Please share pics of AMP annealed brass

[jepp2]

Still riding the fence on getting an AMP. If you have some pics of SHINY brass that you have annealed in your AMP, please post them. I'm just curious what the appearance is. I know the patina present on the brass when annealing, makes a huge difference in the visible color change from annealing. Mostly interested in seeing either brass that has been SS wet tumbled or new brass that has been AMP annealed, thanks.

 

[piie]

Might be of interest - from the AMP website :

Take note​

Cosmetics: The appearance of different cases will vary after annealing. Some cases will show distinct annealing discoloration at the neck and shoulder, while other cases will show virtually no signs of being annealed. This is not limited to any particular brands. Do not mistake appearance for successful annealing. Some cases which appear heavily discolored may not actually be fully annealed. Our settings are reached by extensive and accurate testing of the annealed hardness.
Thermal protection: In common with any induction heater, with extended use, the output inductor will gradually heat up. Multiple fans are installed in our annealer to keep the circuitry and inductor cool. After 40 - 50 cases have been annealed, the top of the unit behind the pilot will start to feel warm to the touch. This is normal.
In the rare event that the output inductor should reach 190F/90C (inside the annealer), a thermal cut out will activate to protect the unit. If that occurs, leave the annealer turned on so the fans continue cooling. It will automatically reset after 30 minutes, once cooling is complete.
The ability of the annealer to run for the extended time depends partly on the ambient room temperature. Avoid using in direct hot sunlight or high temperature conditions. A room temperature of 70℉/20℃ or below ideal.
Our Mark ll annealer should run virtually indefinitely on programs 1 – 126 or AZTEC codes in the 0000 series (codes starting with a zero). When starting an annealing session, the fans run at 55% power. This is to minimise fan noise. An internal temperature monitor triggers full fan power if required. This trigger point depends on the ambient temperature and program level being used. For high power applications, full fan power usually starts after 50 – 150 annealing cycles. For Standard programs less than 50, or for cartridges using a comparable AZTEC code, the fans should remain on 55% power continuously.
Standard programs 127 – 200, and AZTEC codes in the 1000, 2000 and 4000 series are designed for very heavy duty annealing for cases in the WSSM family and 50 BMG. They will cycle continuously for 100 annealing cycles before automatically entering a "cool down” phase. This lasts for only 10 minutes, and then resets to allow another 100 annealing cycles.

 

[DngBat7]

As the above says, I have amp with Aztec. I notice almost no difference, you can just see a little change in color in the neck where the mouth is. I figured something was wrong. Called them, they said what it looks like is irrelevant and seeing no change or almost no change is normal

 

[Pawnee Bill]

The book says don't go by color when annealing with the AMP.

 

[JimSC]

the rainbow effect on heated metal is caused by a thin layer of oxidation reflecting some wavelengths of light while retarding other wavelengths. They have no relation to time, only oxy/nitrogen contact at various temperatures. Surface contaminants such as skin oils, residue from cleaning, etc. can volatize when heated causing more or less oxidation

I have noticed that since switching from liquid dish washing detergent to a tablet I see less of a effect on my own (flame annealed) brass

 

[PatMiles]

I polish my 6 Dasher brass every third or fourth firing, don't want to bake on any residual crap left over from firing. These were polished then annealed with my AMP.
Purty!

 

[338 dude]

 

[Sandstorm]

Is that a HF desk with an Amp on it.....looks just like my office.lol

 

[Sniper338]

Mine looks like new lapua brass usually that comes annealed.

 

[Ccrider]

Larger brass shows more than smaller sizes.

 

[riflewoman]

All done by forum member “Carlsbad
6-250 Brass



30-06 Brass

for comparison a Military match cartridge with the same colors.

 

[mikecr]

That looks flame annealed and excessive to me.
I know that with dip annealing, which IS perfect, I get hardly a trace of any discoloration.
With most Norma lots I gotta really look at it close to see it.
With brass already flame annealed, I could not see it over what's already there.

 

[dogdude]

Norma brass shows more evidence of annealing than Lapua, don't know about other brands.

 

[RegionRat]

Element	Content (%)
Cu	68.5-71.5
Fe	0.050
Pb	0.070
Other	0.15
Zn	28.5

Different manufacturer's have different sources for their raw brass, and some have their own specs.
The table above only represents what we call UNS C26000 cartridge brass. Those other elements and the 0.15% other, are the cause of some of the different "color" changes between different brass companies.

It is all within "normal" and by itself isn't cause for alarm when there are different colors on the surface after annealing or exposure to cleaning methods.

 

[jepp2]

All done by forum member “Carlsbad

It was actually your previous pics that caused this question. I know his daughter was doing the annealing using his AMP. But I realize your brass has a lot of patina, thus the much darker case neck color.

That looks flame annealed and excessive to me.
I know that with dip annealing, which IS perfect, I get hardly a trace of any discoloration.

And from the examples shown, I have zero confidence that anyone can tell if proper annealing has been done or not (maybe you can, I have no way of knowing).

A little history. I started annealing brass in the mid 70's. The method at the time was place the brass standing in a pan of water, heat the necks until they just start to glow reddish in a darkened room then knock them over. Everyone has probably either read about this method or done it.

I've used torches in stands I built for many years and finally tried a flame machine (MRB).

I could open the can of worms about the correct temperature. But I have used Tempilaq at 750 degrees (which is the temp for dip "stress relieving") and the reddish color change which attains the low 1000's degrees (which is actual annealing). And the finished product of both are indistinguishable in color and function. That is why I feel no one can tell if something was "over-annealed".

This is factory LC brass, and I'm willing to be it was done at their spec temperature. To me it looks "over-annealed". But the more time passes after annealing and the more patina the brass takes on, the darker and more prominent the markings become.

 

[piie]

The "starting point" of the brass also seems to have an effect on how the annealing result appears.

The attached example is of two exact same lots of 6.5CM Lapua brass that was annealed just now with exactly the same Aztec code. The difference in appearance I ascribe to the condition the brass was in before I started annealing. The top 5 was visibly less tarnished than the bottom 5, and as you can see, the tarnished brass has a much more "pronounced" post annealing look. The bottom 3rd of the brass is representative of how the entire case looked before I annealed.

 

[piie]

I could open the can of worms about the correct temperature. But I have used Tempilaq at 750 degrees (which is the temp for dip "stress relieving") and the reddish color change which attains the low 1000's degrees (which is actual annealing). And the finished product of both are indistinguishable in color and function. That is why I feel no one can tell if something was "over-annealed".

BTW - the approach AMP takes seems to be to chase the correct annealed hardness of the brass, and not trying to just make sure the brass reaches some specific temperature. It may sound like it's the same thing, but I think I understand their "logic", and it makes sense to me. They actually analyze brass under a microscope and use the tools to determine the hardness pre/post anneal. With flame and other type of annealling the method seems to try and reach a specific temperature, but that would/could lead to different hardness of the brass depending on lots of different factors. With the AMP, it tries to get ALL your different brass/cartridges to the same hardness. The temperature to reach that hardness (I believe they state 100V or H) has different temperatures for different cartridges.

 

[swd]

I've flame annealed lots of brass. I bought an Amp a few months ago and now my cases size and bullets seat more even than they ever have. If your concerned about how the cases look after annealing your worrying about the wrong thing.

 

[Shooter13]

the first pic is the top 2 are not annealed (have been before) the bottoms are all annealed. AMP setting 155

 

[B2Lee]

Some Lapua 300PRC. I used a Russian spam can of 54R to catch the brass as it was ejected out using my AMP-Mate.