Wet Tumble With Pins - Decapped Brass ?

EddieZoom

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Been thinking about changing up my brass prep process.

Currently, wet tumble dirty brass (spent primers still in place) and then deprime/size in station 1 on Dillon 550. Recently had a 9MM reloading session started with a few hundred of my normally prepared clean brass and ended with clean/deprimed cases that I purchased. I really enjoyed not dealing with primer pocket smegma or spit primers mucking up the Dillon primer slide. The end result was extra smooth operation and faster throughput.

Anybody wet tumble (with pins) their deprimed brass ? Any issues with pins stuck in flash holes ?

Realize that I'm adding additional step by depriming before cleaning but feeling like the benefit will outweigh the cost (in time).

Thoughts ?
 
I wet tumble after depriming. The only issue is an occasional case with 2 pins stuck in the flash hole. I guess you could avoid this by using pins that are larger in diameter than the flash hole.
 
I wet tumble after depriming. As Gerry said, sometimes you get a couple pins stuck in the flash hole. I inspect everything after that tumbling to check for any issues.

I find this keeps my press a little cleaner and allows me to store “ready to load” brass that is 100% clean.
 
I wet tumble without pins mostly.
When using pins you want to get the right size so that only one pin fits in the flash hole.
I forget what size my pins are but I don't remember any ever getting stuck in a flash hole
 
I wet tumble without pins mostly.
When using pins you want to get the right size so that only one pin fits in the flash hole.
I forget what size my pins are but I don't remember any ever getting stuck in a flash hole
I've had single pins get stuck in the flash hole and have the broken decapping pins to prove it.

I only wet tumble 9x19 and I do it without pins in a Harbor Freight cement mixer.

It's too much work to decap before cleaning. It really doesn't matter how shiny they get. They'll get dull over time. Over cleaning is overrated.
 
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It's too much work to decap before cleaning. It really doesn't matter how shiny they get. They'll get dull over time. Over cleaning is overrated..

Reason I am considering this change in process is not super shiny brass but increasing level of "smoothness" on the 550. I tend to to have my issues at station one during resize/decap. The pre-processed brass I used for half of my reloading session resulted in zero issues....so overall smoother and faster. I would only consider it for 9MM, which is the only caliber I load in significant numbers.
 
For 9mm brass: decap with universal die, wet tumble with pins, air dry, dry tumble in walnut with nu finish, and (starting today) resize and gauge - throw away all rejects. Now that brass is ready for loading. Use a separate tool head for the brass prep on my xl650. Makes the process reasonably quick.
 
I decap everything and wet tumble in a Thumbler's. I go through each case to make sure no pins are in there. Only do 1k in four pin sessions. I have no need to do it but enjoy the process nonetheless.
 
The pins I use are way too long to get stuck in the primer pocket, and I don't remember ever seeing pins stuck in the flash hole. Maybe it happened once and I just don't remember. I've had some get wedged inside the case, but that's got nothing to do with whether the cases were decapped or not. I work on a single stage, anyway, so it's not an extra step for me to decap and resize before tumbling. Yes, I do have to clean the spent primer gunk off the press.
 
I don't decap before tumbling. Makes no sense, gets everything dirty.

Wet tumble, either throw in the oven to dry or leave them out on a piece of cardboard for a day, spray ONE SHOT and reload.

DONE.

Sometimes I even reload a couple of times before tumbling. My dies look fine, but if you are not lazy, I recommend tumbling.

I got my tumbling time down to 15 minutes. No need to go longer.
 
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I don't decap before tumbling. Makes no sense, gets everything dirty.

Wet tumble, either throw in the oven to dry or leave them out on a piece of cardboard for a day, spray ONE SHOT and reload.

DONE.

Sometimes I even reload a couple of times before tumbling. My dies look fine, but if you sre not lazy, I recommend tumbling.

I got my tumbling time down to 15 minutes. No need to go longer.
15 minutes with just soap, citric acid in a tumbler?
 
15 minutes with just soap, citric acid in a tumbler?
A few drops of DAWN.
Some lemi shine.

Done.

The brass will not look brand new. It will also not look like it was just fired.

It will be clean enough for reloading, which is what matters.

If you want the interior of the case very shiny, then it needs at least 35-40 minutes.

I could see someone needing the interior of the case to be shiny. When you are loading rounds that can easily be double charged, and your eyesight is not great, having a shiny interior helps reflect the light and see. I have a nice light on my press and I can see the interior just fine.
 
Sounds like someone needs a few more presses ;-)

Decap/Resize of dirty brass would happen in single stage press dedicated to the task.
Single stage?

Do you even shoot?

With the amount of ammo I go through, no way I will use a single stage to decap.
 
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