Thread: Annealing after sizing?

Hi all.

I haven't tried annealing brass before, but after F/L sizing and cleaning a bunch of .243 brass and noticing a few of them had split necks, I'm keen to give it a go. I'll be using the hand / blowtorch method.

I assume annealing is best done before sizing to get the full benefit of the softened brass, but as I've already sized this lot, should I go ahead and anneal or just load 'em up and do it next time around? And if I anneal now, do I need to run them back through the sizing die?

I've also got quite a bit of fully prepped 2x and 3x fired 7mmWSM brass that is looking fine, but as it is quite hard to come by, I'm tempted to anneal that now if it makes sense. This lot has been sized with a bushing die though, so supposedly not worked as much. I also don't know how many firings the .243 brass has had, as it was given to me by a good bloke on here.

Cheers, Rob

Load em up, sizing is what does most of the work hardening.

I re-size either FL or neck then anneal. Works for me. And start annealing after 2 or 3 firings.

I've always annealed before sizing, can't say I've heard of annealing after sizing ?

Always anneal after every firing and b4 any sizing.
I deprime, brush clean inside the neck, clean the outside of the neck and shoulder with Krazy Kloth, clean the primer pocket, and then anneal.
My annealer is calibrated to a fired case. Annealing a sized case does give a very slight difference.
Anneal before sizing because the sizing is what hardens the brass, along with firing.
If you're doing it to prevent split necks same deal.

Annealing before sizing is the way to go. Annealing after sizing may prevent neck cracking on firing and even neck tension leading to improved accuracy in extreme cases.


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Always try to anneal before sizing - this way you'll be able to control the spring back after sizing.

Most reloaders does not use a decapping die and thus sizes the cases to remove the primer during the case prep process. I would suggest to FL size again after annealing.

Not sure what effect annealing after sizing would have, but another +1 for annealing before sizing over here.

To be fair any body that is thinking of annealing needs to look at the AMP website and get some scientific data on annealing..
The blow torch method is proven to be an ineffective hit and miss system.
When brass is worth a small fortune these days use a member of the forum or trademe to get some one to anneal them with their induction amp annealer.
It does make a difference!

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Thanks all. The consensus confirms what I assumed re. preferably annealing before sizing, but my point was that I'd already sized this batch.

On the basis of @Dicko's comment I might give it a crack with the .243 now, and start annealing the 7WSM next time around.

Yes @andyanimal31, I'd much prefer to use an AMP but need a zero cost option right now.

Originally Posted by andyanimal31

To be fair any body that is thinking of annealing needs to look at the AMP website and get some scientific data on annealing..
The blow torch method is proven to be an ineffective hit and miss system.
When brass is worth a small fortune these days use a member of the forum or trademe to get some one to anneal them with their induction amp annealer.
It does make a difference!

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Whilst I agree amp is the gold standard, I wouldn't go as far as to say anything else is ineffective, I have been hot salt annealing for a while now and like everything in reloading consistency is Important. I set a metronome and make sure I only heat my brass for the same time per case, I also use an aftermarket controller for my melting pot to keep the temp stable and consistent. For sure an amp would be great but I've had very good results just using what I have.
Not as exact as amp annealing, granted - ineffective, no and far better than not doing anything at all.

An interesting side note to this - on looking into salt bath annealing after @dannyb's comments, I came across this article which states "...only the firing process – NOT the re-sizing process – causes this alteration in ductility."

SALT-BATH ANNEALING BY PAUL PARKINSON | Target Shooter Magazine

I can't find the dissertation they refer to, sorry.

His article credibility goes out the window with that starting statement methinks.

Originally Posted by zimmer

His article credibility goes out the window with that starting statement methinks.

Found the dissertation here: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://ballisticrecreations.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Ryan-Stevenson-Dissertation.pdf

Don't have time to read all 11,255 words while I am supposed to be working, but from the abstract:

"...The sample sets were designed to study the effects of reloading techniques such as neck turning and cartridge neck annealing. The production of the sample sets required 396 cartridges and 1260 rounds to be fired... The research quantified the hardening of the cartridges over 5 firings and 6 reloading preparation procedures. The firing process was found to have a more significant work hardening effect than that of the reloading procedure... The cartridge neck annealing process was shown to produce variable results. Possible methods of combating the inconsistent annealing results were suggested."

Sounds like a fun study and some interesting bedtime reading.

He doesn't actually say the the sizing process doesn't cause alteration in ductility, just the firing process has a more a significant work hardening effect.

However, I have one Ackley chambering. It has a TIGHT neck like 0.5 thou clearance. There is minimal expansion on firing. Likewise my 6BR which comes close to being able to be reloaded without sizing once fired. Any manipulation with dies causes a far greater amount of working of the brass alloy than during firing. The only difference with firing may be the speed of change.

Also, with the forming of wildcat cases (alright, extreme working) which may be required to be formed using a series of dies, the brass is annealed after every stage, otherwise the forming is generally not successful with splits or collapses.

At any rate, anneal after firing still is the go in fact with his theory definitely straight after firing.