Product Review: Frankford Arsenal "Lite" Rotary Tumbler

[timetofly]

^^^^That  LOL

[M1A4ME]

After I get the brass out of the stainless pins/water/lemishine and separate the brass from the pins I always run it through the vibratory polisher with crushed walnut shell media.  That's where I put my Nufinish.  A capful, in the walnut shell media, every three or four runs (of the polisher, not the batch of brass).

I guess that also puts some of the "dust" back on the brass that many people say is beneficial to the resizing step (sort of a dry lubricant on the case walls).

[eastman]

^^^^That  LOL

Winchester makes government contract .40 S&W 180gr FMJ training ammo with purple cases. Makes them easy to find and it does shoot well.


tdogg - do you have any pictures of that purple brass?

[tdogg]

I looked but don't think I took any pictures.   It wasn't permanent, it would wipe off if you rubbed it.  Not sure what happened but I wouldn't recommend it.

Cheers,
Toby

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[double-d]

After I get the brass out of the stainless pins/water/lemishine and separate the brass from the pins I always run it through the vibratory polisher with crushed walnut shell media.  That's where I put my Nufinish.  A capful, in the walnut shell media, every three or four runs (of the polisher, not the batch of brass).

Same here

[Wobbly]

Impressions After 10 Months of Use

Thought I'd get back and give a report on how the Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler (FART) is doing.

I remain very impressed. This little thing is a real workhorse. So much so, that given the chance to start over with dry tumbling or wet tumbling... I'd really have to seriously consider wet.

The only problems experienced in the last 10 months have been these...
• I bought the wrong type of LemiShine. What can I say, I'm an idiot. Having never purchased LemiShine, I picked up the packets that have the liquid and dry powder. It's the totally wrong mix. My bad.

• The drum, as small as it is, needs to be at least half full to get the cases inside to rotate and actually tumble. That means I need a minimum of about 400-500 cases inside the drum in order for it to operate correctly.

Other than that... a total breeze.

• Unlike my son's unit purchased from Stainless Tumbling Media, the FART has not leaked a single drop, and has not needed any repairs or repair parts. 

• Initially thought dealing with the waste water would be a big deal, but it's not. I do empty it outside, and I've developed an easy method and location to do this.

• Believed that tumbling pin loss would be significant and I'd be re-ordering new ones every 3 months. That has not happened. Total losses have been insignificant and I'm still working on the initial set. No replacement orders in sight.

• Wet tumbling has given my case feeder a whole new lease on life. Dry tumbling was leaving corn cob under the case feeder's shell plate, making lots of noise, accounting for stoppages, and making a general nuisance. The absence of corn cob has ended all that.

Bottom Line: A 60 minute tumble in hot water with a tablespoon of granulated LemiShine and a 1/2 cup of ArmorAll Wash & Wax cleans better than my expensive Dillon vibratory tumblers ever did. The tumbling lot size is larger, so I'm cleaning less often. The tumbler is liquid-tight so I can tumble indoors (3 min outdoor rinse still required). Handling the liquids has not been 1/10th the issue I once envisioned. I don't get wet or even splashed during the rinsing process.

I'm really delighted with the entire unit and process. 

[double-d]

Thanks for the update!  I'm sold on wet tumbling.

[Togmaster]

Been using a FART for over 5 years now. Guess you could consider it an old FART like me. Still on the original batch of pins. I would never consider going to a dry tumbler.

[Dan_69GTX]

Thanks for the update!