We all know that reloading components have been in short supply in recent months. If you’ve been searching for quality brass, your wait may be over.
A boatload of Lapua cartridge brass has crossed the Atlantic, cleared customs, and is now in warehouses. Many large vendors report that they have ample supplies of Lapua brass in stock now. So if you need some cartridge cases, place your orders today.
Here is a summary of the cartridge types in stock, vendor by vendor. Sorry, no 6mmBR brass on hand at these outfits, but you’ll find most other types of Lapua rifle brass:
Lapua Rifle Cartridge Brass in Stock as of 6/12/2013
Here’s good news for purchasers of reloading components. Powder Valley Inc. (PVI) is “holding the line” on prices of powder, primers, brass, and bullets. In so doing, Powder Valley is “keeping the faith” with its customer base. By contrast, many local gun shops and big box retailers have jacked up prices on guns, ammo, and reloading supplies in response to a spike in demand. With the hue and cry for new gun control legislation, gun owners have rushed to stores to get guns, ammo, and reloading components. Predictably, some retailers have raised prices on everything from primers to all types of semi-auto firearms. Not so with Powder Valley. If you check the PVI website, you’ll see that prices for almost all products in stock are basically the same as a month ago (before the events in Newtown). Unlike some other vendors, Powder Valley has refrained from ramping up prices. We commend PVI for this.
Here is what Powder Valley owner Bryan Richardson told us about his company’s pricing policy:
“We watched back in 2009 as companies jacked up their prices due to supply and demand. This may make sense for some retailers and manufacturers. However, this is not the way we do business, nor will ever do business. It is completely against our conviction.
My wife and I established our business in 2000 with a mission statement of: ‘Providing the finest in reloading components and other shooting sports related products at the best possible price. In doing so, we will conduct business with the utmost respect and consideration for the customer’s needs by constantly demonstrating honesty and integrity.’
Therefore, increasing prices due to current market and political conditions is contrary to our mission of conducting business with the utmost respect and consideration for the customer’s needs. It is my opinion that if we want our industry to survive… we cannot price consumers out of shooting. Therefore, when you see our prices increase or decrease it is simply based off of the manufacturer’s or importer’s pricing. I think history shows that consumers remember the companies who elevated their prices for short-term profits and those who did not. We are here for the long haul and want to grow our business through building our customer base, not increasing our prices.”
This article originally appeared in Sinclair International’s Blog, The Reloading Press.
In the August 2012 Reloading Press, Bill Gravatt, President of Sinclair International, shared his experience using the Thumler’s Tumbler and stainless steel pin media to clean some .308 brass just before the National Matches. He discovered that combo is really great for cleaning brass.
This month, I want to share the results of a test I performed with stainless steel pin media, and give you some tips on how to best use this media to get cases as clean as you can. I’ve been using tumblers of some sort for more than 30 years. I got started with a sealed rotary tumber that my father and I made out of an old rock polisher we hooked up to a washing machine motor. While not as nice as a new Thumler’s Tumbler, the one-gallon capacity on that old tumbler means it’s still good for cleaning brass.
The Brass: Good, Bad and Downright Ugly To really test the stainless steel media’s cleaning power, I mixed three kinds of pistol brass that offered different challenges. First was some very old Amron headstamped .357 Magnum brass. The late Ken Lomont of Lomont Precision Bullets gave me the Amron brass as partial payment back when I was still in high school and working for him. I’ve been shooting it for years, so it’s obviously very durable. But it’s also very hard to clean, which made it great for the test.
I threw in some once-fired nickel-plated .357 SIG brass from Federal that had a lot of soot inside. I wanted to see just how well the stainless steel media could handle really grimy jobs. Finally, I added in the worst brass — some very corroded 9mm range pick-up brass with spots of verdigris all over them and dirt down inside them. They were terrible, which made them perfect for the test.
