Frankford Arsenal rotary tumbler is one of the best products in the market right now. The Platinum Series Rotary Tumbler delivers a new level of brass cleaning performance. Rotary tumbling with stainless steel media in a liquid bath gets brass much cleaner and works much faster than ultrasonic or vibratory tumbling methods.
Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler Specs
- Product Name: Platinum Series Rotary Tumbler 7L
- Product Brand: Frankford Arsenal
- Model Number: 909544
- Price: $164.95
- Product Weight: 18.5 pounds
- Product Dimension: 16 x 15 x 11 inches ; 2.2 pounds
- Warranty(if any): No
- What’s Included: 5 lb. of 304 Stainless Steel Media (enough for hundreds of washes) and a sample packet of Frankford Arsenal Brass Cleaning Solution
- Extremely efficient at cleaning brass.
- Large case capacity.
- Steel pins last for hundreds of runs.
- Easy to use.
- Fully motorized.
- Pretty expensive.
- The motor produces some noise.
Features of Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler
Ease of use
Features a maintenance-free drivetrain that eliminates the chances of needing to replace a belt and has a built-in timer in the base that can be set to run for up to 3 hours, shutting off automatically
Versatility
This tumbler can effectively clean without the use of stainless steel media pins and can clean using a mixture of brass cleaning solution and water. This thing works fantastic. It cleans the outside, inside, and primer pockets very well. Like everything in life, getting better results usually requires that you put in a bit more effort.
Quiet
This tumbler features a dual-layer drum with noise dampening rubber lining for minimal noise while running.
Capacity
The new tumbler is larger than the Rebel 17. For my 9mm test, the Rebel 17 cleaned 227 cases and the FA 7L cleaned 734 cases. I am not sure if the FA 7L will handle 1,000 – 5.56 cases as advertised, but based on my testing with 9mm the FA 7L probably will.
The Rebel 17 recommends running about two lbs of brass (approximately 230 – 9mm cases) with five lbs of stainless steel media. I believe the Rebel 17 has a 17 lb capacity. The drum for the Rebel 17 weighs 6.5 lbs (without the cover). For my first test the Rebel 17 I ran 227 deprimed and dirty 9mm cases.
The total weight of the drum, with SS media, brass, water, detergent, etc. was 23 lbs (15.5 lbs net). For the FA 7L 9mm test, I ran 734 deprived cases with 5 lbs of SS media. The total weight of the drum, with SS media, brass, water, detergent, etc. was 25.5 lbs.
Operation
The FA 7L has a timer switch (the only way the tumbler can be operated) with a maximum of three hours. This may be an issue as sometimes I let brass run longer than three hours. However, the Rebel 17 runs at about 32 RPM while the FA 7L runs at about 63 RPM, so perhaps the FA 7L will clean better in three hours.
As the Rebel 17 runs at about 32 RPM it is “gentler” than the FA 7L. This may prove useful for nickel-plated brass – I have not tested this yet, but I have worn nickel plating off brass by running it too long with the SS media.
Delivery (not too good)
The FA 7L was shipped in its retail box without an outer box. There was a packet of some blue cleaning solution (a liquid) that was taped to one end of the tumbler.
This was impacted during shipping (as far as I can see that was a foregone conclusion as the packet had no protection and was right on the end of the tank) so the blue liquid leaked all over the box and tumbler.
Competition: Similar options on the market
Frankford Arsenal Quick-N-EZ: The Frankford Arsenal Quick-N-EZ Case Tumbler provides a quick, easy and economical means to clean your brass. It’s a compact tumbler but gets the job done. Brass nice and clean.
It will last a long time but be prepared with vibration any electronic device will break down at some point.
It will take a little time to fix the loose parts if you know what you are doing but recommended to hand it to a certified person.
Lyman 7631550 Cyclone Rotary Tumbler 115V: Rotary case tumbling provides a real advantage over other methods of case cleaning as the stainless steel media pins are able to get into areas that other media such as corn cob or nutshell simply cannot reach.
The Lyman Dual Sifter System provides a huge advantage over existing methods of separating stainless steel media pins from cases after rotary tumbling.
FAQ About Frankford Platinum Series Rotary Tumbler
Bottom line
Frankford Arsenal rotary tumbler has an impressive capacity and does an excellent job cleaning your brass. You can use vibratory tumblers with NuFinish and other brass polishes, ultrasonic cleaners, etc.
But nothing does as thorough of a job inside and out as this does. The occasional pin gets caught sideways in the neck of 30 cal rifle cases, but it’s very obvious when doing your case inspections and easier to remove than dry media from the flash hole.