Cleaning BPCR brass inside?

A

Alamosa Bill

New member
I soake in hot water and dish soap, then tumble but it doesn’t seem to touch much inside the case so I use a wire brush in my drill which does the trick. Are there better methods that don’t need the wire brushing and how clean does it need to be really? I’m not bothered about the tarnishing on the outer case.
 
H

HiBC

New member
Regardless exactly how you do it,yes,it must be cleaned. BP fouling eats your brass.
A buddy of mine takes a widemouth plastic jug to the range loaded with a Simple Green/water solution.
He pitches his brass in the jug at the range.
If you are so inlined,decap them first. You want the brass submerged. No air exposure.

The agitation from the ride home helps some.

I won't argue with using pins. I'm not set up for it. Test tube brushes,etc can work.

A boiling rinse,roll them on a towel,and stand them up hot to dry sounds about right.
 
B

Bowdog

New member
I have 45 Colt brass for 12 years of shooting CAS matches. I only use Trail Boss powder. never cleaned primer pockets or inside of cases. Brass was a mess but still works. I just switched from walnut tumbling to wet with stainless pins. Brass came out like new did remove primers first. From now on wet tumbling for me.
 
O

ocharry

New member
I always used the ceramic pins..in water with a cap full of simple green...it has always done a great job..even cleans the primer pocket too

I always decap before I tumble

The tip about having a jug with water and soap is a good one..decap and drop them in when done shooting....works great

Ocharry
 
J

Jim Watson

New member
I cleaned BP cases with a test tube brush until I could get a disused Thumler from a friend who had quit polishing rocks. First with ceramic, then with steel.
But the brush works.
As said, take a jug of soapy water to the range and take cases home while soaking. A decapping tool at the range is helpful.
 
M

mehavey

New member
410 shotgun swab.
Run it in & out while underwater to pump soap solution
in & out of the case and through the flashhole.

Clean as clean can be when dried
 
4

44caliberkid

New member
I use those bore brushes with the twisted wire handle, or a 45 bore brush on my pistol rod, and just pump it in and out a few times, underwater with some Dawn dish soap. Works great. I also put my fired cases in a fruit jar with water and Simple Green at the range till I get home.
 
A

Alamosa Bill

New member
44caliberkid said:
I use those bore brushes with the twisted wire handle, or a 45 bore brush on my pistol rod, and just pump it in and out a few times, underwater with some Dawn dish soap. Works great. I also put my fired cases in a fruit jar with water and Simple Green at the range till I get home.
Click to expand...
Good methods and I will try these and the 410 brushes. Cheers
 
S

Shadow9mm

New member
dry tumbling in my experience, does very little for the insides of the cases. Wet tumbling with steel pins on the other hand, leaves them looking like new.
 
D

Driftwood Johnson

New member
Howdy

I have been loading and shooting cartridges with Black Powder for over 20 years. 45 Colt, 45 Schofield, 44-40, 44 Russian, 38-40, and 45-70.

You do not need to get the inside of the cases super clean.

My method is to dump the spent brass into a jug of water with a little bit of dish soap dissolved in it. No vinegar, nothing fancy. If not dumped in water within 24 hours, the brass will turn green with brass oxide. Dump them in right away and no problem.

Rinse the brass over and over again with clean water until the rinse water runs clear. That's all there is to it.

After rinsing I let my brass air dry, then I dump it into my tumbler with Lizzard Litter (crushed walnut shells) and tumble it for a couple of hours.

Yes, my BP brass does remain slightly stained. I have always said that stained brass shoots just as good as shiny brass, it is just more difficult to find in the grass.

After tumbling there is always a light powdery residue inside the brass. Always. It does not matter. I go ahead and reload my brass, the powdery residue inside the brass does not make any difference at all.

Here is a jug full of 45 Colt and 44-40 brass at the end of a Cowboy match. Notice the water is dirty with suspended BP fouling.

pnkFbIIDj





A bag of Lizzard Litter from a big box pet store. The same stuff as crushed walnut you can buy on line, but much cheaper.

pnF90RJcj





A bazillion clean cases. Notice I said clean. Just because the brass is stained, does not mean it is dirty. The BP fouling has been rinsed away. Not shiny, stained, but clean.

pnh2Bor7j





A batch of 44-40 loaded into brand spanky-new cases. They will never be this shiny again.

po68FSXnj





A batch of 44-40 loaded into stained cases. I don't know how many times this batch has been loaded, I stopped keeping track long ago. When they start to split I throw them away, other wise they get loaded again. Yes, there is a little bit of powdery residue inside every case. It does not matter at all. I prime the cases, dump in the powder, seat and crimp a bullet.

pleSbMYyj





If you want shiny brass, you might try the pins. I have been doing it this way for over 20 years and don't care about shiny brass or brushed out insides. Waste of effort in this cowboy's humble opinion.
 
A

Alamosa Bill

New member
Driftwood Johnson said:
Howdy

I have been loading and shooting cartridges with Black Powder for over 20 years. 45 Colt, 45 Schofield, 44-40, 44 Russian, 38-40, and 45-70.

You do not need to get the inside of the cases super clean.

My method is to dump the spent brass into a jug of water with a little bit of dish soap dissolved in it. No vinegar, nothing fancy. If not dumped in water within 24 hours, the brass will turn green with brass oxide. Dump them in right away and no problem.

Rinse the brass over and over again with clean water until the rinse water runs clear. That's all there is to it.

After rinsing I let my brass air dry, then I dump it into my tumbler with Lizzard Litter (crushed walnut shells) and tumble it for a couple of hours.

Yes, my BP brass does remain slightly stained. I have always said that stained brass shoots just as good as shiny brass, it is just more difficult to find in the grass.

After tumbling there is always a light powdery residue inside the brass. Always. It does not matter. I go ahead and reload my brass, the powdery residue inside the brass does not make any difference at all.

Here is a jug full of 45 Colt and 44-40 brass at the end of a Cowboy match. Notice the water is dirty with suspended BP fouling.

pnkFbIIDj





A bag of Lizzard Litter from a big box pet store. The same stuff as crushed walnut you can buy on line, but much cheaper.

pnF90RJcj





A bazillion clean cases. Notice I said clean. Just because the brass is stained, does not mean it is dirty. The BP fouling has been rinsed away. Not shiny, stained, but clean.

pnh2Bor7j





A batch of 44-40 loaded into brand spanky-new cases. They will never be this shiny again.

po68FSXnj





A batch of 44-40 loaded into stained cases. I don't know how many times this batch has been loaded, I stopped keeping track long ago. When they start to split I throw them away, other wise they get loaded again. Yes, there is a little bit of powdery residue inside every case. It does not matter at all. I prime the cases, dump in the powder, seat and crimp a bullet.

pleSbMYyj





If you want shiny brass, you might try the pins. I have been doing it this way for over 20 years and don't care about shiny brass or brushed out insides. Waste of effort in this cowboy's humble opinion.
Click to expand...
Excellent, thats what i like to hear, i’m also not bothered about shiny brass. Cheers
 
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