Neck Annealing?

[Dave R]

Help me out on my first attempt at annealing. I inherited some older brass. Don't know how many times its been shot. Looks to be in good condition, but the last batch I shot I had two necks split out of about 30 rounds. I'm thinking maybe I should anneal the necks, in case they've become too work hardened.

So the process is like this, right? Please correct as needed.

1. Put the brass in question in a pan of water, with the water level just below the shoulder. (Or is it just below the neck?

2. With your propane torch, heat the neck & shoulder until it turns blue.

3. Knock the case over in the water.

Anything else to it?

 

[swifter]

In water to just below the shoulder, in dim light, until it just glows pink, knock it over. I dry mine in a cardboard box, in the sun. I also commend the Woodchuck Den's annealing tip for the torch. A bit pricy, but it gives a nice even heat.
Tom

 

[Frohickey]

Not until it turns blue.

Annealing brass

Hmm... didn't even think of the idea about dipping case necks into molten linotype lead to a nice exact temperature of 475F. And you can use a watch to time it too.

 

[blades67]

That doesn't help those of us without casting equipment.:banghead:

 

[Dave R]

Wound up trying the "set 'em in a pan of water and tip-em over" routine.

The cases I was using are pretty short. .357 mag pistol brass necked down to .17. So with the water about 2/3 of the way up the case, or prolly 1/8" below the start of the neck, I couldn't get the shoulder or neck to glow any kind of red. I think the water was heat-sinking too well. I left the torch on the neck/shoulder for 15-20 seconds. You could hear the water hissing at the waterline.

I did get 'em hot enough to make a nice hiss when they went down. Hope that was hot enough.

Should I lower the water level next time?