Pros and cons on tumbler models?

[Headgear]

My next purchase is going to be a tumbler. I shoot a lot of pistol (maybe 500/week) and some 223 for my AR ,which I will be shooting more often now that I am reloading. Any preferences out there on tumblers?

[Don P]

I have a Frankford Arsenal tumbler and so far have tumbled roughly 10,000 cases and all is still working. Midway runs some real good deals on tumbler kits. Here's the link
http://www.midwayusa.com/
Here is a set up they have now and is complete and a good deal in my opinion.
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpag...369&t=11082005

[Sam06]

I like the Dillon vibratory case cleaner. It holds a lot of cases and has been 100% for me. Be advised they all get warm and are loud so its best to do it in the garage or outside. Here it below. they are not cheap but they work great and Dillon backs there product 100%.

http://www.dillonprecision.com/#/con...y_Case_Cleaner

[LAH]

Here's some info: http://www.handloads.com/articles/default.asp?id=17

[benzuncle]

When I bought my Lee Classic Turret Press, I bought a Thumler Tumbler UV 10. It's pretty quiet and has a fan on the motor; I was impressed as I had read about some brands without a fan and subsequent overheating problems. Thumler has several sizes to choose from. One word of advice: purchase a cheap-ass timer so your tumbler won't run for 3 or 4 days! www.thumlerstumbler.com

[GoldenRoyBoy]

Hello,
The choice in tumblers is an important decision.

My experience has been, you sometimes get more than what you pay for. I've owned a Frankford for years; and surprisingly, it was a good choice. I also own several Lymans. The Frankford, with its inline switch is actually easier to use. All these models work on the same principle; so once up and running, each does an adequate job, as long as I don't over-load them. I also use a surge protector, with it's built in switch making things a little more convenient.

I also add Frankford's polishing liquid to my walnut media. In my opinion, it's just as good as the more expensive Dillon Rapid Polish. Just be sure to shake the bottle really good before adding.

Recently, I acquired Dillon's biggest and badest blue DV-1000 tumbler. It's awesome; and, I don't have to worry about over-loading it.

One secret I've learned is, these tumblers work best in the sun; or exposed to a little heat. The tumbling process naturally generates heat, especially if you leave your top on, which is a good thing to do. Just be careful and not over-heat your tumbler.

The cheap timer is a good idea.

Good popping!
GRB

[AF_Reloader]

I've had my Cabela's Case Tumbler for nearly 8 years, and it still does a good job.

Cabela's Case Tumbler

[Ranger325]

+1 with my AF Brother!! I've had my Cabela's model for years with nary a problem..........................

Regards,

[BigJimP]

I have the Dillon version - and it does a good job.

[Smokey Joe]

Headgear--I think the consensus you're seeing in the above replies is that there is no consensus. There are a number of tumblers out there. A few have a bell & whistle or 2 extra, but aside from that, it's pretty much a bowl mounted over a motor with a fan, and that's about it.

I have a Berry's--it has worked for me for years. The other brands all work too, and all of 'em do exactly the same thing. AFAIK, they're all built just about exactly the same, too.

Bottom line: Buy what is a good deal @ the time, get bells & whistles only if you think they apply to your specific situation, keep your receipt and paperwork just in case you get a lemon (unlikely) and get ye tumbling yr cases. Whatever you get will probably work just fine. The timer sounds like a good idea, although I've never used one myself.

[fourrobert13]

I have had a Lyman 1200 for 10 years now and it has been great. My only complaint is that it doesn't hold enough cases. I am currently working on building one of my own with a 5 gallon bucket.

[Smokey Joe]

Four Robert 13--The big, I mean BIG, home reloaders use a small concrete mixer. They can be had at, I believe, Home Depot, Menard's, or the like. Come with electric or gas power.

Not being that big, nor ever expecting to be so, I've not investigated "production tumbling" any further.

Yr tumbler using a 5-gal. pail sounds interesting. Pls. give us a report, with pix, as you progress.

Gotta go with Golden Roy Boy's comment,

especially if you leave your top on, which is a good thing to do.

I'd suggest that leaving the top on is an ESSENTIAL thing to do, especially if the tumbling is done indoors. The primer residue inside the cases will have a lead content, and therefore, so will the dust coming up out of the tumbler as it runs sans top. NOT a good idea to breathe such, therefore, keep the top on always as the tumbler tumbles.

I'd be concerned about lead dust when removing the cases from the medium after tumbling, also. Have yet to devise any sort of system for keeping the dust down during that process. Likewise, pouring the medium from tumbler back into a container produces unavoidable dust.

I shop-vac the tumbler and the area around it after each use.

[fourrobert13]

I have looked into the cement mixer, but don't want to drop that much cash. Even the cheap ones are not in my budget. I don't need one to tumble 10,000 pieces, but one that could do 1,000 223 in one go would be all I need. A guy I know built one with a 5 gallon bucket and I plan on stealing his design. I will post it all up when I get it done. It's on my winter project list.

