To anneal or not?

[Ralt71]

This is where it gets confusing for me.
I’m all about simple, and easy, so now is five Mississippi enough to get that dull red glow, or don’t I really need the dull red glow, or do I need the dull red glow, and five Mississippi not long enough……?

I don't want to complicate this, but all you are doing is returning the brass to a more soft state after being work hardened. Too much heat for too long is worse than not enough time in the heat. When I started doing this I used a heat pen like what we were using for heat treating metal before welding on it. I started out with a dim lit room and look for a faint glow. I would immediately hit the center of the case with my 400F pen to make sure the heat didn't travel too far down my case. That method is the easiest way to get into it and it will help compared to not doing it at all. I have the Burstfire it has a timer and automatically drops them after a set period of time. It makes doing this that much quicker, easier, and consistent but you have more investment up front. It really is a simple task though when you look at the principal of what you are doing.

If you go too hot you start separating the metals, effecting the zinc, and your heat will travel closer to the case head which can result in separation. If you aren't sure, you're better off stopping sooner as opposed to letting it get hotter.