Anyone annealing pistol (straight walled) cases?

[MCMXI]

After talking with @Walkalong, @Nature Boy and @taliv I decided to order a new annealer. I went a little crazy ordering pilots for just about every cartridge that I reload for including some pistol cartridges. It seems that straight walled cartridges need to have a rim in order for a pilot to work so there's no option for 9x19mm or .45 ACP but I was able to order pilots for .357 Mag, .45 Colt and .454 Casull.

I've annealed plenty of rifle brass but never a pistol case so was wondering if anyone here anneals pistol brass.

Thanks.

 

[Frulk]

Nope. Never done it. I’m open to the process if somebody can justify the benefits of it for straight walled cases. I’ve yet(that I remember) to have a case mouth crack because of work hardening. I’m guessing some of the cases are approaching their 10th reload.

 

[peels]

I have not done it yet, but my annealing machine does have the ability to anneal 357 mag cases. Only reason I would anneal them is due to the required heavy roll crimp that I have to use. I figured repeated roll crimping may harden the brass and lead to cracking.

I don't plan to anneal 38 special or any other straight walled pistol brass that require little to no crimping.

 

[Ruger 15151]

After talking with @Walkalong, @Nature Boy and @taliv I decided to order a new annealer. I went a little crazy ordering pilots for just about every cartridge that I reload for including some pistol cartridges. It seems that straight walled cartridges need to have a rim in order for a pilot to work so there's no option for 9x19mm or .45 ACP but I was able to order pilots for .357 Mag, .45 Colt and .454 Casull.

I've annealed plenty of rifle brass but never a pistol case so was wondering if anyone here anneals pistol brass.

Thanks.

Did you buy the Amp annealing machine? if so, congratulations! Its awesome! I think its the best $1500 I have spent in along time.

As far as annealing pistols cases of any kind, I really don't see any need. Ultra consistent neck tension isn't as important on pistol as it is on bottle neck cases. In addition, pistol cases last for so many reloadings that isn't worth the time or effort to worry about it.

 

[mdi]

Can you say the benefits from annealing your rifle brass will/can be applied to your hand gun brass (case life, neck tension, reloading ease)? I have never annealed any handgun brass and have some 44 Magnum cases that contained extra heavy loads last more than 10 reloadings so far, would annealing insure me to get 20? Maybe run a test and anneal some 357 Mag brass and see how many reloading before neck splits you get then reload some un-annealed cases, of same headstamp, and compare. Interesting...

 

[dcarr]

Interesting to see how this discussion plays out, I've got .357 and .45 colt with close to 8 reloads, Some head stamps only a few reloads so far. If it pays back I'd ask for a annealing machine for say Christmas.

 

[edwardware]

I anneal to:
- marginally increase accuracy (maybe it's worth 0.3MOA?)
- extraordinarily increase case life for brass I've already sorted, doctored, pampered, trimmed, turned, fireformed, and whispered sweet nothings to.

Neither of those advantages really seems to apply for pistol, but just maybe for heavily crimped .357 and .45 Colt.

 

[Frulk]

For some reason I was thinking an annealer was running in the $450 range. I’m by no means cheap but the $1,500 mentioned above will buy me enough brass in .357/.44/ 45 Colt to last me the rest of my life and well into my grandsons. I don’t reload rifle cases so I might not be able to justify the outlay for the potentially marginal (it appears) benefits annealing would provide me.

 

[Ruger 15151]

For some reason I was thinking an annealer was running in the $450 range. I’m by no mans cheap but the $1,500 mentioned above will buy me enough brass in .357/.44/ 45 Colt to last me the rest of my life and well into my grandsons. I don’t reload rifle cases so I might not be able to justify the outlay for the potentially marginal (it appears) benefits annealing would provide me.

There are some really great torch annealing machines that can be purchase starting at $375. Annealeeze is one of them. I would suppose that if you found a need to anneal pistol cases, it would be a great solution. However, its impossible to provide a consistent anneal using a torch because there are too many variables to duplicate each time you anneal a rifle case. The machine I mentioned uses a software controlled induction method that analyzes the actual lot of brass and provides a constantly perfectly annealed case which is essential for long range rifle precision reloading.

Good precision brass such as Lapua, Peterson, etc starts at about $75/100 and goes up depending on the caliber. However, the cost is really in the time, effort, and components necessary to end up with a fire-formed case that is ready for precision loads. You want the brass to be consistent and last as long as possible before you have to start over with new brass again.

In long range competitive precision shooting it actually saves money in my opinion.

 

[Frulk]

Ruger...thanks for that detailed and enlightening response. Much appreciated.

 

[Walkalong]

The price of the AMP hurt, no doubt, but it is super simple, consistent, and pretty much bullet proof as far as getting it right.
So like I said, the price hurt, but after the results I am glad I bought it. It helped with consistent neck tension, made keeping sized cases straight easier, which improved concentricity after seating bullets.

And of course it will increase case
life.

 

[mdi]

Does anyone anneal with a torch and pan of water? IIRC this was the accepted method pre-annealing machines, but I haven't tried annealing, maybe for my Garand brass?

 

[.38 Special]

I don't anneal handgun brass. I generally get at least ten uses out of a case. Annealing might extend that, but if my time is worth anything at all (and annealing is one of the few handloading processes I really don't enjoy) then it just doesn't make any sense. Maybe if this component scarcity keeps up I will reassess...

