Did i just ruin my brass?!? Help

[WVBob]

The main issue, as I see it, if you load it and it splits or breaks in half, do you have a broken case puller to get it out of the gun? While it may be good, it only take one broken case to just FU** up the day at the range.

I go for being safe and toss it. But Noah and others could be right.

[bamboomaster]

From the link Lycanthrope gave

"I once heard a tale of a gentleman who placed his brass on a cookie tray and placed the whole batch in an oven at 650 degrees for over an hour. H
e wasn't hurt--at least seriously. His attitude toward annealing is very negative."
Mine was only at 350, but i don't know how hot they could have gotten in a 350 degree oven? And to make you folks who reload cry a little more, yes, this was Lapua brass.

Lapua brass isn't all that it's cooked up to be. I went through four 100 round boxes just to find 48 of the same case weight. The rounds were from two different batches and varied as much as 3.8 grains in weight!

[wanneroo]

Lapua brass isn't all that it's cooked up to be. I went through four 100 round boxes just to find 48 of the same case weight. The rounds were from two different batches and varied as much as 3.8 grains in weight!

Judging by what Lapua charges it must be the greatest stuff on earth. I was tempted to buy some of their absurdly priced 9mm bullets to see if it was really the big deal.

[Orlov556]

Minor update... I loaded up 10 of the suspect cases with a lower power load than i usually shoot. They resized well and i took one and tried to bend it like Frenchy suggested. The case bent out of shape but didn't shear, which is a good sign. I was hoping to get the gun out today but unfortunately it will have to wait until next weekend.

[mauser]

Lapua brass isn't all that it's cooked up to be. I went through four 100 round boxes just to find 48 of the same case weight. The rounds were from two different batches and varied as much as 3.8 grains in weight!

I've seen new Lapua brass with no flash hole.
I'm not impressed with high priced items that are high priced just because of a name. (I know, the name is well known for a reason). As Garrett Morris might say "Winchester brass has been berry berry good to me".

Noah gave some good advice based on fact rather than assumption.
I would see if the discoloration is superficial, (Does it clean off easily), or does it seem to be a permanent characteristic? I'm betting that it will clean right up and show no apparent deep rooted effects.
If it were my brass I would most likely use your approach and try a few light loads, after trying Frenchy's test with pliers on the worst looking one of the bunch.
I don't blame you for being cautious, even after reading the advice here, seeing something that looks different can cause concern even with a lot of reassurance.
Thinking while I'm composing and had a thought that may play into concerns of quality: Is the texture affected? Did the brass stay smooth or did the surface get rough or grainy? I've rejected old brass because of rough texture just because I figured that it must have been exposed to the elements in a way or for a length of time that may have disturbed it's integrity.
I'm inclined to believe that the discoloration you see could be due to minerals or chemicals in the water, and for the length of time it was exposed I wouldn't be too concerned unless it shows signs of being brittle, rough textured or anything else that might indicate more than a superficial change in appearance.
That temperature for that length of time shouldn't affect the quality of the brass.
I'd be a lot more concerned, probably to the point of telling you without question to scrap the brass IF you would have said that you used a concoction of salt water, vinegar, or some other unsavory chemical additive, (however harmless it may sound), to do the cleaning, especially if soaking for an extended period of time.
If it was a quick bath with tap water I wouldn't be concerned with the small amount of chlorine, fluorine, (fluoride), or other purification additives that may be present.

[Orlov556]

I've seen new Lapua brass with no flash hole.
I'm not impressed with high priced items that are high priced just because of a name. (I know, the name is well known for a reason). As Garrett Morris might say "Winchester brass has been berry berry good to me".

Noah gave some good advice based on fact rather than assumption.
I would see if the discoloration is superficial, (Does it clean off easily), or does it seem to be a permanent characteristic? I'm betting that it will clean right up and show no apparent deep rooted effects.
If it were my brass I would most likely use your approach and try a few light loads, after trying Frenchy's test with pliers on the worst looking one of the bunch.
I don't blame you for being cautious, even after reading the advice here, seeing something that looks different can cause concern even with a lot of reassurance.
Thinking while I'm composing and had a thought that may play into concerns of quality: Is the texture affected? Did the brass stay smooth or did the surface get rough or grainy? I've rejected old brass because of rough texture just because I figured that it must have been exposed to the elements in a way or for a length of time that may have disturbed it's integrity.
I'm inclined to believe that the discoloration you see could be due to minerals or chemicals in the water, and for the length of time it was exposed I wouldn't be too concerned unless it shows signs of being brittle, rough textured or anything else that might indicate more than a superficial change in appearance.
That temperature for that length of time shouldn't affect the quality of the brass.
I'd be a lot more concerned, probably to the point of telling you without question to scrap the brass IF you would have said that you used a concoction of salt water, vinegar, or some other unsavory chemical additive, (however harmless it may sound), to do the cleaning, especially if soaking for an extended period of time.
If it was a quick bath with tap water I wouldn't be concerned with the small amount of chlorine, fluorine, (fluoride), or other purification additives that may be present.

I used distilled water and the hornady one shot solution in the ultrasonic cleaner. I rinsed the cases with tap water before they went into the oven. I am thinking the discoloration was from the minerals in the tap water as they turned back to the original color when i polished them. I think they are going to be fine, and i am getting out next weekend to be sure.

[wanneroo]

I used distilled water and the hornady one shot solution in the ultrasonic cleaner. I rinsed the cases with tap water before they went into the oven. I am thinking the discoloration was from the minerals in the tap water as they turned back to the original color when i polished them. I think they are going to be fine, and i am getting out next weekend to be sure.

I try to use distilled water as my unfiltered well water has a lot of sulfur in it and probably other stuff.

[Bang]

I would be curious how deep the blue is. I would chuck one up in an electric drill and squeeze some steel wool on it as it spins. If the blue goes away it is superficial topical discoloration and would confer peace of mind.

[paplinker22]

Ruined or not is it really worth the risk and/or cost? Its just 50 pieces of brass. Scrap it and start over.

I believe brass has to be heated to well over 600 degrees to change at the molecular level. If I dry mine in the oven its usually at a much lower temperature and not for so long.

Bill

[Im not Batman]

So I had 50 pcs of once fired 22-250 brass that I cleaned in my ultrasonic cleaner. Well, i wanted it to dry quickly so i could put it away and bring it out another day to reload. So i put it in the oven at 350 degrees, i figured a few minutes and it should be dry.

Got a call from the wife saying she wanted to meet me at the grocery store for a few things. Totally forgot about the brass, it cooked for about 1.5 hours.

When i pulled it out, it is clearly discolored, like a like shade of blue. Does this mean its ruined? Any suggestions on testing to see if it is safe? I know, I’m a dumbass, but your help is appreciated.

Hmm.... The "BLUE" indicates about 400-425 deg. Home ovens aren't exact..we know that.
They are now rather soft... Hope you didn't do that string thing yet..

SCRAP EM