Well I overstayed my welcome at the other tumbler site and really wanted to delve into other aspects of this machine I am finding out. Beside the primer pockets being cleaned to excess I am finding the primer seating is much improved. I can feel the primer starting to seat then getting harder as I push in to the stopping point. This is the same on all rounds. Very uniform which I like. Not sure if it makes any difference but I like it. Will update this thread as I go along.   Craig

I just cleaned some 303 Enfield but they were not in bad shape but talk about brand new looking, they are in the oven drying now. Craig

Being a liquid media guy for decades I understand the clean like new stuff. The Sidewinder I have has always made black brass like new in as little as 20 minutes using the RCBS Liquid case cleaner and Iosso with 2 cups of 7% vinegar in a gallon of water. Now that I've changed over to the steel pins it's been a trial and error kinda thing. The first batch using the pins I used the GunTap cleaner that came with the pins. Brass came out like new in 30 minutes. I also bought one of their big containers of the cleaner and it doesn't seem to work as good as the sample pack. The next batch came out LOOKING like new but was greasy. Tumbled the stuff again in Dawn and it came out greasy. Put everything aside and finally found the right Lemonshine. Lemonshine makes a host of products.......kinda like saying Ford or Chevrolet- they make all kinds of things. If you're wondering, it's the Lemonshine DISH WASHING BOOSTER that you're looking for. The Lemonshine and Dawn got the brass squeaky clean. So I'm still looking for THE formula to making a mix that works for cleaning and shining. It gotta be something like  a couple of tablespoons of Dawn and a teaspoon of Lemonshine in 1 gallon of water. But I haven't tried that yet. Kinda funny, I ran out of brass to clean. So my experimenting is still on going. And hopefully, I have fixed the Sidewinder plastic trash so it doesn't leak. I made a stainless steel end plate for the drum and epoxied it together. Had a little trouble getting the drum to fit since it was 1/32" thicker but it works and that's all I care about. I find that the pins work pretty good but they need help with getting crud off of the cases. The original formula I was using is just too expensive. But maybe adding cheap vinegar to the Dawn and Lemonshine might do the trick. Now all I need is brass that isn't already clean.

I just got lucky I guess but I use Lemishine that comes in a disposable bag that I cut open and just sprinkle in as a little goes a long way. Too much and it overloads the bowl and I think the pressure leaks out of any loose type of closure if that makes sense. I don't use any detergent at all but I do use stainless steel chips that really gets into primer pockets etc. It's the best system for brass cleaning I have ever seen.  Craig

More observations!! You can't keep up with resizing/de-primering thinking you will out run the tumbler. You can't. The most you can hope for in like half the cleaning time is 100 9mm empties worked. I can't do like 500 resizing I will go crazy. It's just nice to know it's not slowing you down. Quite the opposite I am thinking. This is much faster than a vibrator machine. More to come.  Craig 

Fellas,
   I'm not a wet tumbler, yet. The Mrs. thinks I should be. I did buy some wet tumbled brass however, & I didn't find it as "slick" as my dry tumbled brass. It made my LnL just a little harder to operate. Have you noticed that? or do you do something to overcome the friction?

I haven't noticed any friction in my 9mm reloadings or my 303 British Enfield but haven't done a ton of either to notice I guess. I like dry brass not "wet"or slippery stuff.

Slayer, I use SS pins, Dawn and Lemishine to clean my brass. I also put the empties, standing up, on an old plastic tray and give them a very short spray of Hornady One Shot case lube. It makes a noticeable difference, especially on thicker walled cases like 10mm and .44mag. It's dry to the touch about 2-3 minutes after you spray it on.

I have heard of people having issues with bottleneck cases using One Shot, basically a hydrostatic type lockup in the sizing die. But for straight walled cases it's always worked perfectly for me.

