media sifters/separators

I have seen the dillons, the rcbs, the frankford arsenal, and the cabelas and midsouth shooters brand, prices from 20-80 bucks, some with lids others without..
After a year, I'm getting tired of doing the pan with holes in the bottom over a cardboard box with walnut.. rotated by hand..makes a mess..as well as a pia for rifle brass have to hold them mouth down and tap against other hand to get media out of small neck cases, large mouth pistol brass not so much as hard to empty..

Not ready to go to stainless pins..

so since they all pretty much use a spinning basket over a bucket, what seems to work the best for the $$ invested..
I'm not a slave to colors or brands, just don't want a pos, and want it to work..

So your opinions are requested..
Thanks in advance

I did find this..
http://www.brianenos.com/forums/inde...owtopic=142627

And this..

http://www.predatormastersforums.com...2231469&page=2

firsthand reviews are better
http://m.dillonprecision.com/mconten...edia_Separator

https://fsreloading.com/frankford-ar...fr-507565.html

http://www.gunholstersunlimited.com/...separator.html

A conventional colander, like you use for skeggi noodles. And some aggressive shaking.

If you really want to be 'up town' you can buy these for a few bucks. They fit right in the top of a five gallon bucket so most of the media pours through directly into the bucket. Then simply shake, shake shake, to get the rest out of the brass.

http://thumbs4.ebaystatic.com/d/l225...rcB4zEqTlA.jpg

But you still have to shake,shake,shake. :wiggle:

Oh, I am uptown. But there has to be a better way..like all things reloading...open up the wallet..
R man, so how well does that vigorus shaking get walnut out from the inside of 223 cases...
I haven't found that shaking or sloshing, or rotating through the hands in a tossing manner does it,
Grabbing a handful neck down and shaking works....sort of...

I'm looking for something that works as well for sifting media as a chargemaster does for dispensing powder...
It may not exist, but that won't stop me from looking for it..

This post may ' splain it betterrer...

http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...dia+separators

Or this..

http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...dia+separators

Or this..
http://www.thehighroad.org/archive/i.../t-298624.html

Because I tumble before I deprime I don't have a media stuck in the flash hole problem. I kinda use a "toss like a salad" technique in the sifter. The only time I have had a problem getting media out of the case is after adding liquid polish (I use "Nu Finish the once a year car polish") and not letting the tumbler run long enough to break up the inevitable clumps that form adding liquid to ground up media.

As for the "works as good as the chargemaster" thing, I highly recommend drafting "volunteer" college kids to do it for you. ;)

I use the Dillon CM 2000. It rocks.

AB,
From what i have seen on the videos, I'm really leaning toward the dillon, mainly due to the construction of the basket latches and the pin that holds the basket from moving while loading...it looks well thought out.

On the smaller one the cm 500 I think, are they built the same?
I know I may regret it, but I don't need the capacity to do 750-1000 pcs of 223 brass at a time..
Looking for a little smaller footprint, but if not built as well, with the features of the larger model, I would get the big one....

Where is the best place to get one.. locally at a dillon dealer, or ordered online from brian enos or somewhere..
Thanks..for a review of what I'm looking for..

Buy the best you can afford . I find that to be a true statement any time you are buying a tool for any job. I'm using a RCBS that I bought more than 15 years ago and it works as well today as when I bought it. If I take the purchase price and divided by 15 years I have paid a couple of dollars a year to have a top quality tool.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mapper

AB,
From what i have seen on the videos, I'm really leaning toward the dillon, mainly due to the construction of the basket latches and the pin that holds the basket from moving while loading...it looks well thought out.

On the smaller one the cm 500 I think, are they built the same?
I know I may regret it, but I don't need the capacity to do 750-1000 pcs of 223 brass at a time..
Looking for a little smaller footprint, but if not built as well, with the features of the larger model, I would get the big one....

Where is the best place to get one.. locally at a dillon dealer, or ordered online from brian enos or somewhere..
Thanks..for a review of what I'm looking for..

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I don't know anyone who stocks their stuff locally. Every time I've not "gone big" I've regretted it and ended up buying the upgrade anyway. That thing is sturdy as they come. I've had mine for 12 years and I use it a lot, so even if it needed replacing tomorrow I would have gotten my money's worth out of it. I admit the footprint is big, but I also have the biggest case cleaner they make too, and the small separator wouldn't handle the load from the CV 2000 case cleaner.

Academy has one of the big brands of sifters in stock... I think RCBS.

I picked up the dillon cm 500, it can handle 700 38 special cases or so it says on the box....
Well built, no cheesy construction, a pin for a hinge and a good latch on the basket, also a pin that holds the basket from turning when loading..
The tumbler can't hold more than that many cases any way... i dont have the really big 2000 case dillon one, if i did, i would get the big separator..no question about it...

and yes I put it together and separated some walnut from 223 cases all of it with ease...


One time using the dillon and I'll never go back to a collander....it will be collecting dust..an offering to the gods of reloading...it is going in the pay it forward section..

It is as good as what it does as the chargemaster.. AB said it best..it rocks..

And Tallahassee Indoor Shooting Range is a dillon dealer and had one...yay!

I picked up the cabelas/rcbs/berrys one for wet tumbling
For light duty, if you like to fiddle with it it works.
Its no dillon though.
I take some mosquito netting over a collander and strain the water from the pins/brass
Then in the separator it goes, after 2 basketfuls, a small piece of the basket hinge broke off.
Its ok, I wanted something with a top for the wet stuff, and rcbs stands by their stuff, so I'm not worried.
Good enough for what I'm asking of it.

Get one of the cheaper ones that look like it if you go this route, they are all made by berrys, and the same except color
From what I have seen.

I have a completely enclosed spinner to separate the brass from the pins, and I use a releasable magnet to collect my pins afterwards. Goes pretty quick.

Thanks, I'll get the magnet, and ditch the collander/mosquito net
Mainly just wanted to try it today.
No magnet in site locally, so this was a bandaid solution to try it.

Happy with everything but the time/volume of brass
Its still faster for me to dry tumble and brush out primer pockets, for rifle, more volume as well.
Than decap and wet tumble in smaller batches
Less dust though, but brass has to dry.

No free lunches, still got to pay the band to play.

How does a magnet work on stainless pins?

I got mine from Midway USA. Franklin Arsenal, I think.

Bodo, I think you might need another cup of coffee.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bodo

How does a magnet work on stainless pins?

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if stainless has a Ferritic structure it is magnetic. Some have a higher amount of nickel that m makes it non magnetic. I think. It's been a long time since I Had to think about this shit.....

Damn 12B, I learn something new every day.

I just figured he had stainless confused with aluminum. All stainless I've ever worked with would attract a magnet. Thanks

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Cattle/Horses

Damn 12B, I learn something new every day.

I just figured he had stainless confused with aluminum. All stainless I've ever worked with would attract a magnet. Thanks

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I messed with plating years ago. Boss would come in with a magnet and check me. If it was not magnetic he would get on my ass for not putting enough nickel in the tank.... You tend to remember shit when it's hollered at you enough.

Non magnetic is more corrosion resistant but lacks strength when compared to magnetic .

Learned something today. Most stainless steels are magnetic. Any that I've ever used is non-magnetic and I just assumed...