anneal 223 or not?

[edfardos]

After five reloadings of once fired brass I get 10% neck splits. Anyone getting better life by annealing? Assuming annealing reduces the neck splits, how many reloads do you get before insipient head separation?

This is commercial 223 brass, full length sized, and the ar15 also puts scratches in the neck, which also promotes the splits.

So... worth annealing, or junk the brass after 5 or 6 reloads?

Thanks,
Edfardos

 

[cfullgraf]

I do not anneal 223 Remington, or any other case for that matter. I am not saying it is not a worth while endeavor, I just choose to not spend the time.

With 223 Remington, those shot in an AR start to get loose primer pockets around 5 or 6 loadings and I do not experience neck splitting.

In my bolt rifle, cases last longer. I frequently move cases fired several times in the ARs to the bolt rifle.

 

[Laphroaig]

Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. When I do a batch of brass, I try to anneal after the 3rd loading. I use the torch method in a fairly dark room, and heat until the start of a dull red then drop into a bucket of water.

Generally get 10+ loadings without neck cracking. Without, like you, 5 or 6 and necks start cracking.

The only problem I've had with loose primer pockets is with federal brass.

Laphroaig

 

[jmorris]

I almost never annealed cases until I built a machine that could make the process consistant for every case. As most of my .223 brass comes from 3 gun matches, all of it gets annealed before loading and I don't get split necks, however, I say shoot them until they split and recycle them if you have a good supply of them.

 

[Walkalong]

For plinking loads in .223 with no annealing, I get 8 to 12 firings from .223 range brass FL sizing to fit a Wilson case gauge. The cases get scrapped due to loose primer pockets. An occasional case will have a split neck. I am loading a hair under max.

 

[Rangemaster]

I anneal for concentricity to control runout. Before I got my annealer I was getting 5-10 shootings per case.

 

[horseman1]

After five reloadings of once fired brass I get 10% neck splits. Anyone getting better life by annealing? Assuming annealing reduces the neck splits, how many reloads do you get before insipient head separation?



That's a really good question. I have the same concerns.

 

[Comrade Mike]

How do you guys anneal consistently?

 

[carbine85]

I anneal after 3 or so reloads and usually scrap the brass after around 6 reloads.
I use a 1/2" deep well socket in a cordless drill, a Harbor Freight torch and simply heat it until the color looks right. I don't make a big deal out of annealing.

 

[jmorris]

How do you guys anneal consistently?

I use this machine. A few hundred other folks do too.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=434828&highlight=auto+annealer

 

[lightman]

I never felt the need to anneal, until just lately. I started getting split necks on my Winchester brass on the first and second firing. While 223 brass is fairly cheap, I invest a lot of work on case prep. It seems like everyones QC slipped during the 2008 panic, and never came back up.

Anyway, I bought a Giraud Annealing Machine, and now I anneal. I'm hoping the split necks stop. Lightman

 

[edfardos]

Thanks for all the detailed replies!

I suppose I'm still on the fence, but the lack of availability of 223 brass makes me want to do something if I can get a couple more reloads from my existing brass. Maybe I'll try a batch and report back the benefit if any.

Thanks again,
Edfardos

 

[Dr.Zubrato]

Let us know, Im on the fence for annealing too, wondering if the extra work is worth it, coming up on the fourth loading on some LC brass.
Boy i wish I had that giraud annealer!

 

[hentown]

I don't believe folks quench in water anymore.

 

[NeuseRvrRat]

there's enough .223 brass laying around the range that i never have to buy any. to me, it's not worth the effort to anneal it when it's free. that's for case life. if you were considering annealing for accuracy, then that may change things.

 

[quartermaster]

I bought a vortex machine a few years ago. I think it does add to case life providing you don't load hot enough to expand the primer pockets. I guess that eventually happens even with normal loads. I go the whole route of work when loading to prep my brass to get the most uniform brass that I can, so I kind of always felt that annealing every 3rd loading or so would give more uniform neck tension.

The machine makes for fast work of the task. If I didn't do the amount of reloading and shooting that I do, I wouldn't have invested in the annealer, but since I have it I do all my brass even the AR 223s

 

[horseman1]

Well, I did 200 previously used Lake City cases last night.

Stole the dogs stainless steel water dish. Went out to the shop in the barn and chucked up an Allen socket backwards in the cordless drill and used the 3/8" ratchet end to hold the 223 brass.

Put the torch in a homemade PVC torch older. Lit the torch and a few seconds of spinning in the flame, just before it starts to glow red and tip it down to plop into the dog water.

Didn't take long at all.

 

[smokey262]

I don't believe folks quench in water anymore.

What other cooling medium do folks use? I use water

 

[jmorris]

I use air but you can hold the cases right out of the flame.

 

[Offfhand]

Quoted from above post.

"I anneal for concentricity to control runout."

Would be interesting to know how this controls runout. More details please? Thanks