Annealing for accuracy

[willhunt4coues]

Annealing Cases
I thought I would do a little review for those hard core reloading nuts like me that do everything in preparation to achieve the best accuracy and precision for long range hunting/shooting. I have done just about everything that I can in case prep to achieve the best SD/ES with accuracy and precision this includes annealing your cases. Most anneal to extend case life, I anneal for accuracy. I will explain. It starts when you fire a case, then size the case you are work hardening the brass. You will eventually split your case necks if you do not anneal. Annealing softens the brass and in turn can help with accuracy too. I have found if I anneal after every firing I can keep my ES 9/SD 3 down in the single digits with extreme accuracy because the case necks are more uniform with tension. If I did not anneal every time then my ES 18/SD 9 was a little higher but not much I was able to stay under 20 fps at least. I started with hand annealing with 2 Benzomatic torches facing each other. I apply some 750 degree Tempilaq to the case so I know when it has annealed. When the Tempilaq melts you are at your desired temp. Annealing process is 650 degrees for 15 minutes or so BUT if we did that the heat would travel down the case to the case head which is what you do not want. So in order for it to anneal properly we need to bring the neck of the case to 750 degrees (most preferred temp). We can then quench in water. Some think that water would harden like metal but instead it does nothing. The case will remain soft. The reason why most quench is so the heat will not travel down to the case head.
I have been annealing by hand with great success but when I started annealing after every firing it started to become a pain and inconsistent. The Ballistic Edge Model 400 annealing machine was well packaged with well explained instructions for set up. I had to do some playing but was able to start annealing within 30 minutes. I did well over 50 cases within 15 minutes. Cases rotate thru the dual flames as the shell-plate turns. Torch height is adjustable, as is torch angle and intensity. Torch holders will accept any 1/2" to 5/8" diameter tip. After passing through the flame, cases drop out after a quarter-turn. Underneath is a fan that can be turned on as needed when annealing shorter-height cases or for just keeping the case heads cooler. The model 400 shell-plate on top can be made for one caliber or multiple calibers. When researching the different machines I found out that if you have to mess with the speed of how fast the plate turns that was one more variable you had to deal with, the model 400 has a constant speed. Eliminating the need to adjust each torch after they were properly adjusted, both torch tips were hooked up to a 5 gal BBQ tank with a splitter making the propane tank as the on/off valve.
In closing if you are trying to achieve the best accuracy, ES/SD, and case life then this is a step that you may want to take into consideration. First see if annealing will even help by hand annealing, if it does help then this maybe something to consider. If you rarely shoot then you are probably better off by hand annealing. I know this machine will last me my lifetime by just the way it was built. Personally the Model 400 is the best for the money, design, material used, and the one on one help. You can call Phil Keil (Ballistics Edge owner) and he would be more than happy to help you out at any time or you can visit his website at annealingmachines.com. I do not work for or are associated with Ballistic Edge MFG. This is my personal views.

 

[MULEPACKHUNTER]

Nice article, I mainly anneal just to get longer case life but I do believe in the accuracy gains as well. I also anneal my 30-30 oddly enough because for some reason 30-30 is tough on the press and I have found if I anneal them they are much easier to work with. Military brass is aided with annealing as well due to the thicker case walls.

I have a set of 500 .223 brass on its 13th loading now so case life is much better after annealing. I go like 4 loads then anneal. I have several boxes separated needing to be done and I just do a bunch when I have time. Those machines are very handy but I still use hand method.

If anyone grabs one of these machine let me know so I can borrow it once a year. LOL

[willhunt4coues]

I don't mind annealing your cases but the only plate at this time I have excepts .308 sizes. SO if anyone would like theirs done you can bring me your cases and I will anneal them for 30.00 per 100.

[billrquimby]

It has been many years since I tried annealing, but I didn't do it for long because I wasn't shooting that much and cases were cheap then. More importantly, I saw no difference in accuracy of my rifles. As others were doing then, I merely stood my cases on their bases in a shallow pan of water and heated them with a propane torch. When the mouth and shoulder of a case began to turn red, I tipped it over in the water to quench it.

 

Bill Quimby

[DesertBull]

Do you turn case necks and use a bushing die?

