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Annealing cases

9K views 31 replies 15 participants last post by  CaptGrumpy 
#1 ·
There has been a new to me method for annealing brass that is pretty inexpensive.
I took the plunge and bought the Bench Source unit and love it but just wanted to pass this alternate method of case annealing by open flame or induction which both methods work well. This new method should help get the issues worked out for those of you that are shy about annealing your cases.
 
#2 ·
That looks pretty easy. I'm going to try it the old school way with a torch in a dark room in water pretty soon. Never annealed before but if it extends the life of my brass might as well. Might end up getting a system like that once I get set up casting.
 
#4 ·
Don't heat brass until it glows, you'll ruin it. Either use this salt bath technique or if you use a torch you should use tempilac paint to set up the torch.
 
#3 ·
There is a detailed post over at the 65 forum that gives specs and details about doing the molten salt bath for annealing. You should be able to do the whole ball of wax for under $120.
5 seconds at 500C is all it takes
 
#7 ·
If the brass glows and the flame changes color you ruined the case. Salt Bath annealing is pretty much fool proof as long as you are not dipping the case in beyond the neck and just past the shoulder shoulder. I would not go with the candle process as I doubt the flame is hot enough to get the job done properly without the heat traveling too far. If you are going to use open flame then you need to use Tempilaq to ensure that you reach your temp but not go over. We use two temps for welding inspections on structural steel. A preheat level and then a max temp level to shut down welding if the steel is getting too hot.
I am going to do the salt bath system for my 6.5 CM brass as I already have the Bench Source set up and timed for my 6.8 cases. I have over 15K 6.8 cases vs 1K 6.5 cases. Time to test the Molten Salt Bath method.
 
#10 ·
Melting pot was $44 delivered to my door via Amazon.
The salts are $4 a pound and 2 pounds should be plenty for quite a while but I bout 5 and shipping is $16
you can get a Centech #37772 that comes with the temperature probe at Harbor Freight for $24 and you can make the holder for about $10 or less or buy the guy's one from the video for $25.
I will use the metronome app on my cell phone to do the timing or get a cheap one on Amazon for about $10 https://www.amazon.com/Instrument-M...TF8&qid=1492576086&sr=1-23&keywords=metronome
 
#11 ·
I will do a little video review after I get it together this week and show my intial run and record how long it took to heat the molten salts and how long to cool down. The pot is important as you do not want a melting pot that dispenses from the bottom as when the salt cools it will be a hockey puck and the dispesing rod to the bottom port will be stuck in the salt. The salt will attract moisture to the inside metal of the pot and it is critical to not introduce any water to the molten salt at any high temperature unless you want to try to survive some serious burns from an explosion of molten salt in front of you where you face is exposed. And yes, always wear safety glasses of a face shield and gloves and a long sleeved shirt.
 
#13 ·
Good find there, Kemosabe!! Thanks, and looking forward to learning more after you report back with your experience with it. :a31:
 
#14 ·
A friend and I are knife makers. We built a pair of salt pots for use in heat treating materials to >2000F and then at 500F or so. While this endeavor is not as extreme as the one we used for a number of years, there is one caution that NEEDS to be passed along.


Anything put is a salt pot at temperatures even as low as 500F MUST be completely dry!!!! At that temp water will flash to steam. Even a little can cause the hot salt to be splashed about. Molten salt at temps as low as 500F does TERRIBLE things to people it lands on!!!!!

Be VERY, VERY, VERY, careful!!!!!


(At higher temperature molten used for metal heat treating salt glows and has a viscosity lower than water and a low surface tension ... is the scariest material I have ever seen and I am a retired Ph.D. chemist!)
 
#16 ·
A friend and I are knife makers. We built a pair of salt pots for use in heat treating materials to >2000F and then at 500F or so. While this endeavor is not as extreme as the one we used for a number of years, there is one caution that NEEDS to be passed along.

Anything put is a salt pot at temperatures even as low as 500F MUST be completely dry!!!! At that temp water will flash to steam. Even a little can cause the hot salt to be splashed about. Molten salt at temps as low as 500F does TERRIBLE things to people it lands on!!!!!

Be VERY, VERY, VERY, careful!!!!!

(At higher temperature molten used for metal heat treating salt glows and has a viscosity lower than water and a low surface tension ... is the scariest material I have ever seen and I am a retired Ph.D. chemist!)
i'm watching this one closely
 
#23 ·
You can also dry them in the oven quickly. Set it to Warm for about 20 minutes, put the brass in on a plate and wait for another 5 minutes, then turn off the oven. The residual heat will evaporate the moisture quickly. If you don't have a Warm setting, set it at 200 deg, same steps.
 
#25 ·
OK. I ran my first batch today after building the case holder.I plugged my Lee melting pot in after loading it with the salts and ran it on hi for about 15minutes and it was at full temp (580C) in 20 so I turned it down until I got it balanced at 505C and began my batch of 100. It was easy as pie. It took me less than 15 minutes to get through the batch with a few interruptions. This process is as easy as the video makes it out to be. No adjusting flames and no worries about destroying brass by getting too hot. I ordered the Redding Competition Match die set and will be watching the lifespan of my brass to see where improvements can be made.
 
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