Wet tumbling and ultrasonic cleaning are two of the new and fast ways to clean your brass cases. But, they bring a new set of problems, and one of those problems is, drying the brass cases. Lyman has proposed a solution that effectively cuts the drying time to 2 hours maximum. And you are here to find out if Lyman Cyclone Case Dryer delivers what it promises, and if it is worth your cash.
I’ll point out its features and my observations in using this case dryer. In a way, this article is Lyman Cyclone Case Dryer Review.
Introducing Lyman Cyclone Case Dryer
The Lyman Cyclone case dryer is a perfect companion for your ultrasonic or rotary cleaning. This case dryer vertically stacks wet brass cases using plastic trays, which increases the efficiency of both space and heated air circulation. The plastic trays are designed so that stainless steel pins or other small items fall through and collect at the concave rectangular bottom and at the same time avoid brass cases falling through the stacked trays.
You can use the Lyman cyclone case dryer to dry your pistol and small rifle parts but might need to use smaller mesh for smaller gun parts.
The capacity Lyman claims is 1000 .223 Remington or 2000 9 mm cases. But in reality, the numbers are slightly less because no one of us will place them one by one to perfectly align the cases to fill all the space. So expect about 50 to 100 Less than promised. Even then the capacity is remarkable.
I’ll go into details about the features but first let me unbox the package for you. In the package you will receive;
- The Lyman cyclone case dryer
- 5 stackable plastic trays
- Top cover
- Power cord &
- Instruction manual
Lyman has engaged a good team of scientists while designing this case dryer because every detail of the case dryer has a purpose.
The Design of Cyclone Case Dryer
The design includes a bottom unit containing a timer, ceramic heater, and an exhaust fan. Above that is 5 stacked plastic trays where you place your wet cases or firearm parts for drying. And finally a top cover with 4 slits on four sides to allow escaping of hot rising air. That is just the summary.
Lyman in this case has designed the cyclone case dryer almost to perfection. The physics of hot air circulation and heating effect on brass cases were kept in mind to avoid damaging the brass cases.
The bottom unit.
The bottom unit consists of three parts.
- A 3 Hours Digital Timer
- Ceramic Heater
- An Exhaust Fan.
The 3 Hours Digital Timer
The Ceramic Heater
Lyman used a 60-watt heater for heating the surrounding air. It is the same quality ceramic heater that is used for Lyman ultrasonic case cleaner.
The Exhaust Fan
If the hot air was enclosed it could have created moisture and lose the whole purpose of drying.
Charles’s law states that hot air rises because it is less dense than cold air. And due to this law of motion, even if the fan was not included in the design all the cases would dry but it would take longer and the temperature would vary between the stacked cases.
The exhaust fan helps regulates the temperature and creates constant hot air circulation from the bottom to the top.
The Plastic Trays
At first glance, you would not find anything special about the trays, but each tray is designed to not let any hot air escape for the sides, and somewhat acts as an air-tight seal. The square holes are small enough to not let any brass case slide through while at the same time it is big enough to allow debris and stainless steel pins to fall and collect at the button unit.
They are made up of quality and durable plastic. And each of them has handles to easily carry them around. An added advantage is that you can use any combination of the 5 trays. Besides that, you can use a separate tray for separate cases if required and sort them accordingly.
Other Notable Features
Lyman has made the power cord of the case dryer detachable which makes storing the cage dryer more convenient. They have also used the same power cables used for your desktop PC, which makes it easy to replace if it gets lost.
The exhaust fan, which is at the bottom where stainless steel media or other debris may fall is well protected by a collar. Even the top of the fan is covered, to protect the bottom unit from water or falling debris.
The Case dryer is quiet enough and does not produce unbearable heat. Ambient humidity will affect the time it takes to dry the cases.
Method & Result of Drying
The lighting was different when I snapped the pictures hence the color difference. I did not do any polishing.
Summary of Lyman Cyclone Case Dryer Review
In the end, there were used .308 cases that were as good as new, in just 4 hours (2 hours wet tumbling and 2 hours drying), if that is not a time saver I don’t know what is.
I stared with wet brasses that were freshly out from my Frankford Arsenal case tumbler using stainless steel pins. Rinsed them with tap water and without using towels to wipe off the water droplets, I directly placed them in the case dryer.
Set the timer in the middle of the 1 & 2-hour indicator (90 minutes) and left. Came back few minutes before the timer hit zero.
The cases were hand-able right out of the case dryer and did not leave any water spots or discoloration. And ready for priming and reloading.
I would recommend the Lyman Cyclone case dryer for reloader using a wet tumbler or ultrasonic cleaners. It Will save time on drying and is a better option than overheating inside an oven.