Case Prep For Cleaning Before I ran the cases through the tumbler, I knocked out all of the fired primers so that the stainless steel media would be able to get into the primer pockets and run through the flash holes. The media that we have at Sinclair is only .040″ in diameter, so it will easily go through the .080″ diameter flash hole on most domestic-produced brass, as well as the smaller .060″ flash holes found on some other cases. Once I knocked out the primers, I poured the brass and the media into the tumbler drum together.
Mixing The Solution Then I mixed up the cleaning solution. I poured ¾ of a gallon of water into the unit, and then put in four tablespoons of Dawn dishwashing detergent. I also added one teaspoon of lemon juice to keep the brass from spotting when it dried.
With everything ready, I sealed up the drum and started the unit and let it run for three or four hours. When I opened the drum, I could tell the media had done a very good job of removing all of the crud from the brass. The water was black, as you would expect from all the carbon inside the cases. After pouring off the solution, I separated the brass from the stainless media and rinsed it off. It took three rinses in clear water to make sure the brass was free of all the carbon the media scrubbed off.
Then I rinsed the media, too. Rinsing the media is important: if you don’t do it, the media will be dirty when you use it next time. The media is easier to rinse while it’s still damp, and it cleans easily with clear water. As you can see, the brass cleaned up very well and showed no evidence of water spotting because of the lemon juice. The range pick-up brass came out fully usable, showing no signs of corrosion. The nickel brass looked as if it were brand new and unfired. The Amron cases looked the best that I can ever remember seeing them. Some of them still had a light amount of carbon just behind the case mouth, but a quick twist with 0000 steel wool took care of this easily during inspection of these cases before loading. All of the primer pockets were clean and clear of carbon. Impressive!
Based on what I have seen, I will definitely use stainless steel media a whole lot in the future, even though I will still keep some of the treated organic media around for when I want a very bright shine on the brass. Several of the other Sinclair International Reloading Techs plan on trying the stainless media as well, so they might come up with some other tips for you in the future.
As always, if you have questions, please do not hesitate to call on any of us on the Sinclair Tech staff to assist you.
Bob Blaine, Sinclair International Tech
NRA Certified Reloading Instructor and RSO
TECH TIPS — Avoiding Problems with Stainless Media
Do Not Use Stainless Media Dry — I have had customers call and ask if stainless steel media can be used dry. The answer is that you will not like the results. Everything will go to the media, but it will still leave the brass dirty. If you use stainless steel media dry, you have to run it through a cleaning solution to clean the media. Then, it’s good to go again.
Do NOT Use Stainless Media in a Vibratory Tumbler — When using stainless media, you need a rotary-style, liquid-containing tumbler. You want to use stainless steel media ONLY in a rotary tumbler. Do not use stainless steel media in a vibratory type cleaner.
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R, OK), successfully added an amendment to the committee-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, making military surplus previously-fired small arms cartridges available for commercial sale with certain restrictions. It also requires the U.S. Secretary of Defense to ensure compliance with managing commercial sale of spent ammunition.
Sen. Inhofe drafted this provision in response to the controversial destruction of once-fired military brass in recent years. Some military base commanders had arranged with ammunition manufacturers to have once-fired brass demilled and sold as scrap metal. However, the cartridges are worth far less as scrap metal than as reloadable ammo components. The U.S. Treasury was losing money since it was not recovering the full value of the cartridge brass in the surplus marketplace.
“My amendment provides a unique opportunity for the commercial sale of spent small arms cartridges,” said Inhofe. “This is beneficial from a cost saving standpoint. Having worked on this issue for some time, I am pleased to have made this progress. Those that care about Second Amendment Rights have put much effort into this as well.”
NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox said, “It is common sense that serviceable and safe military spent brass cases are made available for commercial sale as military-sourced spent brass cases are of the calibers most widely used for marksmanship training and competition by civilians. In addition to being a revenue source for military bases, reloaded ammunition costs considerably less, and every gun owner and hunter can appreciate the savings during these tough economic times.”
