Annealing Machines

[Hondo64d]

Mikes reliading bench annealer

Mike"s Reloading Bench-MRB Case Annealer- Brass Case Annealers- Annealing Machines- Annealing- Case Annealers

My first annealing machine. Works well.

John

 

[Buckskinner]

I just built one that cost me $38 and works wonderfully. I was very hesitant to get into annealing because of the "artsy" nature of it. I think it may be the most argued topic in reloading, but many people do it and it seems to work, so what the hell...

This machine was easy to build and easy to adjust to get the right temp.

There are many pages of good info here that I went off of.

DIY Annealing Machine - Page 1 - AR15.COM

I did not put a feed hopper on it since I will be there anyway and then I can inspect each piece of brass as I hand feed it...

​

 

[Buckskinner]

For some reason pic didn't attach...

For what it's worth. These were my first scrap pieces of brass that I tried over and over again, so may be signs of over annealing...

 

[Deleted member 46119]

For some reason pic didn't attach...

For what it's worth. These were my first scrap pieces of brass that I tried over and over again, so may be signs of over annealing...

Very nicely done. Simpler is better. One "cup". Perhaps "better" than the multiple rings design.

Too many other projects at this time to tackle a new annealer.

 

[Garycrow]

I bought the Mike's reloading bench annealer and am happy with it, it's a quality piece of gear. There's a bit of a learning curve with tempilaq paint and figuring out how to adjust the torch, but once you've got it figured out you just fill it up and let it run.

I initially intended to build my own by the instructions on AR15.com but the more I looked into it I realized it was going to take more time than I wanted to spend. As I get older my time is more valuable to me and I decided that the money I saved building it myself wouldn't nearly make up for the time l spent building it. I figured that if I worked the amount of time it would take to build it I could pay for the MRB annealer several times over.

 

[Buckskinner]

I'm sure you will be happy with Mike's, it certainly is fancier than mine. But, it only took me about 4 hours to make mine... Nothing complicated on it.

 

[Deleted member 46119]

I'm sure you will be happy with Mike's, it certainly is fancier than mine. But, it only took me about 4 hours to make mine... Nothing complicated on it.

WOW. That's great.

Any change you could do a thread on making it. Mostly the parts list.

 

[jrock]

I finally decided to make my own. I ordered some motors and PWM speed controllers off ebay for about $35 and fabed the rest out of stuff laying around. Not quite done yet but it's going to be slick. It does take time to put it together so not a quick project.

 

[Buckskinner]

Here are the links for the supplies that I ordered;


2 - Pans
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000VLIGY/?tag=lrhmag19-20

1 - 12v motor
High Torque 12V DC 25 RPM Gear-Box Stabilivolt Electric Motor Replacement | eBay

1 - Controller
DC 12V 24V 6-30V Max 8A PWM Motor Speed Controller With Digital Display & Switch | eBay

1 - Power supply
DC 12V 5A 10A 15A 20A 30A Regulated Transformer Power Supply For LED Strip USA | eBay

1- Set screw adapter
NEW Great Planes Set Screw Prop Adapter 8.0mm to 3/8x24 GPMQ4945 | eBay

Prices have varied slightly...

I used a few things that I had laying around as well;
scrap piece of 3/4" plywood, could definitely get by with 1/2", power cords from old circle saw, 2x4 bracket for feed ramp and 1/4" steel rod for brass guide.

If you look at the string of posts on the AR-15.com about these machines you can find all the info you will need about tricks of making it. I basically used Tophadman's design on page 8 for mine and kept it simple. Some of the guys went over the top building it, I didn't need that...

If you do build it, let me know if you have any questions and I can help you out.

 

[Full Curl]

Thanks Buck. I looked at that AR site and wow there's a ton on info on that thread. I'll have to find some time to read all those pages. I'm not a member so don't see the photos. Looks simple enough and I like simple. If you do put something together as far as instructions or step by step photos, I'd be very interested in following it.

 

[g0rd0]

a good set up for budget minded people (oh this isss going to start a lot of discussion), get yourself a Lee Precision High Speed Melter fill it with wheel weights and set the temp to 650 F. with spark plug plyers (cheep at harbour freight, uap, princess auto, ect), hold the base of UNPRIMED brass and dip the neck in the molten lead for 3 seconds, remove and shake the brass then place the hot brass on a metal tray (you wife wont mind if you use her favorite cookie sheet) to cool.

 

[tim_w]

Consistent annealing IMO is a bit harder than it looks. What I mean by that is getting the same hardness level everytime and every case. From what I can see there are going to be all kinds of variables :

Different case manf using different thickness and intial hardness of the brass.

Different cartidges.

If your using a flame source ensuring the flame at the point of contact is the same temp every time case to case including different cartridges.

Exact focused placement of the heat on the case

To set it up to be really precise you need a hardness tester and even possibly looking at the grain structure.

The only one I see that holds precise control of all the factors. temp at the case, focus point on the case, duration of heat exposure. Is the AMP induction annealer. They ensure each of those areas are precisely controlled for each cartridge case. I sure wish they could be at a lower price point but its a quality unit with lots of R&D. They really leave little to be screwed up.

I was thinking you could even use on with a proper holder to anneal bullet tips to help with expansion of mono bullets.

 

[geargrinder]

a good set up for budget minded people (oh this isss going to start a lot of discussion), get yourself a Lee Precision High Speed Melter fill it with wheel weights and set the temp to 650 F. with spark plug plyers (cheep at harbour freight, uap, princess auto, ect), hold the base of UNPRIMED brass and dip the neck in the molten lead for 3 seconds, remove and shake the brass then place the hot brass on a metal tray (you wife wont mind if you use her favorite cookie sheet) to cool.

I do something similar, but I use potassium nitrate (stump remover) instead of lead. It starts as granular, but melts to form a molten salt. No nasty lead fumes

I made a small frame/heat shield with two holes in it. It's adjustable to set the case to the proper depth.

Drop one case in a hole, grab another case and drop it in a hole. Remove the first one, drop it in a bucket of water. Then repeat. Very easy to get in a rythm.

 

[Blackhawk]

It seems to me that you'll definitely get many advantages from annealing... from increased brass life to more consistent sizing.

I've seen everything online from homemade jobs to big bucks - $1000 or more
I saw some members that are partial to the induction unit from Fluxeon, The Annie, which is about $500, I suppose I could manage that.

I just don't have the welding skills that may be required for a homemade unit

Does anyone have any strong opinions? 'bout the Annie or others?

thanks as always

I like the look , feel , & operation of the new model "ANNEALEEZ" annealer with the digital display used to fine tune the flame time and flame adjustment (see additional modifications page at U tube). The best thing about this unit is the way it functions and its price. I 'll not bore you with details but go to the annealeez web site for all info.