loaded rounds in a tumbler

I tumble some of my reloads but only for a few minutes, just to remove any remaining case lube or debris from the cartridge. I do not recommend tumbling over night or for several hours to polish loaded ammo and I'm sure this is what the powder and ammo manufactures are referring to.

I've loaded ammo for 35 years and often will tumble for last minute detail. I have never experienced any issues with pressure related problems due to tumbling.

I can certainly understand why the powder and ammo companies would suggest not doing it, lawyers are plentiful and these days there are tons of folks just waiting to jump at the opportunity to sue someone. Go figure!

Reloading has it's own risks, I see no reason for tumbling a few rounds for ten minutes would significantly raise those risks to extremely unsafe levels.

If you feel comfortable with it then go for it, if you are not, then don't. Ammo made in Brazil and shipped to the USA has been subjected to a tremendous amount of vibrations as has Chinese ammo and Russian ammo. All of this ammo has been loaded in factories of unknown conditions and most, if not all of us have never given it a second thought and burnt up a bunch of it without any problem.

Do as you feel safe, I personally have no issues with it. I guess I'm not afraid of the boogie man since I've danced that dance.
 
If tumbling makes you nervous chuck them in a lee trimmer chuck and
your cordless drill with a piece of steel wool. It will shine tarnished copper
and brass right up. I did a little research a while back on the hardness of
brass oxide and copper oxide. Same as raw iron. So sending a tarnished bullet
down your barrel is going to be more detrimental than sending a clean one
down it. Same for the chamber. The case bites into the chamber as it expands
so it would stand to reason a hard oxide coating on the brass is not good
for the chamber.
 
There are a lot of newbies trying to glean as much knowledge from our many years of experiance on this forum. I don't want to send the wrong message that we should ignore warnings made by a lot of very savey people with lots of day to day, hands on experiance working with some porentially dangerous components. We have a responsibility to teach new reloaders to act with caution. When a representative of a powder company says not to do something and we, as individuals choose to ignore these warnings, that's one thing. When we suggest others that it's an "old wives tale", or "I've done it for years and I'm still alive". That sends the wrong message. Sorry, that's JMHO.
 
Well here it is from Ramshot. Personally I wont do it and never have. I aint the kind of person to hold back info even if goes against my stand on this subject. This is just the way I received it Just Copied and pasted. DAB
--------------------------------------------------------------

Ammunition tumbling‏
From: Keith Anderson (keith@ramshot.com)
Sent: Fri 9/25/09 1:34 PM
To: bench_d@msn.com
Donald,

While my first reaction to the question was to say don't do it, the fact remains that commercial ammunition manufacturers do just that on a regular basis. That's exactly why commercial ammunition looks so nice.

Personally I would avoid the rotary drum like tumblers since there is a very small possibility that a primer could be hit by the point of another bullet. Another problem I can envision is if the neck tension is not tight enough, there is a possibility of the bullet shifting in the neck.

I don't see a problem with a vibratory tumbler which is what the commercial manufacturers I talked to use. It isn't going to harm the powder. While I don't see any benefit to tumbling other than to make the round look nice I don't see any detrimental effects either. I would avoid tumbling the ammunition for extended periods.

I hope this helps you out.

Best regards,
Keith Anderson
Western Powders Ballistic Lab
Ramshot/Accurate Powders
Tel: (406) 234-0422 email: keith@ramshot.com
Western Powders Inc -- Miles City – Montana.
Western Powders Inc. disclaims all possible liability for damages including, actual, incidental and consequential, resulting from usage of the information or advice contained in this message.
Use the data and advice at your own risk, and with extreme caution.
We also request that you visit our websites www.accuratepowder.com www.ramshot.com www.montanaextreme.com or www.blackhorn209.com for more comprehensive information.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Always begin loading from the minimum "START charge and carefully develop loads by increasing in small increments of 2% towards the Maximum load.
DISCLAIMER:
This communication is confidential and may be legally privileged. If you are not the intended recipient,
(i) please do not read or disclose to others, (ii) please notify the sender by reply mail, and (iii) please
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---------------------------------------------------------------


 
Last edited:
Quote:
While my first reaction to the question was to say don't do it, the fact remains that commercial ammunition manufacturers do just that on a regular basis. That's exactly why commercial ammunition looks so nice.

Personally I would avoid the rotary drum like tumblers since there is a very small possibility that a primer could be hit by the point of another bullet. Another problem I can envision is if the neck tension is not tight enough, there is a possibility of the bullet shifting in the neck.

I don't see a problem with a vibratory tumbler which is what the commercial manufacturers I talked to use. It isn't going to harm the powder. While I don't see any benefit to tumbling other than to make the round look nice I don't see any detrimental effects either. I would avoid tumbling the ammunition for extended periods.

I hope this helps you out.

Best regards,
Keith Anderson
Western Powders Ballistic Lab
Ramshot/Accurate Powders
------------------------- [/quote]

Sounds like a level headed answer if I ever heard one.
 
Better yet, just shoot them, even though they are tarnished and ugly, and tumble them when they are empty!
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Thanks for sharing that DAB. It's only fair to consider both sides.

I still ain't doing it.

