Tumbling loaded ammo!!

OkieGentleman · May 14, 2012, 10:33 PM

I ran into this statement in an article and am looking for opinions from the more knowledgeable members of this forum.

Never tumble live ammunition to make the cases brighter. Never fire any ammunition you suspect as having been tumbled to be cleaned. Tumbling can potentially pulverize the powder granules. As powder granule size is a means of controlling the burning rate, pulverizing them can significantly increase chamber pressures.

Input if you please, sounds reasonable.

m&p45acp10+1 · May 14, 2012, 10:38 PM

I tumbled some rifle ammo I was in a hurry to load, and it still had the case lube on them. Lube on cases would have made them more dangerous in the chamber than tumbling them would have.

Oh and there are some folks that tumbled loaded ammo for days, and it all shot just fine. As well as you will hear the factories tumble finished ammo to remove the lube as well.

jcwit · May 14, 2012, 11:05 PM

False information, if this were in fact the case, shipping ammo all over the world for our military would obviously have degraded the powder to the point of being unusable, which of course is not the case at all.

Where did you come across this info? It has been disproved numerous times. Old wifes tale, Internet rumor, etc., etc.

Sport45 · May 14, 2012, 11:17 PM

I've seen a test here (or THR, I don't remember) where someone tumbled ammo for the better part of a week. Other than being very shiny it shot the same as untumbled ammo. Powder granules are tougher than they look. Try to mash one some time.

OkieGentleman · May 14, 2012, 11:39 PM

OK Thanks for the replies.

medalguy · May 15, 2012, 12:22 AM

Here's a link to the excellent article on tumbling loaded ammo on AR15.com:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/989...nds_in_OP.html

I've been tumbling loaded ammo for about twenty years and never experienced the slightest problem with it. Some old wives' tales never seem to die.

Sport45 · May 15, 2012, 02:56 AM

Quote:

I've been tumbling loaded ammo for about twenty years and never experienced the slightest problem with it.

That's a long time, twenty minutes should be plenty...

(Yes, I know what he meant.)

mumbo719 · May 15, 2012, 03:14 AM

Another internet rumor that has been repeated enough time that it is generally accepted as fact.

I tumble live rounds and have never had a problem.

beex215 · May 15, 2012, 04:30 AM

time to tumble my old dirty carry ammo.

Cornbread · May 15, 2012, 05:46 AM

Heard all the rumors about tumbling turning powder into dust and changing burn rate. Also heard tumbled for a week no effect . Even pulled the bullets to compare powder.
But I have never heard I went to the range today and my gun blew up.

I’ll never tumble live ammo again. Not even once !! I have always tumbled finished live rounds unless they had a pointed soft lead tip. (didn’t want to bugger up the point)

serf 'rett · May 15, 2012, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Another internet rumor that has been repeated enough time that it is generally accepted as fact.

Well, I don't think it's just an internet rumor; seems like I remember reading a statement like this in either my Lyman? or Speer? manual. I'll check to see if I can find the reference.

We harp on and on about "read your reloading manual," only to find that perhaps our manual contains bogus information? However, I don't recollect the author referring to their definitive testing which proved the powder breaks down or which type of powder pulverizes to explosive dust. Now I’m wondering, since my manuals are new, if maybe the author got his information off the internet?

Just in case my powder is getting busted, I think I’ll start transporting the rounds in egg crates for the hour trip to the range.

RobertInIowa · May 15, 2012, 11:44 AM

Personally, I would be nervous about tumbling loaded ammo for long periods of time, however, a short stint in the tumbler to pull off last minute lube or fingerprints sounds reasonable to me.

What have YOU chosen to do after receiving so many responses?

jcwit · May 15, 2012, 01:02 PM

Quote:

Well, I don't think it's just an internet rumor; seems like I remember reading a statement like this in either my Lyman? or Speer? manual. I'll check to see if I can find the reference.

Remember these companies also MUST protect themselves from the lawyers.

Also most gun manufactures say in their manuals, not to shoot reloads or reloaded ammo. Same reason.

OkieGentleman · May 15, 2012, 02:42 PM

I guess if I need to clean them of lube after reloading I will tumble them, but only long enough to clean the lube off. You need to know I wear both belt and suspenders and I always cut the fuse an extra inch when I cut it off.

marklyftogt · May 15, 2012, 04:40 PM

This exact information was in the instructions on the last tumbler I bought.
There were more pages of CYA than instructions.

CrustyFN · May 15, 2012, 05:06 PM

I tumble all of my rifle ammo to clean the lube off. In six years I have never had a problem. If it was bad to tumble loaded ammo then you think the big ammo manufactures would stop, yes they tumble all loaded ammo before it's packaged.

Brian Pfleuger · May 15, 2012, 05:14 PM

Nothing but rumor. Imagine the "tumbling" that powder endures on its train/plane/ship/truck ride from the manufacturer to you.

