![]() ![]() Personally, I just want reliable ammo and it does not need to look brand new. If you want your newly reloaded rounds to be bright and shiny and look just like factory rounds, then yes, you can buy all that equipment and impress your friends. I am here to tell you that you do not need any of that! If you look online at reloading supplies, it can be confusing as there are hundreds of cleaning products, tumblers, tumbler media, polishing compounds and gadgets to help you prepare and clean your brass. If your brass casings were on the ground outside, it will likely have mud, dirt or gravel on it as well as inside of it. If it was picked up off the range, it will have carbon on it from when it was fired. In order to reload successfully, the first thing we need to do is clean the brass. If you are just beginning reloading, See: How to Start Reloading Ammo Cleaning Brass Cartridge Casings for Reloading Also if you are interested in casting your own bullets, see How to Cast Lead Bullets for Reloading. This article will deal with pistol caliber ammo, and most of the pictures will be demonstrating. This is the first step in reloading your own ammunition. In this article I will show you how to clean the brass you picked up on the range to be reloaded again. Since unlacquered brass can easily tarnish, be sure to polish it every few months with a trusted polishing solution or a rag already loaded with product.How to clean and prepare your used brass for Reloading. If you are using a homemade solution, you should thoroughly rinse the piece and pat completely dry.Īfter a thorough clean, make sure to dust any decorative pieces and wipe down any brass fixtures in your home regularly. In most instances, you should allow the polishing solution (like Goddard's) to dry on the piece before wiping it down with a clean soft cloth. Bougere warns "extreme tarnish requires patience," so be ready to scrub quite a bit to achieve the perfect shine. Then, you can go in with your cleaning solution on a clean, soft cloth to remove any tarnish. Since brass is pretty resilient, you can often use tougher bristles, but it's always safer to start with a softer toothbrush and work your way up. "It could be that your piece responds incredibly well to cleaning and won't require much polish, or it could be the opposite."įor brass that has visible debris on its surface, Bougere likes to go in with a toothbrush to remove dirt from more ornate or smaller pieces. "Start at the bottom and apply a little solution to see how the piece reacts," says Bougere. If you are working with something only plated in brass, you can simply clean it in warm water and soap-polishing these types of pieces may accidentally result in scratching off the plating.Īfter identifying the type of brass piece, Bougere urges people to test whatever solution they are using on the piece to ensure it doesn't have a negative reaction. If it does not stick, it's brass if it does, it's probably just brass-plated. The easiest way to figure out if something is made completely of brass is to stick a magnet up to it. The first step in the cleaning process is to check if your piece is fully brass or just brass-plated. "Polishing, on the other hand, makes a product shine and you will need both cleaning products and buffing via cloth." "The purpose of cleaning is to remove debris from the product," says Bougere. While some may assume cleaning and polishing are synonymous, Bougere points out that one requires a bit more elbow grease and time. Happy cleaning! The Difference Between Cleaning and Polishing Brass Here, she reveals the cleaning product she swears by, why you should always keep toothbrushes in your toolkit, and how to remove that tricky tarnish. Rau, to learn how to properly clean and polish brass jewelry pieces and vintage objets d'art in our collections. VERANDA reached out to Sherlita Bougere, the executive housekeeper at New Orleans-based antique shop M.S. Careful upkeep is the only way to stop corrosion on your favorite brass pieces. Though patina has its time and place, extremely tarnished brass does not. That's why it's important to know exactly how to keep those brass pieces shining. It appears on everything from heirloom flatware and crockery to contemporary lamps and even end tables. In terms of popularity, brass is the queen bee of metals when it comes to decorating our homes. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |