, polished is just for looks...and I don't mind the "desert tan" of clean used brass.

The old NRA formula of white vinegar, a table spoon of salt per 1/2 gallon, and a dash of soap does the trick...come out looking like military brass. Usually cut the vinegar with water 50:50



ok, i have tried to follow that procedure, but am a bit concerned on the internals of the cases...

http://gallery.lakey.net/albums/Reloading/IMG_1593.sized.jpg

the insides are taking a bit to dry, that does not concern me as much as the crud left on the insides after the soak.. i wiped that out a day after the soak, was still damp and dirty inside, does this look acceptable? am i good to deprime, clean the priming pocket, and reload?

That's too wet. Dry them out completely. An afternoon in the sun should do it. If the weather isn't good, I'd put them in the oven. Turn the heat down to 200°F first.

Bye
Jack

ok, so let them dry, and the residue is inconsequential?

You'll never get all the carbon out of the inside of a case unless you scrub it out as you did with the paper towel. Keep in mind the boiler room actions going on inside the case when being fired. That stuff gets driven into the case walls with heat and pressure. It will not affect future loading and performance unless it becomes thick and flakey. Normal tumbling in a case tumbler will remove any loose residue satisfactorily.

Here's a tip for all of you who wash cases: The plastic trays that hold factory loaded cartridges make great shell racks for drying wet cases. Trays can often be found in range trash barrels along with empty cartridge boxes etc. I put my wet cases in these trays and place them in the sun. Water runs right through the trays' open bottoms and the sun gets the cases plenty hot. Since the trays are made of plastic, they don't leave marks on the cases nor do they rust. Just don't pop them in the oven. I keep a small box full of them in my garage.

Wipe them with Hoppes #9 it does a good job.

Wipe them with Hoppes #9 it does a good job.

I'll find a link...what you want is a test tube brush. Pretty cheap, is a simple nylon brush with bristles all the way around the end, made for getting to the bottom of test tubes...works like a champ on cases and last nearly forever.

As you noticed, it doesn't polish teh case, but the outside is clean...kind of military looking, as they don;t bother to clean the oxides off and make it a bright polish.
--------
Are toher suppliers...but here is a selection of bushes, measurements are metric.

http://sargentwelch.com/category.asp?start=0&c=26437&Brushes=

Here what I do.
I toss all fired cases in a container,( plastic bag, box what ever). Fire up the tumbler/vibrator with corn cob/walnut mix pour in the polish and let it work for 1+ hours. I clean the primer pockets watching CSI. When I run out of the polish liquid I will use liquid car wax, providing it has no ammonia. You feel better working with clean case's.
Jim