Keeping brass bright

[hogan]

First off, I am anal about clean brass.
After tumbling my brass in lemishine and SS my brass looks great but it does not take long for that shine to fade.
Anybody have any suggestions on keeping the brass shiny?

[Rick in Oregon]

Everyone has their own regimen in regard to their personal beloved brass, myself included. Anal, yes, but if we're into this pastime, it's pretty much assured you're anal about it. (Or should be. )

Probably not the panacea, but I just store all my brass in hinged plastic 100 cnt Berry's Boxes, shoot, put back into the case, and upon returning home the brass goes immediately into my vibratory case cleaner. I do not handle it after it's been loaded, so no fingerprints or contaminants. I have loaded rounds from a few seasons ago for some rifles that never got shot, and the brass all looks like it was loaded last week. All my ammo is stored in military .50 cal cans, air and watertight....maybe that makes a difference, dunno.

Moisture, humidity, and general exposure to the air will tarnish brass, but if it's clean to start with and stored in airtight containers, it should in theory stay shiny for a very long time. I live in an arid desert environment with very low humidity, so that I'm sure is a contributing factor to why my brass stays so shiny for so long.

I'm sure others will chime in with their methods. I'm always interested in hearing what others do.

[MZ5]

The only issue I’ve ever had with ss pin tumbled brass tarnishing is when I haven’t got the acid (lemi-shine) rinsed off completely. Maybe slower drying time exacerbates that.

[BitterClinger]

If you want to keep that bright shine longer you have to protect the brass from oxygen. After wet cleaning my brass I let it dry and then dry tumble in corncob with some Turtle Wax All Metal Polish drizzled in. The Turtle Wax polish will help keep that shine as it helps to slow the oxidation . Just never use Brasso or other polishes that contain ammonia as it attacks the brass.

[skipper]

Polished lots of brass as a Drill Instructor in the Marines. Best trick I've ever seen is to use Ronson's lighter fluid on a clean white cloth after tumbling. You'll see why immediately after the first case. Move to a clean area of the cloth when the black residue starts to build. Then don't touch it. It'll stay shiny almost forever.

[Bill K]

The old Ronson trick and remember Jon'e hand warmer fluid works as well. Bill K

[BitterClinger]

While lighter fluid may very well shine and protect brass and is fine for the type of brass on a uniform, it is highly inadvisable to use any petroleum products on brass ammo casings for obvious reasons.

[Bill K]

And what are the obvious reasons ? It evaporates very quickly and causes no lasting effects. Just curious. Bill K

[skipper]

I was not advocating that the lighter fluid goes inside the case, just on the outside. However I have put jewelers rouge into my media before with no ill results.

[Rick in Oregon]

I have put jewelers rouge into my media before with no ill results.

Skipper, IRT jewelers rouge on rifle cases; I found some years ago that it builds up inside the case, and if not removed could/will eventually influence the interior volume of the case. And we all know that ain't good!

Just another one of those pearls of wisdom gained over decades of stuffing cases in the man cave. FWIW

[skipper]

I agree with your assessment, however people have been adding all sorts of things to media for years. Some manufacturers even add it themselves. Rouge, NuFinish, Turtle Wax, Ronson lighter fluid, etc. I think that as long as you clean your cases out afterwards everything will be okay. I usually run my cases through a brass brush attachment after tumbling anyhow. Tumbling never did much for the insides. I'm not the definitive expert on the subject. I do like my cases to be shiny though. I love my neck tension to be consistent, even more.

[Rick in Oregon]

I do like my cases to be shiny though. I love my neck tension to be consistent, even more.

Yessir on both accounts!

I know you're as fussy as myself and figured you would never tolerate any foreign material in your cases. I just wanted to point out to others that the stuff can and will build up on the inside of rifle cases, and cause potential issues down the road. I quit putting rouge in my tumbling mix, just keep the stuff as clean as possible and change it out often.

Who doesn't love shiny cases?