OK, you .260 Rem shooters, break out your credit cards. The Lapua .260 Remington cartridge brass has finally arrived. Kevin Thomas of Lapua tells us: “Sorry for the wait guys, but it’s here. Grafs.com has its shipment and will begin shipping orders [May 4, 2011]. Kaltron Pettibone received theirs a few days ago and should be filling existing orders as I write. Let us know what you think of this stuff. Looks pretty good so far, but the proof’s in the pudding.” Grafs.com has the .260 Rem brass in stock at $96.99 per 100-ct box (Shipping included with $4.95 handling fee). Eabco.com has the .260 Rem brass in stock for $92.50 per 100-ct box.
In 2011, Hornady will be offering a new stainless-shell, heavy-duty Ultrasonic Cleaning machine, which fits nicely between the cheap, low-capacity machines sold on eBay, and the large industrial machines which can cost $1000.00 or more. Hornady’s new Lock-N-Load® Magnum Sonic Cleaner™, with a $317.08 MSRP, provides triple the size and twice the power of the original Lock-N-Load® Sonic Cleaner™.
Dual Transducers for Faster Cleaning
The new machine, priced at $317.08 MSRP, features two transducers. This assuredly will improve cleaning performance and probably reduce processing time, compared to single-transducer machines in the same size range. The new Magnum Sonic Cleaner also has a heat-setting control, allowing users to set the correct temperature for best cleaning efficiency. Cheaper machines just have an “on/off” switch. The new machine comes standard with a durable metal-mesh basket.
SPECIFICATIONS
Magnum Sonic Cleaner Machine
3L Tank (3.2 qt)
Tank dimensions: 9.4″ x 5.5″ x 3.9″.
MSRP: $317.08
We talked recently with our friend Darrell Jones, a talented benchrest shooter from Tennessee, who operates a brass processing business, DJ’s Brass Restoration Service. Darrell ultrasonically cleans old cartridge brass then carefully anneals each case, using temp-sensitive lacquers to ensure the brass is neither over-annealed or under-annealed. As far as we know, DJ’s Brass Restoration Service is the ONLY business in the country offering combined ultrasonic cleaning and annealing. And now Darrell can process your brass with even great efficiency.
Darrell told us he has just received his new, automated dual-torch, carousel annealing machine from Bench-Source. This microprocessor-controlled unit may be the most advanced bench-top annealing machine ever created. Two torches are used to provide intersecting flames for uniform heating. The micro-processor precisely controls the heating time, and a special motor spins each case around its axis while in the heating position. This ensures that the neck and shoulder are annealed evenly.
Combined Ultrasonic Cleaning and Case Annealing
If you have “tired” brass with inconsistent neck tension from case to case, give Darrell a call. His cleaning/annealing process will extend the useful life of your brass, and his service is quite affordable. Darrell’s Basic Service starts at $20.00 per hundred cases — and that includes ultrasonic cleaning AND annealing. (Flat rate USPS shipping is extra.) Note: very large cases (such as the .338 Lapua) or damaged, dented cases may cost more.
In addition to the Basic Service, Darrell offers a 4-Step Full Service starting at $25.00 per hundred cases (plus shipping). Darrell’s Full Service brass restoration includes: Uniforming primer pockets; Chamfering Case Mouths; Ultra Cleaning and polishing; Annealing case necks.
Ultrasonic Muzzle Brake Cleaning
In addition to cleaning and annealing cartridge brass, Darrell offers Ultrasonic Cleaning for muzzle brakes. This removes carbon buildup to restore critical bullet clearance requirements. The price is $15.00 per brake (plus shipping).
For more information, visit DJsBrass.com, or call Darrell at (901) 826-1503. IMPORTANT: Contact Darrell for shipping instructions BEFORE sending any brass for processing. ALL BRASS MUST BE DE-PRIMED before you send it.
