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Interesting question, but if the cases are filled with years of dirt, a solvent, like soapy water, is probably the answer. Try getting some 5 gallon buckets with lids, fill it with soapy water and the brass and put it in the back of your truck or trunk of the car and drive around with them for a whileso they get some vibratory action.

On the other hand, have you checked with a scrap dealer? If you can't get it in top condition you aren't going to get top prices out of it. You should be able to just haul it as is, as long as you can tell it's brass. Just make sure there's no steel cases in there. You can cull them out with a magnet.

I think scrap yards will take anything as long as it's relatively clean and recognizable. They may give you 50% of spot value, which means you'd need large quantities of steel. Aluminum should be pretty easy to sell.