annealing

[luober]

if you are annealing pistol cases to be used as bullet jackets in an oven, when you remove the tray of hot cases from the oven do you dump them in a bucket of water or let them air cool to soften them? which method of quenching makes them the softest?

[BT Sniper]

I think either way to cool will be the same. I must say though that your oven may not be hot enough to produce the amount of anneal you will need depending on the case, bullet, and desired outcome of the finished bullet unless it is actually a heat treat oven and not the home applience oven. I could be wrong though and I guess some oven have a self cleaning function that may get up to 800f but not mine.

BT

[MIBULLETS]

I don't think it matters. Brass or copper don't seem to make a difference. If you put them in water or water with some vinegar it will help take some of the scale off it it forms.

[303Guy]

Well, I once dried some washed cases in an oven and forgot and went to bed. By morning the cases had lost their normal shine (such as it was) and anyway, looked suspicious. So I tried one or two - those being 223. Well, the the first case head bulged quite considerably, so I threw the rest away (I was wondering what had happend to so many of my cases and now I remember where they went!) Point is, they will aneal at lower temps if given enough time but how low and how long I wouldn't know (not high enough to heat colour the brass).

I think the idea of standing cases in water while flame heating the necks then knocking them over was to prevent the heat from reaching the body and head and the knocking over when done was so one knew which cases were done. The knocking over into the water has no effect on the brass but if the brass is not stood in water then the speed of cooling does have an influence on the annealing so that cases not stood in water should be dropped into water after heating the neck, so as to control crystal regrowth and hence annealing. (Standing the cases in water in the first place cools the brass quick enough anyway).

[Shooter6br]

I read an article in Precision Shooting Mag a few years ago. To anneal a bottle neck case the writer used a candle. He held the case with two fingers (thumb and index.) He rotated the case over the frame. When his fingers felt the heat to a point where it got un comfortable he toke the case and placed it against a wet folded paper towel to cool. I dont know to what degree this process works but i am going to use it on some reformed 220 Swift to 6,5 Jap cases Rick

[Hickory]

[QUOTE=luober;718956]if you are annealing pistol cases to be used as bullet jackets in an oven, when you remove the tray of hot cases from the oven . . .

I wonder where you got the idea to annell pistol cases in an oven?
You must never annel the whole case, the web area must remain hard.
Other wise with a max load or anything below max you run the risk of case failure.

Anneling any case is done near or at the mouth ONLY.:holysheep

[ANeat]

He needs to anneal the entire case so it can be swaged into a jacketed bullet. The case is the jacket.

[303Guy]

I read an article in Precision Shooting Mag a few years ago. To anneal a bottle neck case the writer used a candle.I think he used a 'plumbers candle' - used for soldering copper pipe or was it lead pipe in those days?

[Shooter6br]

no regular candle flame Hold neck and shoulder over it Probably a mild annealing