[LHB1]

After using a Lyman case tumbler for many years, I switched to a Berry's case tumbler and find it much better. It is significantly quieter and has a solid lid which holds in dust instead of spreading it all over the workbench or vicinity of tumbler. I also like the inline of/off switch. FWIW, a friend has a Frankford tumbler which he says is marked as made by Berry's. Whether it is just rebadged or is a modified version, I do not know.

[PCJim]

I own a Lyman 1200 which came with a large and small bowl. The small bowl hardly ever gets used. The nice thing about this Lyman model is that the top which fits both bowls consists of two parts - a clear plastic lid that fits down over a wider lid with slots. The design allows you to use the wider lid as a media separator. Hold the bowl and slotted lid together and slowly toss/turn/shake over a 5 gal bucket to collect the media. The media then gets stored in cleaned Arizona Iced Tea gallon containers that I picked up. They are thick plastic jugs with a relatively wide mouth. Use a 2 liter soda bottle funnel and scoop/pour from the 5 gal bucket.

I also have a floor fan which I turn on (low speed) and aim towards the driveway area where I'm separating the media/brass after tumbling. Holding the bowl/lid combo about 2 feet above the 5 gal bucket, a lot of the dust gets blown away with minimal media loss.

[Smaug]

Look for one with the UL Mark on it. (UL in a circle) I don't even know if any are made.

It is hard to tell when ordering online, but it means that a third party safety organization has certified it and that it won't burn down your house when you're not looking.

These vibratory tumblers use vibrator coils, not motors. But they still have magnet wire coils that can overheat. Normally, they would not overhead unless they're undersized. But if the moving part were to get jammed, it may overheat and burn down your house.

[Gun 4 Fun]

I have a Dillon Magnum 2000. I've had it for 21 years, and it's the only one I've ever owned. Still going strong and never gave any trouble even one time. That speaks volumes to me!
I've polished everything from .38 special to .458 Lott with complete satisfaction.
If this one ever fails, I know Dillon will make it new again. I've also got their case separator and it works as well as my tumbler.

[casca]

midsouth shooters have a tumbler on sale for less than $30.00 makes a nice spare or a good starter tumbler

[LAH]

midsouth shooters have a tumbler on sale for less than $30.00 makes a nice spare or a good starter tumbler

I ordered 5 of these. It took months to receive them. I understand Midsouth now has them in stock....Creeker

[singlestack45]

+1 on the Dillon vibratory case cleaner.

[The Lovemaster]

Dillon, without a doubt. I fun mine every night and all weekend, and it keeps on pumping out beautiful brass. Don't know how many tens of thousands of rounds have been through it, but it's a lot!

If it ever dies, I know Dillon will fix/replace it.

[shepherddogs]

I've got a Lyman 1200 I think. It's about 20 years old and had the hell run out of it. A couple years ago the motor died and Lyman sent me a new motor pretty cheap and it's rolling again. I've left it running for days.

[Inspector3711]

I was on a tight budget when I got into my addiction.... I bought a Harbour Freight dual drum rock tumbler... I can tumble 200 rounds of .223 at a time. So far no complaints and the cost was under $50..

[Loader9]

There are the vibratory type like most of these guys are talking about. They do a decent job and if your brass is in decent shape and not black, it will do just fine. Figure a couple of hours will clean most brass. You have several different types of media to chose from. I'd avoid the Lyman with the red polish. It turns everything red and you'll spend as much time cleaning the red polish off as it takes to polish it. There is corn cob media which I like and then there is a walnut shell type. If you get one of these tumblers, try the different medias.Then you have a drum/roller type like a Thumblers Tumbler. It is a drum that rotates and rolls the brass around. It's slow but it gets the job done. For most brass figure 4-6 hours and more if it is pretty dirty. You'll use the same type of media to tumble the brass in or you can also use white rice to clean oil and grime- just don't eat it afterwards. Then you have the liquid media type of tumbler like the RCBS Sidewinder. It's not a cheap date but it is fast. What takes a vibrator type hours to do can be done in minutes with one of these. Military black brass can be made to look like new inside and out in 20 minutes. It's quick and also expensive by comparison. You only use the liquid media once and throw it out. You'll need to rinse the brass in water and you can either let it air dry or put it in the oven at 150F for about 20 minutes. But you can go from black nasty brass to reloading like new brass in under an hour if that's important to you. The Sidewinder is about $350.00 to buy and the drums fail about every other year at a cost of about $65.00. Then you have the RCBS Liquid Cleaner to buy or you can use Iosso diluted with water. Either way, it's not cheap but again, it's quick. So figure out what is important to you and buy accordingly. Most get along just fine with a vibrating type. My theory is buy the cheapest and expect it to fail. Usually they last forever.

[wncchester]

So, as Smokey Joe pointed out, we have many different models and brands and we are all quite happy. There's a point it that: there really ain't much difference in them.

If what you get has no switch, go to Lowe's and get a small AC line switch. I did, it was inexpensive and simple to install.