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Brass baked in oven at 350F?

T

thefitter

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Full Member
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May 10, 2010
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So I had a batch of brass that I tumbled in SS media drying in the oven, I usually just turn it on low at 100F for a couple of minutes turn it off and then put the brass in and let it sit over night.

Well I'm married...you can see where this is going right? She turns on the oven to pre heat with out looking and bakes my brass at 350F for maybe 15 minutes before noticing. Of course I'm the asshole because I got pissed off.

Anyway, the question is am I going to blow up myself? It's my understanding that annealing takes 700F and this was half that so are the case bases still OK?

How hot does the entire case get from firing?

Thanks
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Radiant heat from the heating coils could reach much higher than 350F.

Try this experiment, take a space heater, turn it on, hang a belt with the buckle in front of the heater about 6 inches away. Now touch the leather and then the metal buckle. Big difference between the two. Metal more readily conducts heat from a radiant source and will exceed the air temperature of your oven.

Also remember that annealing is a function of temperature vs. time.

Now ask yourself this question; Is your face worth a few dollars of brass?
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

I would be hesitant to use it.

You could try a crush test on the brass.

Try crushing the case body/web with monkey pliers. Do this for a case that was in the oven and for a case that was not in the oven... preferably the same type and make of case.

If both are difficult to crush then you should be ok. If the oven one crushes easy, but the non-oven case does not then you may have a problem. If both crush easily this test in invalid and should be ignored.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Do you trust your "hecho en Mexico" oven to ensure your face doesn't get blown off by tens of thousands of PSI worth of superheated gas?

This is such an old beat to death topic it's not even funny any more. It's to the point now that when I see the thread title "did I ruin this brass" I already know what the thread is about before I even mouse over.

For the love of all things ballistic newbies quit putting your damn brass in the oven. If your in that big a dang hurry that air dry isn't fast enough use a light bulb to dry your junk
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

As has been stated elsewhere all you need is some alcohol to dip it in. that will displace the water and dry real nice. The alcohol can be reused.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: R.W.Dale</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Do you trust your "hecho en Mexico" oven to ensure your face doesn't get blown off by tens of thousands of PSI worth of superheated gas?

This is such an old beat to death topic it's not even funny any more. It's to the point now that when I see the thread title "did I ruin this brass" I already know what the thread is about before I even mouse over.

<span style="color: #3333FF">Then don't mouse over, and thanks for the diatribe... brother.</span>

For the love of all things ballistic newbies quit putting your damn brass in the oven. If your in that big a dang hurry that air dry isn't fast enough use a light bulb to dry your junk </div></div>
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: R.W.Dale</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
For the love of all things ballistic newbies quit putting your damn brass in the oven. If your in that big a dang hurry that air dry isn't fast enough use a light bulb to dry your junk </div></div>

I found when I air-dried the brass, even with a fan over it, the brass took quite a long time to dry, and then had a discoloration on the spots where they touched.

I have mentioned before, the perfect solution for me was a food dehydrator. I can fit a Thumbler's Tumbler can full of brass in the trays, and it dries exceedingly well (just ask anyone who's bought brass from me). I leave them in the dryer until my next load of brass from the tumbler is ready to be dried. Oh, and a used dehydrator will work just fine-- you're not going to eat them.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Dont know if this will help but I have been doing the very same thing to my Lapua brass in our electric oven (except at 200 F ) for a year now. Probably seven firings and they still behave like new. I actually preheat the oven with the brass inside. I wish we knew just how hot your cases actually got ???
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Follow up thought. Why don't you reach out to a brass manufacturer and ask them if 350 F for 15 minutes will negatively affect your metallurgy? Cant hurt! I bet they would talk to you.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

I toss my wet brass in a convection oven @ 190 degrees for a couple hours to dry it out after it comes out of my Thumlers. Doesn't take long for it to dry out.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: The Mechanic</div><div class="ubbcode-body">As has been stated elsewhere all you need is some alcohol to dip it in. that will displace the water and dry real nice. The alcohol can be reused. </div></div>

If your in that big a rush do it this way.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Seems like I read that it takes almost 500 degrees to start to change the metal but, that being said, I doubt I'd shoot them.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

If you do shoot them post pics of the aftermath so others can learn from this.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Can you take picturess of the brass? I wonder if it changed the color of it, like when it is annealed. If there is no change, it may not have gotten up to a critical temp. to change the metalulargy.
SScott
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Sunnyside Scott</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Can you take picturess of the brass? I wonder if it changed the color of it, like when it is annealed. If there is no change, it may not have gotten up to a critical temp. to change the metalulargy.
SScott </div></div>

This seems like a pretty common question. I actually have metallurgy classes under my belt and have used the lab to actually test some brass after an 8 hour soak at 200F and 300F. I posted a whole thread about it a few years ago here with some cool pics. Neither the 200F nor the 300F batches had any significant (i.e. meaningful for shooting purposes) change as compared to their control group in terms of grain/crystalline pattern but did show the very slightest signs of what could be called normalization (which is actually a good thing). The Rockwell was almost identical in both batches as compared to the control. Sunnyside Scott: The color change at these temps (purple/blue hues) are not indicators of anything other than surface oxidation which is meaningless for our (shooting) purposes... That being said, I dry my brass in the over at 200 for a few hours.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

"I already know what the thread is about before I even mouse over." ----- "Then don't mouse over, and thanks for the diatribe... brother."

