When to anneal?

[L W P]

Question #1: Do you anneal before resizing fired brass or after resizing? #2: If before resizing do you deprime and wash first?

 

[mikecr]

When a case deviates in pre-seating force, I toss it in a box. When I get 50 in the box, I anneal them, clean them up, ready to reload.
Given minimal sizing, it takes quite a while before I need to anneal a batch.

As soon as I get back from the range, I wipe any carbon off necks, hand deprime, clean pockets, & vibratory tumble. By then I've cleaned my barrels.
If I were going to anneal the brass, this is when I'd do it. Then it would be ready for sizing/reloading.

 

[madmixerman]

I anneal before sizing and do deprime before annealing using a decapping die.I don't bother cleaning brass but I do clean the necks before annealing.BTW, I anneal after every firing.

 

[Twoboxer]

The recommendation in the AMP manual makes sense to me. Annealing before re-sizing is a good idea to minimize the resistance/spring-back that can increase as brass hardens. This would be more important the more firings occur between annealings.

I decap and clean . . . then complete all case prep . . . then a quick second tumble before loading them up. Just makes sense to me and I have the time.

 

[Mozella]

In my opinion, it doesn't matter but your procedure should be consistent. I like to minimize handling individual cartridge cases and I don't like to repeat reloading steps such as cleaning twice.

I shoot single shot only and I collect the brass on a clean towel, so that it remains clean. Therefore, I do this on EVERY cycle:
Bulk lube, deprime, neck size slightly smaller than final desired diameter, body size, trim if necessary, chamfer, clean using wet SS media, dry, anneal, store. When I'm ready to load I prime, run a 21st Century "turning" mandrel down the neck to get final neck ID and insure roundness, weigh powder, charge the brass, seat bullets. By the way, I use Moly coated bullets primarily because they provide lubrication during seating rather than anything (good or bad) that Moly might do for my barrel.

In other words, I size before I anneal. Therefore, my brass is slightly harder when I size than someone who anneals before resizing because my brass has been work hardened to some degree from the firing sequence. However, my brass is slightly softer when I seat my bullets then if I annealed, sized, and seated in that order because and work hardening caused by sizing is negated by annealing after sizing. Therefore my brass would be expected to have a different amount of true bullet grip than if I annealed before sizing. That assumes we measure what we call neck tension by conventional means; i.e. measuring the neck diameter before and after seating the bullet.

The difference in hardness in the two methods is small, but real. One might expect slight differences in final case measurements and/or what we call "neck tension". I believe as long as the loader adjusts his sizing bushing, mandrel size (if used), and desired neck tension (interference fit) he/she can produce high quality ammo using either sequence as long as it's done same way each time.

What I like about my method is that it minimizes individual cartridge handling. The case lube is removed when I clean and I don't have to wipe down the individual cases later or clean them again. Neither do I have to individually lube case necks. Of course I have to individually handle the cases when I charge them and seat bullets, but other than that it's a bulk process done on a progressive press using several passes.

 

[L W P]

Ok, a little mix in the before or after but that's food for thought. I appreciate any and all comments. Thanks guys

 

[L W P]

In my opinion, it doesn't matter but your procedure should be consistent. I like to minimize handling individual cartridge cases and I don't like to repeat reloading steps such as cleaning twice.

I shoot single shot only and I collect the brass on a clean towel, so that it remains clean. Therefore, I do this on EVERY cycle:
Bulk lube, deprime, neck size slightly smaller than final desired diameter, body size, trim if necessary, chamfer, clean using wet SS media, dry, anneal, store. When I'm ready to load I prime, run a 21st Century "turning" mandrel down the neck to get final neck ID and insure roundness, weigh powder, charge the brass, seat bullets. By the way, I use Moly coated bullets primarily because they provide lubrication during seating rather than anything (good or bad) that Moly might do for my barrel.

In other words, I size before I anneal. Therefore, my brass is slightly harder when I size than someone who anneals before resizing because my brass has been work hardened to some degree from the firing sequence. However, my brass is slightly softer when I seat my bullets then if I annealed, sized, and seated in that order because and work hardening caused by sizing is negated by annealing after sizing. Therefore my brass would be expected to have a different amount of true bullet grip than if I annealed before sizing. That assumes we measure what we call neck tension by conventional means; i.e. measuring the neck diameter before and after seating the bullet.

