Brass blow by?

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johnl
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Brass blow by?

Post by johnl »

Gents

I finally got my 45-70 26” #1 Sporter dialled in, I get between 1”-2” 5 shot grouping at 100 yards. Load data is 68 grains of Ole Eynsford 505 gr paper patch bullet, slight powder compression and homemade grease cookie (thanks Kurt) Starline brass. However the last time I was out I got 4”-5” grouping, same load etc but the brass was heavily soothed. The top row was about reloaded 5 times and on the 6th came the soot, and the bottom has 4 firings, no soot. Funny, my 50-90 brass has about 7 reloads and other than the odd loose primer pocket they don’t have any signs of soot. 50-90 load data is 770 grain paper patch bullet 118 gr 1.5 Ole Eynsford powder, Starine brass, no grease cookie because there is no room :) (16lb #1 Sporter) gun is a real pussycat :lol: I was thinking my brass needs to be annealed, however I’m not sure since the 50-90 holds a lot more powder same manufacturer of brass, but is clean? Thoughts, thanks


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TexasMac
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by TexasMac »

John,

That's a clear indication that the brass does need to be annealed. I recently annealed 500 Starline cases for a friend with cases that looked exactly like yours. The next time he shot them there was no indications of blow by.

Wayne
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johnl
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by johnl »

TexasMac wrote:John,

That's a clear indication that the brass does need to be annealed. I recently annealed 500 Starline cases for a friend with cases that looked exactly like yours. The next time he shot them there was no indications of blow by.

Wayne


Wayne

I was afraid of that. Do you have an opinion on a company called Anealeez? They ship to Canada. BTW what do you use to clean the sooth off? I soaked them in hot soapy water, let dry and put them in my tumbler for two hours and they still look like crap.
TexasMac
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by TexasMac »

johnl wrote:
TexasMac wrote:John,
Wayne
I was afraid of that. Do you have an opinion on a company called Anealeez? They ship to Canada. BTW what do you use to clean the sooth off? I soaked them in hot soapy water, let dry and put them in my tumbler for two hours and they still look like crap.
John,

Here's an article I put together on annealing machines: http://www.texas-mac.com/Annealing_BPCR_Case_Necks.html
I bought the Vertex Bench-Source maching some time ago and love it. I was not aware of Anealeez. I'll have to add them to the article.

My brass always comes out clean, shinny & spotless after tumbling in my Thumlers tumbler for a couple of hours with ceramic media & either Dave Maurer's cleaning/polishing colution or with Strat-O-Sheen burnishing compound & a squirt of Dawn dishwashing soap.

Wayne
NRA Life (Benefactor & President's Council) Member, TSRA Life Member, NSSF Member, Author & Publisher of the Browning BPCR book
http://www.texas-mac.com
Clarence
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by Clarence »

I agree-those cases need annealing.

I made an annealer on the the pattern of Skip's v2.0; see u-tube. I used plywood in lieu of aluminum. Cost is <$100, and produces a very consistent anneal that's adjustable similar to the Annealeez.

Clarence
gunlaker
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by gunlaker »

John, I'm pretty sure that America restricts exports of automatic annealing machines believe it or not. The propane torch and battery drill technique can be very reliable.

I've never seen so much blow by. I get concerned if there is an 1/8" of an inch of black on the case mouths :D

My match loads all have 15 shot SD's of under 4 fps and I anneal with a torch and battery drill after every firing.

Chris.
Jim Kidwell
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by Jim Kidwell »

Give a look at salt bath annealing, i.e. http://www.ballisticrecreations.ca
Inexpensive compared to commercial propane annealers. I was impressed with the consistency of the annealing from case to case. FWIW...........

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SSShooter
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by SSShooter »

If I did not all ready own a Bench Source annealer (wonderful machine - anyone need any annealing done?) I would consider the salt-bath. Its a bit more hassle and requires some clean-up, etc., but at 1/4 the cost (assume that includes the 10# Lee pot, or goes up to 1/3 the cost) it would work.
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SchuetzenDave
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by SchuetzenDave »

John L:

If you want to pay the shipping to and from St. Albert, Alberta I will clean them with my ultrasound cleaner and anneal them for no charge.

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Lumpy Grits
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by Lumpy Grits »

Starline BPCR brass=anneal it. :lol:
Very easy to anneal by hand, with a electric screwdriver and LPG torch.
Gary
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johnl
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by johnl »

Jim Kidwell wrote:Give a look at salt bath annealing, i.e. http://www.ballisticrecreations.ca
Inexpensive compared to commercial propane annealers. I was impressed with the consistency of the annealing from case to case. FWIW...........

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Thanks for the info Jim, and thanks for the offer Schuetzen Dave. Hey Lumpy, I’m still scratching my head over the fact that the 45-70 Starline brass needs anealing with less firings than the 50-90 Starline :?:
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Lumpy Grits
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by Lumpy Grits »

Starline says on their site that the brass may need annealing.
I anneal S'line before the first firing. :wink:
G.
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SchuetzenDave
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by SchuetzenDave »

Your .45-70 may have a bit tighter chamber.
If your loading techniques move the brass more or if there is more expansion in your .50 chamber; then the cases could work harden more.

Starline brass definitely needs to be annealed before using.

Tight match chambers; or using fired cases, instead of FL sized cases reduces the work hardening of your brass.
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Lumpy Grits
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by Lumpy Grits »

I FL size my .45-70 in a .45-90 RCBS die. :wink:
Doesn't work the brass much. Still need to anneal Starline brass.
G.
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johnl
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Re: Brass blow by?

Post by johnl »

Thanks guys, looks like I’ll be ordering the salt bath kit and a ceramic tumbler and some more 45-70 brass.
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