Annealing ?

[wisconsinteacher]

I understand why we anneal and what it does but I have a question and a little issue. The issue is that I can not keep my brass organized and straight, so my thought is why not anneal after every shooting session so I don't have to try to keep count of times fired. I also am thinking, if you anneal and shoot and get good results, wouldn't annealing again give you the same results as the last shooting because the brass is in the exact same "spot" as it was last time.

So is it crazy to anneal after every shooting and just make it part of the brass process?

 

[jimbires]

I anneal my brass every other time . I do read some guys doing it every time .

 

[CMBTshooter]

I don't think it would be a problem.

 

[onesonek]

So many factors determine the need. If you have the time and want to do more often than needed, I can't say it'll hurt anything. Some I have to anneal more often than other's, but it's one of those chore's I do only as often as necessary.

 

[joelkdouglas]

I anneal every 5th firing, as my primary aim is to extend brass life.

If I were going to anneal every firing for the "identical prep" benefits you mentioned, I think I would get an annealing machine. My "hold in front of the torch until it looks right" method probably isn't as perfect as the annealing machine!

 

[MrBruce]

I anneal every time I reload. It's probably overkill but now I don't have to keep track of how many times a case has been fired. I also figure it's the best way to make sure neck tension is consistent. It's simple, quick and inexpensive so why not?

 

[OU812]

I only anneal when my brass or group size tells me so.

 

[SJB358]

WT, you won't hurt a thing annealing every time. I do about every third on the hotter rifles and I don't enjoy screeching expander balls. I think it's very easy to do 50 cases once you have the process down. I don't do bulk annealing but could see it would be a huge chore if I had a few hundred to do.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Thanks for the info guys. I really think I am going to start doing it every time just to not have to count the times fired.

Load/shoot/anneal/size/prep/load again and do it all over.

 

[jimbires]

the guys are trying to put together another group buy on benchsource annealing machines on the long range forum , if anyone is interested . I have a ballistic edge machine that works well . the first thing I noticed when I started to anneal was my shoulder bump , it's very consistent on soft brass . Jim


http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/ ... 2-a-92477/



and the new thread . group buy #3
http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/ ... -a-112784/

 

[Elkman]

I do it whenever the urge strikes me, which is probably not often enough. My loads work well however.

 

[efw]

What is the challenge you have in keeping brass organized? Mine used to be that I didn't have enough brass so I was loading partial boxes. I also used factory boxes rather than loading boxes which aren't as easy to work out of at the range. I was also working out of multiple boxes in each range session, and getting cases mixed up between boxes.

To keep better track or cases, I bought a few 50 round MTM boxes and the white & black load labels with the numbers at the bottom. I annealed all the brass I had, loaded em and blacked out the 1. Then I only allowed myself one box at the bench or shooting station to ensure they stayed together, and only loaded 50 at a time rather than partial boxes.

By doing it this way I've managed to keep em segregated, and with a Lee Collet Neck Sizer need only anneal every 5 loadings. I determined that by the fact that after the 4th firing the case mouth/neck would not bounce back after sizing, but slide off the mandrel. I have found that the cartridges I use Lees on have MUCH better life than those using other "standard" neck sizers.

I am with others who despise annealing so I only do it when I absolutely have to, and do a ton of brass each time.