(300 wsm, Winchester cases)
I tried in a dimly lit garage. I put the case in a 9/16 socket on my drill and rotated it slowly while I torched it.
The tip of the torch V was on the middle of the neck. I left it on for a 10 count at first, noticing no color change. I then left it on for a 15 count, again very little color change. ( I was looking for a very dull red)
What am I doing wrong? It looks nothing like the silvery neck I have seen in pics.
Just took them in a dark room and it took a full 15 count before the neck became dull red. I did about 25. The color changed slightly, but not as much as I thought.

You need to be careful not to overheat the brass and burn out the zinc which will weaken the brass. Only anneal the neck area. Once heated, drop into water to avoid having the heat draw down into the case head area. Unlike steel, quenching brass will not affect the annealing process. I just hold the case head in my fingers and rotate the neck in the flame. If it gets too hot to hold, you are doing something wrong.

Brass will not glow like steel, so the room should be near pitch black. The red glow will be faint.

Practice on some old range brass to get the hang of it.

A run of the mill propane torch with a pencil flame takes about a count of 4 to turn the necks blue.

I don't go for the red look. I use my brightly litt shop and heat the end just ahead of the shoulder until a blueish/purple color appears then your done.

Hornady sells an annealing kit that you may find useful. Using a brush on templiq solution will help take the guesswork out of temperatures.

Here is a link that tells how one guy does it. He uses Tempilaq 650.

http://www.6mmbr.com/gunweek092.html

Sorry to hijack, but does anybody know what software that is?

Good link provided. I also found it interesting that the gentleman does not quench his brass after he anneals each piece. Rather, he rack cools them.

I have used a plumber's torch and a pan of water that comes about half way up the case and then tip up the case over into it when I feel the neck has been heated enough.

The water trick is great for keeping the rest of thr body cool....you have no need in tipping them over though.

What benefit's doe's annealing have, just curious, thank's.

Richard,
I'm no expert, just summarizing what the experienced guys have already written. Annealing simply softens the brass so everytime you fire it, the neck tension is the same, thus taking out another variable. It also lengthens case life. According to most long range marksman, it dramatically improves accuracy.
I am a guy that overdoes everything and decided to build an annealing machine. After I tried the very simple method of a 9/16 socket on my drill with a plumbers torch in a dark room (heating till the neck just starts to get very dull red) I was hooked on this method. Save time and money and try this method first. I tried it for the first time this week and after the initial 5 or so "practice" cases, I think it worked out ok. Be sure and buy some Tempilaq 650 to make sure you are getting the right temp on the neck.

338zmag,
I have read that article numerous times because I really like that rifle he built. The video is very impressive.

Read this it does an excellent job of explaining Annealing Brass .

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

Visual color change isn't the way to go , a precise way is to " Time " cases based on a specific

temperature . In other words use the proper temperature of the

http://www.tempil.com/closeup....id=25&pid=27&theme=0

I recommend the 700 degree solution and Brownells carries it .

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx...ku/2_oz__700_deg__F_

Larger cases require different times than smaller cases . IE ; .223 .375 .

Apply solution allow drying time . Use a stop watch apply your torch click how long did it require

for what case you just annealed ?. Repeat 3-5 times old cases work just fine . Average your times .

Now you no longer need solution , use that scenario for ANY CASE . Good to Go !.

I prefer my brass clean before annealing it and don't polish it afterword's .

Others may do it differently but it has worked well for a quarter century for me .

quote:

I don't go for the red look. I use my brightly litt shop and heat the end just ahead of the shoulder until a blueish/purple color appears then your done.

Ditto.

Remember if you go to red your brass is most likley DEAD.BE SMART about it.

I remember the older gentleman (same age I am now) that introduced me to annealing brass, he also cast his own bullets. To anneal his brass, he would hold the cases by the head and dip them up to the shoulder in the molten lead and hold them there until they were too hot to hold. He then dropped them into a pot of boiling water. I never thought much about that process until now. Just thought I would share it.

Possibility: Rig together some kind of lash-up that holds the case with enough of it sticking out to do the anneal, and which keeps the rest of the case from soaking up too much heat. I see a hole drilled that holds the case in some kind of metal barrier of sufficient thickness to keep the case stable. The barrier is poised over cold water. The case gets the fire and gets dropped straight into the water when your finger begins to feel the heat.

www.kenlightmfg.com

A little on the pricy side but if you want to anneal cases and heat each one exactly the same amount, it's the only way to go. Jim

The way I do it works great.

Dark room (garage)
propane torch
Sinclair case holder
cheap cordless screwdriver
cold water in a bowl
ScotchBrite Green scrub pad

I chuck the case in the caseholder while it's in the cordless then spin it while gripping the neck with the scub pad. It cleans off the smokey neck (I don't tumble my brass and the only time it gets any cleaning is when I anneal)

Spin the case neck in the tip of the torch flame till it just becomes visible dull red......as per Varmint Al's instructions.

Immediately dunk the neck in the cold water bowl.

Repeat with another case