 

I was thinking of trying one of the Redding type S bushing / sizer dies not sure if there is in real advantage unless you turn the necks also.

[willhunt4coues]

I use a bushing die but have the stuff to turn but did not need to with nosler cases.

[muledeerarea33?]

I use billquimby's way

[CWpredator]

I just set my torch standing. place a socket on an 18v drill that the case fits nicely into. Whit using the drill to spin the case neck in the flame it spreads the heat nice and uniform no hot or cold spots. When the brass turns proper color I dump it out of the socket on the drill into a water pan to quench. I usually only anneal my .338 Lapua brass simply for workability and case life since the brass is so expensive. This method has worked great for me and haven't had to go buy anything specialty to do it. By doing this case life probably avaraged 10-12 reloads and some going as many as 14. I would definitely reccomend annealing to anyone that reloads with high dollar brass.

[willhunt4coues]

The main thing to remember is to bring your cases to the correct temp. I have tried bringing them to 650, 700, 750, and 800. The 650 & 700 my es 15/sd 5 was all over the place but with 750 to 800 i have es 5/ sd 1. If you do it by hand that is great I use to do it by hand but as much as I shoot it got annoying. Still even by hand get you some templaq 750 and 800 and apply this on the inside of of neck on a few trash cases so you know exactly how long to keep the brass in the flame and the color it turns. The templaq just lets you know yes you brought it up to that temp then you can quench or knock it over in the water. It will make a world of difference knowing you brought it up to the right temp.

[308Nut]

Do you turn case necks and use a bushing die?

 

I was thinking of trying one of the Redding type S bushing / sizer dies not sure if there is in real advantage unless you turn the necks also.

Absolutely there are advantages.

 

Regardless of whether or not you turn neck:

 

1: you can set your neck tension to however much you want.

 

2: it eliminates the need for an expander ball.

 

I used to neck turn but have never noticed any difference. Then again, some of today's brass is very consistent.

 

Willhunt hit the nail on the head regarding the correct temp. The necks really need to be heated properly or they don't anneal at all or they get too soft. Better to have them a bit too hard than too soft. It's important to know that brass is vastly different than steel regarding tempering. You hear often times of cooling freshly annealed brass in water, and it's common thought that this will harden the necks. With brass this is not the case. Air cool or water cool makes no difference to the brass.

 

When I order reamers, I get 'tight, no turn neck' reamers. The necks barely change size during firing and reloading which eliminates the need to anneal often. It's the expansion and resizing actions that work harden the necks. Eliminate the expansion and resizing action and this keeps the brass very consistent. It's impossible to eliminate it but it's possible to get movement to .001 or even less. When I take a fired case from my chambers, I cannot push a bullet in the neck without a press. They virtually don't need sizing but I do it.

 

M

[10Turkeys]

I shoot a 6.5x47 Lapua and I use factory brass which comes pre annealed, I set my dies to bump the shoulder back two thousandths, normally I replace the brass after a barrel change, but with the last 300 plus cases I have used three barrels.

[willhunt4coues]

I always bump my shoulders .001 after every firing. I am achieving the best accuracy doing this. I was just neck sizing but found out that bumping actually improved my accuracy.

 

like 308nut said quenching does not harden the case. Most quench so the heat does not travel through the body of the case because the body and head it HAS to remain hard. If it were to soften then you would have case head separation.

 

You can get some 450 templaq and paint a line from the neck to the base, then put 750 on the inside of the neck and start annealing. As soon as you see the 750 melt then look to see how far the 450 has melted down the case and you will see it does not travel any more than 1/3 down the case verifying that you have not softened the case you will see as soon as you take away the heat when 750 melts you will see the 450 stop at the 1/3 mark and in reality you do not need to quench. At 480 degrees brass starts to change form not much but this is the start.

[308Nut]

I always bump my shoulders .001 after every firing. I am achieving the best accuracy doing this. I was just neck sizing but found out that bumping actually improved my accuracy

I also 'bump' my shoulders for reliable feed and function but also to try and aid in load consistency. I try and keep it slightly less than .001 but it's dang hard to set up and measure so I call it .001". Setting it back too much can and will cause head separation. Gotta keep that base close to the bolt face.