Brass cleaning solutions (larger volume)

[timmy75]

I have half a ton (yes, ~1.100 lbs) of 9mm brass available. (Once fired, mixed headstamps, dirty)
What would be the best way to clean and prepare for reloading?

I have a dedicated decapping machine, but if I just throw brass in the case feeder, it will jam constantly because of dirt from the cases.

I have to clean them first.
Is there a way to do this at home somehow? I can throw brass in a concrete mixer, but I have to dry them somehow.
I don't have an old oven and I am at 45th parallel north (not hot enough at this time of the year to dry them in the Sun).
I do not want to put brass (especially with used primer still inside) in the oven where I prepare food.

Do you guys have any better solutions / ideas how to handle this?
I want my brass to go in the reloading machine washed, dry, clean and decapped.

[Togmaster]

Cement mixer with a little dawn dish washing soap. Then lay them out on something flat like a sheet of plywood with a fan blowing over the top. They should be dry in about 6 to 8 hours if it is not too humid. Dry them in your basement if you feel it's too cold outside.

[cracker57]

throw some vinegar in with the dawn dish soap, it will help clean. Vinegar is a mild acid..

[Duke Nukem]

You should be able to do batches in a five gallon bucket, you will be limited by how quickly you can process and load them, no need to wash them in one batch.

[Dan_69GTX]

Jerry Miculek on using the concrete mixer to clean brass
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5y_dsP3dsM

[bang bang]

welcome

its not the cleaning its the rinsing...or separating the brass from the non brass stuff.

i would be cautious about using a cement mixer.  It maybe too hard on the case mouths...if you ding/dent them, more work.

it all depends on how much stuff in the brass there is.  If the brass was submerged in mud and the mud dried in the case, then you have some more work to do.

but i would gets some 1/4 inch chicken wire or something that will keep the brass and let the debris fall through and make a square/rectangular sieve.    You may have to "sift" it several times to get all of the dirt/debris out of the cases.  Or if you can submerge in some water several times and let the water draw the dirt/debris.

its something you will have to do T&E - Trial and error to make it work for you.

as far as drying goes.  45th par doent mean anything to me since i live close to that.  As mentioned inside the house to dry...or even outside in your garage?

Go to your goodwill/2nd hand store and look for some used baking trays.   Then i would just sprinkle enough to cover the pans and let nature do it thing.   If you want to try and speed up the drying, use a hair dryer and get things warm.  Or if you have a space heater, you can try using that too. 

just so you know, you will probably have some staining on the brass too.

a side note.  You really want to clean your range brass anyway.  If its "dusty" you may find that it can wear your dies.

good luck