Some weeks ago we reported that ATK was involved in a program with military-base commanders, under which one-fired cartridge brass was “de-milled” and then sold as scrap metal to ATK. The unit commanders then retained the proceeds for “discretionary use” at their bases. This procedure drew flack from gun owners and various members of Congress who believed the brass should be sold in reloadable condition — thereby returning its “highest use value” to the U.S. Treasury.
Apparently ATK has abandoned the process of purchasing, at scrap value, demilled once-fired brass from military base commanders. According to Jim Shepherd’s Shooting Wire: “Montana Congressman Denny Rehberg has been ‘personally assured’ by Alliant Techsystems (NYSE:ATK) that the company’s controversial purchasing of demilled, once-fired military brass from individual military post commandants was ‘done’. That program launched a firestorm of protest from ammunition reloaders toward the small arms ammunition manufacturer after Montana Shooting Sports Association president Gary Marbut alleged ATK was trying to ‘pull an end-run’ around a Congressional directive to stop the process of destroying once-fired military brass.”
We hope that ATK has abandoned the de-milling program for good, and that once-fired military brass will, without exception, be made available to surplus vendors through public auctions. This was the intent of a Congressional Directive which stated that once-fired brass should be sold in reloadable condition. The U.S. government should certainly receive the highest value for surplus cartridge brass which the taxpayer paid to produce in the first place. Once-fired military brass is a popular resource for recreational and competitive shooters nationwide.
Now that Zephyr Dynamics’ “Brass-O-Matic” rotary case annealer is no longer in production (Zephyr Dy’s owner received a “job offer he couldn’t refuse”), we were excited to learn that Bench-Source is bringing out an all-new, micro-processor-controlled, automated annealing machine. Bench-Source, based in Mississippi, currently produces high-quality scope bases for Savage target actions. The annealing machine is a new direction for Bench-Source, but it displays the company’s trademark attention to detail and superb machining.
The new Bench-Source automatic case neck annealing machine processes 500-600 cartridges per hour, from 22 Hornet up to the big magnums. Heating time from 1.5 to 10 seconds is precisely controlled by a microprocessor with both a manual mode and “Automatic” mode. Note that the cartridge spins in place when it is at the annealing position, giving a uniform anneal. After annealing, the case exits via a gravity-fed drop port, so you don’t have to handle hot cases. Note: In the video below, the flame you see on some cases is burn-off of temp-indicating marker. Watch carefully and you can see that the case being annealed spins while being heated.
You can use either one or two heat sources. Torch tips are adjustable in height, angle, distance and vertical tilt by two clamp knobs. Unlike some other units, the flame height is quickly and easily adjustable. We were pleased to see all the top surfaces are metal (no plastic to warp or melt). The solid aluminum table top and index plate are also cooled by a 50-cubic-feet-per-minute fan — they will not heat up significantly during use. Additionally, the table acts as a heat sink to maintain hardness in the cartridge case head.
The unit goes on sale in March 2010. Anticipated retail price is $449.50. To order, visit Bench-Source.com, or contact Vertex Mfg. at (662) 895-0803.
Zephyr Dynamics, the clever folks who brought you Pod Paws for bipods, have crafted an impressive new automated annealing machine. Unlike other mechanical annealers on the market, Zephyr’s $399.00 “Brass-O-Matic” is designed to anneal ALL sizes of rifle brass–from .223 Rem all the way up to 50 BMG. Two arms hold high-output torches (bottles and tips not included in price). You can adjust the height of the jets to place the flames right at the “sweet spot” of any length case. With two burners fixed nearly opposite one another (see photo), the case neck and shoulder are completely enveloped by flame for uniform annealing. The rotational motor has a speed control so you can adjust the dwell time for your particular brass.
How well does it work? To be honest, we can’t say because we haven’t got our hands on a production version yet. Palma and F-Class ace Jerry Tierney has purchased one of the first run and he’s promised a full report as soon as UPS delivers his Brass-O-Matic. To see the machine in action, check out the video below. You’ll find another video, and more information, on the Zephyr Dynamics website.
