eshorebwhntr
Well-Known Member
****... nice work. How thick is the brass in the neck?
Peterson Brass Belted Mag Basic Unprimed Box of 50
- Thread starter Bghunter338
- Start date
Help Support Long Range Hunting Forum
Calvin45
Well-Known Member
Thanks for sharing this that's really cool!
Bghunter338
Well-Known Member
.0135 to .014
How does the overall length hold out?
Bghunter338
Well-Known Member
That was measured off of the trimmed case. I hope that's what you where asking.
Sorry I should've made myself clearer, I was curious of the overall length of the brass, if that's going to hold out OK? In conversing with Peterson that was one concern they had,.
Bghunter338
Well-Known Member
Oh gotcha, yeah it came out way longer then they where thinking. Now once it gets fully fire formed that might change not sure yet.
eshorebwhntr
Well-Known Member
That's sweet. I guess all the excess got pushed out in length. It makes great brass but I hate the neck turning process.
How far do you think you'll have to push the shoulder back?
Bghunter338
Well-Known Member
Not far at all just enough for the bolt handle to go down
Bghunter338
Well-Known Member
I could use one of my dies but I have it set to another rifle and I don't want to mess it up
I have a custom hydraulic forming die and reloading die set from Whidden for my .30 LARA.
L-R
1: 8MM Rem virgin brass
2: After a couple of whacks using the hydraulic forming die
3: After using the resizing die
4: Fireformed off the rifle
With a hydraulic forming die, it'll get you to #2. Good luck!
Bghunter338
Well-Known Member
Okay guy's here's what I got as of now.
First picture is of the first step using a 375 h&h sizing die.
I apologize step two is using a 8mm rem mag sizing die but dummy me forgot to take a picture of it. Then step 3 is using a full length 7mm stw sizing die. I was told that I should be annealing between each step but I don't have one or Access to one, and there probably right. It might make it easier.
Last two pictures are of final product to be fire formed.
First picture is of the first step using a 375 h&h sizing die.
I apologize step two is using a 8mm rem mag sizing die but dummy me forgot to take a picture of it. Then step 3 is using a full length 7mm stw sizing die. I was told that I should be annealing between each step but I don't have one or Access to one, and there probably right. It might make it easier.
Last two pictures are of final product to be fire formed.
eshorebwhntr
Well-Known Member
Good work.
Can't wait to see how they turn out. Looking forward to the before and after pics from fireforming. Hopefully they group well for you during fireforming.
What's the neck diameter on your finished round?
Can't wait to see how they turn out. Looking forward to the before and after pics from fireforming. Hopefully they group well for you during fireforming.
What's the neck diameter on your finished round?
A deep socket spun in an electric drill and a propane torch ain't fancy but it works.
Annealing is highly likely to improve the success rate of case forming, measured in case life and fewer lost to early splits. You don't have to be perfect, just 'good enough.'
- Start spinning the case and aim the inner, lighter blue part of the flame just below the shoulder / body junction.
- Heat until the part in the flame begins to glow a dull red. Anneal in a mostly dark room so you can see this.
- When the glow begins, dump the case into a catch pan. An disposable aluminum baking pan works. Water isn't required, the case cools quickly and unlike steel, quenching has zero effect on how the brass turns out.
- No need to over do it though the time and temp range is relatively broad. Getting a dull (not bright red) glow indicates you're softening the brass.
- Reaching that dull red glow should take 3-6 seconds. That's slow enough to be controllable. If it happens in 1-2 seconds, try turning the flame down some or holding the case further out of the flame.
I built an induction annealer for under $200 but it's powerful (heats quickly) so a learning curve is involved. IME, flame annealing is a) proven and b) controllable. A ton of different experiences, information and misinformation is on the Interwebs. This guy [<LINK to 'Reese on the Range'] is a metallurgical engineer and a shooter, has a series of vids on annealing. Of all the stuff I've seen he has the most sensible approach and info.
EDIT: My induction annealer is based on the one by North East Texas Tactical on YT. The vids are here and here. I put the handheld induction unit in an enclosure with an extra cooling fan & mounted the timer on the box. The 2d vid shows how to size and wind heating coils from #10 or 12 copper wire for different size cases.
Scored a returned induction unit on Amazon for $135 so my total cost is well under $200. A new one, timer, fan,
external switch, box & paint should be $235 or less.
Apologies for the thread hijack.
Last edited:
