Annealing

[Swivelhead]

35 minutes ago, twistzz said:

WTF you guys talking about lol...  Who’s anneals?

Shooters/reloaders who are striving for consistent ammo.  Done properly, annealing also prolongs the life of brass.

[Dano562]

16 hours ago, JSR said:

I made an induction annealer for appx $200. Works great and much more consistent than a flame.

 

 

 

Thank you so much. Been looking at a annealing machine wanted to make one but didn't like anything I have seen. I almost broke down and bought an annealease. But this is perfect doesn't take up to much space and I can use it at work too. And it's a tax write off. So making this will be basically free!! Just ordered all the parts on Amazon. I'll have all my parts by Monday.

[L Cazador]

11 hours ago, zackcarp said:

After so many resizings the brass at the neck starts to get weak, annealing helps strengthen the brass so it last longer. I think most guys start annealing around 5 or 6 reloads.

Sorry not completely correct. After several times shot and then resized the brass becomes work hardened and brittle and loses it's elasticity and spring back. Annealing softens the brass so it springs back more like it did when it was new. Some brass like Lapua will go ten to twelve firings without annealing but it all depends on the composition. I anneal with a mapp gas torch, 5-6 seconds on the neck, and turn on a wooden dowel with a drill and then drop on a wet towel. Turn down the lights so you can see the neck turn red. A properly done piece of brass should be bluish not pink or red and should not go past the shoulder body junction. 

[Delw]

That machine is pretty slick. Never thought about using something like that on brass case's. I quite annealing long ago cause I suck at it and tend to ruin cases faster than they normally shoot out..

They have similar stuff for heat shrink mill tooling holders. only thing that keeps me from going that route is the cost of the heating machine 8k-30k.

[Big Tub]

10 hours ago, L Cazador said:

Sorry not completely correct. After several times shot and then resized the brass becomes work hardened and brittle and loses it's elasticity and spring back. Annealing softens the brass so it springs back more like it did when it was new. Some brass like Lapua will go ten to twelve firings without annealing but it all depends on the composition. I anneal with a mapp gas torch, 5-6 seconds on the neck, and turn on a wooden dowel with a drill and then drop on a wet towel. Turn down the lights so you can see the neck turn red. A properly done piece of brass should be bluish not pink or red and should not go past the shoulder body junction. 

Annealing actually softens and restores ductility which is the opposite increasing elasticity and spring back.  The case neck is then able to stretch which is why trimming is required.  Good points about the color.

What powers the induction coil?  A welder?

[L Cazador]

11 hours ago, Big Tub said:

Annealing actually softens and restores ductility which is the opposite increasing elasticity and spring back.  The case neck is then able to stretch which is why trimming is required.  Good points about the color.

What powers the induction coil?  A welder?

That's partially correct! The case stretches whether you anneal or not. And it's not just the neck that stretches. Brass flows forward and backward not only stretching the entire case but also thickening the neck and making the primer pocket shallower. On my competition brass it's not unusual to run my neck turner and take two or three ten thousands to restore the neck tension I had before. For my competition brass I discard any brass that starts showing irregular neck tension or otherwise starts throwing shots out of the group. The number one culprit in neck tension is actually not work hardening but the accumulation of carbon in the neck!

[L Cazador]

2 minutes ago, L Cazador said:

That's partially correct! The case stretches whether you anneal or not. And it's not just the neck that stretches. Brass flows forward and backward not only stretching the entire case but also thickening the neck and making the primer pocket shallower. On my competition brass it's not unusual to run my neck turner and take two or three ten thousands off to restore the neck tension I had before. For my competition brass I discard any brass that starts showing irregular neck tension or otherwise starts throwing shots out of the group. The number one culprit in neck tension is actually not work hardening and thickening of the neck but the accumulation of carbon in the neck!

 

[wellhead]

Someone on CWT bought a $1000 machine and offered to do it on a per

case basis. That’s a way for him to recover the machine cost. Don’t recall who he was. 

[Weston]

First time ive seen that DIY induction annealer..... looks pretty slick, thanks for sharing. I've been unsuccessfully trying to talk myself into an AMP for a couple of years but think I could stomach 200$

[broadhead]

1 hour ago, wellhead said:

Someone on CWT bought a $1000 machine and offered to do it on a per

case basis. That’s a way for him to recover the machine cost. Don’t recall who he was. 

Probably me. I’m happy to anneal by the 100 for guys on here for $10 per hundred or a trade or whatever. As for annealing, I do it every time now because if done correctly there is zero reason not to, other than the time spent doing it. There’s really no arguing with the research that properly annealing your brass can improve accuracy, extreme spread, etc but I also admit that unless you’re shooting pretty long distance for the utmost accuracy (i.e. a hunting rig out to 500) you probably won’t notice a difference until your brass really starts hardening. 

[wellhead]

So Broadhead, are you happy that you got the more expensive unit? I’m just curious since I’m more familiar with the annealz brand. 

[Lucafu1]

I have a Bench Source and love it.

[Eastcoast'n AZ]

On 2/28/2021 at 7:33 PM, broadhead said:

Probably me. I’m happy to anneal by the 100 for guys on here for $10 per hundred or a trade or whatever. As for annealing, I do it every time now because if done correctly there is zero reason not to, other than the time spent doing it. There’s really no arguing with the research that properly annealing your brass can improve accuracy, extreme spread, etc but I also admit that unless you’re shooting pretty long distance for the utmost accuracy (i.e. a hunting rig out to 500) you probably won’t notice a difference until your brass really starts hardening. 

Where are you located?

[broadhead]

11 hours ago, Eastcoast'n AZ said:

Where are you located?

Corona de Tucson 

[Eastcoast'n AZ]

23 minutes ago, broadhead said:

Corona de Tucson 

Ah bummer. That would have been great when I lived in Sahuarita, but it’s virtually the other side of the earth now that I’m in N Phx. Lol