We all know that reloading components have been in short supply in recent months. If you’ve been searching for quality brass, your wait may be over.
Here’s good news for purchasers of reloading components. 
To really test the stainless steel media’s cleaning power, I mixed three kinds of pistol brass that offered different challenges. First was some very old Amron headstamped .357 Magnum brass. The late Ken Lomont of Lomont Precision Bullets gave me the Amron brass as partial payment back when I was still in high school and working for him. I’ve been shooting it for years, so it’s obviously very durable. But it’s also very hard to clean, which made it great for the test.
Before I ran the cases through the tumbler, I knocked out all of the fired primers so that the stainless steel media would be able to get into the primer pockets and run through the flash holes. The media that we have at Sinclair is only .040″ in diameter, so it will easily go through the .080″ diameter flash hole on most domestic-produced brass, as well as the smaller .060″ flash holes found on some other cases. Once I knocked out the primers, I poured the brass and the media into the tumbler drum together.
Then I mixed up the cleaning solution. I poured ¾ of a gallon of water into the unit, and then put in four tablespoons of Dawn dishwashing detergent. I also added one teaspoon of lemon juice to keep the brass from spotting when it dried.
Then I rinsed the media, too. Rinsing the media is important: if you don’t do it, the media will be dirty when you use it next time. The media is easier to rinse while it’s still damp, and it cleans easily with clear water. As you can see, the brass cleaned up very well and showed no evidence of water spotting because of the lemon juice. The range pick-up brass came out fully usable, showing no signs of corrosion. The nickel brass looked as if it were brand new and unfired. The Amron cases looked the best that I can ever remember seeing them. Some of them still had a light amount of carbon just behind the case mouth, but a quick twist with 0000 steel wool took care of this easily during inspection of these cases before loading. All of the primer pockets were clean and clear of carbon. Impressive!
Based on what I have seen, I will definitely use stainless steel media a whole lot in the future, even though I will still keep some of the
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R, OK), successfully added an amendment to the committee-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, making military surplus previously-fired small arms cartridges available for commercial sale with certain restrictions. It also requires the U.S. Secretary of Defense to ensure compliance with managing commercial sale of spent ammunition.
OK, you .260 Rem shooters, break out your credit cards. The Lapua .260 Remington cartridge brass has finally arrived. Kevin Thomas of Lapua tells us: “Sorry for the wait guys, but it’s here. Grafs.com has its shipment and will begin shipping orders [May 4, 2011]. Kaltron Pettibone received theirs a few days ago and should be filling existing orders as I write. Let us know what you think of this stuff. Looks pretty good so far, but the proof’s in the pudding.” 
In 2011, Hornady will be offering a new stainless-shell, heavy-duty Ultrasonic Cleaning machine, which fits nicely between the cheap, low-capacity machines sold on eBay, and the large industrial machines which can cost $1000.00 or more. Hornady’s new Lock-N-Load® Magnum Sonic Cleaner™, with a $317.08 MSRP, provides triple the size and twice the power of the original Lock-N-Load® Sonic Cleaner™.
Dual Transducers for Faster Cleaning
Apparently ATK has abandoned the process of purchasing, at scrap value, demilled once-fired brass from military base commanders. According to 
The new Bench-Source automatic case neck annealing machine processes 500-600 cartridges per hour, from 22 Hornet up to the big magnums. Heating time from 1.5 to 10 seconds is precisely controlled by a microprocessor with both a manual mode and “Automatic” mode. Note that the cartridge spins in place when it is at the annealing position, giving a uniform anneal. After annealing, the case exits via a gravity-fed drop port, so you don’t have to handle hot cases. Note: In the video below, the flame you see on some cases is burn-off of temp-indicating marker. Watch carefully and you can see that the case being annealed spins while being heated.
