Annealing - who knew

[dantiff2]

You know of one now so to speak.
I don’t anneal.
My 30BR has over 25 for sure. My 222 I’d have to guess. Had it since the mid 70’s. So 50 would be extremely conservative.
They both (actually 2 30BR’s ) and the 222 shoot just fine groups at what I do which is 100 yard benchrest. Never annealed.

I'm just too simple of a guy to make things in life harder than they already are HAHAHA
I found brass was more like spring steel than actual brass -after multiple reloads without annealing. It (hardened brass) made things (for me at least) very annoying, fighting shoulder datum measurements and continual babysitting of the die setting- to achieve consistency. Once I introduced annealing into my process, I can maintain should bump to less than half a thou and never touch a die setting. KISS (keep-it-simple) is my life moto!

 

[M-61]

Understand.
I was merely stating what works for me.
Is my posted group fantastic? No, but for me it is. Have I shot slightly better? Yes, but for me shooting in the ones is about the best I can do.
Am I stuck at 100 yards? Well in all the places I’ve lived 100 yard ranges and my property is all that’s really close by. Started in 1973 at 100 and I’m fine with that. Would one day like to try further.

 

[L.Sherm]

Simple life is less reloading steps not more.

 

[Rick Richard]

To anneal or not to anneal is usually the conclusion from folks who build their tune based on one or the other. As stated “let the target speak for itself”. I suggest a shooter can achieve accuracy either way and be successful, however I believe annealing is more about the advantages of brass life. Just saying.

 

[Dave Way]

To anneal or not to anneal is usually the conclusion from folks who build their tune based on one or the other. As stated “let the target speak for itself”. I suggest a shooter can achieve accuracy either way and be successful, however I believe annealing is more about the advantages of brass life. Just saying.

I agree. I can tune my LR rifles annealing after every firing, which is what I do. I could also tune my rifles without annealing but I would have to change neck sizing bushings as the new brass became harder and harder. Eventually the brass would be about as hard as it was going to get and I would be fine. My choice is to anneal and come up with my “recipe” once.

If you’re not able to alter the amount of neck sizing your die does, you will most likely eventually have problems if you don’t anneal.

The short answer to the OP’s question is I knew.

Dave.

 

[Straightshooter1]

I’ve never thought of using the natural gas I use to heat my shop…. I use a 25lb propane tank, which works well, but my casting table is right next to the shop heater so it would an ideal setup! Thanks for the idea!

I’m guessing I would need a different torch head for the NG?

BB

Most likely, yes . . . you'd need a different torch head. Just like when I switched to NG for my BBQ, it needed a different burner set up to allow for a larger flow. That's because NG has much lower energy density.

 

[Straightshooter1]

People talk all this scientific stuff whats so scientific about a target?

It's all connected and the target is the final scientific test.

 

[AlNyhus]

Are you guys picking on me ?

You know us better than that!

 

[Fuj]

Most likely, yes . . . you'd need a different torch head. Just like when I switched to NG for my BBQ, it needed a different burner set up to allow for a larger flow. That's because NG has much lower energy density.

And the reason I added a second torch. Natural gas itself is much cooler to
burn at ambient room air pressure. A single torch initially worked but had to
stay in the flame longer. Two torch heads at a 90 degree spread really helped.
Just using the standard Bernzomatic pencil tips.

 

[dantiff2]

Simple life is less reloading steps not more.

I added an annealing machine and three way cutter to my process, so now it’s really simple! enjoy a nice glass of Scotch or Bourbon and watch the machine do all the work. Target tells me that I’m going in the right direction in my process

 

[JimSC]

A few years back when I moved my .260 Remington cases all got mixed together. Some had 3 or more firings since the last anneal some had none . They shot like crap until I annealed a batch of them using a Anealeeze. I now anneal after every firing using a AMP. For what it is worth the Anealeeze did just as good as the AMP, just slower and the AMP works better on short cases such as the 6BR and Grendel family. It all had to do with springback with the harder necks it resisted resizing and tended to return toward its expanded shape. That led to inconsistent neck tension and sizing .

If I only dealt with 50 cases at a time and I knew I could keep them all on the same number of firings I probably would not bother. Since I already proved I am not that organized it's just easier to anneal them every firing

 

[Clancy]

I’ve seen the difference time and time again and will continue to anneal. If someone else can get by without annealing, I won’t call them a liar, but I sure can’t see how. They must chase their neck tension non stop!

 

[NZ_Fclass]

"Even with the AMP machine, the user really doesn't know what they're getting and just goes by the feel they get with their seating operation."

Not so. The AMP annealer will anneal the brass correctly - so long as you set the machine with a sacrificial case, it will do the job without any further input.

 

[J.d. Popkes]

Imagine that, no consensus was reached on a reloading process, again.

 

[KMW 1954]

Imagine that, no consensus was reached on a reloading process, again.

I believe there never will be either.

 

[J.d. Popkes]

I believe there never will be either.

Interesting to me, I thought the issue was put to rest long ago and everyone knew the benefits of annealing.

I wonder if there’s a single process that you could get a 90% majority agreement. Whether or not you have to deprime? I bet there’s a guy out there ready to chime in…..

 

[Straightshooter1]

I believe there never will be either.

You know . . . in science, there's no absolute truths. Everything is always open for question and ready to change as any new verified evidence is presented.

so, let's not get hung up on absolutes.

 

[KMW 1954]

You know . . . in science, there's no absolute truths. Everything is always open for question and ready to change as any new verified evidence is presented.

so, let's not get hung up on absolutes.

Exactly why I abstained from commenting on the subject. It's like trying to explain to the kid why they cannot have the car.