noisy process that would irritate anyone who had even a semblance of hearing left. Even with my seemingly shot-out hearing it still was an annoyance, which made it necessary to isolate the operation in another part of the house. But, possibly the most disappointing issue with this type of cleaning/polishing is the fact that it resulted in essentially polishing only the outside of the cases. That meant that the soot and powder residue remained intact inside the cases as well as inside the primer pockets. Essentially I was at a loss to fi gure out how to thoroughly clean the insides. As far as the primer pockets went, this generally was accomplished by hand with a homemade tool I fabricated from an old screwdriver. The reason why a tumbler is so ineffective on these interior areas is simple. As soon as the brass is placed inside and the tumbler is turned on, those areas instantly become plugged with the cleaning medium and stay that way throughout the entire pol- ishing cycle. In this case the brass would eventually turn out looking like new on the outside, but the insides and the primer pockets would appear untouched and as dirty as they were at the onset. Lyman’s new Turbo Sonic Ultra-
sonic Cleaner comes with a couple of very important advantages over those provided by tumbling. First, you can cut your cleaning/polishing time down from the many hours to usually only 10 or 15 minutes. I did, however, fi nd it necessary to occasionally extend the cleaning cycle by a couple of additional minutes when the cases were exceptionally dirty and tarnished. But aside from this very short amount of time needed to get the brass sparkling clean, quite likely the most im- portant benefi t of using the Lyman Turbo Sonic Ultrasonic Cleaner comes from the fact that it not only cleans the outside of the cases, it cleans the inside as well. In most instances, even the primer pockets come clean, too. To clean brass cartridge cases it is
necessary that you mix Lyman’s Turbo Sonic Concentrated Cartridge Case Cleaning Solution at a rate of ½ to 1 ounce of concentrate per 20 ounces of water. The company recommends the use of distilled water, but I substituted normal tap water, as the directions al- lowed for, and I found it worked fi ne. The large 2.5-liter capacity tank has the capability of holding up to 250 cases the size of .308 Winchester, or up to 900 cases
the size of a 9mm. No matter what size the batch you are cleaning, it is necessary that the cases be completely submerged under the surface of the fl uid. Once the cleaning solution has been mixed and placed in the cleaner tank the wire basket containing your brass can be lowered into the unit. For operational control there are only four buttons to contend with, which are labeled: On, Off, Set, and TC. The functions of the On and Off buttons are self-explanatory. The Set but- ton determines the length of the cleaning cycle, from 180 seconds (three minutes) up to 480 seconds (eight minutes). The TC button is the on and off switch for the heater. It is as simple as that. Once the fl uid becomes murky in appearance it should be replenished with a fresh mixture. The only possible disadvantage
that I have found using the Lyman Turbo Sonic Ultrasonic Cleaner comes with the fact that you must ensure that the cartridge cases are completely dry before they can be reloaded. I usually try to clean my brass well in advance of the actual reloading process. Once they have been cleaned, I generally spread them out on a towel and allow them to air dry for a week or so before proceeding on to the actual reloading process. If you are in a hurry, the directions indicate that a hair dryer can be effectively used to speed up the drying process. I must acknowledge I have been
guilty from time to time of ignoring the cleaning of my reloading dies and they get pretty grungy over time. But reload- ing dies, gun parts, tools, and even in some cases your wife’s jewelry, also can be cleaned using the Lyman Turbo Sonic Ultrasonic Cleaner. By simply substitut- ing the usual Cartridge Case Cleaning Solution for Lyman’s Concentrated Steel & Gun Parts Cleaning Solution, it can be used to clean stainless steel or anodized aluminum gun parts. But, when used for cleaning gold jewelry, the normal Cartridge Case Solution is recommended. It is, however, advisable if you intend to clean jewelry with the Lyman Cleaner you should fi rst carefully read the instructions that come with the unit. Cleaning of silver, sterling sliver, and silver plating is not recommended, and you should avoid submerging any gemstones in the solution. With the liquid temperature reach- ing 65 degrees C, it is even possible in
The motorized Lyman Case Prep Xpress speeds up the deburring and chamfering processes and, in the author's opinion, it provides a higher degree of consistency and uniformity.
some instances to operate the Lyman Cleaner with only clean water and without any chemical additives. While the results probably wouldn’t be too impressive when it came to polishing brass cartridges cases, in some instances involving a dust or dirt buildup, or some other forms of contamination, this may provide an effective way of cleaning. A prior cleaning with only hot water could also act as a cleaning step before moving on to using the sonic chemicals. In my opinion, the Lyman Turbo
Sonic Ultrasonic Cleaner is extremely well-built. Its compact size takes up less space than most tumblers and its durable hard plastic shell provides a great deal of protection from damage. Cleaning of the unit is as easy as placing a little clean water inside, with possibly a little dish soap, sloshing it around a bit, and wiping it down. And, I think the fact that it can be used to clean other shooting related items only adds to the inherent benefi ts.
CONTACT Lyman
475 Smith St.
Middletown, CT 06457 860-632-2020
www.lymanproducts.com www.varminthunter.org
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