A REALLY Simple DIY Induction Annealer

[ToddP]

but let's not criticize those that use what they have....it is a learning experience...rsbhunter

Well said!

I've been using the hand held annealer and have yet to have a neck split on either my 6.5 or my .223 brass. I haven't been diligent about keeping a round count up to now, but I'm sure they had at least 20 firings on some of them. I'm now tracking firings on a set of new brass to see.

All in all, the hand held unit is convenient and seems to do the trick.

 

[Hoot]

I have my DIY interval timer set to do 3 cases per minute with typical dwell times of 2-3 seconds each, depending upon the case brand and what the necks are turned to. That and a gentle breeze keeps the hand held unit from getting too hot over a protracted session. I'm retired, so I'm generally not in a hurry. I actually enjoy the time spent on every stage of reloading. A good cup of coffee and a good, commercial free, alternative rock station on the stereo really helps.

Hoot

 

[rsbhunter]

DITTO !!!!

 

[ToddP]

I have my DIY interval timer set to do 3 cases per minute with typical dwell times of 2-3 seconds each, depending upon the case brand and what the necks are turned to. That and a gentle breeze keeps the hand held unit from getting too hot over a protracted session. I'm retired, so I'm generally not in a hurry. I actually enjoy the time spent on every stage of reloading. A good cup of coffee and a good, commercial free, alternative rock station on the stereo really helps.

Hoot

I bought a 40mm USB powered fan and glued it to the back of my hand held annealer. The unit's stupid design only powers its internal fan when the button on the unit is pressed (i.e. when actually annealing). The fan I bought will run regardless of whether the button is pressed so you get more cooling and, when the unit needs to "take a rest and cool off" the added fan continues to run.

 

[Dave M.]

I feel it's much tougher to get the right annealing temperature with an induction annealed than with a gas set up. There temperature is so dependent on the amount of brass inside the coils, including the thickness of the brass. This is why the AMP annealer's instructions are for testing a case to find the correct code for the correct temperature. Even with gas, it takes a some adjusting to get it right, but I feel it's much easier than with an induction setup.

False, 1000% false. There is no tool currently available that provides a more consistent manner of annealing cartridge brass. Gas has several issues and the output is completely dependent on the volume of gas remaining in the bottle.

 

[jimmymac]

I never annealed anything until a couple months ago when I bought a used Annie for $450. Initial impressions are very favorable in regard to consistent sizing and bullet seating. My initial targets have been fine but I need to shoot more of them before I decide if the juice is worth the squeeze. I do not anticipate any drop off in precision or accuracy, but I’ll drop it like a hot potato if there is.

 

[sjsalwei]

I put together one of these last Spring. Picked the induction heater and timer up through Amazon.

I works great. It is very consistent. I use it with 30-06 brass (so far).

I changed the wiring a bit, for two reasons.

One, I was concerned about switching that much current through a relatively light set of contacts might reduce the life of the relay.

Two, when you switch off the power the fan turns off also - cutting airflow and allowing heat to build up.

What I did was to drill a small hole where the handle transitions to the larger diameter (near the button switch). A small four conductor cable was routed through the hole with a zip tie inside serving as a strain relief. Inside, the wires from the switch were connected to 1 pair, and the other pair to the wires that went from the switch to the control board. This allowed me to switch the low-current side of things. I believe it solves both issues, as I'm switching a low-voltage / low-current signal that stops the induction heating but since I'm not removing 110VAC from the device the fan continues to run. No cooling issues.

I could have pulled just two wires and inserted the relay into one of the two wires between button and control board, but I wanted the options for other features of the timer and the 4-conductor cable was small enough.

View attachment 1346449

To help with consistency I put two pieces of wood together at a right angle, and drilled a hole just the right size to hold the case (horizontally) while I slide the coil over it. I'm careful to locate the coil consistently to get the heat to affect the brass just where I want it, centering the case in the coil for uniformity also.

View attachment 1346450

The timer runs about 10 seconds. Use anything handy to remove the brass once hot, and place it elsewhere to cool.

No complaints here.

Do you have any pictures of how you did the wiring inside the unit? I really like this idea and agree that shutting off and on 120v through the time might shorten its lifespan. Plus I equally like the idea of the fan running constantly to keep everything cool