 BTW I just thought that I deprimer and resize before going to the tumbler. It's the only way I can do the primer pockets the way I like. Craig

OK time for a little update!! I have developed a small problem that I solved in short order. I was resizing and depriming in one step then doing the tumbler then primering and then on to the tray for powder. I missed the flaring and had to do it with the powder in the cases. No big problem as I have done it before. I am now doing the flare after the resizer and then on to the tumbler. This really makes more sense to me then anything else.  After drying the brass I then do the primer then powder and finish with bullet. We are having fun now!!! Best way to think of this is to do the flare last before the tumbler and you will find this easier. At leased I do anyway.  The confusion for me came about as I do want the case primer pocket empty going into the tumbler as the system cleans the pockets like new!! I never did anything with primer pockets before getting this tumbler.  I am shocked every time the brass comes out of the tumbler as it is just so clean!!!  Craig

Something you might consider. I load for the family and that seems to be an endless amount of guns. Not complaining but sometimes it gets a little much. Lee makes a universal decapping die. It works on any round, pistol or rifle, and all it does is push the primer out- no sizing involved. Sometimes my nephew who is an attorney, brings crap he's picked up at the range that is black and has dirt in the case. The decapping pin isn't effected by the junk and just does it's work. Then I clean the brass. Solves the headache of running nasty brass thru the dies and makes it like you were loading brand new brass.

On another side of the coin. I've been using the GunTap detergent and Lemonshine but I've had issues. Lemonshine is nothing but citrus acid and that's what makes it work. But I've had problems with the cases coming out with something on them that is black on the fingers and feels greasy. The cases shine like new but in fact have this yuck on them. I've gone back to using the cheap vinegar and I'm back to squeaky clean again. If your hands/fingers are getting black from handling the "cleaned" brass, might try adding a cup to a gallon of 5 or 7% vinegar to the mix. Look at it like magnum Lemonshine.

Trapper, are you using this LemiShine product? https://www.lemishine.com/products/lemi-shine-rinse/ That's what I use with Dawn dish soap. It's the anti spotting agent, not a detergent booster. I'm glad the universal decapping die is working out. I use the heck out of mine.

Gadabout, I'm a little surprised that you choose to do things in this order. One of the great benefits of SS media cleaning in not introducing any dirt and gunk into your dies/press. Like Trapper, I knock the primers out and off to the tumbler. It's like starting out with new shiny brass every time. A little One Shot Case Lube makes sizing a little easier, too. I have no doubt your process works, but it seems like you're working a little harder at it and not getting all of the benefits.

Graybeard, I am using the Booster which was the product shown to me at a different website. It is a crystal rather than a liquid like the one you are using. BOTH are citrus acid based but yours uses an alcohol in the formulation. They both use the citrus acid CAS 77-92-9. The Booster is a lot stronger by formulation. Obviously the vinegar I'm using now is even far stronger than either of these products. Citrus acid cleaners have been around since the caveman, I think. It's very good at what it does and is not harmful to the brass or you.

FWIW, Nu-Finish car polish. At one time this car polish was next to dangerous to use in a tumbler for cleaning brass. The item in the formulation that actually cleans the brass is Stoddard Solvent, CAS 8052-41-3 which you probably know as dry cleaning fluid. At one time, the polish contained a ceramic microcrystal that would embed itself into the brass. The problem was that it acted just like a lubricant. Bolt thrust was increased dramatically. Those who were loading max loads were at risk of wearing the bolt on their face. In a semi-auto, slide speed was increased beating good firearms into crap. Thankfully, it no longer contains the microcystal. What is cleaning the brass is Stoddard Solvent. Stoddard Solvent is also one of the best fuel injector cleaners out there. But Nu-Finish should NOT be used in the gasoline, LOL.

Gotcha Trapper, thanks for the reply.

Yeah I thought about the universal decapper but never pulled the trigger on one. I just think it's another step when you have to resize anyway. It's really breaking old habits I have had for 40+ years but I will get it done one way or the other,  Craig