Cornbread · May 15, 2012, 05:29 PM

Should there be a warning about pouring into a powder measurer and back into the container several times ???

mumbo719 · May 15, 2012, 06:37 PM

Here is a good read.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=498890

Wahoo95 · May 15, 2012, 07:16 PM

Ummm.....factories tumble loaded ammo all the time. How do you think they get it so shiny for packaging.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

serf 'rett · May 15, 2012, 09:18 PM

PizzaKilla

Reference: Lyman, third edition, Pistol & Revolver Handbook, page 23, column 2, paragraph 2
"Loaded ammunition, and primed cases, should never be tumbled.."

Like I said, not just rumor, but in print. Makes one wonder if the rumor started with the print or the print started the rumor?

Anyhoo, I'm just loading pistol rounds and am to lazy to even clean the Imperial wax of them.

Brian Pfleuger · May 15, 2012, 09:20 PM

Oh, I never doubted it was there. I just doubt the rationale.

FrankenMauser · May 16, 2012, 12:03 AM

I do it all the time.

Right now, I have a long term test going on (as many others have done). Some of the loaded rounds in my tumbler have been making laps around its bowl for more than 130 hours, and I wouldn't hesitate to fire them. In fact, I plan to.

jcwit · May 16, 2012, 12:33 AM

Quote:

Reference: Lyman, third edition, Pistol & Revolver Handbook, page 23, column 2, paragraph 2
"Loaded ammunition, and primed cases, should never be tumbled.."

Ya, I've read that long time ago, but the ammo factories do it, and as I said earlier, the companies need to protect themselves from the lawyers. and the courts.

Since when did we start beliving everything we read?

Cornbread · May 16, 2012, 06:52 AM

If you read the owners manual of any new center fire it will tell you that you don’t need that Lyman Handbook.

I still think if it was that dangerous you would be able to find at least one case of a KB that stated tumbling was to blame. If anyone can find one this would be good place to post it. Even the number of people here that do it someone should have had a problem. The question comes up a lot but I haven’t seen anything to change my mind. Show me some bloody fingers , a Glock all busted up or at least a small blister on something.

May 14, 2012, 10:33 PM	#1
OkieGentleman Senior Member Join Date: August 18, 1999 Location: OKC Metro Posts: 521	Tumbling loaded ammo!! I ran into this statement in an article and am looking for opinions from the more knowledgeable members of this forum. Never tumble live ammunition to make the cases brighter. Never fire any ammunition you suspect as having been tumbled to be cleaned. Tumbling can potentially pulverize the powder granules. As powder granule size is a means of controlling the burning rate, pulverizing them can significantly increase chamber pressures. Input if you please, sounds reasonable.

May 14, 2012, 10:38 PM	#2
m&p45acp10+1 Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2009 Location: Central Texas Posts: 3,930	I tumbled some rifle ammo I was in a hurry to load, and it still had the case lube on them. Lube on cases would have made them more dangerous in the chamber than tumbling them would have. Oh and there are some folks that tumbled loaded ammo for days, and it all shot just fine. As well as you will hear the factories tumble finished ammo to remove the lube as well. __________________ No matter how many times you do it and nothing happens it only takes something going wrong one time to kill you.

May 14, 2012, 11:17 PM	#4
Sport45 Senior Member Join Date: May 25, 1999 Location: Too close to Houston Posts: 4,196	I've seen a test here (or THR, I don't remember) where someone tumbled ammo for the better part of a week. Other than being very shiny it shot the same as untumbled ammo. Powder granules are tougher than they look. Try to mash one some time. __________________ Proud member of the NRA and Texas State Rifle Association. Registered and active voter.

May 14, 2012, 11:39 PM	#5
OkieGentleman Senior Member Join Date: August 18, 1999 Location: OKC Metro Posts: 521	Thanks OK Thanks for the replies.

May 15, 2012, 03:14 AM	#8
mumbo719 Senior Member Join Date: June 27, 2008 Location: Tampa Bay, FL. Posts: 346	Another internet rumor that has been repeated enough time that it is generally accepted as fact. I tumble live rounds and have never had a problem. __________________ CZ 75 P-01 . CZ-75B . CZ 912 . CZ 920 . Glock 26 Gen 3 . Kimber Pro Crimson Carry . XDm 45 3.8 Compact . Ruger 22/45 MKIII

May 14, 2012, 11:05 PM	#3
jcwit Senior Member Join Date: October 28, 2007 Location: Upper Indiana Posts: 609	False information, if this were in fact the case, shipping ammo all over the world for our military would obviously have degraded the powder to the point of being unusable, which of course is not the case at all. Where did you come across this info? It has been disproved numerous times. Old wifes tale, Internet rumor, etc., etc.

May 15, 2012, 12:22 AM	#6
medalguy Senior Member Join Date: August 31, 2009 Location: New Mexico Posts: 1,033	Here's a link to the excellent article on tumbling loaded ammo on AR15.com: http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/989...nds_in_OP.html I've been tumbling loaded ammo for about twenty years and never experienced the slightest problem with it. Some old wives' tales never seem to die.

