I finally got around to collecting the tall coffee cans of dirty media I had stashed around the shop. I took a different tack (naturally) in that I put all of it in a canning kettle added hot water a squirt of dish detergent and a chug of rubbing alcohol to help displace the waxes left behind from the dryer sheet pieces I add to pick up the dust. Stirred the mix up good. Let it settle and poured off the dirty water on top. I repeated, but just added additional hot water, stirring, settling and pouring off, until it came out clear for two passes. IIRC, it took 5 or 6 cycles total. After pouring off as much as possible without the media coming out with the water (not hard), I dumped the wet mash into the middle of a fine weave, piece of silk big enough to hold the pile and gathered it up to form a bag around the mash. I took it outside and swung it like the hammer throw to draw off as much water as possible. Noticed the neighbor peeking out his curtain at me with a puzzled look on his face, but then he's seen me do weirder things... Once I could not sling out any more water, I divided the moist mash into three big cookie trays and placed them in the oven, which I had already heated to 200. After it regained its temperature setpoint, I turned it off and let the temperature coast down to room temp. The wife and daughter complained about the smell, which was somewhere between scented dryer sheet and musty basement, that had filled the entire house. My argument about the free humidifier effect was a lost cause. When it had cooled to room temp, I opened the oven and it was like I had not even tried to dry it. Still wet with only a fine layer on top looking remotely like drying. I stirred the three trays, spilling a little media here and there and suffering
Missy Bimbo's scorn. After three hours of dickin' with it, it was much dryer than when I started, so I ran the oven up to 200 yet one last time, turned it off and went to bed. In the morning, it was almost totally dry. I ran the temp up once again and let it cool down. Finally it was very dry to the touch, but I left it sit until this morning for good measure. Loaded up the tumbler and ran a load comprised of .30-06, .308 and Grendel brass, without any additive or dryer sheets. It cleaned the brass as much as I expected, considering it is old media and I didn't put any additive in it.
For the amount of time it all took and the gas I used, I won't be cleaning any more. I can get another 25lb box of walnut media from Harbor Freight for $25.00 and believe me, that venture was easily worth four times that in my free time, gas and familial disdain.
Hoot
Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2011 2:11 am
