Decap Before Tumbling?

[Sniper 79]

Nope. Tumble then load and shoot. I don't care about shiny and spotless. Dont clean primer pockets either.

 

[openwell]

Nope. Tumble then load and shoot. I don't care about shiny and spotless. Dont clean primer pockets either.

that's funny......
I don't tumble 'em.....

I clean primer pockets on pistol & rifle cases........except.....pistol or rifle cartridges loaded on progressive.

Also use stoney point OAL gauge with modified cases for rifles I want to touch or space a few thousanths just off rifling....... for clover-leaf groups @ 100 y.

yep.....YMMV and probably willlllll

 

[craigkim]

In regards to handgun.... I like to go through my brass and check to make sure there aren't any rocks in it or a 22 case before I run a decapping pin through it, but I don't particularly care for handling a bag of really dirty brass even with gloves, so I like to dry tumble first, then give it a once over and then load. I don't think a clean primer pocket matters for pistol.

 

[crewchief888]

I separate out the 45acp i'm keeping, inspect small batches of it for SPP/LPP, dry tumble with walnut and polish, separate the media, sort through again (pesky SPP) and run it through my SDB for loading.

 

[openwell]

In regards to handgun....
I don't think a clean primer pocket matters for pistol.

it matters......I hunt with revolvers.....
accuracy is better when I clean primer pockets........because....
it takes just few seconds.
my revolver loads use magnum primers in .357 Rem. mag , .41 Rem. mag, .44 Rem. mag which give me better accuracy that counts.

my 500 s&w mag. uses magnum rifle primers that also require cleaning to get best....

my pistol cartridges for 38 wcf., 38 spl., 9mm, 40 s&w, 10mm auto, 45 acp. usually get loaded on progressive & I don't clean primer pockets.

but whatever floats your boats

 

[JHB]

it matters......I hunt with revolvers.....
accuracy is better when I clean primer pockets........because....
it takes just few seconds.
my revolver loads use magnum primers in .357 Rem. mag , .41 Rem. mag, .44 Rem. mag which give me better accuracy that counts.

my 500 s&w mag. uses magnum rifle primers that also require cleaning to get best....

my pistol cartridges for 38 wcf., 38 spl., 9mm, 40 s&w, 10mm auto, 45 acp. usually get loaded on progressive & I don't clean primer pockets.

but whatever floats your boats

Yup clean primer pockets make a difference when you use reduced power springs on a competition gun.

 

[GSPBirdDog]

If you are dry tumbling the i would say no. If you are wet tumbling then i say it is a must! When i started wet tumbing, i tried leaving the primers in. I dried them in my Lyman case dryer and loaded up 500pcs. When i took them to the range, 9 out of 10 misfired. I later found out that the spent primers held a lot of moisture and it contaminated my powder when loading. I now deprime all my brass and wet tumble them. It also makes drying time faster!

 

[craigkim]

Another option I have used, for more effort is to setup a die strictly for decapping. You can run that pretty damn fast too. Then wet tumble, dry tumble to polish, then when you load you are sizing clean, shiny brass.

 

[76Too]

I'm not one to care about shiny brass, but tumbling removes corrosive carbon (wet or dry) and will extend the life of your dies and keep your hands relatively clean(ish) while sizing/decapping.

I never clean primer pockets (I dry tumble with primers still in), but I load 90% rifle. I tumble pistol rounds to make sure theres no sand/rocks in the brass, but that's basically the only reason.

 

[1775usmarine]

I deprime with a frankford hand deprimer and a tube that goes in a 2l bottle. I sort my brass as I go and chuck into their corresponding buckets. I wet tumble my pistol brass use a food dehydrator to dry and load. For my 223 my only rifle I load for I wet tumble, food dehydrator, size and trim, and repeat steps 1 and 2. I also wear some thick nitrile gloves to keep my hands from turning black with all the crud.

I've gotten to the point I can deprime and sort a 5gal bucket of brass in less than 6hrs. I also have a bucket for brass I dont load that gets further sorted into baggies to be wet tumbled. When I collect enough of that brass I sell or trade.

 

[1nderbeard]

I dry tumble after I de-prime and trim the brass. I figure tumbling will get whatever brass shavings are still on the cases off.

It is frustrating though that media gets stuck in the primer pocket. My least favorite parts of loading are trimming brass and getting media out of primer pockets.

 

[John3354]

Lately I have been wet tumbling right after sorting and then I run brass through a APP Press where I resize and decap at the same time and then I wet tumbler again.

No running dirty brass through presses and dies, nice clean primer pockets, no worry about drying brass, and my presses run a lot smoother as they don't have to resize. I still run a resizing die without decapping pin in my 550 and turret presses as I hand prime that brass. On my Lock'n'Load AP I prime on the press so I keep the full resizing die in there with depriming pin.

I also wet tumble in Wash'n'Wax car wash instead of Dawn. The little bit of wax also helps keep things running smoothly and helps prevent brass tarnishing. Not that it really bothers me if it does.