Stainless tumbling – media separation question

[rox]

Are media separators reliable when used with stainless media? At the moment I pick the cases out of the final rinse water two at a time, mouth down, and shake them. It's a ball ache, but I'd rather that than load a round with a pin left in it. So far I have encountered one pin stuck in a flash hole and found one pin in the bottom of a brass storage bin. Stuck pins aside, can I depend on a media separator to remove all the pins?

Thanks!

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[phaedra1106]

For small batches I use the same method you do but for larger batches I dump the lot into a rotary separator, only had two cases with pins in the primer pockets in the last 2 years and if I remember correctly that was as they came out of the tumbler. Never had any pins in the actual cases, this is with .44 and .308.

[dromia]

Rotary separator with flushing water works, still too much of a faff on for me though, then you've got to get the pins out of bucket of water.

[rox]

then you've got to get the pins out of bucket of water.

What about getting rid of the water first?

There has to be a way - hang on - what about - pouring it out? :lol:

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[dromia]

Yep and then all the bloody pins want to go with the water down the plug hole, as I've said a what a fecking faff on, I ended up using a magnet to get them out of the last remmants of the water, life is too short for stainless steel pains.

[rox]

Yep and then all the bloody pins want to go with the water down the plug hole, as I've said a what a fecking faff on, I ended up using a magnet to get them out of the last remmants of the water, life is too short for stainless steel pains.

That's one area that I don't find to be a problem. I just pour away the surplus water (without getting close to the pins, but I place a sieve in the sink just in case), then put a cover over the bowl and I'm done. If I don't expect to use them for more than a month I may transfer them to a plastic tub but I don't worry about getting all the water out. The pins don't corrode, unlike the tumbler.

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[Scotsgun]

I must confess that I'm using spherical media purely because that's what my mates use and recommend. I can't compare them against the pins but I have no probs with mine. Mates won't use pins purely because they claim their more prone to loosing one in a case.
You're have to be pretty ham fisted to get all the way through drying, resizing, reloading.... But the resulting barrel damage doesn't bare thinking about.