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How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2018 7:17 pm
by DavidABQ
I am slowly learning how to reload and this weekend I used my tumbler for the first time to clean 200 rounds of .308 brass.

How do most people dry off their stainless steel media? Put it in the oven and bake it? Boil of the water on a stove? Dry them with an hair dryer?

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 3:52 am
by Boyd L.
I strain the dirty water off through an old t-shirt, rinse/repeat until I’m satisfied the appropriate amount of debris is off the media. If the media must be dried I’ll pour the media on a dry shirt in a drying environment (my reloading area has a dehumidifier). But usually after cleaning I put it back into the cleaning containers and let the dehumidifier do the rest.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:12 am
by OldRanger
I don't dry it. After I use my magnet to pull it out of the dirty water I put it back in the tumbler and rinse it well. Then I just leave it there. Haven't had a problem yet.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:22 am
by DavidABQ
:-o
Just leave the wet media in the tumbler?

I guess I assumed everyone dried the steel media before putting it away.

Ok, thank you for the information.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:37 am
by topclass
I dry mine in the oven at the same time I dry my brass -- about 200 degrees evaporates liquid off both. I dry mine because I keep it in an airtight container and I don't want mold or other growth...

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 9:34 am
by ywltzucanrknrl
I'm also in the no dry camp. I put mine back in the tumbler container with about enough water for the next batch. But, mine rarely sits for more than a week and I'm using it again. The container (Thumblers) was made to handle water, so no issue there and I've ran my steel media for maybe seven years now and it shows no sign of corrosion.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 9:10 pm
by curmudgeon
I don't do anything to dry mine either. I rinse and drain using a wash basin, then leave the media in the bottom - the small amount of water remaining usually evaporates before I'm ready for the next batch. No issues so far.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2018 8:04 am
by ywltzucanrknrl
David, here are a couple of things I've found. If you shoot a 25 or 6.5 caliber, the steel pins may bridge in the neck----you can buy shorter pins and they will not bridge. Also, I use a RCBS media separator to remove the pins from the brass---works fine. Then I just rinse the brass and pins. I dry the brass in our sun room on towels and like I mentioned, just put the pins back in the tumbler with water. I've also found that the brass cleans well in the tumbler with just soap and water and no pins. This method does not get the primer pockets as clean as with pins, but cleans the grunge and carbon off the cases nicely.
Watch for pins in the flash holes, they occasionally stick.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2018 2:24 pm
by DavidABQ
Thank you everyone. I think I will purchase one of those sifter trays that sit over a 5 gallon bucket and get one of those Frankfort Arsenal magnets to retrieve my steel media. This seems the easiest for me. Whether I dry them in an oven or let them air dry is probably not a big deal since people air dry them not.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:33 am
by OldRanger
Dave, for the magnet I got one at harbor freight for 3 bucks that works great. It has a yellow shaft and a black plastic head with the handle to release the pins. Take the money you save and buy more powder!

Also I use the plastic tray that sits on a 5 gallon bucket too, it works like a charm. Good choice! :-bd

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 4:45 pm
by DavidABQ
OldRanger wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:33 am Take the money you save and buy more powder!

I will think about it. I have not decided if I like to do this reloading thing yet. So far it seems very time consuming.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Sun Oct 21, 2018 8:27 am
by Another Dang 9
But think of how much money you save...
If you don't include the equipment, time, ect.ect.ect.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Sun Oct 21, 2018 5:37 pm
by DavidABQ
Another Dang 9 wrote: Sun Oct 21, 2018 8:27 am But think of how much money you save...
If you don't include the equipment, time, ect.ect.ect.
No kidding! I loaded my first 50 .308 cartridges yesterday. I need more bullets.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2018 2:42 pm
by jbolt
The media gets rinsed when separated from the brass. I drain off most of the water from the media and then dump back in the tumbler. From there I just leave the cover setting loose on top of the studs until the next time.

Re: How do most people dry their SS tumbling media?

Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2018 4:06 am
by DavidABQ
I bought one of those strainer that sit in a 5 gallon bucket and it works extremely well! A great suggestion. I set the SS media out on a towel to dry. That seems to work fine.