HF vibratory tumbler, what the secret?

I bought the harbor freight 5lb vibratory tumbler and the green pyramid media to clean some nuts and bolts. I placed a handful of rusty but dry nuts and bolts in and let it run for 6 hours. It looks like it did clean some of the rust but it is not down to bare metal.

I did some searching and reading, some people are adding liquid in with it, others use a different media, some say they just don't work.

I have a media cabinet and a bench grinder but I want to do other work will the tumbler cleans the hardware. So whats the secret?

I've heard of water and dawn dish soap being added to the media.

I have one I use from my reloading set that looks similar. I put some degreaser and small triagle media in... let it run for 24hrs and then rinse the whole lot in clean water. They come out looking new except all the zinc plating gets stripped with the dirt.

Off hand, I'd say you picked the wrong media for the application. Green pyramid is very mild and gentle. It's probably great at cleaning brass shell cases for reloading. But I don't think it's up to stripping rust off steel. For that, I'd be inclined to try the likes of Black Beauty.

I like crushed walnut shell media. It will turn corroded brass into a mirror finish (literally) so it should do the trick for rusty bits, too.

I heard someone say simple green, but have not done it myself.

Seems like degreaser is the key:

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/tech-tips/vibratory-tumbling-for-fun-and-profit/76055/page1/

I read that post, the instructions that came with it said do not add any liquid. But it seems that is the key to getting it work.

Sounds like I should add a bit of simple green with water and try it again.

To me, the main problem with doing this to hardware is that you may end up with rust free hardware, but if you don't do something to protect it, the rust will return in short order.

Plating shops are so cheap that even the most miserly of folks can drop their stuff off and pick it up freshly clean and brand new looking and the new plating will keep rust at bay.

EvanB wrote: Seems like degreaser is the key: https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/tech-tips/vibratory-tumbling-for-fun-and-profit/76055/page1/

I wonder what happened to all my pictures in that post. I never delete anything from photobucket.

But yeah. For the 15lb unit about a quart of water and half a cup of your favorite degreaser. Let it go overnight, longer if the bits are really crusty. I will even let it run over weekends with no ill effects.

Anything that won't fit into a bolt thread is not going to clean your bolt threads out. Need a smaller media.

I agree that the media is likely the issue here.

For cleaning brass, like, uhh... boom stick fodder, I use the ground walnut shell media. I sometimes add a capfull of something like Brasso to it, and the latest trick is to add a used drier softener sheet, which picks up all the dirt/dust and greatly prolongs media life.

Also, another latest-and greatest media is little bits of stainless steel. I bet that would work great for your use.

The green pyramid media is the correct media for cleaning rust on threads. That is what it is designed to do. You can order a courser grit brown plastic pyramid and even a grey ceramic pyramid through tumbler specialists. I don't use those much because they leave a finish that isn't smooth enough for the zinc plating to look correct.

Misleading picture from eastwood showing new hardware :rolleyes:

Walnut shell would take weeks! I have a tumbler setup just for walnut shell with a lump of red rouge in there. I use it for polishing delicate scripts and small aluminum pieces. It can take a few days to shine up a piece of aluminum

I have gone through 15 different media options with three different suppliers. Green pyramid is the best for nuts and bolts. It is designed to be used wet

In reply to Jumper K. Balls:

Really? I have an Eastwood tumbler and the green piramid media barely did crap to the rusty threads.

I didn't have time to wait, so I cleaned the hardware with a wire wheel on the grinder.

The tumbler hasn't been touched since. Anyone wanna buy it?

In reply to Ian F:

I've wanted to try one since the original thread by J. Balls but I really shouldn't be spending any more money on tools now.

Ian F wrote: In reply to Jumper K. Balls: Really? I have an Eastwood tumbler and the green piramid media barely did crap to the rusty threads. I didn't have time to wait, so I cleaned the hardware with a wire wheel on the grinder. The tumbler hasn't been touched since. Anyone wanna buy it?

Tumbling isn't a time saver. There are always faster methods. Wire wheel, sandblaster..ect. It can take well over 24 hours in some instances. The advantage of tumbling is the superior surface finish and the fact that it is an unmanned operation. I can be doing other billable tasks, down at the pub, asleep... whatever, and it is doing my work for me.

Jumper K. Balls wrote:

Ian F wrote: In reply to Jumper K. Balls: Really? I have an Eastwood tumbler and the green piramid media barely did crap to the rusty threads. I didn't have time to wait, so I cleaned the hardware with a wire wheel on the grinder. The tumbler hasn't been touched since. Anyone wanna buy it?

Tumbling isn't a time saver. There are always faster methods. Wire wheel, sandblaster..ect. It can take well over 24 hours in some instances. The advantage of tumbling is the superior surface finish and the fact that it is an unmanned operation. I can be doing other billable tasks, down at the pub, asleep... whatever, and it is doing my work for me.

"the fact that it is an unmanned operation" this is key for me, I want to work on other stuff while this cleans hardware and small parts.

I'm using the green pyramid stuff but I did not know it was designed to be used wet. Do I need to modify the HF tumbler before adding simple green and water?

What about dumping in some CLR or something similar to speed up the process?

obrut wrote: I'm using the green pyramid stuff but I did not know it was designed to be used wet. Do I need to modify the HF tumbler before adding simple green and water?

Which tumbler do you have? the 5lb unit or the 15lb? The 15lb has a drain valve on the side and is intended to be used wet, however the atomically crappy hose pinch valve will leak and make a mess. The 5lb unit lacks this feature so it won't leak and I have never had an issue with water in it.

Don't use too much water and detergent. Add enough so that you just start to see it under the media. With a 5 pounder I would guess 2 cups? and maybe a quarter cup of degreaser, possibly less. If you have access to a defoamer you could use more detergent.

Think of it more like wet sanding as opposed to washing.

In my experience the smaller tumbler is less powerful and will take longer.

I have the 5lb unit

When i bought my HF tumbler i scooped media straight out of my blast cabinet into it and haven't changed it since. Probly put about 50 hrs on it before one of the bigger bolts jammed up and poked a hole in the bowl and i havent bought a replacement since then.

If they're plain steel nuts/bolts why not soak them in white vinegar? I don't think that HF tumbler bowl is waterproof...

I tried simple green and water and it helped a little but the lid came loose after 4 hours and stared to make a mess.

I'm not ready to give up yet. I think the green pyramid needs a liquid a little more aggressive than simple green to work, maybe metal rescue or white vinegar?

I'm going to try some glass bead media tonight (no liquid) for 1 hour on the washers and clips and see how it turns out.

Anyone ever try oil dry to clean greasy oily hardware?

Oil dry granules are basically clumps of clay. It'll get pulverized to dust in very short time.