Case Tumbler Frankford Arsenal vs Cabela's/Berrys

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WVsig

New member
Looking at getting a case tumbler. I am looking at the Frankford Arsenal vs the Cabela's 400 which is made by Berrys.

The Frankford is cheaper $35 at Midway vs the Cabela's which is $54.

From everything I have read the Frankford seems to be hit or miss in terms of QC. Some report them dying within a year others reports years and years of reliable operation. It only has a 1 year warranty.

Berrys has a 3 year warranty on the motor which honestly is the part which is going to break and then a lifetime on the plastic. They seem to have a better rep but is it worth 55% more? You can almost buy 2 of the Frankfords for the price of the Cabela/Berrys.

Looking for user feedback on these two units. I am not going to be a high volume reloader. I cannot imagine using this tumbler more than 2 times a month.
 
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Don P

New member
Started off with a Frankford and it died some 30,000 cases later. Purchased a Lymann 2500 Pro Magnum from Brownells, yes more money than the 2 you mentioned BUT with Brownells 100% satisfaction forever guarantee if it quits call them ship it back and get a new one in its place for free
 
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Jim243

New member
I have had (and heavy used) my Lyman tumbler for 5 years now and it still works. All I can say.


Jim
 
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Metal god

New member
I've had the Frankford for 1.5 years and have tumbled thousands or rounds . It works fine but It seems to vibrate less then when new . Like I said it is working fine now and does the job but my guess is it will die sooner then I'd like . I paid $70 for the whole package deal . Tumbler , media separater and a few pounds of corn cob media . It was a good deal to start out with . I kinda knew I would need something better at some point . If I can tumble the same amount I already have before it dies . I would not be unhappy . I will still have the separater and half the media still . If you have the cash I'd step up in quality .
 
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Sevens

New member
I ran the guts out of a Frankford and replaced it with a Berry's so I have seen it from both angles. The Frankford's motor was solid -- it was the wiring and connectors that went in to the toilet. I honestly band-aided that thing five times and when I finally gave up on it, the motor would still spin but I was sick of trying to keep it from vibrating itself apart. So if it's simply about the motor, mine gave a long service life... years.

I replaced it with a Berry's and have been extremely happy and I would never go back. It's simply much more quiet and does the same job and I've never opened it or had to futz with the cheap wiring.

The other thing I would mention about the Frankford is that you simply have no idea what you're getting depending on when you buy it. Not that the Berry's may not be in a similar situation, but Frankford is a cheap, cheap outfit that sources the cheapest stuff to under cut every price on the market, seemingly, and these kinds of products tend to use whatever they can get cheaply at that time. It would be a crapshoot that a Frankford now would have the same guts as the Frankford I bought 10 years ago.

Berry's is an American company that strives to produce quality products. I trust the folks that make up this small company. Admittedly, they also are forced to use a Chinese sourced motor, but that was not a decision they took lightly at all and they admitted they tried and could not bring a tumbler to market with a U.S. sourced motor and be able to sell it. Berry's has watched first-hand as dirty Chinese outfits have STOLEN designs outright from other companies (including their awesome brass separator) and a Berry's rep has posted about it here in these forums.

I would choose a Berry's over all the other tumblers on the market and I would choose almost all other tumblers over the Frankfort -- with the exception of anything, and I mean anything from the SmartReloader brand. Direct, yellow covered rip-offs of any and every other company that has introduced designs in our industry. Cheap, Chinese rip-offs.
 
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PoiDog

New member
I have one Berry's, and one Midway, the old 1292. They both work great, and the Midway is probably 15 years old.

My shooting buddy has 2 of the Berry's, and they also run great. No issues with either of them.

Our Berry's are around 10 year old. We bought them at the same time from the same dealer.
 
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