The difference in hardness in the two methods is small, but real. One might expect slight differences in final case measurements and/or what we call "neck tension". I believe as long as the loader adjusts his sizing bushing, mandrel size (if used), and desired neck tension (interference fit) he/she can produce high quality ammo using either sequence as long as it's done same way each time.

What I like about my method is that it minimizes individual cartridge handling. The case lube is removed when I clean and I don't have to wipe down the individual cases later or clean them again. Neither do I have to individually lube case necks. Of course I have to individually handle the cases when I charge them and seat bullets, but other than that it's a bulk process done on a progressive press using several passes.

Does annealing after you resize ever distort the case neck run out ?

 

[L W P]

Ok guys I found another post on annealing before or after sizing. It's pretty intense so I'll read more. Thanks for your time and opinions.

 

[Willow]

I anneal after every firing and before I FL re-size. Better to work brass that has been softened rather than hardened.

 

[Mozella]

Does annealing after you resize ever distort the case neck run out ?

No. The last thing I do before charging the case with powder and seating the bullet is to insert a mandrel into the freshly annealed case to insure the neck is of uniform size and as round as possible.

 

[carlsbad]

I anneal after every firing and before I FL re-size. Better to work brass that has been softened rather than hardened.

Exactly. And if you anneal every time, the soft neck seals against the chamber and the outside gets very little carbon on it.

I do, however, run my brass through the old fashioned vibrator with walnut shell before annealing. Easy, quick, and makes it look nice.


Vibrate, anneal, resize, load. In that order for me.

--Jerry

 

[Mozella]

... snip............
Vibrate, anneal, resize, load. In that order for me.
--Jerry

How do you remove the lube after you resize? Do you individually clean each case by hand?

 

[47WillysGuy]

I use RCBS sizing lube which is water soluble. Put cases in a water bath, drain, shake off excess, place cases on cookie sheet and set in south Texas sun for 3-4 hours.

 

[fguffey]

I do not have an infatuation with annealing. When I have a curiosity about the 'need to anneal' I increase the diameter of the sizing plug; for example I use a 35 Whelan die to expand the neck of a 30/06 case or a 280 or 270 case. If the case neck will benefit from annealing I will get fewer split case necks when I go from 280 to 38 Whelen or 338/06.

And then there is bullet hold, I want all the bullet hold I can get.

F. Guffey

 

[Fred B.]

It makes no difference as to when you do it, if you do after every firing:

Anneal-resize-fire-anneal-resize-fire
Resize-fire-anneal-resize-fire-anneal
Fire-anneal-resize-fire-anneal-resize

It's a circular process as long as you stay consistent.

 

[divingin]

I do not have an infatuation with annealing.

I accepted a couple of hundred pieces of 308 brass from a guy who got out of shooting. He didn't have an infatuation about annealing, either. I planned on doing my normal process for pickup brass: vibe tumble, lube, size, trim and debur, anneal, wet tumble, and dry. About 2 dozen cases came out of the sizing die like the image attached. There was apparently some sort of reticence to trim as they grew, but that's a different story.

 

[gotcha]

[QUOTE

And then there is bullet hold, I want all the bullet hold I can get.

F. Guffey[/QUOTE]
Here's a tip for you Guffey. Just use JB Weld and a Q-tip to lube your case necks.

 

[Fred B.]

I do not have an infatuation with annealing. When I have a curiosity about the 'need to anneal' I increase the diameter of the sizing plug;

F. Guffey

Wow, I can use a sizing plug instead of bushing and annealing?
No wonder I can't shoot

 

[XTR]

Anneal
FL size with appropriate bushing
Tumble (I use a Dillon)
Prime
Load

 

[6MMsteve]

I do not have an infatuation with annealing. When I have a curiosity about the 'need to anneal' I increase the diameter of the sizing plug; for example I use a 35 Whelan die to expand the neck of a 30/06 case or a 280 or 270 case. If the case neck will benefit from annealing I will get fewer split case necks when I go from 280 to 38 Whelen or 338/06.

And then there is bullet hold, I want all the bullet hold I can get.

F. Guffey

Guffer can I plug the case while I is anealering then plug again after I resize a loaded round, or do you think the plug will bake like a french fried tator, can I run the plug down the barrel and shoot and that way I get all the benfictous of pluggin in