AMP may have made Annealing Perfect, but they also made it easy! While we’ve featured the AMP Mark II before, this time I’m teaching Guy how to use it!
Disclaimer
Ultimate Reloader LLC / Making with Metal Disclaimer: (by reading this article and/or watching video content you accept these terms). The content on this website (including videos, articles, ammunition reloading data, technical articles, gunsmithing and other information) is for demonstration purposes only. Do not attempt any of the processes or procedures shown or described on this website. All gunsmithing procedures should be carried out by a qualified and licensed gunsmith at their own risk. Do not attempt to repair or modify any firearms based on information on this website. Ultimate Reloader, LLC and Making With Metal can not be held liable for property or personal damage due to viewers/readers of this website performing activities, procedures, techniques, or practices described in whole or part on this website. By accepting these terms, you agree that you alone are solely responsible for your own safety and property as it pertains to activities, procedures, techniques, or practices described in whole or part on this website.
Annealing
Guy is a very traditional man and I do my best to expose him to new things (and I appreciate how Guy exposes me to traditional things!). In the case of AMP’s Mark II annealer, I’m certain it will make his life easier.
Annealing is the process of taking hardened (fired) brass and returning it to the optimal hardness value. This helps protect the brass and gives it greater longevity. It can also create more accurate neck tension and make the shoulder bump more accurate and repeatable as we’ve shown with the AMP press. This increased consistency can also lower the standard deviation and extreme spread on your groups.
There are several ways to anneal brass, but the most high-tech and accurate way is computer-controlled induction annealing. AMP’s Mark II is an induction annealer with AZTEC technology. AZTEC enables the machine to analyze a piece of brass by bringing it up to the melting point where the neck is and automatically adjusting to the optimal hardness level. This requires sacrificing a piece of brass.
Using the AMP Mark II
I tried really hard to stay hands-off and let Guy do everything. The first step is switching to the proper pilot to center each case over the induction coil.
Each pilot is cartridge specific, though there are a few cases in which one can be used for very similar cartridges. For working with 6.5 Creedmoor, we needed Pilot 17.
Next comes turning on the machine. The power is near the cord on the rear of the machine – it is not the start button! With the machine running, I had Guy connect the grip and shellholder to keep his hands from getting burned before adding his first case.
With the sacrificial case in the machine, I walked Guy through the controls. “Start” allows you to select a value while “Program,” “+” and “-” change the menu or make the numbers go up and down. Selecting “Start” activates AZTEC.
The minus sign gets you to “Analyze.”
We then used the “Start” key to enter the pilot number, select “A” and begin the Analyze pass. The machine then issues a number – in this case 144. This number is good to have in reloading records for the same brass. If you don’t want to sacrifice a case, AMP has some reference numbers on their website.
After discarding the sacrificial case, Guy selected “Start for Use” which applied code 144 to all new brass.
He added the cases one at a time and selected “Start” for each, surprised at the ease and speed with which he could anneal.
Conclusion
AMP has proven their machine is the best way to anneal brass. It wasn’t easy, but I was able to be “hands off” while Guy tried out the entire process from start to finish. Now Guy is empowered to use the Mark II any time he needs to anneal! Good Deal.
Get the Gear
Order the AMP Mark II from Creedmoor Sports!
Don’t miss out on Ultimate Reloader updates, make sure you’re subscribed!
Thanks,
Gavin Gear