May 15, 2012, 04:30 AM	#9
beex215 Senior Member Join Date: October 10, 2010 Posts: 317	time to tumble my old dirty carry ammo. __________________ my youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/user/beehasagun1?feature=mhee

May 15, 2012, 05:46 AM	#10
Cornbread Senior Member Join Date: January 12, 2012 Posts: 103	Heard all the rumors about tumbling turning powder into dust and changing burn rate. Also heard tumbled for a week no effect . Even pulled the bullets to compare powder. But I have never heard I went to the range today and my gun blew up. I’ll never tumble live ammo again. Not even once !! I have always tumbled finished live rounds unless they had a pointed soft lead tip. (didn’t want to bugger up the point)

May 15, 2012, 11:44 AM	#12
RobertInIowa Senior Member Join Date: March 4, 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 149	Personally, I would be nervous about tumbling loaded ammo for long periods of time, however, a short stint in the tumbler to pull off last minute lube or fingerprints sounds reasonable to me. What have YOU chosen to do after receiving so many responses? __________________ Guns don't kill people, fathers with pretty daughters do. Two wrongs don't make a right, but three comes pretty close. Proud NRA member

May 15, 2012, 02:42 PM	#14
OkieGentleman Senior Member Join Date: August 18, 1999 Location: OKC Metro Posts: 521	To Tumble or not To Tumble That Is the Question! I guess if I need to clean them of lube after reloading I will tumble them, but only long enough to clean the lube off. You need to know I wear both belt and suspenders and I always cut the fuse an extra inch when I cut it off.

May 15, 2012, 04:40 PM	#15
marklyftogt Senior Member Join Date: March 11, 2012 Location: Salinas, CA Posts: 138	This exact information was in the instructions on the last tumbler I bought. There were more pages of CYA than instructions.

May 15, 2012, 05:06 PM	#16
CrustyFN Senior Member Join Date: June 4, 2006 Location: West Virginia Posts: 2,258	I tumble all of my rifle ammo to clean the lube off. In six years I have never had a problem. If it was bad to tumble loaded ammo then you think the big ammo manufactures would stop, yes they tumble all loaded ammo before it's packaged. __________________ I don't ever remember being absent minded.

May 15, 2012, 05:14 PM	#17
Brian Pfleuger Moderator Emeritus Join Date: June 25, 2008 Location: Austin, CO Posts: 19,578	Nothing but rumor. Imagine the "tumbling" that powder endures on its train/plane/ship/truck ride from the manufacturer to you. __________________ Nobody plans to screw up their lives... ...they just don't plan not to. -Andy Stanley

May 15, 2012, 05:29 PM	#18
Cornbread Senior Member Join Date: January 12, 2012 Posts: 103	Should there be a warning about pouring into a powder measurer and back into the container several times ???

May 15, 2012, 06:37 PM	#19
mumbo719 Senior Member Join Date: June 27, 2008 Location: Tampa Bay, FL. Posts: 346	Here is a good read. http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=498890 __________________ CZ 75 P-01 . CZ-75B . CZ 912 . CZ 920 . Glock 26 Gen 3 . Kimber Pro Crimson Carry . XDm 45 3.8 Compact . Ruger 22/45 MKIII

May 15, 2012, 07:16 PM	#20
Wahoo95 Member Join Date: February 19, 2007 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 62	Ummm.....factories tumble loaded ammo all the time. How do you think they get it so shiny for packaging. Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

May 15, 2012, 09:18 PM	#21
serf 'rett Senior Member Join Date: June 25, 2009 Location: Stuttgart, AR Posts: 1,569	PizzaKilla Reference: Lyman, third edition, Pistol & Revolver Handbook, page 23, column 2, paragraph 2 "Loaded ammunition, and primed cases, should never be tumbled.." Like I said, not just rumor, but in print. Makes one wonder if the rumor started with the print or the print started the rumor? Anyhoo, I'm just loading pistol rounds and am to lazy to even clean the Imperial wax of them. __________________ A lack of planning on your part does not necessarily constitute an emergency on my part.

May 15, 2012, 09:20 PM	#22
Brian Pfleuger Moderator Emeritus Join Date: June 25, 2008 Location: Austin, CO Posts: 19,578	Oh, I never doubted it was there. I just doubt the rationale. __________________ Nobody plans to screw up their lives... ...they just don't plan not to. -Andy Stanley

May 16, 2012, 12:03 AM	#23
FrankenMauser Senior Member Join Date: August 25, 2008 Location: In the valley above the plain Posts: 13,424	I do it all the time. Right now, I have a long term test going on (as many others have done). Some of the loaded rounds in my tumbler have been making laps around its bowl for more than 130 hours, and I wouldn't hesitate to fire them. In fact, I plan to. __________________ Don't even try it. It's even worse than the internet would lead you to believe.

May 16, 2012, 06:52 AM	#25
Cornbread Senior Member Join Date: January 12, 2012 Posts: 103	If you read the owners manual of any new center fire it will tell you that you don’t need that Lyman Handbook. I still think if it was that dangerous you would be able to find at least one case of a KB that stated tumbling was to blame. If anyone can find one this would be good place to post it. Even the number of people here that do it someone should have had a problem. The question comes up a lot but I haven’t seen anything to change my mind. Show me some bloody fingers , a Glock all busted up or at least a small blister on something.