May have messed up?

[doninva]

I have been getting a lot of cases ready to load. My procedure has been:
1). punch out the primers with a universal de-primming die.
2). Thumbling for a couple of hours to clean, so my dies don't get scratched.
3). Lubing with Imperial sizing wax and a little in the neck.
4). Running thru a full length sizing die.
5). Put in a plastic coffee can with a little Dawn and very hot water, soak for an hour or so and then rinsing in very hot water.
6). This is where I may be messing up. I put the cases on a cookie sheet covered with foil and place in a toster oven for 45 minutes at 175 degrees. I read a tutorial on anneling that said unless I get it over 600 plus for a couple of hours, it wouldn't change the brass. Some I dried have some blue streaks on them. Do you think they will be ok. Thanks, Don

[scratcherky]

I think you would be better off eliminating steps 5 and 6.

[doninva]

I agree, will either tumble or clean and dry with a hair dryer from now on. Just wondering if I should worry about the 700 cases I've already got ready to load. Don

[stimpylu32]

Don

Don't sweat it , 175 is not hot enough to do any damage , except to your fingers when you pick them up  .

http://www.6mmbr.com/annealing.html

stimpy

PS == Take a look through the Useful Links sticky at the top of this forum , tons of useful info their .

[doninva]

Thanks, I was hoping they are good. Don

[Dances with Geoducks]

Here at clam acres we do it simple

Lube, deprime & size, tumble, neck trim is needed, reload.

I polish my dies after every use with a 20 gauge cotton swab and jewelers polish.

Have never seen scratches on any case yet. Replace the dies after 5 years, and they get rebored to AI and sold.

[Tommyt]

Don why do you do Step 5 ?
to remove lube ?
How bout a cheap pair of Cotton garden gloves and handle
the Brass as you move it from place to place while loading
then wash the gloves this may help dunno

tommyt

[gray-wolf]

 

This is where I may be messing up. I put the cases on a cookie sheet covered with foil and place in a toster oven for 45 minutes at 175 degrees. I read a tutorial on annealing that said unless I get it over 600 plus for a couple of hours, it wouldn't change the brass. Some I dried have some blue streaks on them. Do you think they will be ok. Thanks, Don

  I think a little more reading on your part about annealing may help you understand what happens to brass cases when subjected to heat. 
  You may be fine but you should know that time and temperature has a different effect on things as opposed to just temperature.  175* for 1 Min. is not the same as 175* for 30 MIN. nor is it the same for 1 hour. 
  Yes 600* is very close to the correct temperature for annealing brass, BUT certainly not for 1 hour.  If you were to heat treat your brass cases, 600* for a second or two would do the job.
  and then it is only the neck of the brass to just below the shoulder.
WHY?  because if you heat treat the brass any place near the web area ( down near the case head )
  You could have a very bad day.  The brass could let go (come apart ) in that area when it is fired.
Creating a very dangerous condition.
  Over doing the proses could also cause your cases to soften such as to crumple
( collapse when you try to size them ).
  There are many opinions about heat treating your brass cases.  MOST are wrong and go along the lines of----Hey it works for me----  Fine let it work for them.  If the word annealing even passes through your mind.  find out how to do it correctly.
  If you want to dry your cases roll them in a soft towel and use a hair dryer on low, with the brass in a metal container.

[flashhole]

I frequently wash brass in hot soapy water, I use Ivory, but I don't let them soak for any length of time.  I keep moving them around and rubbing them with my fingers during the wash step.  A hot water rinse or two then on a sheet and in the 150 degree oven for 5 minutes.  They come out clean and dry.  I like washing them because it gets rid of the hard primer deposits that may shorten barrel life.  It's really not a big deal to me to clean them this way because I also know they won't be dragging crud through my dies when I size them. 

Why do you leave them in the oven for so long?  150 degrees F is the temperature at which loosely coupled water molecules will leave a surface.  That's all you need to get them dry.

[ButlerFord45]

There is nothing wrong with your brass.  I launder mine as well.   My suggestion would be to replace the foil with a paper towel and cut your time to 15 min or less and leave the door open a bit, we're just getting rid of the water not making stew.
It's a lot like a Harley, if I have to explain, you wouldn't understand.

[Dee]

Since I have been reloading 3030 for 40 years I'll use them as an example.
I tumble them to clean them up A LITTLE, then I lube them, re size and decap them at the same time. Trim them for length if needed, and then tumble them again to finish cleaning them up. Then I check the primer pockets for media, and load them up. I have been using the same dies for the same 40 years, and they don't scratch my brass, and they chamber in every 3030 they've been in. I've never seen a need to recycle my dies.
I've done 308, 3006, 2506, 223, 243, 22-250, 4570, 38 special, 357 magnum, 44 special, 44 magnum, 45acp, 9mm, all the same way. Never had a problem.
I will say though, in pistol I used carbide dies, and eliminated the lubing process that way.

[doninva]

Thanks for all the replies. I have read a good bit about anneling. I realize you can only heat the neck and shoulder and you will ruin the brass if anneled, below the sholder. I was worried that heating the WHOLE case to 175 degrees for 45 minutes would kill the brass. Thanks again for letting me know, even though I made a dumb move, I haven't hurt my brass . I will use a different method from now on. Thanks again, Don

[SHOOTALL]

How hot do cases get when fired ? Hot enough you can't hold one long . On some weapons you can get them hot enough to "cook" off a round . I would bet they get to 175 or so.