Thread: Cleaning brass...

Looking at brass cleaning options, there are some more expensive than others...

Is there a recognized 'ghetto' method..?

Deprime and clean primer pockets
Wash in detergent water, rinse clean
Soak in 50/50 water vinegar 1/2 hour, stir a few times drain and rinse clean
quick wash and rinse with detergent to neutralize any remaining acid dry in sun on trampoline

Wipe it with a rag, run a case neck brush through it. Proceed to reloading.

I bought a very cheap sonic cleaner on aliexpress... I put tap hot water in it, a teaspoon of citric acid and a squirt of dishwash and they vibrate away for about 6 minutes.

Then a dip in hot water with baking soda, and they are clean and shiny.
I then put them on a oven tray with baking paper and dry them in the oven with the door open for about 10mins.

Whole thing is over and done in 20 mins or so.

I know someone else who uses the same recipe, and simmers the brass in a saucepan for 10 mins or so, and they come out just as clean and shiny.


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Originally Posted by Magnetite

Wipe it with a rag, run a case neck brush through it. Proceed to reloading.

Yep, that's virtually where I have now got to.
I wipe the necks with a product called Krazy Kloth, stiff brush inside neck, deprime, clean primer pocket, resize (FLS nowadays), reload, go shoot.

And yes, I can see any defects in my brass and no I rarely lose brass in the scrub because it is not shiny bright reflecting sunlight.

I still have my Dillon tumbler, my ultrasonic tank, and my SS wet tumbler. Rarely used nowadays.

I made a rotary wet tumbler as a prototype with random crap i had laying around, drawing up a proper frame now and going to make it out of aluminum at work. Stainless pins are the most expensive part

Greetings All,
Being a low tech handloader by inclination I follow the low tech route.
1. First don't let your brass get too dirty in the first place.
2. Next I deprime using a Lee punch and base set and clean the primer pockets with a small screw driver. This is done on a separate bench from my press to keep the gritty residue away from the press ram.
3. Next the outside of the case necks are given a spiff up with steel wool to remove burnt powder residue. If you have not mastered step 1. yet you may need to attend to the rest of the case with the steel wool. A quick polish with a Chux cloth finishes the job. This step is also done on the previously mentioned separate bench to keep the steel wool fibers away from the magnetic damper on my beam scales.
4. As part of case lubrication, wiped on with fingers, the inside of the case neck is given a quick clean with a strip of Chux wound around an old bore brush with a light touch of case lube from the fingers mentioned previously. This eases the passage of the expander button.
That is my method at the moment. Please note I said at the start it was low tech not low OCD.
Regards Grandpamac.

Originally Posted by Gerardo

I bought a very cheap sonic cleaner on aliexpress... I put tap hot water in it, a teaspoon of citric acid and a squirt of dishwash and they vibrate away for about 6 minutes.

Then a dip in hot water with baking soda, and they are clean and shiny.
I then put them on a oven tray with baking paper and dry them in the oven with the door open for about 10mins.

Whole thing is over and done in 20 mins or so.

I know someone else who uses the same recipe, and simmers the brass in a saucepan for 10 mins or so, and they come out just as clean and shiny.


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same as what i do, citric acid is so cheap and works so well. will never buy the $50+ bottle of sonic cleaner.

Originally Posted by Moa Hunter

Deprime and clean primer pockets
Wash in detergent water, rinse clean
Soak in 50/50 water vinegar 1/2 hour, stir a few times drain and rinse clean
quick wash and rinse with detergent to neutralize any remaining acid dry in sun on trampoline

Similiar to what I do but I use some backing soda as well, can't remember the exact recipe. Cleans them up really nice and 10 mins in the oven on low heat dries them well.

If you're really ghetto put in tumble drier with as media. Makes the Mrs hit the roof too

using overall length trimmer,the case is held by rim in attachment inserted in cordless drill...case gets trimmed for length,deburred inside n out if any removed by trimmer...then while still in drill hold choirboy pad (must try steel wool) and given a quick whirl...shines them up a little.

Old cloth nappy with some meths on it was my ghetto method. Brush inside the neck and green scrubber on anything stubborn on the outside of neck.

Same as Micky Duck except i use a green scotch brite to polish them ,they come up nice and shiny

Thanks guys, appreciate it.

I brought one of those little tumblers, it works quite well, just don’t overload it, I put 50, .223 cases in it with about 1/2 pound of SS media and it works quite well.