I know that you can flick a cigarette into a can of gas without igniting it, and I ain't trying that either.
grin.gif


My wife calls me "Safety Man". Heck, I haven't even ever lit a fart......
blush.gif


I am with Jim, just shoot them , then clean 'em up.
 
Originally Posted By: DABWell here it is from Ramshot. Personally I wont do it and never have. I aint the kind of person to hold back info even if goes against my stand on this subject. This is just the way I received it Just Copied and pasted. DAB
--------------------------------------------------------------

Western Powders Inc. disclaims all possible liability for damages including, actual, incidental and consequential, resulting from usage of the information or advice contained in this message.

---------------------------------------------------------------

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well i did tumble 30 rounds for 45 min. and they shot just fine. as for the reason to tumble them after loading this is why.i had quite a few loaded rounds in a coffee can on my work bench without the lid on and i had a can of open coke on the top shelf. apparently my cat was up there and knocked it down and some splashed into my rounds.
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i was doing some woodworking with a tablesaw and miterbox saw and my rpounds got a film of sawdust that really stuck to the brass. anyway, all is good and i still have my face attatched.
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thanks guys for the reaserch.
smile.gif
 
Well Here I one more that says it is a NO, NO.
Just as sent to me Copied and pasted.



RE: Nosler Website Contact FormTumbling Loaded ammo‏
From: Nosler Catalog (Catalog@nosler.com)
Sent: Mon 9/28/09 10:53 AM
To: bench_d@msn.com

It is NOT SAFE to tumble loaded rounds as it abrades the deterrent coating off the powder. The powder will increase in burn rate and raise pressures to a dangerous level.

________________________________

From: bench_d@msn.com [mailto:bench_d@msn.com]
Sent: Sat 9/26/2009 8:58 PM
To: Nosler Catalog
Subject: Nosler Website Contact FormTumbling Loaded ammo



71.111.26.37

There is a disscusion going on,on the inter net about tumbling Loaded ammo in a vibrator or rolling type tumblers. The question being put forth is, is it safe to do so and why.

Have you done any testing on this subject and if so what were your findings.

My personel possition is NO don't do it as it would / could effect the powder and make the rounds unsafe to shoot.

Thanks
Any answer you give will be posted so all on Predator Masters to help prove a point what Sierra, Hodgen and Hornady say about tumbling loaded ammo. They do not recomend tumbling loaded ammo.

Don Bench
 
I just use some super fine steel wool and a little elbow grease while watching some hunting shows on tv, with a tasty beverage not to far from my reach.
 
I get a kick out of some people's testing. Doing it for years doesn't make it safe for everyone to do. Their rifle is different. The pressure signs changed on my Swift when I had a Hart barrel put on. This tells me there is a difference between barrels. This difference can also be found between factory barrels. So this tells me there is no way to accurately test this at home with a standard rifle or an open burn. If one was able to measure the amount of chamber pressure, then one could test the difference between a tumbled round and an untumbled round and you would have to test different brands and styles of powder. If you have a load that is safe, then tumble it. It still might be safe but that doesn't mean nothing has changed.
 
Quote:...the fact remains that commercial ammunition manufacturers do just that on a regular basis. That's exactly why commercial ammunition looks so nice.


As in everything else, the secret is moderation. The arsenals and commercial reloaders do it to remove any oils or debris before packaging. I guess if you've developed a load that's near maximum without tumbling, then decide to add that step, there could be a concern.
If you've developed a load using the tumbling step, and keep the tumbling to a set time, it should be repeatable.

If you throw them into a tumbler 24/7 for a month, all bets are off. That's just insane, though. If you're using a soft-point bullet, it will now be a hollow point, for one thing.
wink.gif
 
So tumbling live ammo could actually be the final step in fine tuning match ammo, like adjusting the seating depth.

Once I find an accurate recipe, I load up a batch and expiriment with different tumbling times to get the best accuracy. I find that the accuracy increases with moderate tumbling and the accurate tumbling node is typically between 20-30 minutes of tumbling in corn media. Try several small batches with tumbling intervals 5 minutes apart.

As always, reduce starting tumbling times by 5% and work your way up.
 
Seriously, even some (maybe ALL) premium grade ammo is tumbled. Look closely at the gap between the primer and the case, I often see media residue, looks like sawdust or well worn corn media that got stuck in there. Makes the premium ammo look shiny.
 
Quote:Seriously, even some (maybe ALL) premium grade ammo is tumbled.

All the info I could find says all the manufacturers (including the military arsenals) tumble just prior to packaging. But it's a short time period and consistent length, not some random interval.
I would imagine they do their pressure tests on tumbled ammo, so if there was any change in the burn rate, they compensate for the tumble factor automatically.
So that doesn't prove anything either way.
 
I test my loads for accuracy, pressure, and velocity AFTER tumbling for short periods just like the big manufacturers.

Warnings to not tumble loaded ammo is just a generic liability thing and one more effort to convince the general public to buy overpriced factory ammo instead of loading your own.
 
Anybody get around to completing a tumbing test? Chrono some rounds with zero tumbling. Then chrono some more after tumbling for 30 minutes. Then try 60 minutes. Etc. Shoot all rounds at the same range session and record velocity to see if there's any change.

I bet with reasonable tumbling times, there won't be a lick of difference.
 
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