Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles New brass tumbler/polisher

Well, I burned up my 2 vibratory brass polishers using them for a veteran’s day Boy Scout project. They were both older, but I need a new one to use for my actual reloading. I’m not married to anything but I’d like something that works really well. Vibratory, steel pins with liquid, whatever works (model and type) let me know.

Thumblers tumbler model B is what I use now, really cleans brass up good. Water, dawn and a bit of lemi shine. I only use about 3 pounds of ss pins.

I just bought Thumblers Tumbler model B "high speed" nothing not to like about it.....be sure and buy the "high speed model B".

The other day I used it with a corn cob media on some badly tarnished bullets in less than two hours later I had new looking bullets...its not slow like the rock tumblers of old it rolls fast.

Midway had the best price I found.

There's several YouTube videos on it...when I bought it I was not aware you could use it wet.

Lyman 1200 has been working well for me

As I mentioned too....keep off carpeted floors while running

Keeping motor ventilated is a plus

https://www.lymanproducts.com/reloading/case-cleaning/turbo-1200-pro-tumbler

Well kudos for being another fellow Scout leader and supporter...

I wore out an old one from Midway, that danced all over the counter and was louder than crap.

Cabelas upgraded me with a model with their name on it, that I have used for a decade plus. It sees a lot of action, and I normally load it up and let it run all night, and then empty it sometime the next morning... use Walnut media, and then Mineral Spirits in the media if the brass looks like Surplus Civil War quality. This one is quiet as hell compared to the previous one I had...

Just needed to order a new top for it after many years of use...and it turned out to be made by Berry's out of St George Utah.
Mine needed a new lid, and even tho it was made for Cabelas, they sent me a new lid for No Charge.

I've ordered one thru them for a back up and in case the one I have now decides to finally croak. This thing is like a little diesel engine.
I had to go back east and take care of some family emergency and was gone 2 weeks plus. I had left that tumble on in the shed... it ran 2 weeks straight. My wife said she heard something runny "out there" but wasn't sure what it was and didn't even bother looking to see.

Never seemed to phase it....the brass inside was so 'shiny' you'd think it was chrome... but it was just that polished...

The new one is still in the box... I think it cost me $50 or $55.00 on the door step. and I love how the manufacturer backs up their product.

That one sounds great, and you can't beat that kind of service!! I also went through a blue Midway tumbler. A 1292 if I remember right. Those had issues with getting too hot and starting fires. I then went with a used one and it lasted a couple years. Now I am on to a Lyman 2500 Turbo. That thing tumbles a lot of brass and it is pretty quiet. I've had it for a couple years now and it has been working great. I plug it into a timer, so it will run for 4 or 6 hours and the Lyman Tuff nut with rouge polishes the brass very well. The new stuff is not red, like the old stuff. I don't think it quite works as well, but it also does not leave a red residue from the rouge. That is a plus. I shoot a little every week (about 300 rounds most weeks), so It seems like the tumbler is going every saturday or sunday. I'll prep the brass, tumble it and prime it, so it's ready for the next time:


Here's the used one I bought:


I was pretty hard on it and stuffed it full of brass and ran it all night long many times. Don't remember what brand it was though. The Lyman 2500 Turbo seems like a better Tumbler with a much larger capacity.

Holy cow, I’ve never gone that long when I forgot about my tumbler. But I have forgot about my 90’s vintage RCBS tumbler several times and let it run for two days or so. Like you I bought another USA made RCBS for back up, and sure enough it is still sitting in the box.

The brass came out so shiny Ray Charles could see it….

kinda like the old days, when you could buy a product for a low/decent price... and then if it did need anything, the manufacturers backed it up,
and the darn thing was built well and never seemed like it was ever going to wear out... regardless of how much you used it...

There are Thumblers and the other stuff.

I have owned a Lyman tumbler (lasted 2 years) and an RCBS (lasted 10 years) but the last one I bought was a cheap Frankfort Arsenal that has lasted 5 years without a hiccup....Hb