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Cleaning Brass.

BlueBBlueB Member Posts: 34 ✭✭
edited May 2013 in Perry Shooter Competition Shooting and Reloading Forum
I need help. I have some brass that needs to be cleaned of dirt and etc. Can someone tell me what I need to wash it with? Have about 40 lbs.
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    JustCJustC Member Posts: 16,056 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    boiling water and agressive agitation every few minutes.

    THEN, if needs to be put in a vibratory cleaner with crushed corn cob or walnut hulls, and vibrated/tumbled for several hours.
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    wanted manwanted man Member Posts: 3,276
    edited November -1
    I've never cleaned 40 lbs of brass at one time, so I'm anxious to see if someone chimes in with a suggestion as to how they would attempt this........washing machine?? 55 gal drum??
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    Sky SoldierSky Soldier Member Posts: 460 ✭
    edited November -1
    When I have a large batch of brass to reload and it's really cruddy I just put it in 5 gal. buckets and add boiling water and dish soap, let it soak for a day or two, stirring it occasionally and then take out a tumblers worth, rinse it, dry it and put it in the tumbler with some corn cob for a while.
    Then I deprime, resize and sort it. When I get finished with the stuff that's soaking I put a batch of the sorted stuff at a time back in the tumbler with walnut shell to polish it and it's ready to reload.
    Winters are long where I am so I'm not usually in a hurry and sometimes my vibratory tumbler runs continuously for a week or two but when I get around to loading the brass is a pleasure to work with.
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    gunnut505gunnut505 Member Posts: 10,290 ✭
    edited November -1
    Do it in batches.
    I use my dryer, some pillowcases and plain white rice.
    Toss in a sneaker or a few balled-up socks to keep from beating up the brass.
    Rice leaves a slick residue, and cleans very well.
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    iceracerxiceracerx Member Posts: 8,860 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by wanted man
    I've never cleaned 40 lbs of brass at one time, so I'm anxious to see if someone chimes in with a suggestion as to how they would attempt this........washing machine?? 55 gal drum??


    Cement mixer. (no joke. A local commercial reloader does just that)
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    distinguisheddistinguished Member Posts: 62 ✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by iceracerx
    quote:Originally posted by wanted man
    I've never cleaned 40 lbs of brass at one time, so I'm anxious to see if someone chimes in with a suggestion as to how they would attempt this........washing machine?? 55 gal drum??


    Cement mixer. (no joke. A local commercial reloader does just that)


    Big +1 on that.
    I do not load comercially but I do load in large batches and do use a concrete mixer.
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    wanted manwanted man Member Posts: 3,276
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by iceracerx
    quote:Originally posted by wanted man
    I've never cleaned 40 lbs of brass at one time, so I'm anxious to see if someone chimes in with a suggestion as to how they would attempt this........washing machine?? 55 gal drum??


    Cement mixer. (no joke. A local commercial reloader does just that)


    Outstanding! Not sure I would have t hought of that...
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    62fuelie62fuelie Member Posts: 1,069 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Soak in a mix of 3 parts hot water and one part white vinegar, agitate every few minutes and pour off and rinse with clean cold water after 30 minutes. Then into the cleaner you usually use - the cement mixer is a great idea, we used one back when the department used to reload its own.
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    BlueBBlueB Member Posts: 34 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Thanks for the advice. I have been washing the brass in boiling water and soap cleaner. (about 5 lbs at a time.) Cleaning up real nice.
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