You handled that well.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: R.W.Dale</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Do you trust your "hecho en Mexico" oven to ensure your face doesn't get blown off by tens of thousands of PSI worth of superheated gas?

This is such an old beat to death topic it's not even funny any more. It's to the point now that when I see the thread title "did I ruin this brass" I already know what the thread is about before I even mouse over.

For the love of all things ballistic newbies quit putting your damn brass in the oven. If your in that big a dang hurry that air dry isn't fast enough use a light bulb to dry your junk </div></div>


Hmmm... R.W. please see my post above. Prolonged soaks didn't seem to have real effects until the ~500F range which is significantly way over what your typical ""hecho en Mexico" oven" is even capable of and even at 500F the effects were only slightly negative in terms of shooting brass applications.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Thanks for all the comments!
cool.gif


I did a quick crush test on the necks with some pliers. They are still noticeably harder than a freshly annealed neck. I figure if the neck did not soften the base did not either.

I'm going to bring my infrared thermometer from work and shoot a piece of brass sitting in the oven set at 400F to see how hot the brass gets in comparison to the air temp of the ovens internal thermometer.

And I will report back on Saturday after shooting these.



 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Sunnyside Scott</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Can you take picturess of the brass? I wonder if it changed the color of it, like when it is annealed. If there is no change, it may not have gotten up to a critical temp. to change the metalulargy.
SScott </div></div>

No color change.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

fitter, try crushing the webbing.

Purposely over anneal a case so that the webbing is annealed.

Crush that at the web, then crush one of your over brass at the web, and then crush a good case at the web.

That will give you a feel of what a dangerously soft case is like.

Whats with all the trolls in this thread and where did they all come from
laugh.gif
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Actually I did move up the case with the pliers. It got very stiff. It took 2 hands with a pair of Knipex cobras to crush the web in some.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

I dont think you will get any explosions, but dont quote me.

Invest in a hair dryer. Takes about 5 mins with the cases in a collander, and you dont have to worry about brass getting cooked.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Mmmm... had a similar problem, except I usually put my stuff in the oven @ 140F on 'pure convection' - honestly its the most use the oven gets in this house - in the big red MTM loading trays with 1/8" holes drilled in the bottom of each case hole. Works great - until I turned the oven off one night before bed and left the cases in overnight. Next day the wife decides to use the oven, and sets it to 350F. The smell of burning plastic clued them in early on, but half the cases were fused into the block by that point...

Luckily it was only Winchester brass...
whistle.gif
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Hehe thats bad...

I avoid the oven. Have done so before but figure its a dangerous game to play at.

Hair dryer works very fast you just have to put up with the noise for a little bit.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Just curious..... why do you folks go through all the brass drying fuss when all you have to do is give your clean, rinsed brass a final bath in 91 or 99% alcohol?

Try it. It works great and brass is dry in about 10 minutes using 99% alcohol. It also really cleans up any residue that you might have missed during your rinsing.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

What kind of brass and how many pieces? If we're talking about $20 in brass then why risk it, if it's $200 worth then some more testing is warranted.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Where are you guys buying alcohol in enough quantity, besides the liquor store.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

I tried the whole denatured alcohol thing but it was more hassle to me. You have to rinse the shells and then recover the alcohol and store it for reuse. I still use it when I want to load immediately, but I usually just load the next day.

Turning on the oven for 5 minutes and then <span style="text-decoration: underline">TURNING IT OFF</span> and letting them sit over night works well for me and my time table.

I looked for a clothes dryer rack but nobody seems to make them any more and when they did the were brand specific.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: thefitter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I tried the whole denatured alcohol thing but it was more hassle to me. </div></div>

Denatured alcohol is not a good choice. It is poisonous and can be absorbed by the skin. Isopropyl alcohol is what you want and can be had in most supermarkets. 91% is the minimum strength that you want.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: The Mechanic</div><div class="ubbcode-body">As has been stated elsewhere all you need is some alcohol to dip it in. that will displace the water and dry real nice. The alcohol can be reused. </div></div>

Exactly! I wonder why folks want to 'bake' their brass when alcohol is so easy and much faster.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Because, in my experience, some of the moisture will drain down to the bottom of the cavity in the loading block and pool there overnight. Without the heat, it doesn't go away and the insides of the case necks (or primer pockets) still have moisture in them when I pull them out of the loading block 24hrs later.