 

[.38 Special]

Does anyone anneal with a torch and pan of water? IIRC this was the accepted method pre-annealing machines, but I haven't tried annealing, maybe for my Garand brass?

For rifle brass that is my method. I have done both the "hold the base in your fingers and drop it into the pan when it gets warm" method and the "stand the case in the pan and knock it over when the neck changes color" method. They both work, and I guess I don't have a real preference. The only thing I'm sure of is that I don't do enough rifle shooting/reloading to justify the purchase of a dedicated annealer.

 

[MCMXI]

Did you buy the Amp annealing machine? if so, congratulations! Its awesome! I think its the best $1500 I have spent in along time.

Yes, along with 14 pilots!! I load .454 Casull and .45 Colt hard cast loads for a couple of revolvers that I carry on the trails up here and I use a heavy roll crimp. The pilots are $20 a piece so I figured what the heck. I just ordered four hundred .357 cal 185gr hardcast bullets from Beartooth Bullets for use in my Ruger GP100 and possibly the Colt Python so those loads will require a heavy crimp too. I'm still working my way through new Starline brass for the .45 Colt and .454 Casull but eventually will need to resuse some cases.

If anyone's interested, I have a complete Annie induction annealer with water cooled coil, and foot pedal. I have a fair amount of money invested into it but I'd let it go for a lot less than I paid since I don't need two systems. The Annie does a good job once you figure out how long to cycle the current but the AMP is certainly better.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

Life is to short, I don't anneal pistol brass.

 

[Toprudder]

The only time I annealed straight-walled brass was when I was reforming 50AE into 429DE. I may continue to anneal the 429DE between firings, I don't know. I used a salt-bath setup to anneal these, then decided to order the Fluxeon Annie annealer, which I just got this week after a 3 month wait. I, too, got the water cooled coil. No pilots needed with this. I'm sure the Amp annealer is a nicer unit, but I am very satisfied with the Annie unit. I'm already figuring out how to automate it with a case feeder, but it is pretty fast doing it by hand with a technique I came up with.

I did see the advantage of a foot pedal, and the adjustable platform, that Fluxeon sells as options (which I did not buy). I decided to go out on Amazon to see if I could find some substitutes and found a platform that looks identical, and a foot pedal, for a lot less money.

 

[denton]

I was having issues with 9mm cases splitting, sometimes when firing factory ammo. So I worked out the method shown in the video. Complete setup is cheap. Yes, I do anneal pistol brass. I can do 100 cases in about 10 minutes, and that gives me longer case life and more uniform neck tension. The "salts" involved are highly compatible with brass (saltpeter, Chile saltpeter). As long as you wash after annealing, you won't have any corrosion problems.

 

[Toprudder]

I could see annealing 44 mag or 45 colt brass, but 9mm is so plentiful. I could spend less time picking up more 9mm brass from the range than I would annealing the same amount of brass. But, I certainly won't argue with anyone that wants to do it.

 

[243winxb]

anyone here anneal pistol brass.

No. Why? Not safe. Imo.

454 Casull.
Runs at 65,000 PSI. Feeling lucky?

Cartridge Brass-
Material is 70 copper/30 zinc with trace amounts of lead & iron , called C26000. Material starts to yield at 15,000 PSI when soft (annealed), and 63,000 PSI when hard.
Material yields, but continues to get stronger up to 47,000 PSI when soft, and 76,000 PSI when work hardened.

 

[splattergun]

Does anyone anneal with a torch and pan of water? IIRC this was the accepted method pre-annealing machines, but I haven't tried annealing, maybe for my Garand brass?

I anneal my rifle brass this way, using a Lee trimmer shell holder in my drill to turn the brass in the torch flame. A blue line just above the shoulder, done. I'm not a metallurgist so the little variable in temperature are irrelevant to me. Apparently irrelevant to my shooting, too.
But nope, never annealed pistol brass.

 

[AJC1]

Strait wall and pistol is not the same. If I had that machine I would do 350 legend and 45/70 all day. If you have it use the hell out of it

 

[MCMXI]

Strait wall and pistol is not the same.

The 16th Edition of Cartridges of the World has a cartridge identification table at the back with close to 1,000 cartridges listed. In the column "case type" they use a letter designation A through L to describe the case. The following are listed as "B" which represents "Rimmed, straight".

.357 Magnum
.44 Magnum
.45 Colt
.454 Casull
.45-70 Govt.

 

[peels]

I have never annealed any handgun brass and have some 44 Magnum cases that contained extra heavy loads last more than 10 reloadings so far, would annealing insure me to get 20? Maybe run a test and anneal some 357 Mag brass and see how many reloading before neck splits you get then reload some un-annealed cases, of same headstamp, and compare. Interesting...

Well, if your 44 mag brass is any indication, it will be a while before my 357mag brass starts to crack or when I would need to anneal them. I'm at 3x fired currently...

 

[Demi-human]

I anneal to:
- marginally increase accuracy (maybe it's worth 0.3MOA?)
- extraordinarily increase case life for brass I've already sorted, doctored, pampered, trimmed, turned, fireformed, and whispered sweet nothings to.

Both of these are advantages to a Desert Eagle, who, quite haughtily, tosses it’s expensive cases to the ground, usually on the mouth.
And I’ll take any accuracy advantage I can get with it. I now have a fourteen shot group the size of my hand at 25 yards.(I wish I had smaller hands...)

But, yeah, that’s the only one long enough to run through an Annealeeze and not burn the wheels...