Looking for input on annealers. Besides the obvious cost difference, which one do you prefer? Bench source appears to be production oriented versus the AMP “ 1 at a time”. Not afraid at all to spend the extra $$. From other thread it looks like most guys load in lots of 50 rounds which would not be a lot of time using AMP.
Annealers AMP vs Bench source
- Thread starter CT Sparky
- Start date
Since your question is about to disappear, I will try to answer.
I went with AMP because I didn't want to fool with flame and Templaq.
Last time I saw a Bench Source operating it too was one at a time.
I am a very happy camper with the AMP and yes I do anneal in lots of 50 rounds.
I went with AMP because I didn't want to fool with flame and Templaq.
Last time I saw a Bench Source operating it too was one at a time.
I am a very happy camper with the AMP and yes I do anneal in lots of 50 rounds.
I anneal a lot more frequently since I got an AMP. So simple. Power up. Load the right size pilot. Punch in the proper annealing time program. Start annealing. I never considered it a slow machine. It’s a lot faster then setting up a propane annealer each time you want to use it. And I hardly used my propane annealer because of the set up time.
just posted this on another thread, thought it might be appropriate here, FYI..
*****
Competitors say: 1st shot= fireform, 2nd-4th competition, 5+= practice cases.
Personally, I purchased the "AMP" unit. The justification was "consistency". I can feel the tension of every bullet seating, and know they are the same (as close as humanly possible). I anneal as part of my process in every loading.
Now that AMP offers custom programming, all of my cases have specific programs (per lot). Rabbit hole? YES. But it works for me.
That said; I load only Norma and Lapua brass (currently .223Rem, and 6.5CM). I cull any cases that feel different during any part of the process, or show signs of fatigue. I trash them at 20 regardless (last Norma batch I tossed 7 out of 200 during their life for various reasons). My current batch of 200 Lapua is @ 12, and I have tossed 2 cases. Powder charges are somewhere north of max..
I chose to put my money into precision loading, and good factory rifles (Tikka for one). The cost of excellent hand loading equipment ( AMP, FX 120i, custom dies), pays dividends for many years, with average ES in the low teens, and consistent sub MOA accuracy.
Do the math to see what works best for you.
my opinion.. hope it helps
*****
Competitors say: 1st shot= fireform, 2nd-4th competition, 5+= practice cases.
Personally, I purchased the "AMP" unit. The justification was "consistency". I can feel the tension of every bullet seating, and know they are the same (as close as humanly possible). I anneal as part of my process in every loading.
Now that AMP offers custom programming, all of my cases have specific programs (per lot). Rabbit hole? YES. But it works for me.
That said; I load only Norma and Lapua brass (currently .223Rem, and 6.5CM). I cull any cases that feel different during any part of the process, or show signs of fatigue. I trash them at 20 regardless (last Norma batch I tossed 7 out of 200 during their life for various reasons). My current batch of 200 Lapua is @ 12, and I have tossed 2 cases. Powder charges are somewhere north of max..
I chose to put my money into precision loading, and good factory rifles (Tikka for one). The cost of excellent hand loading equipment ( AMP, FX 120i, custom dies), pays dividends for many years, with average ES in the low teens, and consistent sub MOA accuracy.
Do the math to see what works best for you.
my opinion.. hope it helps
The anneal-eaze was my first annealer. It was attractive to me because it was relatively inexpensive to get me in the game. I found myself rarely using it. The setup took like 10 minutes to get started but that wasn’t it. I was never sure if I was annealing properly. Was the time too much or too little ? Even using templaq polish it was still a good guess. I ended up giving that machine away to a friend. When I got the AMP, my whole world changed as far as annealing goes. I’m confident in the process now. It’s quick and clean. The AMP ain’t cheap but it always puts a smile on my face whenever I use it. That is worth the money right there.
I went the propane annealer route initially (made my own automated annealer). While it worked well, I usually lost at least a couple pieces of brass setting it up each time, and keeping the flame consistent was a pain.
I then transitioned to an AMP. And I never looked back again.
If you can swing it, skip the headaches and just go with an AMP.
I then transitioned to an AMP. And I never looked back again.
If you can swing it, skip the headaches and just go with an AMP.
I can't add much other than I went through the same debate a while back, and landed on the Vertex Benchsource. It's less than half the cost, and it's super simple to use. My allure to the AMP is that consistency others mentioned, but honestly if you use just a tiny bit of effort you get the same consistency from the Vertex. Once I set it up and run a few junk cases I have laying around with just to make sure it's ready, it's over in no time after that. I can do 200 cases in 10 minutes. Set up a pan to catch them and just load the wheel as it moves around.
Will I ever go to an AMP? Maybe, but only because I like gadgets.I do not feel even remotely at a disadvantage using the Benchsource
Oh an I'm approaching 10X firings on some Lapua 6.5 CM brass and when I ran them over a chrono Friday the SD was 3.4 or something.
Will I ever go to an AMP? Maybe, but only because I like gadgets.I do not feel even remotely at a disadvantage using the Benchsource
Oh an I'm approaching 10X firings on some Lapua 6.5 CM brass and when I ran them over a chrono Friday the SD was 3.4 or something.