Some of my loading blocks have 1/8" drain holes drilled in them for this reason... also figured it allowed some of the air to circulate thru the interior of the case - like I said, I use the oven on convection mode.

As for the isopropyl alchohol... I believe that other 9% is... water. And thats before you use the alcohol to wash off the moisture in the cases...
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Given the description of the event, it sounds like the actual temperatures which the brass was subject to are unknown, realistically.
I say this, as in most ovens when you put it on the Pre-Heat setting, that's more or less as much thermal output as the unit can crank out. And in electric ovens such means that both the coils on the roof of the oven, as well as it's floor, are on HIGH. AKA combine Broil with the max Bake setting [usually about 550]. And many gas ovens are real similar.

Having goofed a few times baking, by forgetting to turn things from Pre-Heat, over to my required temp when I put the dish to be, in. I learned painfully, how said setting "cooks" things at FAR above anywhere near 350 degrees. Made a few smoking masterpieces that way. Ouch.

Then there's the bit where, few, if any kitchen ovens heat everything within them uniformly throughout. Laws of thermodynamics & all that.

Just a think or three.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

I made a really cheap solution as I went through the "did my brass get ruined" drama in the past.. Get a cardboard box and a ceramic space heater for $10 from Wal Mart. Cut a hole to fit the space heater, and then cut some vent holes on the other side of the box. Throw a few hundred cases in there and turn the heater on low heat, and it will dry the brass in an hour or 2. Cheap and works.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: LRS_Ranger</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I made a really cheap solution as I went through the "did my brass get ruined" drama in the past.. Get a cardboard box and a ceramic space heater for $10 from Wal Mart. Cut a hole to fit the space heater, and then cut some vent holes on the other side of the box. Throw a few hundred cases in there and turn the heater on low heat, and it will dry the brass in an hour or 2. Cheap and works. </div></div>

A cardboard box and a cheap made-in-china space heater... That doesn't sound like a fire hazard
smirk.gif
.

I've tried a few things over the years for drying wet brass. The things that have always gotten me were the water stains left on the brass and the water that stays in the flash hole for too long.

What's worked best for me is rinsing with deionized water and putting the wet brass into a rotary media separator with some torn up pieces of paper towel or rag, turning the handle for a few minutes, then putting it in an ammo box with the lid open overnight. This knocks the water out of the flash holes and the primer pockets, and drys it enough to prevent water spots and to speed up the process.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

Guys, I used some methalated spirits (95% ethanol) tonight and just to confirm it is the quickest and best way to dry brass.

Get yourself a one litre bottle, a large funnel and a stainless steel mixing bowl. This stuff should cost you $10.

Put the brass in the bowl, pour in the metho, let it sit for a minute... pour the metho back into the bottle using the funnel.

You can put the wet brass on a towel and it should dry in under 30 minutes.

Or you can do what I do. Put it all in a collander (strainer) and hit that shit with a hair dryer. 5 minutes later the brass is ready to be sized, primed and charged.

Ditch the oven, go with the alcohol.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

I said I would report back.

I shot 80 rounds today with no problems. 20 of those were also annealed after the oven incident.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

I use a ultrasonic cleaner to clean my brass and blow them out with compressed air after cleaning. Then I let them sit over night and they are good to go.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: High Binder</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
I actually have metallurgy classes under my belt and have used the lab to actually test some brass after an 8 hour soak at 200F and 300F. I posted a whole thread about it a few years ago here with some cool pics. Neither the 200F nor the 300F batches had any significant (i.e. meaningful for shooting purposes) change as compared to their control group in terms of grain/crystalline pattern but did show the very slightest signs of what could be called normalization (which is actually a good thing). The Rockwell was almost identical in both batches as compared to the control. </div></div>

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: thefitter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
I shot 80 rounds today with no problems. 20 of those were also annealed after the oven incident. </div></div>

I don't know why so many guys want to doubt the science... Using an oven to dry brass is perfectly safe, as posted above.
 
Re: Brass baked in oven at 350F?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: High Binder</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: High Binder</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
I actually have metallurgy classes under my belt and have used the lab to actually test some brass after an 8 hour soak at 200F and 300F. I posted a whole thread about it a few years ago here with some cool pics. Neither the 200F nor the 300F batches had any significant (i.e. meaningful for shooting purposes) change as compared to their control group in terms of grain/crystalline pattern but did show the very slightest signs of what could be called normalization (which is actually a good thing). The Rockwell was almost identical in both batches as compared to the control. </div></div>

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: thefitter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

I shot 80 rounds today with no problems. 20 of those were also annealed after the oven incident. </div></div>

I don't know why so many guys want to doubt the science... Using an oven to dry brass is perfectly safe, as posted above. </div></div>
No one is doubting science. You just don't know how hot your brass actually got in an oven set to 350.
 
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